The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES - Vitali Klitschko speaks four languages, has an advanced degree and travels widely to help further the education of children in poor countries.

With all that brainpower, you wouldn't think he would be too eager to fight Lennox Lewis.

Then again, Klitschko is no dummy in the ring, either.

"I am not a god and nobody's perfect," Klitschko said. "But I am really confident to go in the ring and fight against Lennox Lewis."

A giant even for a heavyweight at 6 feet 7, Klitschko takes a giant step up in class Saturday night when he meets Lewis for the WBC heavyweight championship.

It's a fight that two weeks ago he thought he might never get. Now, Klitschko must figure out a way to beat one of the most talented heavyweights of recent times.

It won't be easy. Klitschko is seen as a fighter with limited skills and is not even the best heavyweight in his family. That honor went to his brother, Wladimir, who was knocked out a few months ago by Corrie Sanders.

Still, Klitschko is big, strong and can hit. And he wants to take advantage of a fight that fell into his lap.

Klitschko has wanted to get Lewis in the ring ever since rising to No. 1 contender status in the WBC. As part of a deal to fight Lewis later this year, he agreed to fight Cedric Boswell on the undercard Saturday for what was supposed to be a Lewis fight against Kirk Johnson.

Johnson was hurt two weeks ago, and Lewis turned to Klitschko.

"It shows that Lennox Lewis is pretty confident, a real champion," Klitschko said.

Lewis has reason to be confident, even though he hasn't fought since knocking out Mike Tyson a year ago. At 37, Lewis seems to be getting better with time.

But for one of the few times in his career, the 6-5 Lewis will be punching up at an opponent, and Klitschko has the power to test the most glaring weakness Lewis has - a tendency to go down after getting hit on the jaw.

That hasn't swayed oddsmakers, who make Lewis a 4-1 favorite in the scheduled 12-round fight at the Staples Center.

"Klitschko has never seen a boxer like me," Lewis said. "I am the last great heavyweight."

Klitschko fights with the stilted style that used to be taught to amateur boxers in the Soviet Union. But he is 32-1 with 31 knockouts, with his only loss coming to IBF champion Chris Byrd when he quit after the ninth round with a shoulder injury in a fight he was winning.

"I may not have the smooth and nice technical style, but the result is very important," Klitschko said. "It looks not so nice maybe when watching, but I find for me my style is very effective."

It will have to be effective for Klitschko to counter Lewis, who knocked out the last big guy he met, Michael Grant, in April 2000.

"I do well against big guys," Lewis said.