Tony \u201cThe Tiger\u201d Thompson:<\/strong><\/em> \u201cI didn\u2019t take this fight in my hometown to get embarrassed. I don\u2019t believe in the boogeyman. D.C. raised a man. I\u2019m all man. I don\u2019t care who the opponent is. I\u2019ll meet you in the middle of the ring, and let\u2019s see what happens. He\u2019s the kind of fighter who is going to bring out the best in me.\u201d<\/p>\nAlso appearing on stage were number one contender for the WBO Welterweight World Title Sadam \u201cWorld Kid\u201d Ali (22-0, 13 KOs) and former WBA Super Lightweight World Champion Jessie Vargas (26-1, 9 KOs) who will battle for the vacant WBO Welterweight World Championship in a can\u2019t-miss 12-round co-main event.<\/p>\n
Sadam Ali:<\/strong><\/em> \u201cThis is for a world title. This is what we all wait for. This is what we work for. This is my dream. Just know that you are going to see an exciting fight.\u201d<\/p>\nJessie Vargas:<\/strong> <\/em>\u201cWe\u2019ve had a great preparation. I am very happy to be fighting for the WBO World Title once again, and I look forward to becoming a world champion. I will do whatever I have to do to come out victorious.\u201d<\/p>\nRobinson \u201cRobin Hood\u201d Castellanos (23-11, 13 KOs) of and former WBA Interim Super Bantamweight World Champion Oscar Escandon (24-2, 16 KOs) of Ibague, Colombia, who will face of in a 12-round fight for the WBC Interim Featherweight World Championship.<\/p>\n
Robinson \u201cRobin Hood\u201d Castellanos:<\/strong> <\/em>\u201cI am very well-prepared. We\u2019ve done everything we had to. I want to make history in boxing, and the only way to do that is to win on Saturday night, and that\u2019s what I\u2019m planning to do.\u201d<\/p>\nOscar Escandon:<\/strong> <\/em>\u201cI want to dedicate this fight to God and my daughter who was born last week, and I haven\u2019t met and to all of you the fans. I hope you really appreciate this great fight we are going to put on.\u201d<\/p>\n* * *<\/p>\n
Herman Caicedo, Trainer for Luis Ortiz:<\/strong><\/em> \u201cWe put in a lot of hard work at the gym. At the end of the day there\u2019s no one who can help you when you\u2019re in the middle of the ring. Whether it\u2019s in the first or the 12th round, it\u2019s coming \u2013 there\u2019s a knockout pending.\u201d<\/p>\nTroy Fox, Trainer for Tony Thompson<\/strong><\/em>: \u201cWe got two stellar athletes. It should be a remarkable, action-packed card.\u201d<\/p>\nMike Borao, Manager for Tony Thompson:<\/strong><\/em> \u201cPeople are calling Luis Ortiz the boogeyman because no one wants to fight him, but Tony is the original boogeyman who no one wants to fight. Everyone knows the original is always better than the sequel.\u201d<\/p>\nRobert Diaz, Head Matchmaker at Golden Boy Promotions:<\/strong><\/em> \u201cThis is a card you don\u2019t want to miss. We stacked it up from top to bottom. These are the kind of fights Golden Boy and HBO put on every time, and every time the fans are the winners.\u201d<\/p>\nBernard Hopkins: \u201cNot only to the fighters on TV but to all the fighters, this is the time to make a statement in your career. When you have two heavyweights that want to fight, you are going to have a fight. In the heavyweight division you have to be careful, because of the power that they bring.\u201d<\/p>\n
Andre Rozier, Trainer for Sadam \u201cWorld Kid\u201d Ali:<\/strong><\/em> \u201cSadam is a hard worker and diligent student. He\u2019s my youngest fighter to reach this level. We\u2019re going to show you Saturday night what we\u2019re ready for.\u201d<\/p>\nDewey Cooper, Trainer for Jessie Vargas:<\/strong><\/em> \u201cIf improvement if possible, perfection is not good enough. That is the way we trained. We improved in every way. You will all see that on display Saturday night. On Saturday night there will be one victor, and that will be Jessie Vargas.\u201d<\/p>\nLee Samuels\/Top Rank:<\/strong><\/em> \u201cJessie reminds me of Alexis Arguello \u2013 he\u2019s a gentleman outside the ring and a warrior inside the ring. Jesse wants to make a statement. He re-did his team. Jesse feels a lot stronger and he\u2019s ready to fight.\u201d<\/p>\nPeter Nelson\/HBO Sports:<\/strong> <\/em>\u201cThis is a spectacular event, and we\u2019re thrilled to be a part of it. All of these fighters are committed to fight anyone, anyplace, any time \u2013 those are the kind of guys that fans want to see.\u201d<\/p>\nRuben Guerrero, Trainer for Oscar Escandon:<\/strong><\/em> \u201cOscar\u2019s been training for eight months, and we\u2019re ready for the fight. He\u2019s going to be ready for this fight. He\u2019s going to be a different fighter than before. Both hands are strong. He\u2019s ready to go. There\u2019s going to be a knockout in this fight.\u201d<\/p>\n