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WWW.BOXINGNEWSONLINE.NET10 lBOXING NEWSlJULY 4, 2019 http://www.boxingnewsonline.netNEWS AND OPINION
➤ preparation for a fight is what gets
you through a fight. Of course you’ve
got to have skills and you’ve got to have
talent. If you have skills and talent but
lack preparation, you’re not going to get
the results that you’re really looking for.
Luckily for me I knew I could rely on
my movement and boxing ability to
get through the Josesito Lopez fight.
I knew he was a flat-footed, move-
forward fighter. And so we did that and
now we’ve got Manny Pacquiao and
I’m just making sure I have more of
an offence, working even more on my
defence. Though I think it’s not going to
be easy for Pacquiao with those short
arms of his. I think standing on the
outside is really beneficial for me. He’s
40 years old and I want to mix it up with
a legend a little bit in there and see who
touches who first and who makes who
back up,” Thurman said.
“I’ve been doing things different for
myself. Pacquiao’s going to get the
results of me being in some of the best
shape that I’ve been in in a long time.
I had a good performance against Shawn
Porter, I think I had a more dominating
performance against Danny Garcia.
Then it’s two years since the world saw
me again [until] Josesito Lopez. I know it
wasn’t my best performance, it wasn’t my
best outcome. I was brushing off a lot of
dust. Training camp wasn’t easy but now
I’m fighting again, the second time of the
year, which I haven’t done since 2015. It’s
really big for me and I’m definitely taking
the momentum of the first training camp
into the second training camp. I have two
strength and conditioning coaches that
I’m co-ordinating with in preparation for
this fight. We’ going to be ready. I really
just want to do my best to present to the
world and to the boxing fans and all the
fight fans what Keith Thurman truly lookslike in his prime. We don’t know, this still
might not be the best Keith Thurman. But
you best believe I’m coming to give a top
performance because I’ve been putting in
tremendous effort and it should show on
fight night.”
Thurman hopes victory in Vegas will
catapult him to a new level of acclaim.
“I think it’s a build-up to superstardom
at all times. There was a build-up for
Floyd, there was a build-up for Manny
and I’ve had my own build-up. I was
building up to my superstardom when
I unified the WBA and WBC titles. What
I think this fight really does for me
is it just proves that Keith ‘One Time’
Thurman has the
best résumé in the
welterweight division
amongst my peers. So
I look forward to holding
that status once again.
Even with my two years
of inactivity I still don’t
think that Terence
Crawford and Errol
Spence have defeated
my credentials at 147lbs.
I don’t think they
surpassed it, even when I was inactive.
I’m really proud of that and I know one
day we will most likely share the ring
together, there’s definitely still time.
This year is really all about me getting
back into the ring and here I am, back
in the ring and once again it’s your boy
Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman bringing you
some of the most exciting fights in the
welterweight division. I’ve done it in the
past and I’m doing it again and I’m just
proud to be living out my dream and
bringing such great entertainment to the
sport that I love,” he said.
The well-spoken American has relished
confronting Pacquiao in the build-up tothe fight, even if he hasn’t got much of
a rise out of the Filipino great. “It’s my
one and only opportunity to talk junk to
Manny Pacquiao. It’s been fun for me. I’ve
made him laugh, I’ve gotten under his
skin a little bit, [even] if he comes back at
the face-to-face and says, ‘No, it doesn’t
really bother me, they’re just words. I’m
going to fight and I’m going to fight to
win,’” Thurman reflected.
“And I get it. [But] you don’t have to
be scared to get knocked out. Fear has
nothing to do with getting knocked out.
Having fear doesn’t help you. Not having
fear, if I’m the better fighter, you just get
knocked out anyway. So it is what it is.
Words don’t really go far.
Actions speak louder than
words and all the action
happens at the MGM, July
20,” he declared.
“If I didn’t know
anything about Manny
Pacquiao I definitely
wouldn’t be able to say
that he’s 40 years old.
He’s got that baby face
look on him, he still
looks young, he exudes
confidence. He’s a legend, he’s fought
everybody in the world, he’s fought
bigger guys where it’s like David versus
Goliath. He’s fought some of the best
fighters in the world, some of the best
boxers, like Floyd Mayweather. He’s seen
it all. I understand where his confidence
comes from. But at the end of the day
he’s never been in the ring with me.
I know Freddie Roach is pumping his
head up with a lot of lies and he’s going
to find out the truth on July 20.”
Pacquiao fought in January, too,
unanimously outpointing Adrien
Broner. “He did look good last time
out,” Thurman conceded, but added,
“He didn’t get punched and he showed
patience and then he started dominating
the later rounds. I’m going to be a lot
more active from the beginning. He’s not
going to be able to coast into taking his
time and waiting until the seventh round
until he starts letting his punches go. It’s
going to be a fight from the start and
then we’ll see if his age happens to show
or not. He’s always in tremendous shape.
He’s a great athlete but ultimately I’m not
convinced that Manny Pacquiao belongs
at the top of the welterweight division in
today’s generation.”
Thurman maintained that a drug-
testing regimen is in place for the
contest. “At the end of the day, whatever
they make me do, I do. There will be
drug testing, there’s always drug testing,”
he said. “I was trying to be an Olympian
back in the day, I’ve been tested since
I was an amateur. I fight clean and I test
clean every single time. I would say no
[further] comment on that.
“I’m too focused on the fight.”‘I WANT
TO MIX IT
UP WITH A
LEGEND A
LITTLE BIT
IN THERE’
TACTICS:
Thurman and
his coach, Dan
Birmingham,
are working
on a game plan
to beat Pacquiao