Alexander Povetkin's promoter has dismissed claims that the Russian heavyweight was on the brink of being pulled out of the fight before his knockout of Dillian Whyte.
Povetkin had received concerned advice from his corner after being floored twice in the fourth round by Whyte, who appeared to be heading for a dominant victory until the former WBA champion delivered a fight-ending uppercut in the fifth.
The rival contenders will meet again in a rematch on November 21, live on Sky Sports Box Office, and promoter Andrey Ryabinskiy has ruled out any suggestions that Povetkin's training team were considering stopping the fight.
"It's nothing more than just rumours," Ryabinskiy told Sky Sports.
"The fourth round wasn't easy, it made us worry, but Sasha felt good, he was not particularly shocked. I think there were usual questions after the knockdown: "Are you all right? Shall we continue the fight?"
Povetkin has not suffered defeat since a seventh-round stoppage loss to Anthony Joshua at Wembley in 2018, and Ryabinskiy believes his fighter's victory over Whyte captured the attention of the unified title holder, who was ringside.
"I think it impressed Joshua and probably even made his victory over Povetkin more significant in the eyes of British fans.
"As for the second fight with Joshua - Sasha is always ready to box with the strongest, with world champions. It's actually the best motivation for him.
"However, at the time of the knockout, Sasha hardly thought about impressing Joshua. Rather, he was thinking about getting the audience to see good boxing."
Whyte insists Povetkin is yet to feel his true power, despite knocking him to the canvas with sharp counter shots, and fully intends to win the second fight with a crushing knockout.
"I was controlling the fight, I was dropping him with punches that weren't even landing properly," Whyte told Sky Sports.
"I need to be more patient, more together, more switched on, more professional and pick my shots better.
"If I hit him with one of my punches properly, I'm very heavy handed, I can hit hard and if I connect properly he won't be getting up for sure!"