By Keith Idec

Adonis Stevenson seemingly understands how droves of disinterested fans feel his title fight Friday night against Dmitry Sukhotskiy should end.

Sukhotskiy is a 30-1 underdog against one of boxing’s biggest punchers, thus Stevenson expects to win by knockout in the main event of a four-fight Showtime broadcast from Pepsi Coliseum in Quebec City, Canada.

“I’m going to win by knockout,” Stevenson said Tuesday during a news conference, before referring to his late trainer. “Emanuel [Steward] always told me knockouts sell, so I’m going to win by knockout. It’s going to be a short night on Showtime.”

Sukhotskiy (22-2, 16 KOs), ranked No. 5 by the WBC, hasn’t lost by knockout or technical knockout during his nine-year pro career. Nevertheless, the 37-year-old Stevenson (24-1, 20 KOs) and his trainer, Javan “Sugar” Hill, have devised a game plan that makes them confident a knockout is imminent in this defense of his WBC light heavyweight title.

“Dmitry is a very sound fundamental fighter,” Hill said. “He uses his jab very well and he likes to punch and get knockouts. His nickname is ‘The Hunter,’ so we’re expecting him to come forward. He’s not going to be bouncing around and moving and making it a boring fight.

“Adonis is a come-forward kind of boxer, but he can also move backwards and counterpunch. It’s going to be a strategic fight up until a certain point. As Adonis always says, ‘I’m going to wait for you to make a mistake and I’m going to catch you.’ I’m looking forward to Dmitry making a mistake and Adonis capitalizing and catching him.”

Despite very favorable odds, Stevenson realizes this optional defense of his championship amounts to the biggest opportunity of the 33-year-old Sukhotskiy’s career. The Russian contender already has lost a title fight – a 12-round unanimous decision to Juergen Braehmer (45-2, 33 KOs), then the WBO light heavyweight champ, five years ago in Schwerin, Germany – and isn’t likely to get a third title shot if he loses Friday night.

“We’re not underestimating him,” Stevenson said. “I know he’s coming to fight and I’ll be ready.”

Keith Idec covers boxing for The Record and Herald News, of Woodland Park, N.J., and krikya360.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.