Anthony Joshua on Friday night claimed he would be driven by a fear of failure when he faces Wladimir Klitschko Saturday night in their £50 million Wembley showdown.
Joshua has not lost since being beaten in the final of the 2011 World Amateur Championships and said he never wanted to experience that feeling again.
“I think it’s the fear of losing, that’s why you want to perform," Mirror.uk quoted the Nigerian-born British boxer as saying.
“I’ve dreamt about this fight and the fear of losing only makes you stronger. When you go through a loss you naturally come back stronger.
“Because I’ve lost before, I can embrace what happened before. For me, even if you lose and you’ve tried, you’ve still won.”
The IBF heavyweight champion who has Nigerian parentage and bears the Yoruba name Oluwafemi, 27, learnt he needed to be stronger after losing to Magomedrasul Majidov, which was when he last cried, and has won every amateur and professional fight since.
“I cried walking back to the changing rooms,” he said. “You don’t think you will cry because you’re a tough man, but it’s just the passion coming out.
“I went back to the gym and did some weights because I knew I needed to be stronger. And here I am today.”
Joshua weighed in 10lbs heavier than Klitschko earlier on Friday, tipping the scales at 17st 12lbs 2oz.
Joshua was introduced into boxing by his cousin Ben Ileyemi and he reminisced of his growing up years.
“Where I have come from will always sit close,” he said. “Me and Ben were talking about it the other day and it’s crazy.
“Back in the day, Wembley to me meant hustling, the market, trying to get fake clothes, man. This is where the market is. This where we used to come and get our clothes and CDs.
“I liked the jeans, the Evisu ones. They were like a statement pair of jeans, everyone knew they were Evisu. And Air Force 1s. They were about £20.”
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