Operator: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the Middleweight Championship Boxing After Dark Triple Header Conference call. Today we have WBA and IBO defending middleweight champion, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin with a record of 26 and 0, 23 knockouts and his challenger, top rated middleweight contender and former World Title challenger, Matthew “Mac the Knife” Macklin with 29 and 4 and 20 knockouts.
We also have Tom Loeffler, president of K2 Promotions, Golovkin’s promoter and GGG’s head trainer, Abel Sanchez. For team Macklin, we have promoter Lou DiBella of DiBella Entertainment, co-promoter, Brian Peters of Brian Peters Promotions and head trainer, Buddy McGirt. The HBO Boxing After Dark triple header begins at 9:45 pm Eastern Time and Pacific Time on Saturday, June 29 and takes place at the MGM Grand Theater at Foxwoods.
Tickets are currently on sale and are priced at $300, $200, $900 and $45. Tickets may be purchased online at Foxwoods.com, by calling the Foxwoods’ box office at -1-800-200-2882 or in person at the Foxwoods’ box office. Tickets may also be purchased through any Ticketmaster outlet and online at ticketmaster.com. To kick things off we would like to introduce Bill Satti of Foxwoods Resort and Casino.
Bill Satti: Good morning, good afternoon and good evening to everyone that’s on the call today. Again, my name is Bill Satti with Foxwoods Resort Casino. This is about the 120th fight we’ve held here since opening our doors in 1992. And we’re honored to have the two teams that are coming here, Golovkin and Macklin and obviously the great promoters, Lou DiBella who’s been with us for many a fight and also K2.
So we look forward to working with them. Our – this year’s event is going to be held in our MGM Grand Theater which is a premiere theater. It transforms into a great boxing venue as well, seats over 4,000 people. And as she’s mentioned, tickets can be purchased at foxwoods.com. Doors will be opening at 6 o’clock to the public, 5:30 for media. The first fight I think is scheduled. And I’ll defer to them. But I think it’s 6:45.
The only thing I want to say to anyone who’s coming here since the Foxwoods is a very large venue, please feel free to look for go – plug into your GPS 240 MGM Boulevard. And that will take you to the MGM parking garage which is close walking proximity to the theater as a whole. Look forward to seeing everyone next Saturday night. And it’s going to be a great night.
Tom Loeffler: Hello.
Lou DiBella: Hello everybody, it’s Lou.
Lou DiBella: So let me take it from here. Bill, I want to thank you and everybody from Foxwoods, particularly Scott Butera who’s been a great friend to boxing on the east coast. Particularly I think Foxwoods has established itself as the destination for big time boxing in the east coast. And in my mind is finest event facility for boxing that’s just about any place I would rather be at the MGM Theater then on any venue in the east coast of the United States.
This is a tremendous boxing card. I need to thank HBO Sports for putting up the money necessary to make a card of this magnitude. It doesn’t get much better than this. The off-TV undercard features Danny O’Connor, a local favorite in New England. He’s got a tough fight in front of him. He’s managed by Ken Casey and the very popular band the Dropkick Murphys. So they’ll be a big following for Danny. Luis Rosa from Hartford, Super Bantamweight who’s promoted by DiBella Entertainment is a big, big ticket seller in New England who will also be on that undercard.
And that undercard will sacked with talent from beginning to end. And Tom Loeffler can tell you about the fight they have on the cards when he speaks. The tickets are priced very affordably with VIP ringsides at $300, ringsides at $200, $90 tickets and $45 tickets. And they’re available at Foxwoods.com or Ticketmaster locations. The off – the TV undercard that HBO will begin at 9:45 Eastern time as well as 9:45 pacific time will open with Willie Nelson, terrific young 154lb contender facing Luciano Cuello from Spain whose only loss were to Canelo Alvarez at a very close decision to Julio Cesar Chavez, Jr. in the fight that many thought could have gone either way. The co-featured bout is at 168 lbs between a guy that holds the IBO 68 pound championship and is considered one of the best 68 pound prospects in the world, highly rated all over the place, Thomas Oosthuizen. He’ll be fighting Brandon Gonzalez who is promoted by Goossen Promotions and is an undefeated 68 pounder. Oosthuizen is also undefeated. Oosthuizen is self promoted by Golden Gloves Promotions of South Africa.
Tommy and I expect that to be a brawl. The main event it doesn’t really get any better than that. Matt “Mack the Knife” Macklin will be challenging Gennady Golovkin for his WBA World Middleweight Championship. Golovkin is probably one of the most highly talented fighter in the world today. Certainly after Sergio Martinez, he’s the mostly highly regarded. But we believe he’s never faced a challenge like Matt Macklin.
Matt’s a true 160 lb contender, truly one of the best in the world, tested Sergio Martinez throughout their fight, was a head midway through that fight, made it as good a fight as you can make it and ultimately, ultimately lost on TKO. But you know we all know that Sergio is one of the best fighters pound for pound in the world. Matt gave him everything he could take and we expect Matt to press Gennady.
And frankly we at DBE expect Matt to beat Gennady. But I know that Gennady’s team and K2, Gennady himself has a very different opinion. And they’ll soon express it to you. One more time, tickets are $300 for VIPs, $200 for rings, $90 and $45. There are an awful lot of super affordable tickets at $90 and $45. And if you’ve ever been to the MGM Theater at Foxwoods, there is not a bad seat in the house.
They’re available through Foxwoods.com or by calling Ticketmaster. And introduce his trainer and his fighter, I’m going to turn it over to an old friend of mine, a guy that I’ve known for over 20 years and I’m proud to work with who works with a great team and a great fighter, my friend, Tom Loeffler.
Tom Loeffler: Thanks, Lou. We’re definitely exciting about coming up to Foxwoods. As you mentioned, this type of fight would never be possible without the support of HBO. They really went out of their way to make this because they realized for the middleweight division right now where Gennady is at, they need – they need to have a top – top fighter like Matthew Macklin. And we have a lot of respect for Matthew. He’s probably in the top 5, maybe the best non-title holder in the division.
And this is the type of the test that Gennady needs for his career. Gennady right now as you mentioned is one of the highest touted boxes around. His life has really taken on a life of it’s own after the two-day special that HBO did on the last fight. It’s really – you know his life has kind of grown. And you know this type of fight will definitely provide fireworks. And it will show you know if Gennady is the real deal.
And all of our – you know our team believes that. I know Matthew Macklin and Lou and Brian Peters have a different idea. But that’s what makes this such a great fight. So with that, I want to introduce the trainer for Gennady, Abel Sanchez. Abel’s been around for a long time. He’s up in the training camp that he runs in Big Bear Like, California, the world famous summit high altitude training center. So Abel can give you some insight onto Gennady’s training has been going. Abel.
Abel Sanchez: Good afternoon to everybody that’s on. Hello Buddy, it’s been a while.
Buddy McGirt: How you doing?
Abel Sanchez: We’re finally going to face each other. But everything’s going good here. Yes, everything’s going good here. I’ve been here since May the 1st. We’re having a great training camp. I’m sure Matthew is too. You’ve got a great coach so we’re looking forward to a very difficult fight. It’s going to be a great fight for as long as it lasts. It’s going to be great for the crowd, great for the HBO audience. So it’s – I’m glad that it was able to be made. HBO came through. And Lou and Tom were able to come together.
But we’re looking for a difficult fight. I hope that it lives up to everything that’s on paper and everything that we think. And everybody that – and everything that Lou and Buddy also think. So thank you very much for having us on. Look forward to seeing you guys there in Connecticut.
Tom Loeffler: Thanks, Abel. And now I want to introduce the WBA and IBO middleweight champion. He’s got the height knockout percentage of any active champion and also the highest in history of any middleweight champion. So with that I’d want to introduce Gennady Golokvin to say a few words.
Gennady Golokvin: Good afternoon everybody. I think to say like my coach you know this very difficult fight for me and for him and for us. I think very close fight. I think very great fight for people, for TV, for fans you know. I’ m ready. I think Matthew is ready too. I hope a great fight. Thank you. Thank you very much.
Tom Loeffler: Thanks, Gennady. So, Lou, do you want to introduce the Macklin side.
Lou DiBella: Yes, thank you Tom. First I want to introduce a man I’ve known for many, many years. I’ve known prior even to meeting Matt – Matthew. He’s been the biggest force in Irish boxing for decades, but too many that I want to say because he still looks like a young guy. But, Brian do you want say a few words.
Brian Peters: Certainly, Lou. Thank you. Thank you very much to Lou and thank you to everybody at Lou’s office, DiBella Entertainment. They’ve been fantastic. You know this – these are the kind of fights that Matthew has always wanted to be in – be at this level and to be fighting. You know last year, thanks to Lou we fought at the Garden and to be fighting a fantastic place like Foxwoods, that’s another great thing in Matthew’s career.
Would also like to thank Tom of K2 Promotions and of course Gennady Golovkin, the champion for giving us this opportunity and of course, HBO – and HBO to make all this possible. But Matthew, he’s a good old fashioned fighter. These fights, they’re a throwback to the middleweight days. You know I believe that Matthew is going to bring Gennady to places that he hasn’t been yet as a professional.
And I think he’s going to shock a lot of people. And I think the fans and HBO are going to be very happy with what they see come June 29. Thank you, guys.
Lou DiBella: Thank you very much, Brian. The next gentleman was a great fighter in his own right, one of the best in the New York area and in the world for a long time. He’s a terrific trainer, James Buddy McGirt.
Buddy McGirt: Hello, everybody. I just want say that I just think that this is a fight that boxing really needs. I’m glad HBO is televising it. When you have the best fighting the best and my hat is off to Golovkin and his camp for accepting the fight with Matthew. And I have to say for a while I never knew who was training Golovkin. But when I found out Abel was training him, then I had to really put my thinking cap on.
And the last time I had t put my thinking cap on has been over about 8 years when I had Tarver fight Roy Jones, where I really had to focus on doing different things, and that’s what I am doing with Matthew, to make sure that we win this fight coming the 29th.
So you know he’s prepared now. But I’m quite sure Golovkin’s prepared. And it’s just you know 9, 10 more days and you know when everybody, they step up to the plate and handle their business.
Lou DiBella: Thank you, Buddy. The next gentleman should at one point have held the middleweight title. He soundly beat Flex Sturm on Sturm’s home ground in Germany. He should have come back a champion. He didn’t. That fight made me salivate and want to promote Matt Macklin not only because – not only because he should have been a world champion, but because he’s absolutely one of the most exciting fighters in all of boxing.
He has the blood and guts warrior spirit that you know you saw in Arturo Gatti and guys like Mickey Ward and others who are really willing to walk through the fire to prove what they have which is why I think (unintelligible) miss title fight on June 29. I don’t see any way it’s going to be anything but a great fight. Matthew is going to make Gennady fight and to make Gennady have to walk through that fire if he’s going to keep his tile.
But we at DBE think that there’s a great chance that that title is going to change hands on June 29. So it’s my pleasure to introduce the great warrior, Matt “Mack the Knife” Macklin.
Matthew Macklin: Thanks, Lou. Yes, I just want to thank everyone involved with making the fight, you know myself, Lou, everyone at DiBella Entertainment, Foxwoods, HBO, Brian Peters, you know everyone at K2, Tom Loeffler and Gennady for you know taking the challenge and giving me the opportunity. And you know I’m really looking forward to it. It’s my third attempt at the world title let’s say. I should have been WBA Champion on the last Saturday of June two years ago.
But I was robbed in Germany. You know gave Sergio a good fight and that was close. I think it was a 3 up on one of the cards going into the 11th round, but I came up short that night. But I think I’m a better fighter and have more experience. You know Sergio was a nightmare where Gennady, as good a fighter as he is, he’s right there in front of you. You know he looks very impressive, especially with his amateur pedigree behind him.
I remember him from the World Junior Championships in Budapest back in 2000. So I’ve been familiar with him since then. I’ve always thought he had a ton of talent and funny enough but I think 13 years later we’re now fighting each other. So you know as a professional, I’m certainly the more proven entity. And I’ve had the much – you know tough, much tougher opposition. And I think that will hold me a good seat on the night. I have worked well with Buddy and we have had a good training camp so far.
And we’re nearly finished now with all the hard work. Just excited for the fight, so looking forward to fighting at Foxwoods and looking forward to making certain I’m lucky becoming maybe the World Champion of the world. I see you all in Foxwoods.
Lou DiBella: Thank you, Matt. And moderator, if we can open it up to questions from the press.
Operator: Ladies and gentlemen, if you’d like to ask a question, please press the number 1 key on your telephone keypad. Again, if you’d like to ask a question, please press the number 1 key on your phone.
Q: Hello. How is everybody doing today? I have a question one for Gennady and one for Matthew. First to the champion, Gennady, you know a lot of critics and detractors out there who say that you’ve done nothing to solidify yourself as a legit champion. Matthew is a guy who’s known as a come forward fighter and gives it all he has but he’s also a guy who has come up short against some of the top names.
Do you think a win over Matthew is going to silence these critics or after this fight, if you do win, do you have to go after one of the other guys like maybe Chavez Jr. or the guy who a lot of people think just beat Sergio Martinez, Martin Murray to solidify yourself as – in the eyes of detractors as a legitimate champion.
Gennady Golokvin: I think Matthew is a great test for me. I think just one fight any time here you know that I win yes, but I hope I win impressively.
Tom Loeffler: I can jump in for Gennady on that question because there has been some criticism as far as him only fighting junior middleweights or not the top level competition. But that’s certainly not from his standpoint. We’ve told HBO – anyone – in fact there’s no name that we’ve turned down yet for Gennady, And as Matt said, you know he should have been a World Champion when he fought Felix Sturm. He should have gotten the decision there.
And if you can knock down Sergio Martinez, that’s quite an accomplishment. So I think that if he beats Matthew Macklin, then I think he’ll be – he’ll legitimately be recognized as you know the number 2 guy right behind Sergio Martinez.
Q: Thank you. And my second question is for Matthew. Matthew, as you stated yourself something that a lot of people seem to forget in this sport is that Gennady was a top amateur who has beat you know a lot of the big names in the sport. And right now you know he’s known as one – you know probably the hardest and most accurate puncher in the sport. You yourself are known as a come forward fighter you know who lets it all hang out and gives everything he has.
Is there anything that you feel that you’ve had to alter in your style for this fight to avoid falling into you know Gennady’s game plan?
Matthew Macklin: You know well I mean Gennady’s a pretty impressive fighter you know but – and this is through no fault of his own, but you know most of the guys he has been walking through have been 154 pounders. You know I’m strong, big punching 160 pounder. And you know that changes things.
You know when all of a sudden he’s going to have to be a lot more pre-occupied with defense in this fight than he has probably all of his previous ones. You know he’s got a lot of hype around hm. You know if he wasn’t for his amateur pedigree, I wouldn’t really read into the hype at all because he hasn’t really beaten anybody of any note.
But you know of course, the amateur pedigree suggests that he’s the real deal. And you know I remember watching him myself at the same age as me boxing the World Junior Championships when I did so I know how good a fighter he is. And like I said before, I’m looking forward to this fight. You know even with this guy I’m going to hit him back just as hard as he’s going to hit me. So yes, he is accurate. He’s got good timing. He’s heavy handed.
And you know so am I. So you know it’s going to be an exciting fight.
Q: Hello. Good afternoon everybody. First question here is for Gennady. Gennady, in the media, the media has been beating you up for as most people have been saying that you’re really a monster. There’s some others are saying that you’re not. Many of your previous performances, they can attest to your power that you do possess in the ring though.
We know Matt’s going to carry some heavy hands. Any chance that we see a change in your strategy in utilizing more of your boxing skills versus relying on your power?
Gennady Golovkin: No I’m regular person. I’m regular man. You know I think no. I’m not thinking about making much change. No, my strategy is my strategy. I know Matthew is good. But the truth he is good -very strong. Very close fight for us you know. I think Matthew already know this. I think great fight.
Q: Thank you, Gennady. My next question is for Matthew. Matthew, talk has already been circulating around the media pretty frequently know that you know Golovkin’s talking about facing Martinez, Chavez and some of the other big names out there. How has this affected you leading into this fight if it has at all?
Matthew Macklin: Not really because that’s the media. People are going to ask me questions. I knew this was going to happen. And that’s the way it is. You know I’m the underdog going in. So that’s the fact of the matter. So -but that’s the way I like it. And you know I’m the challenger. He’s the champion. And you know it’s down to me to rip the title away from him. And that’s what I’m prepared to do and that’s what I’m going to do on the night.
Q: One last question for you, Matthew. You’re last bout with Martinez ended on terms that we know you didn’t hope for. Obviously there had to have been some things you picked up from that bout that were learning lessons. What did you pick up from that bout that you believe is going to help you carry you forward in the win on June 29.
Matthew Macklin: Well you know I think it’s a very different fight. You know obviously Sergio moved a lot more and he is a counter puncher. You know Gennady’s more aggressive. He’s an orthodox fighter. He’s strong. He’s probably not as quick as Sergio. But he probably hits harder and he’s stronger. So it’s basically a completely different fight.
And it suits me a lot more. I’m not going to have to go looking for him. And like I said it’s a very different fight so it’s not really fair to compare. But you know I had a good win since over former champion Alcine. You know I’m in good shape, the weight is good. I’m just ready go. And it’s not really – I’m not saying Golovkin is an easier fight, because the styles are so different. It’s very difficult to compare them.
Q: Hello, nice to be able to join you, Matthew.
Matthew Macklin: How are you doing?
Ian Johnson: This is what I’ve got to do to get to talk to you. It’s a great pleasure but could I just ask a parochial question to start with. Matthew, you will become the first Birmingham boxer to become a World Champion. How important is that to you?
Matthew Macklin: Yes very important. I have seen some great fighters over the years and I’d be very happy to be the first one born in Birmingham to want to win the world title. I would be a great achievement.
So yes, to become world champion would be brilliant.
Q: And obviously all our readers Matthew, are going to be backing you to win fairly comfortably we hope. But maybe it won’t be comfortable at all. Can you just – just answer one question? It’s probably worrying us more than anything is that you’re – you’re more serious defeats have been late in the fights. And therefore there’s a suggestion that maybe your stamina is not up to scratch.
How do you regard that?
Matthew Macklin: Oh that’s not going to be a problem, my stamina is one of his strong points when you look at the previous fight. I think I threw over I think 1,000 or 1,100 punches in a couple fights. So for a middle weight, you know that was quite a ferocious fight for people. You know a lot of them were power punches, so great stamina. I mean the Jamie Moore fight I was down under the 154pounds. And to be honest with you, I was completely drained after 3 rounds never mind 10 rounds. So yes, I mean the weight was the issue there.
Matthew Macklin: Sergio Martinez, you know my corner pulled me out at the end of the 11 before the 12th round. I felt – you know I wanted to continue on the night. I felt okay. You know maybe it was the right call. You know Buddy made the call. He made the decision to save me for another day. But you know I think it wasn’t so much a tired thing. I think Sergio maybe just worked me out or tired me a little bit
But you know I feel I’m in better shape for this fight then I was for the Sergio fight anyway. And I think stamina of anything is one of my stronger points. So no I don’t – I don’t – that’s not a problem at all.
Q: Matthew, you’ve only had one win since March 2012. How do you deal with that before challenging Golovkin?
Matthew Macklin: It’s not ideal of course. I mean initially I wanted to fight in June and then maybe fight Gennady in September or October. But the end of the day, the opportunity was there. And it wasn’t necessarily going to be there later on in the year. And you know at this stage in my career I’m not in a position where I want to turn down World Title opportunities. You know this is the fight I want.
So you know the opportunity was there. It came along and you know I took it with both handles. I couldn’t really pass it up.
Q: Hello guys, Matthew. Hello. My question is for Golovkin. Being this is his third fight here in the states, how do you feel the fans react to him fighting here.
Tom Loeffler: I can jump in on that one as well, a lot of noise on the line so I’m not sure if Gennady’s hearing the questions that well. But you know this would be the third time Gennady’s fought on HBO. And also the third time he’s fought here in the states. After his first fight against Proksa last September, a week later we took him to the (Nonito Donaire) fight in the Home Depot Center.
And he was mobbed by all the boxing fans down there. So we’ve gotten a great fan reaction here in the United States when he fought at – in January against Rosado in Madison Square Garden. I mean there was a lot of Russian fans supporting him with a lot of the Kazak flags. So we’ve gotten a great reaction because of the support with HBO.
And now with this fight with Macklin, he’s really – he’s really grown here in the United States incredibly.
Q: Okay. Does he feel the east coast is a better place for him to fight? Is he gaining a little bit more exposure on that side or does it matter where he fights?
Tom Loeffler: Well the original plan is to keep him on the east coast because of all the support here in New York. And we feel a lot of the fans from New York that came to the fight in January, we feel they’ll come up to Foxwoods Casino. This is a great – a great time of the year up in Connecticut. And that’s really where we wanted to build a fan base because New York’s the media capital. So that’s the original plan.
And then we just go from there depending on how everything goes with the fight on June 29.
Q: Evening Matthew, Steve Lillis.
Matthew Macklin: How you doing, Steve?
Q: I’m good, mate. I’m good. Just want one small question first. When you talked about the 2000 World Juniors, was yourself and Gennady in different weight classes there?
Matthew Macklin: Yes. He was weight below.
Q: So he was the light middleweight and you was middle one yes?
Matthew Macklin: I was a welterweight and he was a 63.5 kilos.
Q: Right. Okay, got you. After you lost to Jamie Moore, you were sought of like treading water for 2 or 3 years until the Euro Cup fight came along. Was there any period during that time when you thought you wouldn’t get to this stage to where you are now headlining major cards, fighting on HBO?
Matthew Macklin: Yes. But it’s a rollercoaster. Me minds been very much a rollercoaster career. I remember yourself see I think after my second pro fight in December the turn of the year, you done a feature on 3 prospects that you though were going to be world champions. I was one of them. That was back in 2001. And there was a lot of hype around it. I was a star amateur turning pro and people forget how good my amateur pedigree was even though it was only that short period of time.
But you know, yes, I mean then there was a setback with the last hand juries. I’ve change trainers a couple of times, a period of no activity. There’s was – I went down to Junior Middleweight. I fought Jamie last. And then there was one thing after another fights falling through. Yes. It was a very frustrating period.
And there was a lot – I probably had to do a lot of soul searching but I do believe that time probably built a lot of character or showed the character that I have. I had to stay with it and stick with it. And you know now – now I’m headlining big cards on HBO. And this my third attempt. I should be World Champion because the Sturm fight you know I got beat. And then I didn’t get the decision in the last with Sergio.
But you know fought the Garden and it sold out. So you know I’m looking forward now this time making it third time lucky. And you know I hope to get from all these experiences and you know not hopefully, I’m definitely going to put all the experience and all the objects and everything behind me and put it together and produce the performance of my career.
Q: Can you tell me about you gym in Spain that you’re running as well now?
Matthew Macklin: Yes, the gym in Spain is a great facility. You know we – it’s for charity. It’s a non-profitable gym. Any profit that it makes will be given to local charity there ASPANDEM which is a brilliant charity for children with development issues. And you know it’s a great facility. From my point of view, I’m just happy to have a base that I can train. And I think it’s for a bit of stability – a lot more stability to me to what I would have had in years past.
I’m constantly on the road where you know Marbella is somewhere I’ve been going to on holiday for the last five or six years very frequently. And got a lot of friends out there, big Irish and English community there and you know to be – it’s basically home for me at the moment. So you know the gym is a great facility for any boxers that want to use it.
Q: And have you spoke to Sergio at all about this fight. I know you keep in touch with him.
Matthew Macklin: Yes. He sent me a couple of messages, phone messages, on Twitter and things just saying good luck and asking how training was going. Just you know wishing me well and saying the he was confident in me and believed I’m going to win. That sort of thing so yes, it was nice.
Q: How you doing, Matt.
Matthew Macklin: Yes. Not too bad.
Q: Good. So I just wanted to find out from speaking to you previously, you’ve outlined that you’re camp’s ahead of the Martinez fight. You had a few interruptions and you had a few injuries. Just wanted to see how smoothly your camp’s gone so far and since you went from training in Spain to New York as well?
Matthew Macklin: Good work came out. I’m in good shape, had some good sparring, a couple of light heavy weights, a couple of light middle to mix things up. Build strength and speed. And – so only one sparring session left now and we’re ready to go. So I’m looking forward to fight. I’m in good shape. The weight’s down. I’m on weight now more or less so. Yes, I’m looking forward to the fight. Can’t wait for it now.
Q: You’ve also stressed that Buddy had a big impact when you went back working with him. And he mentioned earlier in the call the tactics are going to play a big part. And I mean do you see this as being very tactful affair. Or is there still I suppose a risk or a possibility that it could end up in a bit of brawl?
Matthew Macklin: I think there’s a lot of ways this fight could go. You know what I mean. I thing that’s why you have to be ready to – you know myself and Buddy talk to a lot of things – a lot of different games plans you know because it could be a tactical 12 round boxing match. It – you know it could be a Hagler-Hearns 3 round war. There’s a lot of ways it could go. And you know we’re just ready for every way the fight pans out. We’re ready to adapt.
Q: Okay. Good So best of luck and thanks, Matt. I just have another question for Gennady if I can ask. Matt has been very complimentary I suppose over your amateur career and that he kept an eye on you throughout your career. Where you aware of Matthew as an amateur or have you kept an eye on him throughout his career?
Gennady Golovkin: I didn’t know Matthew in the amateur. I never seen him amateur.
Tom Loeffler: Gennady was saying is that question has come up before is that you know since they were in different divisions, he didn’t really know Matthew in the amateurs, but certainly in the professionals now with all of his accomplishments. You know Matthew has been on the radar screen for Gennady. And this is kind of a culmination of the fights that Matthew’s had. And now with Gennady being the champion, it’s kind of a meeting at this point where two of the top middleweights are fighting each.
And that’s exactly what boxing needs at this point.
Q: Hello there. Hello, Matthew. Hello Gennady. I’ve got a question for Matthew Macklin. Are you a fighter that studies videos meticulously? Do you sit and watch them with your trainer, Buddy or do you leave that sort of stuff to him?
Matthew Macklin: I don’t sit down with Buddy. Buddy will have a look. And I’ll have a look and then we’ll talk about it. Yes, I mean I watch but I don’t over analyze. You know you can over analyze. Of course you have a look and see what you know certain habits they’ve got or where they feel comfortable, where they don’t feel so comfortable. And yes, you have a good look.
But I don’t – I wouldn’t be spending hours and hours, night in, night out watching them. Once I’ve had a good look at it, that’s it then really. And maybe a bit nearer to the fight, I have a little you know 15 minutes refresh it, and then again a bit nearer again. But I don’t overdo it.
Q: Okay, lovely. Thanks, Matt. I’ve got another quick question. Let’s just say you were to – you were to win the fight. And you could bring the title back to the UK, where would you – in an ideal world, where would fight? Where would you have your first defense if you were going to fight in the UK?
Matthew Macklin: If I was in the UK I suppose I mean it would depend on – it would depend on a lot of things. But I mean for me, it would be in the UK then obviously Birmingham, the LG would be where I would like to have the fight. I mean the O2 in London’s a great arena. Maybe that would be. But I mean if the fight was in the UK, then preferably for me it would be the LG Arena in Birmingham.
Lou DiBella: I’d just like to reiterate a thank you to HBO for making this fight possible. And thank you to Foxwoods for their tremendous cooperation. Thank you to Gennady and to Tom Loeffler and the K2 team for giving Matthew this opportunity. Thank you to Matthew and Brian Peters and Buddy and Matthew’s team for stepping up to a challenge that most people didn’t want. And the fans are the big winners here. They’ll be the winners if they watch this on HBO.
But they would be the bigger winners if they come to Foxwoods. Tickets are $300 for VIPs, $200 rings, $90 and $45. They’re available at Foxwoods.com or by calling Ticketmaster. We hope to see all of you in Connecticut. And if not, we hope you all tune in to HBO. Thank you very much for your time and attention.
Tom Loeffler: And our closing comments also is to just reiterate with Lou said. I mean it’s just everything’s pretty much been said on the call. But it’s going to be a terrific fight. You know both fighters, both Gennady and Matthew come forward. It’s going to be a lot of fireworks in the ring.
The Golovkin-Macklin World Championship Bout is promoted by K2 Promotions and DiBella Entertainment, in association with Foxwoods Resort Casino. The fight will take place in the MGM Grand Theatre at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut and will be televised live on HBO Boxing After Dark, beginning at 9:45 p.m. ET/PT.
Tickets are currently on sale and are priced at $300, $200, $90 and $45. Tickets may be purchased online at foxwoods.com by calling the Foxwoods’ box office at 800-200-2882, or in person at the Foxwoods’ box office. Tickets may also be purchased through any Ticketmaster outlet and online at Ticketmaster.com.
For updates and additional information, please visit www.K2Promos.com, www.dbe1.com or www.HBO.com/boxing.