Boxing: Klitschko desperate to hand Povetkin first loss

Klitschko has not tasted defeat since 2004 and his fight with Povetkin in Moscow will end five years of "will they-won't they" negotiations between the two fighters' camps.

"I'll do anything to spoil Povetkin's record," he told Moskovskie Novosti, a sister publication to R-Sport. "I know it will be very tricky to do it, but I'll be trying to get the win by knockout."

Klitschko added there would be "no politics" in a fight some media have characterized as symbolic of the often fraught relations between Russia and Klitschko's native Ukraine, Kazinform refers to R-Sport.

Povetkin has a 26-fight unbeaten record, while Klitschko is 60-3.

Organizers have said Saturday's fight at Moscow's Olimpiisky arena is nearly sold out, which would make it one of the most popular boxing matches in Russian history.