That night, Great Britain's 2000 Olympic gold medalist Audley Harrison was the opponent and, just like Wilder’s 27 previous outings, it finished pretty quickly.

In fact, it took the Bronze Bomber just 70 seconds to dispatch the 41-year-old Harrison, who never boxed again.

"Life has changed a lot since those days," Wilder tells The Ring.

"When I first came here it was up in Sheffield and I met some beautiful people who I still have friendships with to this day. Most of the time when I come here I still get up with my old buddies from then.

"Even when I’m not here, we still talk on FaceTime and everything. Back in those times we had Skype. Times have changed since then but here I am again, over a decade later, getting ready to fight someone I was supposed to face years ago."

Wilder (44-4-1, 43 KOs) has fought 21 times since, winning and losing the WBC heavyweight title while etching his name into boxing folklore as one of of the biggest punchers in history.

On Saturday night, Wilder will fight on British soil for the first time since that Sheffield night and, in a strange twist of fate, he will face another 41-year-old likely to retire after this encounter.

On that topic, the 40-year-old said: "Things don't happen when we want it to but it's always on time. Especially when we want things really bad and don't understand why we can't have it, there's a purpose and reason for all things so we have to be patient.

"I'm excited to be back here, fighting at the O2 Arena and in a place filled with the most exciting boxing fans in the world."

Derek Chisora has no Olympic gold medal but has become arguably the most loved cult hero in British boxing over the course of his rollercoaster career, which started in February 2007.

Chisora did box for the WBC heavyweight title in December 2022, but by that point Wilder had already lost it to Tyson Fury. Instead the pair, who have both now boxed 49 times as professionals, will meet to bring up their personal half-centuries.

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There was a time when people would have scoffed had the name Chisora been put forward as a potential opponent for the destructive Wilder. Some people even called for him to retire when he dropped a majority decision to a little-known, 16-0 German called Agit Kabayel in Monaco in November 2017. He didn’t listen.

And now, as he prepares to take on 40-year-old Wilder, Chisora is the 1/2 (-200) favourite with most bookmakers, which tells the story of the last few years.

While Chisora (36-13, 23 KOs) has beaten Kubrat Pulev, Gerald Washington, Joe Joyce and Otto Wallin, the once-feared Tuscaloosa puncher has boxed six times in as many years, losing four and beating only Robert Helenius and Tyrell Anthony Herndon.

Even so, he arrived in the UK for this fight as one of the most recognisable faces in world boxing. It's a far cry from those days in Sheffield but was it better back then?

"I guess when you don't know much about the business, everything is better," he adds.

"You're just excited. When you keep winning it's like another step forward, the money goes up, you get more fans and stuff. It’s fun. But when you learn a lot, you've seen too much, it's not much fun.

"You can't control what people do, how people think and unfortunately everyone has an agenda. It doesn't feel good when someone has an agenda against you, they say they love you, sitting at the table with you and your children, eating your food and staying at your house but stealing from you at the same time. It's just the ups and downs in the business, you've got to be careful who you trust."

"Getting into this business I didn't know what to expect. First of all I just wanted to look after my daughter and then be a champion after that. That's the reason why I risk my life, for her. I risked my life to save a life.

"It has been a blessing to do what I’ve done and accomplished in this business. I've just evolved as a fighter, boxing is an emotional rollercoaster made up of so many things. It will make or break you."

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Stitched into his jacket are the words "better with age, aged to perfection," which has become his mantra for the final chapter of his remarkable boxing career.

"I don't strive to be perfect," he says. "That's like walking down a thin line. If everyone was perfect, this world would be boring. The world wouldn't be what it is. There wouldn't be no chaos." On Saturday night, expect exactly that.