Few have ever disputed the talent that featherweight world titleholder Gary Russell Jr. possesses. He was a 2008 U.S. Olympian and the 2011 ESPN.com prospect of the year. His speed -- hand and foot -- is among the best in boxing.
He was expected to win a world title from the day he turned pro and did last year. But Russell has had various injuries that have limited his schedule over the past few years and he also has been roundly criticized by many for the overall poor level of his competition.
The first time he took on a top opponent, two-time Olympic gold medalist Vasyl Lomachenko for a vacant world title in June 2014, he got taken to school.
Since then, Russell has won both of his fights, including against Jhonny Gonzalez, the only other quality opponent on his resume, last time out. He knocked out Gonzalez in the fourth round of a dominant performance to win a world title. That fight was 13 months ago.
Russell has been on another long layoff since. He was supposed to make his first title defense in November against Oscar Escandon but suffered a cut that forced the fight to be canceled.
Now healed, Russell finally will defend his 126-pound belt when he meets unheralded Patrick Hyland on Saturday (Showtime, 11 p.m. ET) at the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut.
Russell (26-1, 15 KOs), 27, of Capitol Heights, Maryland, said the cut has healed and he is ready to go.
"I feel good. I'm ready. I put the work in at the gym," Russell said. "I got cussed out several times and sometimes I left the gym feeling like the worst fighter ever. But, right now, we're ready and we're prepared to invest in my ability.
"I've never had a fight where I was 100 percent. There has always been something going on. I have had hand injuries since the beginning of my career, but we have creative ways to handle that and preserve my hands. Right now, I feel great. I just have to pick my shots more, but that's where the speed becomes a factor."
In the co-feature, junior lightweight world titleholder Jose "Sniper" Pedraza (21-0, 12 KOs), 26, of Puerto Rico, will make his second title defense against mandatory challenger Stephen Smith (23-1, 13 KOs), 30, of England, one of the fighting Smith brothers who include junior middleweight world titleholder Liam Smith and super middleweight contender Callum Smith.
Both bouts were originally scheduled to take place March 12 on the Keith Thurman-Shawn Porter card, but it was postponed when the Thurman-Porter main event was pushed back to June 24 after Thurman suffered minor injuries in a car accident.
While Russell is ready to go after his cut healed and the fight postponement, he is still facing Hyland, another fighter on a long list of opponents not viewed in his league.
Russell attempted to talk up Hyland as a dangerous foe even though few give him much of a chance to win.
"I know that anytime you have a fighter that trains for six to eight weeks and prepares for no one else but you, it's a dangerous fight," Russell said. "He's tall, he's long, but we can take him. We're going to handle it. I need to maintain control of the fight, close the distance and maintain the jab. Complete dominance. I want to touch the body early. He likes to move a lot, so we're going to cut all that down.
"Hyland is going to come in there to win. You have to have that confidence to get in the ring. He's preparing himself, but the question is, will it be good enough? I highly doubt it. We don't take anyone lightly and we prepare to the best of our abilities. Everyone in the ring can pull off the upset. That's why I have to be prepared to the fullest. He's not really a pressure fighter so I might have to take the fight to him. He's long and rangy and he tries to keep his distance. He's not a big puncher, but he definitely has the ability to steal a fight."
Hyland (31-1, 15 KOs), 32, of Ireland, has faced absolutely no opponent of consequence except for one -- the man who beat him. He boxed Javier Fortuna for an interim world title in December 2012 and lost a unanimous decision that wasn't all that close. Fortuna's calling card is his speed. Russell is even faster.
Hyland knows that he is facing a fast and complicated opponent.
"I know he has got fast hands. He's a great southpaw and a great boxer, so I have to be at the best of my ability on Saturday night for that," Hyland said. "I worked on a game plan in the gym to counter his hand speed and it all has to come together on fight night. I can do all this and say all that, but I just have to perform on Saturday night and put it in by doing everything I've worked on to become champion.
"To challenge a great champion, Gary Russell, Jr., is an honor for me. I think Gary is an awesome fighter with great hand speed and boxing ability. I've been working with Jono Carroll, an unbeaten Irish southpaw with good hand speed and good movement, who is ideal for what I have to work on to beat Russell."
If Hyland does pull off the upset, he will become the first Irish fighter to win a featherweight world title since Hall of Famer Barry McGuigan beat fellow HOFer Eusebio Pedroza on a 15-round decision in 1985.
"I'm just a local lad from Johnstown in Dublin, and to be fighting on the big stage and to be fighting for a major world title, and again to be named the second [Irish] featherweight ever to win a world title would be just amazing," Hyland said. "A real dream come true for myself.
"To fight for the WBC title is everything I've dreamed of since I was a kid and all of the hard work that I have put in to get to this position to fight for it. I am happy and I am just living for Saturday night."
For Hyland, victory would be the culmination of a dream. For Russell, a win would be a way to move the chains and get closer to a much bigger fight, which he said that he wants.
"We would love to unify with Lee Selby," Russell said. "If I had my choice, I would go with Lee Selby first to unify. Immediately after that, I want [titleholder] Leo Santa Cruz, and after that I need Lomachenko [in a rematch]. I don't care [what weight] Lomachenko moves to. He can lose his next 10 fights, but before my career is done he has to see me."