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But the American fighter insists he will not only bring Beterbiev's perfect run of stoppage victories to an end but that he'll be the one to knock out the knockout artist himself.
Beterbiev, the unified WBC and IBF titlist, has acquired his formidable reputation with good reason. No professional opponent has ever gone the distance with him. In his last fight, challenger Marcus Browne left Beterbiev with a horrendous cut down his forehead. But that only prompted a ferocious response from the champion who floored Brown and left him unable to continue in the ninth round.
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Smith however is undaunted. He has won and defended the WBO light-heavyweight belt. Smith knows that Beterbiev, for all his qualities, is 37 years old and has shown a vulnerability at least once before.
Callum Johnson managed to drop Beterbiev early in their 2018 contest. The champion of course rose and paid the Briton back in full, knocking Johnson out in their fourth round. But Smith Jr insists that he in contrast would have been able to finish a hurt Beterbiev.
"I believe if I get Beterbiev in that position, I'll get him out of there. I'm a good finisher," the American told Sky Sports. "It's not my gameplan but if it presents itself and it's there, I'm going to do it."
Smith is inspired at the prospect of proving him against such an opponent. "It's a great record but it's motivation to me, because if I can be the first one to beat him, to stop him, it's going to skyrocket my career," he said.
"I know there's a lot of people out there who believe in me. There's people that believe in him. We've just got to get in there on Saturday and see what's going to happen."
He is adamant that Beterbiev is not the only puncher in this fight. "I possess more determination and heart and power," Smith said.
"This would definitely be the sweetest victory of all, if I could pull it off Saturday. There's three world championships on the line, Beterbiev's an undefeated man with an 100% knockout ratio, if I beat him - it's just huge."
Watch Artur Beterbiev vs Joe Smith Jr, live on Sky Sports from 2.30am on Sunday morning.