Germany’s former world super-middleweight champion Arthur Abraham admits defeat to Namibia’s Willberforce Shihepo would spell the end of his career, AFP said.

“Another defeat would be a catastrophe. I’d have to quit boxing, that’s clear enough,” Abraham told Die Welt.

“That would be bitter, but I would have to accept it, even if it would be damn difficult for me to admit that I no longer belong to the top level.

“If I think negatively, I’d have to wrap myself in cotton wool so that nothing happens. But that’s not how I worked.”

Abraham, 33, takes on the 30-year-old Shihepo for the vacant WBO Inter-Continental super middleweight title in Schwerin, 200 kilometres north-west of Berlin.

The African has a record of 15 knock-outs from 20 wins with six defeats, the last of which came back in 2009, while Abraham has 28 knock-outs from 26 wins with four defeats from his 40 bouts.