Charlie Edwards had a one word reply when told that the news that he had agreed to fight British and Commonwealth bantamweight champion, Andrew Cain, had come as a surprise.

“Why?”

Edwards, 20-1 (7 KOs), is always an interesting fighter to talk to. Rather than trotting out tried and tested media friendly soundbites, he speaks openly and honestly and isn’t shy about about turning a question back on the interviewer.

On this occasion, the answer seems pretty simple.

The former WBC flyweight champion spent almost five years in the boxing wilderness but dragged himself back to relevance in 2024.

In April he collected a WBC ranking belt at bantamweight. In September he won the European title. The whole comeback has been screened on terrestrial television by Channel 5.

Just days before the fight with Cain was announced, Edwards had been shaking hands at the WBC Convention in Hamburg and he is the IBF’s highest ranked contender.

Suddenly, it was announced that the 31 year-old had agreed to travel to the backyard of the most dangerous British rival he could find. In modern boxing, that is definitely worthy of a raised eyebrow.

“I think people are confused - and why you're confused - about it is because it [the pre-fight press release and poster] only says it's for the British and Commonwealth titles and that's actually not the case,” Edwards told The Ring.

“There's going to be more titles added to this. I've had promises that it's going to be added to this. George Warren, Frank Warren, my manager and everyone, they're working on it in the background.

“So while it does look like I'm taking a step down - and that's not being disrespectful - it’s just because of titles when I've been shouting and screaming for world titles.

“However, there are going to be more titles added to it so that needs to be stated.”

Whichever titles do end up being on the line on March 15th, Edwards can’t afford to treat the fight as a means to an end. Fortunately, he seems fully alert to the danger he will face.

It is tough to think of an opponent who offers as high a risk to reward ratio as Cain. The 28 year-old is an intense, fierce fighter with fight ending power and a cold, vicious streak. He is also still relatively unknown.

Cain has spent almost a decade looking for recognition.

He laid siege to the super bantamweight division until March 2023 when he ran into Ionut Baluta. Despite sustaining severe hand injuries which would eventually sideline him for 13 months, Cain and Baluta engaged in a violent up and down war before the Romanian emerged with a split decision victory.

He has been a dominant force since returning to action as a bantamweight earlier this year, scoring three straight stoppage wins and taking apart Ash Lane to win the British and Commonwealth titles.

Given Edwards’ status as a former world champion and his deal with Wasserman, it would have been more than possible to engineer a far more straightforward path to a world title shot but whilst it sounds as if a shortcut directly back into the title picture was a major factor in him taking the fight, it also seems like the prospect of fighting the hungry Liverpudlian has ignited something extra in Edwards.

“Andrew Cain's a formidable opponent. It’s a serious fight,” he said.

“This is what I mean, I'm an old school fighter, a proper fighter.

“I'm not going to shy away from someone who wants to fight me in Britain. I've never had a big British dust up. I tried to get it with Paul Butler and Kal Yafai and they both fucked off and retired into no man's land, you know.

“So it's always something that I've wanted. Believe it or not, this is my first fight back in an arena for five years.

“At the end of my career, this will be one of the best British comeback stories ever in the world of boxing. It was five years since I had my last title fight, 12 rounds [before beating Thomas Essomba to win the European belt].

“The two last fights have put me in a good stead and now this fight is going to put me in a great stead.

“I don't look past any opponent but to get past an Andrew Cain and do it very well. Where does that leave me? Straight to the top.”

Edwards spent years perfecting his craft inside the ring but his time away from the limelight taught him plenty about the way the sport works in the back channels fans and some fighters don’t get to see. Since his return, he has taken his career by he scruff of the neck and been much more outspoken and willing to say what he wants, what he believes he is worth and what he thinks he can achieve.

Maybe the news that he had leapt at the chance to fight Cain shouldn’t have come as such a surprise.

“When you believe in yourself and you know you've fucking sacrificed your heart, soul and emotions and everything and you’ve continued to say no to all the challenges that get presented to you along the way and you have faith. I'm thankful for the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Because he's guided me to the moment,” he said.

“That's why I'm confident in saying what I believe in. Because I talk with conviction. I believe that's what's going to happen and all the rest will unfold in front of me. There's no pressure on me.”