NEW YORK -- Seven years have passed since heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko last fought in the United States, in a fight that will not ever make his career highlight reel. It was an awful fight.
He faced Russian Sultan Ibragimov in a world title unification bout in February 2008 at Madison Square Garden and while Klitschko methodically and easily won a lopsided decision, the once-enthusiastic crowd began to leave before the fight was over. It was that bad as Ibragimov ran and held the whole fight and Klitschko was content to jab his way to a decision without ever looking to get rid of an overmatched opponent.
After that fight, Klitschko retreated to Germany, where he is a major star and has fought almost exclusively since, except for one fight in Russia and one in Switzerland.
But Klitschko, who has become more focused on offense in recent years, always had in the back of his mind that he would someday return to the United States and that day is now here, thanks largely to a contract with HBO that made it economically possible.
Klitschko will make the 18th title defense of his second title reign against Philadelphia contender Bryant Jennings -- the eighth undefeated opponent of his reign -- Saturday night (HBO, 10 ET/PT) at Madison Square Garden with one thing on his mind.
"I'm gonna do it in the Klitschko way and my way is domination," Klitschko told ESPN.com. "Complete domination and eventually I will end it as I end most of my fights -- end the fight early. Pretty much be as dominant as it could get."
There is little reason to doubt Klitschko, who has been all but untouchable for a decade. His title reign reached nine years Wednesday, already the second longest in heavyweight history behind only the legendary Joe Louis, who held the title for 11 years, 8 months and 8 days.
"I cannot believe it's nine years," the 39-year-old Klitschko said. "You are forcing me to think about my age. I don't want to be reminded about it."
"I'm gonna do it in the Klitschko way and my way is domination. Complete domination and eventually I will end it as I end most of my fights -- end the fight early."Wladimir Klitschko
In the scheduled 10-round co-feature, Brooklyn welterweight Sadam Ali (21-0, 13 KOs), a 26-year-old 2008 U.S. Olympian coming off a dominating ninth-round knockout of dangerous Luis Carlos Abregu in his HBO debut in November, will return to face Francisco Santana (22-3-1, 11 KOs), 28, of Santa Barbara, California, who has won 10 fights in a row.
Klitschko is happy to be back fighting in the U.S.
"I am really excited to be back in the States," Klitschko said. "Champion of the world means to fight in different countries, in different cities, which I have accomplished in the past years. I've been fighting in Berlin and Switzerland. I've been fighting in Moscow, Russia. I've been fighting in many German cities. It's always exciting to be back in the States and to be back at the Garden.
"I've been collecting my belts, all those belts. It's a lot of work, a lot of fights, and it's definitely exciting to be back at the Garden, the mecca of entertainment."
Klitschko's 17 consecutive heavyweight defenses are third in division history behind only Larry Holmes (20) and Louis (25, which is the record for any weight class).
Klitschko (63-3, 54 KOs), who is from Ukraine but lives in South Florida, enters the bout 24-2 in world title fights, the second-most wins in heavyweight title action behind Louis' record 26.
And here's one more stat: When Klitschko steps into the ring against Jennings he will be taking part in a heavyweight record 27th word title bout, tying Louis' record.
The history is mounting for Klitschko, whose overwhelming résumé also includes a 1996 Olympic super heavyweight gold medal.
Klitschko, coming off a four-knockdown, fifth-round demolition of then-unbeaten Kubrat Pulev, against whom he scored the knockout of the year in November, claims he doesn't think much about the historic nature of his career or the company he is keeping in the record book.
"I'm being dead honest with you -- when I am in training camp I train, I relax, I watch my fights, I watch my opponent's fights," Klitschko said. "I'm a hamster in a hamster wheel. I'm running in the wheel. I can't watch myself from the side. Let me get out of the wheel and when I get out of boxing I can talk about the [history]. I only worry about being ready for the fight.
"I hear it all the time about the history. It comes in one ear and out the other. Those guys are icons to me, Louis, Holmes, [Muhammad] Ali. I don't feel comfortable to be compared to anyone. Not because I don't like them. It's because I respect them so much. This is for somebody else to do. Maybe I'm too humble but I don't pay attention to it.
"Why waste my energy and time on it? It's so secondary to me. When I get out of my hamster wheel I can look at it and talk about it. For now, I am in the middle of action and I enjoy it."
One thing that keeps Klitschko so focused is the memory of past failings, particularly his fifth-round knockout loss to Lamon Brewster in a 2004 vacant title bout in Las Vegas. It was his second knockout loss in four fights -- a second-round waxing by Corrie Sanders was the other -- and many left him for dead.
"I don't want to hear I'm the greatest, the strongest. I don't want to hear it," Klitschko said. "I know everybody is watching and wanting to push the king of the hill off the hill. All my sparring partners talk day and night how they can hurt me. I cannot relax. I cannot let anyone whisper in my ear and affect my feelings and tell me I am a badass. Then you lose reality. I haven't accomplished what I want to accomplish so I don't want to hear it.
"I just want to stick to my game plan as I have since 2004. I will never forget it. I had overconfidence and that will never happen again. I know what I am capable of. I don't need to impress and look tough and say tough things. I'd rather chill and back off. I know I can get you. I know the reality. I am in my wheel as a hamster. I need to move it and I know how to do it."
Klitschko conceded that he does occasionally pay attention to heavyweight history, just not the type that involves him. For example, he has read books about Rocky Marciano and studied the career of Max Schmeling, whom he got to know before he died.
"I'm not comparing myself to anyone but I understand time is passing by. All my sparring partners now are 22, 25, 27. I used to be the youngest in the gym all the time, and now it seems my sparring partners are much younger than I am," he said. "Even my coach [Johnathon Banks] is seven or eight years younger than me. But in my mind I am still young. I do spar with these young and ambitious guys and it keeps me young."
Klitschko has made it a habit to bring in top young fighters. In recent camps he has had three elite prospects: Deontay Wilder (who won the one belt Klitschko doesn't own in January), 2012 British Olympic gold medalist Anthony Joshua and New Zealand's Joseph Parker.
"I see myself and I compare myself -- this is me 15 years ago," he said of the young guns he has worked with.
Now he is fighting another young gun in 30-year-old Jennings (19-0, 10 KOs), a late starter who didn't put on boxing gloves until 2009 but has risen quickly. His last two fights against undefeated opponents, a 10th-round knockout of Artur Szpilka and a split decision against Mike Perez (both at Madison Square Garden), earned him a mandatory shot against Wilder, but he turned it down when he got an offer from Klitschko.
"Bryant Jennings is fighting for a lot. He's fighting for his pride, but also he's fighting for a lot of financial assets," Klitschko said.
Klitschko is fighting to get the best out of himself.
"It's not about titles or the number of the defenses or years as reigning champion," he said. "It's the simplicity. There's a documentary on iTunes I was watching about a 94-year-old Japanese man who makes sushi. World famous. He's saying, 'I'm trying to make this perfect sushi.' He is trying to make the perfect sushi and hasn't done it. I want to get to the peak but nobody knows where the peak is. It was so simple. You think you got there but you didn't.
"You get further and you see better but nobody knows where the peak is. This guy at 94 is still trying to make perfect sushi. In boxing, I don't know where my peak is and nobody knows where it is, but I'm still looking for it."