By David Field, PA Sport Boxing Correspondent, Sydney

Audley Harrison's market value will rise with one big punch or eight minutes of percentage boxing in the Olympic super-heavyweight quarter-finals in Sydney on Wednesday.

Harrison is capable of taking either route to victory against the Ukrainian Oleksii Mazikin with the prize a guaranteed bronze, which would be Britain's 44th boxing medal in all Games competition and the first since Robin Reid finished third in Barcelona '92.

If he fights his way to certain silver on Friday - and strikes gold in Sunday's final - his earning power will soar with Britain's big medal prospect having stated his intentions to turn professional post-Sydney.

And Harrison got a close up of the mighty wealth available to the world's top heavyweights when he took time out from the Olympic Village to tape a BBC interview in company with "The Real Deal" Evander Holyfield in downtown Sydney on Sunday.

He resisted a £100,000 offer to change codes before the Olympics, remaining loyal to Britain's cause. But, passing 29 next month, Harrison cannot wait any longer to punch for pay.

British boxing needs Harrison to excel with no potential big stars seemingly coming through to follow Lennox Lewis and Prince Naseem Hamed - with due respect to prospects such as Richard Hatton and Anthony Farnell.

Harrison has not previously fought Mazikin but, with coach Ian Irwin, has studied a video of the Ukrainian's opening win over New Zealand's Angus Shelford.

Mazikin won easily 19-5, but that was not the case for Harrison, who left it late before forcing a last-round revenge triumph over Russia's Alexeii Lezin.

Harrison was trailing 6-8 with less than 90 seconds remaining but unleashed a crucial left-cross to snatch stoppage - a victory so vital to his ring future, just a year after Lezin had outscored him in the first Olympic qualifier.

Irwin said: "He's as big as Audley, orthodox. He's steady, one-pace and has three shots to his repertoire, that's the jab, the right hand and the left-hook and varies those to make combinations.

"On paper, he wouldn't look to present the same flair of the Russian, with his elusiveness. But we are taking it very, very seriously.

"He certainly needed that contest against Lezin, it's a while since he boxed. He got off he pace at one stage, but he was quite adamant that he would land that left cross.

"I got a bit frustrated with him. He was allowing him space and time, once the Russian was bouncing up and down he was comfortable, he had to impose changes, put him under pressure and crowd him - that's when Lezin gets very uncomfortable, and gets to grabbing, that's what brought the two-point warning."

Britain's other Olympian Courtney Fry was eliminated in the opening round and is channelling his energies into supporting Harrison in his medal campaign.

But Irwin revealed that Fry had a recurrence of a back complaint just before his losing bout against Ghana's Charles Adamu last Wednesday.

"He's had the back problem for some time, We've tried to disguise it, and now we've really got to get to the bottom with an MRI scan," added Irwin.

"Courtney felt a twinge two-thirds of the way through the warm-up, minutes before going in to the ring.

"It could have been on his mind, but I'm not making any excuses. He became very upright and hadn't got the confidence or movement to slip away."