{"id":52888,"date":"2015-06-01T18:00:35","date_gmt":"2015-06-01T23:00:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=52888"},"modified":"2015-06-01T20:47:56","modified_gmt":"2015-06-02T01:47:56","slug":"deontay-wilder-shocks-boxing-world","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=52888","title":{"rendered":"Deontay Wilder SHOCKS Boxing World"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"deontaywilderheader\"<\/a>Unbeaten Heavyweight World Champion Deontay \u201cThe Bronze Bomber\u201d Wilder, confident heavyweight contender Eric \u201cDrummer Boy\u201d Molina and unbeaten junior lightweight Jose \u201cThe Sniper\u201d Pedraza participated in Media Day Workouts last Thursday for their fights Saturday, June 13, on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING\u00ae live on SHOWTIME\u00ae (9 p.m. ET\/6 p.m. PT) at Bartow Arena in Birmingham, Ala.<\/p>\n

The power-punching, popular hometown favorite Wilder (33-0, 32 KOs), of Tuscaloosa, Ala., will make the first defense of his title when he meets Molina (23-2, 17 KOs), of Raymondville, Texas, in the main event on June 13. Pedraza (19-0, 12 KOs), of Caguas, Puerto Rico, will meet Andrey Klimov (19-1, 9 KOs), of Klimovski, Russia, in a 12-rounder for the vacant IBF Junior Lightweight World Championship in the co-feature.<\/p>\n

Below is what Wilder, Molina and Pedraza said during their separate Media Days in Northport, Ala., Weslaco, Texas and Cidra, Puerto Rico, respectively:<\/p>\n

DEONTAY WILDER, Heavyweight World Champion<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s definitely a blessing to be able to fight in my state. When we set the goal to be heavyweight champion of the world that was one of the goals we set, to bring it to Alabama. Just to change it up and give Alabama some spice besides football, and to finally get the opportunity to have a major fight in the state of Alabama. This is what we were looking for when we worked to bring the commission here, and we were successful and got it done. This is what we were looking for.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want Alabama to be my home territory. It’s why I stay here. Some people still try to throw me out but my heart is here and I’ve got bigger and better plans. This is just the beginning.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy team handles all the distractions (from fighting at home). I\u2019ve got a wonderful team. I’m just ready to go. I’m ready to get this party started and welcome Molina to Alabama.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy hand is fine. We tested it yesterday for 10-ounce gloves because that’s the competition weight. We put it on and I felt great. It gave me even more confidence. I’m ready to get in the ring and do what I have to do and perform for my people.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

(on being world champion)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe knew we would be doing a lot of traveling after getting the belt but we didn’t know the capacity of how much. It’s been a journey for me.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think I bring a different flavor to the sport of boxing, and I want to bring even more to the world.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

(on Molina)<\/p>\n

\u201cI haven’t heard from Molina but that’s good, that means he’s focused. I want him to come very focused. I know he’s going to be nervous and scared, but they say if you back a rabbit in a corner, they fight back.<\/p>\n

\u201cI’m most dangerous when I\u2019m at home. I’m not going to let down my home crowd and let someone take what I’ve worked so hard for. He’s not going to come behind enemy lines and take anything from me.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want a great performance from him. I want a great performance for the crowd and people to say, \u2018Hey, I want to come back for the next one!\u2019 and to be hungry for the next one. We got a lot of fights we want to do in Alabama, and this is just the start. I want to move on from Bartow to the Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex (BJCC), which is bigger than the MGM Grand.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery title defense is proving something. I’m the world’s most wanted, and everyone wants it. I\u2019ve got the WBC crown. It’s the most well-known, famous belt in boxing. Everyone wants their name on this belt, and I have it. Every fight is a dangerous fight when I’m putting the belt on the line, and I train as if everyone is a world champion.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

(on why he\u2019s defending against Molina)<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a lot of other opponents, but Molina was the one to understand the opportunity that lies at hand. Some people can price themselves out and some teams make it so difficult that the fight won\u2019t happen. They can really block themselves out from getting the fight. You can have the money or the opportunity. Molina understands what the situation is, and he stepped up to the plate and understands the opportunity at hand to be the World Heavyweight Champion.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy last fight I proved to everyone what I was capable of. I can go 12 rounds and take a punch. I can be just as fresh in the 12th round as the 1st.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe sky’s the limit in what we’re trying to do. I represent the state. Even though I’m from Tuscaloosa, it’s not just where my gym is in Northport or Coffeeville. I represent the state of Alabama. I need a home territory and a home state not only where we can bring in local people, bring in the nation, but also bring in the whole world.\u201d<\/p>\n

ERIC MOLINA, Heavyweight Contender<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is the fight that we dream about when we first lace on the gloves and I am extremely excited about the opportunity to fight for the biggest prize in sports, the WBC heavyweight title. I\u2019ve been preparing and training very hard, and I\u2019m almost at the point where we\u2019re ready to go.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve studied a lot of Wilder, and expect a very physical fight. I think a lot of people are underestimating my strength and power. They know Wilder can punch but they are underestimating the power that I possess.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know it\u2019s going be a hostile environment, fighting in basically his backyard, but he\u2019s now the champion and with that he gets an opportunity in his optional title defense (to fight who he wants, where he wants). He gets to enjoy those opportunities, but that\u2019s where I come in.<\/p>\n

\u201cOf course, I\u2019m confident I can win the title. I think people look at my record and think this or that, but I don\u2019t feel they understand my entire career, the things I have gone through and overcome, the different angles of boxing that more than meets the eye.<\/p>\n

\u201cNothing against Deontay, who has worked hard to get to where he is, but he doesn\u2019t represent the kind of fighter, in general, that I am. I\u2019ve always had to fight and struggle from fight to fight. I never had a true training camp situation. I\u2019m not saying he had things easy, but I had to work and juggle things to keep going. Only the fighters in my situation can understand it.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been boxing for nine years. I have a BS and Master\u2019s Degree and I\u2019m in my fourth year teaching kids with disabilities. Along with boxing, this is what I do. This is who I am, and I am not ashamed of who I am either. I\u2019m proud. If they want to consider me an underdog, fine. But I\u2019m also the guy who got knocked out in his first pro fight and battled back to where I am now and I\u2019m fighting for the championship.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat people don\u2019t know about me is that my career has been all about determination, strength and struggles. Other boxers, including Bernard Hopkins, lost their first fights and went on to win a world title. I\u2019ve learned a lot from my two losses and now I have the confidence to accomplish anything.<\/p>\n

\u201cBottom line is I am not trying to convince anybody who I am, I just want people to see who the real Eric Molina is — that I am more than what my record on paper indicates. I was NABF champion for a while but could never get a fight so I was dropped from the rankings. It was like I had to start over again. But I stuck to it, and with everything else I had going on outside the ring, things I had to put aside for this fight, still managed to get into the position I\u2019m in now.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s ever been a heavyweight contender like me. Where I train, there are no other real heavyweights except for one or two. I have to fly guys in to help me work with the guys already here. I\u2019ve been in camps with Bermane Stiverne; I often had to go to where the sparring was just to get the work.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve never been in a spot where things have been easy for me in boxing. I never had the odds on my side, the tools, the resources. But I still made it this far and want to go farther.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the first round is very important. I expect that from the get-go that he will feel like he could hurt me, but I also feel very strongly that I could hurt him. So it is very important to be ready for that first bell.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is going to be a great fight, much, much better than many may be expecting, and I am ready.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n

JOSE PEDRAZA, Unbeaten Junior Lightweight Contender<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a Puerto Rican, every time I fight, I fight for the honor of my people. So, on June 13, I won\u2019t only be fighting to win a world title, I\u2019ll be fighting for Cidra, Puerto Rico and for all the Puerto Ricans out there watching me. Puerto Rico needs another champion and I\u2019m here to deliver and make my people proud. I cannot afford to let them down. I won\u2019t let Puerto Rico down. I\u2019ll come back a champion.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a great opportunity fighting on a big show on SHOWTIME. It has taken hard work, dedication and long gym work to obtain this big exposure on SHOWTIME.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy last fight against Michael Farenas was very important to me because that fight was a title eliminator and, by winning, it opened the door to this fight and finally my dream of becoming world champion is close to arriving.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt has been a long and hard training camp — intensive. We opened camp in Las Vegas in December. This camp has been special because it is for the world championship.<\/p>\n

\u201cAndrey Klimov is a strong boxer, always going forward, the jab and straight right are his best shots. The only thing I see is he is strong and has good fitness. From his last fight against Terrence Crawford I could see that he has problems when he fights a left-handed boxer with good movement. I will be working in side steps and with speed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI hope that he comes well prepared for me. We must do our best to give the fans a good show. On June 13, I will be a new champ and after that I want to make two defenses and move to 135.\u2019\u2019<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Unbeaten Heavyweight World Champion Deontay \u201cThe Bronze Bomber\u201d Wilder, confident heavyweight contender Eric \u201cDrummer Boy\u201d Molina and unbeaten junior lightweight Jose \u201cThe Sniper\u201d Pedraza participated in Media Day Workouts last Thursday for their fights Saturday, June 13, on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING\u00ae live on SHOWTIME\u00ae (9 p.m. ET\/6 p.m. PT) at Bartow Arena in Birmingham, Ala.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[12889],"class_list":["post-52888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-boxing-news","tag-deontay-wilder-shocks-boxing-world"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52888","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=52888"}],"version-history":[{"count":-4,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/52888\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=52888"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=52888"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=52888"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}