Evander Holyfield plans a Rocky Balboa

Evander Holyfield, 46, has no intention of quitting the ring if he wins the WBA crown against Russian champion Nikolai Valuev next month.

“My goal is to be Undisputed Heavyweight champion of the world and not just one title,” said the veteran American at a news conference staged ahead of the December 20 fight in Switzerland.

The former champion has not fought since losing to then-World Boxing Organisation title holder Sultan Ibragimov a year ago and faces the 7-foot Valuev, who has a 49-1 record and is 11 years his junior.

“I never thought I would be fighting at 46, maybe 34 at the most. I guess in 1999 I thought it was over after losing to Lennox Lewis,” said Holyfield. “I truly believe this is my year and I am honoured to have the opportunity to fight Valuev and I will be the world champion.”

Valuev, who beat John Ruiz in August to regain the WBA title he lost to Ruslan Chagaev in April 2007, is wary of his opponent. “Holyfield is a legend, a fantastic boxer and I want to thank him for agreeing to this fight,” said the Russian.

“He is a very dangerous opponent because he is experienced so we have to adjust our training to take that into account. But it does not detract from my confidence to beat him, we will see in the ring.”

‘Not fighting for money’
There are at least 125 million reasons why the former world heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield should not be preparing to lace on the gloves again at the age of 46. “People are always asking me why I’m keeping this going, and if I’m doing it for the money,” said Holyfield. “But I had this goal even before I had any money problems. You get tired of telling people you’re not doing it for the money.”