Kelly Swanson
This is a special delight because it’s the first conference call of the New Year, and we’re excited today to talk about the first Golden Boy Promotions show on SHOWTIME of the year, which will take place Saturday, January 25 at the DC Armory in Washington D.C., a big show with Lamont Peterson and Dierry Jean and also with Jermell Charlo and Gabriel Rosado. We have all four guys available today to talk to you, but we will first start with Jermell and Gabe. And in order to make the proper introductions and talk a little bit more about the show I’d like to introduce Richard Schaefer, Chief Executive Officer of Golden Boy Promotions. Richard?
Richard Schaefer
Thank you, Kelly, and welcome to all the media members to the first Golden Boy call of the year. Happy New Year to all of you and your families, much health and happiness, and I’m excited to work with all of you in 2014, another sensational year for the sport.
What we’ve done in 2013, particularly is two things, we put together evenly matched fights, fights where you don’t know who is going to win, and we put those into places, into venues and cities where they belong, and I think the results were outstanding. I think it was easily the best year in boxing for boxing in many years.
And one big thank you goes to the fighters. They have agreed to fight each other in competitive match ups, and that’s exactly where this card here on January 25 fits in. It’s at the right place in D.C., the Armory in Washington D.C. Washington fight fans are great fight fans. They will come out in large numbers. We already have sold a lot of tickets. So I do anticipate a sell out in Washington on Saturday, January the 25th.
Tickets are still available at $25, $50, $75, $150 and $250. So yes, you heard right, 25 bucks to see this amazing card, which again is SHOWTIME televised fights and the fights which will be televised on Showtime Extreme starting at 7 p.m. Eastern/Pacific. There will be some great undercard fights there like Anthony Peterson will be on there as well, Raynell Williams, Dominic Wade, Rau’Shee Warren, Robert Easter, Jamel Herring. So it’s going to be a great lineup of exciting fights and fighters.
A big thank you to Showtime for agreeing to televise this first card of the year. It’s going to be the first Showtime card as well, and I know it is the first of many, since I am actively discussing with Showtime some future exciting programming. So let’s kick it off here with a fight between two very, very exciting fighters, Jermell Charlo versus Gabriel Rosado.
Gabriel Rosado, “King” Gabriel Rosado with the record of 21-7-13 KOs. He’s certainly one of the entertainers in the sport, always comes to fight, a veteran of nearly eight years on the program, has wins over people like Jesus Soto Karass, Sechew Powell, Kassim Ouma, Charles Whitaker, has been in the ring with Golovkin and Angulo, J’Leon Love, and others, and in his last fight was an incredible effort against Peter Quillin.
I think it was a very close fight. Some people felt that he won the fight. It was certainly a very, very close fight, and it showed that Gabriel really wanted this and he belongs right there at the top, at the top of the Junior Middleweight Division. So on January the 25th he’ll return to the Junior Middleweight Division to 154 pounds, and he is on the road to show that he wants to get another world title opportunity in the near future.
I’m going to hand it over to Gabe now to make some comments, how his camp is going and please welcome “King” Gabriel Rosado.
Gabriel Rosado
Hey, thank you Richard. I’m having a great training camp. I just got to Puerto Rico on Monday for the second part of my training camp, and I’m training in Caguas right now, and I just have great sparring out here and the weather’s great so it’s helping me get down in weight.
I’m just excited for this opportunity at 154 to make a statement. I kind of have unfinished business in this weight class, giving up my number one ranking when I went up to fight Triple G. So I’m just excited to go back down at 154. I think I’m going to be bigger and stronger, and I’m just ready for it.
R. Schaefer
Thank you, Gabe. The man he is going to be facing is somebody who has over the last couple of years made a lot of noise in the pros. He has a very stellar amateur background clearly for an amateur start, 23 years young, 22-0 with 11 knockouts. He’s coming from the great fighting state of Texas, Houston, Texas.
He had an active 2013 where he won three times, defeating Harry Joe Yorgey, Demetrius Hopkins and Jose Angel Rodriguez. So on January the 25th he will put his undefeated record on the line in clearly the biggest and most dangerous fight of his career against Gabriel Rosado. He obviously hopes to make a statement here to the boxing world that he is going to be in line and ready for the world title shot as well.
Please welcome now Jermell “Ironman” Charlo.
Jermell Charlo
I appreciate that, Richard. I’m going to jump right into this. This is a great opportunity for me and Gabe. It’s a good fight. It was well matched, and I appreciate Golden Boy for putting this fight on. This is my time. It’s my season, and in order for me to do what I have to do and make noise or just period be the fighter that I need to be in boxing, I need to stand up and step out and this is what this fight’s going to do for me.
I’m ready at 154. This has been my weight. I’m going to own it. I’m claiming it now. So I appreciate Gabe for coming down from 160. Hopefully he makes weight on time and he makes weight good, that we get this ball rolling.
R. Schaefer
Thank you very much to Gabe and to Jermell. We’re going to open it up now to the media for questions.
Q
Hey, Gabe, how you doing? Since this is your fourth straight fight on premium television, what do you think makes you so attractive to be on TV so much?
G. Rosado
I think that boxing is a sport but it’s also entertainment, and at the end of the day it’s about being an entertainer and I think the type of fights that I bring to the table are entertaining to the fans. You see knockdowns. You see blood. You see controversy, of course in my last two fights.
I think the fans are just-they respond to the controversy and they voice their opinion. I think Gordon Blake acknowledges that and Showtime. When you’re putting it all on the table and you’re just fighting, I think that’s what people want to see. So I think that’s why I’m back on Showtime. I appreciate it, the opportunity that Showtime and Golden Boy’s given me to be back on Showtime again.
Q
And how much have you benefited from being on TV?
G. Rosado
A lot, man. The love and the support is great. People are knowing me everywhere I go and things like that. So a lot of times when I run into people a lot of people feel like I’m kind of like the modern day Gatti in a way. It’s exciting. I’m having a good time right now.
Even though in 2013 I officially didn’t have a win, it kind of was a good year for me in a way. I took the positive out of it. Even though I didn’t get to win a fight I took the positive out of it, and it’s 2014 so I feel like this is a fresh start for me as a new weight class. So I know what I got to do in this fight. It’s no secret. I have to knock Charlo out, and this is going to happen.
Q
Thank you. Hello, everybody. My first question for you is for Gabe. Gabe, because you’re coming back down to junior middleweight for this fight after the fights you’ve had recently in middleweight, looking back do you at all regret the fact that you did give up that mandatory position to go and fight Golovkin, which then you had those other fights that didn’t go your way in the middleweight division or are you happy you made the move and now you’re comfortable coming back down?
G. Rosado
It’s funny how things play out. I think everything happens for a reason. I really don’t regret going up and giving up my number one spot in the IBF. I think when I went to middleweight to fight Triple G I wasn’t naturally a middleweight. I think I was still a small guy, and then I kind of grew into the middleweight division once I fought Kid Chocolate and I felt real comfortable at middleweight. But I could still make junior middleweight. I’m a big guy, but I could still make junior middleweight.
So I don’t regret it, man. I think everything happens for a reason. Like I said, even though I didn’t get a win on my record for 2013, I won the fans over and the fans got my back and I’m getting a lot of support and they’re backing me up. So in a way it was a great year, and I just plan on 2014, I just plan to being a world champion in 2014.
Q
My other question for you, Gabe, is about the cuts that you’ve suffered, the fight with Quillin ended on a cut and the Golovkin fight ended because of a cut. I don’t know if they were the exact same place, but they seemed to me that they were in similar areas. Can you tell me; first of all, were they in the same basic spot where the two cuts occurred? And secondly, because they seemed to cut fairly easily are you at all concerned that even though you can hang with these guys, obviously, that’s going to be become a problem, that’s not going to let you get to those goals because your skin is just not going to hold up for you?
G. Rosado
It’s a different cut. It wasn’t the same cut from the Triple G fight. And in the Triple G fight I felt that those cuts were a lot worse than the Kid Chocolate fight. I felt that the cuts early in the Triple G fight made it difficult for me to fight, but I just felt that the stoppage with Kid Chocolate was a premature stoppage. I felt that I was the one coming on. I had some momentum. I was applying the pressure. I felt that I could’ve knocked Kid out in that round or in the next round.
So I just felt like it was something-cuts are a part of the game. It’s a part of boxing. Miguel Cotto, he’s been cut multiple times. Manny Pacquiao’s been cut multiple times. You got guys like Marquez. In the last card on Showtime, I believe it was the last card; all the guys got cut. Alexander got cut. Cotto got cut. You just go on and on. So it’s a part of boxing. I think a fight needs to be stopped when it’s affecting a fighter. When a fighter’s taking punishment from a cut, I think that’s when it should be stopped. So I felt that my stoppage was just premature. I’m not focusing on that, because when you focus on something like that it becomes a problem. I’m not thinking about it. I’m going into this fight with a lot of confidence. I went to a surgeon to get my eye checked, and he looked at it and he said it’s healing really great and everything should be great. So right now it’s not in my head.
Q
Okay, thank you for that, Gabe. I have two questions for Jermell. You mentioned in your opening comments this is obviously an important fight for you, your first time being on a main Showtime card, taking on an experienced veteran opponent who’s fought for world titles in the past. Do you feel like-you are undefeated, you are considered one of the prospects, rising contenders, however you want to phrase it, in the division, but do you view beating an opponent like Gabe Rosado, who has had experience, as the last hurdle you need to clear before you can get a potential world championship fight?
J. Charlo
Yes, absolutely. Defeating Gabriel Rosado will be, I want to say, the ladder that you finish climbing. I want to get to that point where you compare me to the greats and you compare me to the best in the weight division.
Right now with this fight in place this is, like I said earlier, my time and timing is everything. I want to say would’ve, could’ve, should’ve, that’s for the birds. Everything that could’ve happened before, I’m a different fighter. I’m thorough.
I’m going to come through this fight. I’m going to make it happen. We’ve got multiple game plans. We can handle adversity. We just haven’t been able to show much in these last recent fights because the fights is only been to where it’s been. So I’m here to get it on and do what I do best and that’s win.
Q
Regarding getting the cuts that Gabe suffered that ended two of his last three fights, is that something that you talk about in camp, that you may target that eye because it seemed a little soft in those two fights and it did cut open somewhat easily even though Gabe talked about how he felt it wasn’t that bad in the last fight?
J. Charlo
I’m hitting everything. I’m not focused on just hitting just the eye. We come to destroy. It’s not about hitting an eye and busting an eye open. We come to demolish.
Q
My first question is for you, Gabe. Could you talk a little bit more about the dropping of your weight, because you did say, I think, after the last weigh-in for the Quillin fight that you were done at 154? Could you talk about, and Jermell asked if you were going to make the weight comfortably-could you elaborate on why you feel comfortable coming back down in weight?
G. Rosado
Well, I talked about coming down to 154 thinking that I would beat Kid Chocolate, and which I felt like I was leading to that, but it’s all about opportunities and situations. Obviously I didn’t get the call for Kid Chocolate. So now I’m just in a situation where I was just waiting for an opportunity to come my way, and 154, I look at this as a great opportunity being so many names in the weight class, Angulo, Canelo, Lara, Trout. You name it. It’s a lot of talent in the division. So I just looked at it like an opportunity.
I don’t know what’s going on right now as far as the titles that Charlo’s holding on to because he has a WBC Americas and then he has the USBA, and the USBA didn’t approve me, which to me was a joke and then now we’re waiting on the WBC. My thing was I’m dropping to 154 thinking this is a championship fight. When I signed the contract I signed the contract for a 12-round fight.
So I don’t know what’s going on right now. The USBA didn’t approve of me because I’m not coming off a win, but the main event, no disrespect to Lamont Peterson, it was Lamont Peterson who lost that fight, and even though it was at a catchweight he still lost, but he gets to defend his world title and I don’t get a shot to get in the rankings. So I just don’t understand that.
NOTE: Charlo vs. Rosado is now a 10-round fight for the WBC Continental Americas Super Welterweight Title.
Q
Richard, can you elaborate on that, what this win could do for Gabriel given the fact that he’s been in so many high profile, exciting fights?
R. Schaefer
Well, I would certainly think that the winner of this fight has a strong case and a strong possibility to fight for one of the world titles. The fact is that we are promoting most of the world champions at 154 within Golden Boy. So I think the winner of this fight definitely has a shot at one of the world titles. That’s the idea.
So there is much, much at stake. Both fighters know that, and I think that is one of the reasons why Gabriel Rosado decided to move down to 154 as well. And as I said in my opening remarks, he is returning to the 154 pound obviously with the idea to take another world title opportunity. That’s the whole idea here. And that’s going to be up to me to secure that, and I feel confident that I can and I will.
The same is true for Charlo, for Jermell; that he knows that he has diligently worked towards that title opportunity. There is this one big hurdle ahead of him, in front of him. His name is Gabriel Rosado, but he knows that if he is able to beat Gabriel Rosado that he is in line for a world title shot. So there’s no question about that, and I think that’s one of the reasons why this makes this fight so intriguing.
Q
Jermell, when you hear Richard, it’s one thing to know that but to hear him say that right now, what does that mean to you, that this win right here could put you right there on the doorstep to be with those other guys that have been fighting for those titles?
J. Charlo
It’s a great thing, but I believe in one man and he works through R. Schaefer to put me in a fight that I need to be in. So as of right now, my focus in on January 25th, this win, and go from there.
Q
My last question for you, how does Gabriel stack up against the guys that you’ve faced? Obviously he’s been in some big fights, but he’s very resourceful and he was in all three of his last three fights. Is he the toughest guy you’ve faced? Is he possibly the most resourceful? Kind of characterize the challenge that’s in front of you.
J. Charlo
That’s a question I’ll have to answer after the fight. I don’t know if he’s the toughest guy I’ve faced. With his resume and his background he has put up something. He has put up and shut up a little bit. So right now I can’t just say, “He’s the toughest guy,” but I know comparing him to the other fighters that I’ve fought I know that this is a fight that I have to be on all Ps and Qs and be triple eight. So that’s it.
Q
This question is for Gabriel. Can you please explain the reason why you decided to do the second part of training in Puerto Rico? Have you done it before? Will you continue to do it in the future?
G. Rosado
I’ve done training camps in various places like Phoenix, New Mexico, Florida. The plan on going to Puerto Rico and training in Caguas is because in Philadelphia we got hit with a major snow storm, which was making it difficult for me to do road work and things like that. The temperature just dropped extremely low. It was like ten degrees. So I just needed to go somewhere where the climate was hotter and where I was able to focus a lot better.
So we came to Puerto Rico and everything’s great. Within the couple of days that I’ve been here I’ve already dropped six pounds. So the weight’s coming off quick, and there’s a lot of great talent in the gym. I’m getting great sparring. So it’s just kind of like just a boost. It’s playing out great, and I’m having a great camp out here.
Q
Now you spoke about staying at 154. What do you see in your immediate future after this fight?
G. Rosado
This is a fight that I’m looking at that I have to really be impressive, make a statement and go for the knockout. The old timers say, “Don’t ever go for the knockout,” and I understand that, but I think when you look at my last two fights I pretty much had no choice but to go for a knockout. This is not a fight where I can go there and be confident in boxing or doing things that I could do. I just got to be a killer. I got to be a beast. I got to go for the kill.
I’m not happy with my last two fights, as far as the outcome of them, so I’m kind of going to take it all out on Charlo on the 25th. I’m on a mission to knock him out. That’s my mission. That’s all that’s on my mind. There’s no game plan. There’s no nothing. It’s just go in there and knock him out. That’s my attitude. And from there, I plan on hopefully getting a fight with either Lara or Canelo. I would love to fight either of those guys.
Q
Okay. And, Jermell, how are you? Thank you for this opportunity. Gabe is mentioning that he wants to win by knockout. How do you respond to that?
J. Charlo
Just go and knock him out. He can’t knock me out. I’m going to do what I got to do in the ring, and that’s all I’m going to say. I’m not going to do all the little trash talking, like the little Twitter trash talking. I’m training right now. I’ve been training for about a week and a half and I’m ready to fight. I’ve been ready to fight.
Q
One question for both of you guys, since this will be the first fight of 2014 for you guys, how aggressive are you going to be this year to get the world title shot that you both deserve, that you feel that you deserve?
G. Rosado
I’m going to be extremely aggressive in this fight, and I’m going to be smart. It’s not going to be reckless pressure. It’s not going to be taking four shots and laying one type of pressure. It’s going to be smart pressure. Charlo says that he can face adversity, but you really can’t say that when you haven’t been there. It’s a whole different story when you’re in a fight and you’re cut and you have to fight through a cut and you’ve been down and you got to get up and fight through it. He hasn’t been through that. He really doesn’t know what he’s talking about, and by him saying that is-
J. Charlo
I’ve been through a whole fight with my eye completely shut. There’s no way you could say that.
G. Rosado
I’ll test Charlo, and we’ll see if Charlo’s really built for that. But he’s saying that he can go through adversity, but he really don’t know that. He’ll find that out himself on the 25th. He’s not sure of it. He’ll find out. Just like everybody else is going to find out, he’ll find out the 25th if he’s really built for that.
So he really is not sure of it. He can say he is, but you can’t say you could do something when you’ve really never been through it. So he has to experience it first before he can say he’s going to face adversity on the 25th.
Q
Charlo, for you a spin off of the same question, the talent level Gabriel fought his last three fights with were three undefeated fighters, world champion fighters. How aggressive are you going to be, since the talent that you-you’ve fought some good fights, but coming into this fight you haven’t fought the title fights that Gabriel has fought. So its 2014 and this fight in the ring on January 25th, how about that fight for you?
J. Charlo
I’m going to be aggressive of course. That’s the thing. You never go into a fight not being aggressive. You come to kill. That’s what every boxer should want to do, but I’m going to outsmart him. My skills are way better than his. So I’m going to beat him at whatever he’s trying to do. So if he’s trying to come in aggressive, I’m going to beat him at being aggressive. I’m going to take his game plan away from him, and that’s what’s going to make me victorious on the 25th.
Gabe talked about me not being tested, it’s just obvious. It’s obvious that he gets cuts and he bleeds and all of that. He don’t know what I went through and he don’t know the issues and the situations that other fighters went through when they was fighting. Everybody has problems. You don’t know until somebody goes out and lashes out and say it or complains about it. That’s when you actually say, “Oh, this was the issue.” You don’t what adversity they fought through.
So just to put that out there, I had surgery on my eyes in March and fought in June. Who says that I complained and said, “Oh, this was an issue.” No, bro, I fought through that, and that’s when I fought Demetrius Hopkins and that’s the same fight that you’re studying. So you’re studying the wrong game plan anyways.
R. Schaefer
All right, I’d like to thank both Gabe Rosado and Jermell Charlo for being available on this call. I know they’re in the middle of their training and training camps. I think one thing which came clearly across in this call is how excited and fired up these two guys are. It’s going to come down to desire and will to win. Both of them, I think, demonstrated very well on this call today what this fight means for them and to them. I can’t wait to watch this fight and good luck to both guys.
R. Schaefer
Thank you. Well, talking about will and desire and entertaining, I this next fight, the main event of that Showtime doubleheader, the Junior Welterweight World Championship between World Champion Lamont Peterson and Dierry Jean, I think, has a bit of all of that sprinkled in as well.
With Dierry Jean we have an undefeated fighter with 25-0, with 17 knockouts. He is an exciting fighter, a smart fighter, a very dangerous fighter and certainly is not one, as we often see of these mandatories, which somehow have become mandatories and people have to scratch their head, “How does this guy deserve to be a mandatory to a world title?” Dierry Jean is certainly one of the best junior welterweights out there, and just because maybe he’s not that well known here in the United States doesn’t mean he doesn’t belong there.
He’s a native of Haiti, who moved with his family to Montreal and Quebec in Canada as a child. He is obviously ranked the number one and is the mandatory for the world title. He’s probably representing his adopted home country of Canada. Winning a national amateur championship before turning pro back in 2006, he has been waiting for this world title shot. I know he will be ready, and I’d like to introduce to you now Dierry Jean.
Dierry Jean
Hello. How is everyone? My training camp is very good, so far so good. We’re in the best shape of my life. We’re going to go out there to do the job. Our mission is to go out there and win the belt.
R. Schaefer
Thank you, Dierry. Now Lamont Peterson is certainly a fighter who always comes to entertain, who always comes to fight, will to win, I think, is right there next to his name. He is an exciting fighter and has a lot of fans, has a big fan base in Washington D.C. as well. We saw that when he fought Amir Kahn back in December 2011, which was a great night of boxing in Washington D.C., and for him to be fighting in front of his home crowd I think is just added incentive.
We all know he got caught in his last fight when he fought Lucas Matthysse back in May 2013, but real champions, big champions, real fighters, they come back from this and they are ready, and I know that Peterson is ready. He has a great team with Barry Hunter and everyone behind him. I think he’s going to show the world what he is all about and that the May fight with Matthysse was what I just said, he got caught and that happens and that happens to the best. He is very charismatic and always fun to watch. So I can’t wait for this fight as well, for the Junior Welterweight World Championship, and it’s a pleasure for me now to introduce to you the World Champion, Lamont Peterson.
Lamont Peterson
Hey, how everybody doing? Pretty much don’t have to say much about my background or how I train. Everybody know I come to fight. I come in shape, and I’m just looking forward to January 25th.
Q
Thank you, hello, everybody, once again, my first question is for Dierry. It’s good to talk to you. My question for you is you got this title shot by scoring a pretty big knockout against Pendarvis in your eliminator, and now you’ve come into this fight against an opponent in Lamont who got knocked out in his last fight even though it wasn’t a world title fight. Do you feel like the best case of action for you is to sort of try to jump on him to make him remember the way it was when he fighting Matthysse in his last fight?
D. Jean
Yes, it’s a great opportunity for me because I think in his mind he’s not 100% okay. So it’s going to be a great opportunity for me to strike him again, for me to catch him again, to remind him the nightmare he took last time.
Q
And can you also talk a little bit about your boxing background? Richard mentioned in his introductory remarks you came from Haiti. I don’t know how old you were when you moved from Haiti to Canada, but what was it like for you growing up there and how did you get involved in boxing?
D. Jean
I came at like ten years old with my big brother. We grew up there. I started boxing at 18 years old, with an ex-boxer who brought me there, and then since that day I’m still boxing. I dreamed that I was a boxer, and then the next day he came to me and asked me if I want to box. I said, “Yes, for sure, I dreamed that I was a boxer so why not?” It’s a dream come true.
Q
What are your thoughts, very quickly, as far as this fight being that you’re going to travel to Lamont’s hometown where he enjoys good support, he’s been successful in the past and has fought a couple of his last two or three fights in Washington D.C.? You’re going to be the guy on the road in this one.
D. Jean
For sure. It’s okay. It doesn’t matter. For sure I would prefer to be in my crowd, but it’s going to be okay. I can deal with pressure, and he’s going to be the only one guy in the ring with me. I’m not going to be against the fans. So I’m very good to deal with pressure.
Q
All right, very good, thank you for your answers. I appreciate it. My question for you, Lamont, is we know what happened in the fight against Lucas Matthysse. I’m wondering, from your point of view, how difficult is it to overcome that loss?
Some guys, they come back off of a fight like that, they may go into a smaller fight, an eight-rounder, maybe not a TV fight. You’re jumping right back in against your number one challenger in the main event in front of the home crowd. How was it like for you to get over that knockout loss and to be right back into a somewhat significant fight in the next match?
L. Peterson
Getting over the loss, that happened in one day. Who cares about the knockout? It’s part of boxing. That’s what happens. You pick yourself up and you move on. At this point, it’s in the past. Who cares? As a fighter, you have to block that out and you keep moving. As far as me moving on, I’m a fighter. At the end of the day, I had to focus on January 25th. I train hard, give it my all, and we go out there and we fight. It’s always going to be the same with me. Who cares about what happened in last fight?
Q
So does that mean, Lamont, that even though you got beat in the last fight, but you still have the title because-
L. Peterson
Who cares?
Q
No, no, I understand that. I understand that, but you were at the catch weight. Do you still feel like a champion even though the last fight was a defeat?
L. Peterson
At the end of the day the belts mean nothing. It means a lot to ya’ll, but it means nothing to me. I just love to fight. I go, I bust my ass in the gym, I go and I fight. I give it my all in the ring. Who cares about who’s number one, who’s number two, who’s pound for pound, who has this belt, who has that belt? I care less about that. So whether you look at me as a champion or not, it doesn’t make a difference. The only thing it was is we fought at a catch weight, and me having a belt allows me to have this opportunity to fight Dierry Jean. That’s it. That’s all that belt means.
Q
I understand that. The one other question that would be, you said who cares about a loss and I can certainly appreciate that mentality of just moving on to the next thing, but I’m sure you realize that when you lose it has a tremendous and dramatic impact on the money that you can earn. Isn’t that right? Do you ever think about that?
L. Peterson
Yeah, of course of know that. It’s not my first loss so I know that. It has happened before, but at the end of the day, as a fighter, my mentality has to be who cares? Who’s going to sit around thinking about their last fight, if it didn’t go the way they wanted it to go?
Q
All right, fair enough.
L. Peterson
The best thing to do is to pick you up, forget about it, move on. I know I can still fight. I’m still a good fighter. I have to forget about it.
Q
Happy New Year. A question first to Mr. Jean, what do you see in Lamont Peterson that you feel that you can, without giving your game plan, but what do you see that says you will win this fight and win the title on the 25th?
D. Jean
I see a better fighter. I’m more vicious. I can hit harder than him, and I want it more so I own everything to earn that title.
Q
Okay, good enough. And for Lamont, my question also, fighting in your hometown again and one of the things that I’ve noticed in the fights you’ve had here, I should say, you have gotten off to a little bit of a slow start against Khan, against Holt especially, how important is it for you to get off to a real fast start on the 25th?
L. Peterson
Whether I start off slow or fast it doesn’t make a difference. At the end of the day, my job is to win the fight and that’s what I’m focusing on. If I want to start off slow, then let me start off slow. If I want to start off fast, then I’ll start off fast, but at the end of the day it’s all about a 12-round fight and winning that contest. So that’s what I’m focused on.
Q
Okay, good enough. And a quick question for Mr. Schaefer if he’s there, when we will know the match ups from the under cards, speaking particularly about the fighters from the Washington D.C. area, Dominic Wade and D’Mitrius Ballard? When will we know the match ups for those particular bouts?
R. Schaefer
Well, with for Anthony Peterson, Lamont’s brother, we are working on finalizing that. Dominic Wade, I believe is fighting Deshawn Johnson, and D’Mitrius Ballard, my match makers are working on finalizing that. So hopefully within the next week we have all of that lined up.
Q
Hey, guys, how you doing? Hey, Lamont, I just have one question for you. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anybody open up a conference call by talking about you the way he did, and I know you’re usually a very even-tempered guy. When you hear somebody talk about you like that and you’re the champion, what does it do? Does it arouse your competitive juices, and I know you’re going to be fighting in front of your hometown crowd, which is always very supportive and you seem energized by that?
L. Peterson
Who cares about what he thinks, what he says? At the end of the day I have to get in there and show him. So it’s not going to make me feel no type of way. He can say what he want. It’s all his perception at this point. he have to go in there and show me.
Q
One other question, how does he stack up against the guys that you fought? Has he fought anybody on your level or any other guys that you fought on their level?
L. Peterson
I’m not sure, but we’re going to find out January 25th.
Q
Hey, Lamont. Hey, Dierry. Hey, how you doing? Hey, my question’s for you, Lamont. I’ve seen you train and everything. Coming off the Matthysse fight are you going into this fight a little harder, training a little harder than you have with any other fight because of coming off of a loss?
L. Peterson
Not really. I always train hard. I always give my best. So how could I train harder when I give it my all every time? So at this point, you go back, regardless of win or lose, you go back and you work on things you feel like you need to work on. You move on. You go the next fight. So that’s exactly what we did.
Q
Maybe I’m not talking about the training aspect, but mentally did you know, do you know, “I must win this fight, because if I lose it’s an opportunity?”
L. Peterson
Well, before I went in there and fought Matthysse I felt that way. So I’m definitely going to feel that way now. It’s not going to be anything else, but I train hard every training camp. I’m not just talking about physical training. I’m talking about mentally. I always do what I’m supposed to do, no hanging out, no family. I stick to a strict diet and a strict lifestyle, and that’s every fight.
Q
Dierry, coming into this fight knowing that you’re fighting a tough fighter that Lamont Peterson is, with his background, the fighters that he’s been fighting against, how are you coming into this fight? What’s your mental state, as far as not conditioning but mental state to make it through this fight and in order to win this fight?
D. Jean
This fight means everything for me. I’ve been working so hard to get there, and now I’m there. It’s to go conquer the belt. It’s a lot for me. For so long, I start at 18 years old, and now I’m 31. I think I deserve it now. I work so hard from the bottom of my heart. So now it’s time to go get that belt. It’s my time now. Lamont did his time. Now it’s now my time.
Q
Dierry, Lamont Peterson has faced a lot of experienced fighters like Tim Bradley, Victor Ortiz. What do you have in your box to prove that you are of world champion caliber?
D. Jean
I got good sparring partners like them who can throw punches, who can take punches. I’ve got Steven Butler. I’ve got all good sparring partners, so welterweight and super welterweight, and by background too you can see the last fight and very exciting. So that means I can hit, and when you can hit it’s very dangerous for another fighter who just came from a big knockout. So I think the win is going to be on my side.
Q
Do you think you faced the most adversity in your career at this time and now it’s like more easy work for you?
D. Jean
No, for sure it’s going to the most adversity of my career, because Lamont Peterson is actual champion. He did his work. He did his job. So he’s there. I got to give him respect. So now, just like I said, it’s my time. So I’m going to go out there and go grab that belt.
R. Schaefer
Thank you to Dierry Jean and to Lamont Peterson. A much anticipated world championship fight. It’s going to be a great night in Washington D.C. I know the fans are going to come out and support their fighters and the card and boxing. These are evenly matched fights, and again, thank you so much to Showtime for showcasing this fight.
I do want to make one last comment, and it is that Lamont Peterson will hold an open media workout in Washington D.C. next Monday on January 13. A media alert with details was sent out earlier today.Thank you so much, and I see you all in Washington D.C. on January the 25th.
END OF CALL
Peterson vs. Jean, a 12-round fight for Peterson’s IBF Junior Welterweight World Championship, will take place Saturday, Jan. 25, at the DC Armory in Washington, D.C. The event is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and sponsored by Corona and AT&T. The live SHOWTIME telecast begins at 9:00 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) and will be available in Spanish via secondary audio programming (SAP). In the co-featured bout, Junior Middleweights Jermell Charlo and Gabriel Rosado square off in a 10-round fight for the WBC Continental Americas Super Welterweight Title. Preliminary bouts will air on SHOWTIME EXTREME® at 7:00 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast).
Tickets priced at $25, $50, $75, $150 and $250, plus applicable taxes, fees and services charges, are on sale and available online at www.ticketmaster.com and all Ticketmaster locations, or by calling (800) 745-3000.
