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Herrera on Garcia: “We Both Bleed, We Both Feel Pain”

Published

10 years ago

March 3, 2014

“DANNY GARCIA VS. MAURICIO HERRERA” FIGHTERS’ TRAINING CAMP UPDATE

CATCH UP WITH DANNY GARCIA, MAURICIO HERRERA, JUAN MANUEL LOPEZ, DANIEL PONCE DE LEON, DEONTAY WILDER AND MALIK SCOTT AS THEY PREPARE FOR THEIR MARCH 15 BOUTS AT THE COLISEO RUBEN RODRIGUEZ IN BAYAMON PUERTO RICO LIVE ON SHOWTIME^®

BAYAMON, P.R. (March 3, 2014) – Unified Super Lightweight World Champion Danny “Swift” Garcia, Top Lightweight Contender Mauricio Herrera, WBC Continental Americas Heavyweight Champion Deontay “The Bronze Bomber” Wilder, heavyweight contender Malik “King” Scott, , WBO International Junior Lightweight Champion Juan Manuel “Juanma” Lopez and Former WBC Featherweight World Champion Daniel Ponce De Leon, are deep in training camp for their respective March 15 bouts in Puerto Rico live on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING^® (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT) and SHOWTIME EXTREME (7 p.m. ET/PT).

Here is what the fighters have to say about how their camps are going and how they feel about the night of action coming up on Saturday, March 15, at the Coliseo Ruben Rodriguez.

Where are you training and when did you start?

Danny Garcia: “I’ve been training in Philadelphia for about eight weeks.”

Mauricio Herrera: “I started training the day I signed for this fight. I’ve been training out of Riverside, Calif., at a gym called Capital Punishment Gym with my trainer Jose Torres.”

Deontay Wilder: “I’m training back home in Tuscaloosa, Ala.. I’ve been training non-stop since my last fight but officially started sparring on Feb. 17.”

Malik Scott: “I’ve been training at the Ten Goose Boxing Gym since about mid-January.”

Juan Manuel Lopez: “I have been training at the Caimito Gym since the beginning of January. It is the same gym used by Tito Trinidad for many of his fights and also by Oscar De La Hoya while he was in Puerto Rico.”

Daniel Ponce de Leon: “I’ve been training for about a month at my gym in Montebello, Calif..

If you had to pick the most challenging camp moment, what would that be and why?

Danny Garcia: “Losing weight and sparring is always the toughest challenge in training camp.”

Mauricio Herrera: “This camp has not only been the toughest, but it’s been the smartest. I have changed things that didn’t work for me in my past camps and implemented more things that work.”

Deontay Wilder: “I would have to say it’s working with the Wladimir Klitschko camp. A lot of great moments all around with that camp. I came with questions and left with answers.”

Malik Scott: “We’ve had a smooth training camp so we haven’t had one.”

Juan Manuel Lopez: “The whole camp has been somewhat challenging because it is the first time I am training in a different gym that is far from the one I normally use.”

Daniel Ponce De Leon: “The most difficult situation for a fighter is to make weight. I recognize that I was struggling in my last two fights to make the junior featherweight division.”

What are your thoughts on your opponent now that you are deep in training?

Danny Garcia: “Mauricio is a tough fighter but I am 110 percent ready; come March 15 it will be another epic performance by me.”

Mauricio Herrera: “I don’t see Danny Garcia as any different than anyone else. I don’t want to hold him way up on a pedestal the way his dad does. Danny Garcia is just like me. We both bleed and we both feel pain.”

Deontay Wilder: “I think Malik will come to fight and make this heavyweight showdown one of the best to come this year. So many people are super excited about this matchup that they can’t stop talking about it and that’s what the heavyweight division needs. I love the excitement and I’m very happy to be a part of bringing the division back to where it once was.”

Malik Scott: “All my thoughts are on staying focused and getting ready for March 15.”

Juan Manuel Lopez: ” This will be a difficult fight for me. I am sure that it will be different than the first one.”

Daniel Ponce de Leon: “Juan Manuel Lopez is a tough fighter. He has power and I know he will never lose his power. I expect a tough fight.”

How do you feel about fighting in Puerto Rico?

Danny Garcia: “Fighting in Puerto Rico is a dream come true. I’m very excited and I can’t wait to give my fans in Puerto Rico a great show.”

Mauricio Herrera: “I feel great about fighting in Puerto Rico. There is a lot of love for the sport of boxing in Puerto Rico, so that gives me more incentive to bring everything I’ve got to the ring. In the end, I’ll fight anywhere. The ring can be in Puerto Rico, Riverside or Las Vegas. It’s a different crowd but the ring and my desire to win is the same.”

Deontay Wilder: “I’m super excited about fighting in Puerto Rico. I look at it like this beautiful island, beautiful weather and beautiful people. I love traveling and one day want a home there near the beach.”

Malik Scott: “All I know is, inside the ring it will be like home.”

Juan Manuel Lopez: “I am super happy to be fighting in Puerto Rico and I see it asa great opportunity for my career.”

Daniel Ponce De Leon: “I feel fine about fighting in Puerto Rico. I don’t have any pressure. I know I am in his house but a lot of people will enjoy the fight.”

The fighters participating on the “Garcia vs. Herrera” televised fight cardhave also taken to social media, sending out updates and photos from their training in anticipation of their March 15 bouts:

Danny Garcia – @DannySwift , http://instagram.com/dannyswiftgarcia

Danny-Garcia 8478e

Mauricio Herrera – @elmaestro1

Mauricio-Herrera a2978

Deontay Wilder – @BronzeBomber , http://instagram.com/bronzebomber

Deontay-Wilder 696ea

Malik Scott – @MalikKingScott , https://www.instagram.com/malikkingscott/

Malik-Scott b49ed

Juan Manuel Lopez – @Juanma_Lopez , http://instagram.com/juanjuanmalopez

Juan-Manuel-Lopez 3ccaf

Daniel Ponce de Leon – @DanielPoncedeL1 , http://instagram.com/danielponcedel1

Daniel-Ponce-de-Leon 7b726

“Garcia vs. Herrera,” a12-round WBC Super Lightweight World Title on Saturday, March 15, is presented by Golden Boy Promotions, Swift Promotions in association with PR Best Boxing and sponsored by Corona and AT&T. The co-main event, Deontay Wilder vs. Malik Scott, is a 12-round WBC Final Heavyweight eliminator bout presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Goossen Tutor Promotions. The SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING^® telecast will air live at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT and can be heard in Spanish using secondary audio programming (SAP). In the main event on the SHOWTIME EXTREME (7 p.m. ET/PT) portion of the card, former world champions Juan Manuel Lopez and Daniel Ponce de Leon square off in a 10-round rematch for the WBO International Junior Lightweight Title.

Tickets priced at $25, $50, $75, $150, $200 and $400 plus applicable taxes and service charges are on sale now at www.tcpr.com and by calling 787-792-5000.

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The Sweet Science

Articles

2015 Fight of the Year – Francisco Vargas vs Takashi Miura

Published

8 years ago

January 4, 2016

The Sweet Science

The WBC World Super Featherweight title bout between Francisco Vargas and Takashi Miura came on one of the biggest boxing stages of 2015, as the bout served as the HBO pay-per-view’s co-main event on November 21st, in support of Miguel Cotto vs Saul Alvarez.

Miura entered the fight with a (29-2-2) record and he was making the fifth defense of his world title, while Vargas entered the fight with an undefeated mark of (22-0-1) in what was his first world title fight. Both men had a reputation for all-out fighting, with Miura especially earning high praise for his title defense in Mexico where he defeated Sergio Thompson in a fiercely contested battle.

The fight started out hotly contested, and the intensity never let up. Vargas seemed to win the first two rounds, but by the fourth round, Miura seemed to pull ahead, scoring a knock-down and fighting with a lot of confidence. After brawling the first four rounds, Miura appeared to settle into a more technical approach. Rounds 5 and 6 saw the pendulum swing back towards Vargas, as he withstood Miura’s rush to open the fifth round and the sixth round saw both men exchanging hard punches.

The big swinging continued, and though Vargas likely edged Miura in rounds 5 and 6, Vargas’ face was cut in at least two spots and Miura started to assert himself again in rounds 7 and 8. Miura was beginning to grow in confidence while it appeared that Vargas was beginning to slow down, and Miura appeared to hurt Vargas at the end of the 8th round.

Vargas turned the tide again at the start of the ninth round, scoring a knock down with an uppercut and a straight right hand that took Miura’s legs and sent him to the canvas. Purely on instinct, Miura got back up and continued to fight, but Vargas was landing frequently and with force. Referee Tony Weeks stepped in to stop the fight at the halfway point of round 9 as Miura was sustaining a barrage of punches.

Miura still had a minute and a half to survive if he was going to get out of the round, and it was clear that he was not going to stop fighting.

A back and forth battle of wills between two world championship level fighters, Takashi Miura versus “El Bandido” Vargas wins the 2015 Fight of the Year.

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Articles

Jan 9 in Germany – Feigenbutz and De Carolis To Settle Score

Published

8 years ago

January 4, 2016

The Sweet Science

This coming Saturday, January 9th, the stage is set at the Baden Arena in Offenburg, Germany for a re-match between Vincent Feigenbutz and Giovanni De Carolis. The highly anticipated re-match is set to air on SAT.1 in Germany, and Feigenbutz will once again be defending his GBU and interim WBA World titles at Super Middleweight.

The first meeting between the two was less than three months ago, on October 17th and that meeting saw Feigenbutz controversially edge De Carolis on the judge’s cards by scores of (115-113, 114-113 and 115-113). De Carolis scored a flash knock down in the opening round, and he appeared to outbox Feigenbutz in the early going, but the 20 year old German champion came on in the later rounds.

The first bout is described as one of the most crowd-pleasing bouts of the year in Germany, and De Carolis and many observers felt that the Italian had done enough to win.

De Carolis told German language website RAN.DE that he was more prepared for the re-match, and that due to the arrogance Feigenbutz displayed in the aftermath of the first fight, he was confident that he had won over some of the audience. Though De Carolis fell short of predicting victory, he promised a re-vamped strategy tailored to what he has learned about Feigenbutz, whom he termed immature and inexperienced.

The stage is set for Feigenbutz vs De Carolis 2, this Saturday January 9th in Offenburg, Germany. If you can get to the live event do it, if not you have SAT.1 in Germany airing the fights, and The Boxing Channel right back here for full results.

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Articles

2015 Knock Out of the Year – Saul Alvarez KO’s James Kirkland

Published

8 years ago

December 29, 2015

The Sweet Science

On May 9th of 2015, Saul “Canelo” Alvarez delivered a resonant knock-out of James Kirkland on HBO that wins the 2015 KO of the Year.

The knock-out itself came in the third round, after slightly more than two minutes of action. The end came when Alvarez delivered a single, big right hand that caught Kirkland on the jaw and left him flat on his back after spinning to the canvas.Alvarez was clearly the big star heading into the fight. The fight was telecast by HBO for free just one week after the controversial and disappointing Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao fight, and Alvarez was under pressure to deliver the type of finish that people were going to talk about. Kirkland was happy to oblige Alvarez, taking it right to Alvarez from the start. Kirkland’s aggression saw him appear to land blows that troubled the young Mexican in the early going. Alvarez played good defense, and he floored Kirkland in the first round, displaying his power and his technique in knocking down an aggressive opponent.

However, Kirkland kept coming at Alvarez and the fight entered the third round with both men working hard and the feeling that the fight would not go the distance. Kirkland continued to move forward, keeping “Canelo” against the ropes and scoring points with a barrage of punches while looking for an opening.

At around the two minute mark, Alvarez landed an uppercut that sent Kirkland to the canvas again. Kirkland got up, but it was clear that he did not have his legs under him. Kirkland was going to try to survive the round, but Alvarez had an opportunity to close out the fight. The question was would he take it?

Alvarez closed in on Kirkland, putting his opponent’s back to the ropes. Kirkland was hurt, but he was still dangerous, pawing with punches and loading up for one big shot.

But it was the big shot “Canelo” threw that ended the night. Kirkland never saw it coming, as he was loading up with a huge right hand of his own. The right Alvarez threw cracked Kirkland in the jaw, and his eyes went blank. His big right hand whizzed harmlessly over the head of a ducking Alvarez, providing the momentum for the spin that left Kirkland prone on the canvas.

Saul “Canelo” Alvarez went on to defeat Miguel Cotto in his second fight of 2015 and he is clearly one of boxing’s biggest stars heading into 2016. On May 9th Alvarez added another reel to his highlight film when he knocked out James Kirkland with the 2015 “Knock Out of the Year”.

Photo by naoki fukuda

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