Exclusive Interview by James Slater, photo by Peter Mark Heintzelman / ESB – 28-year-old Jason “Big Six” Estrada travelled to Germany back in April, for a fight with unbeaten Russian heavyweight contender Alexander Povetkin. The former Olympian came home with a close decision loss added to his now 16-2(4) record, but the Rhode Island native also came home knowing he’d given the fight his all. Returning to winning ways with a recent 7th-round stoppage of the upset-minded Zuri Lawrence, “Big Six” is as determined as ever. Very kindly taking the time to speak with me over the phone yesterday evening (UK time), Estrada had the following answers to my questions:
James Slater: I really appreciate you taking the time to speak with me, Jason. Firstly, congratulations on getting the win, the KO win, over Zuri Lawrence. It must have felt good getting the win after the Povetkin loss?
Jason Estrada: Thank you. Yeah, it was definitely good to get the win. A loss can be a great motivator, a loss can sometimes do that to you, whether you feel it was a close loss or one you didn’t think you deserved..
J.S: Lawrence is a tricky fighter who has upset guys in the past, like Jameel McCline, and he also gave Hasim Raham a real fight. You stopped him in emphatic fashion – did you fight angry?
J.E: Oh yeah, definitely. I was really looking for a stoppage. I worked hard in the gym and I said to myself I can’t let this fight go the distance. I don’t want too many more decision wins in my career. I’m in shape to go hard at an opponent, so why not, you know?
J.S: What is your plan now, Jason? Do you have any dates or opponents lined up?
J.E: I’m not really sure, but I’ve been hearing that Tye Fields could be next for me. I’m not sure when or where, but hopefully I can get that fight and then I can get ready for it. I hate being up in the air.
J.S: Stopping Fields, as big as he is, would be a pretty good statement. I know he’s bounced back from his loss to Monte Barrett.
J.E: Definitely. That would be a decent victory for me, and I don’t think stopping him would be too much of a problem the way my mind is now. I’m on a seek and destroy way of thinking at the moment.
J.S: Just going back to the loss you suffered to Alexander Povetkin in April. You were doing well in the fight, was he stronger than you thought he would be?
J.E: No, he wasn’t stronger than I thought. He had a very good game-plan, but at the same time, I felt as though I was winning the fight for the first six or seven rounds. He wasn’t doing that much apart from looking to get close and then holding. When I tried to get some body shots off the referee warned me for hitting low. But, hey, I lost and the decision didn’t go my way. Sometimes these things happen and you can’t win them all.
J.S: Eddie Chambers and yourself have close decision losses to Povetkin, yet “Fast” Eddie has bounced back and is now in the world title picture. You feel you can do the same thing?
J.E: Most definitely. I’m just waiting for my opportunity – just like those guys, Eddie Chambers and Chris Arreola. I’ll wait my turn, just like those guys did. I will be watching the Arreola-Vitali Klitschko fight very closely.
J.S: Just talking about that fight, do you think Chris Arreola has a good chance?
J.E: You know, I’m not a real big fans of Chris Arreola, but I think he has a great chance because of his power. Whenever a fighter has the kind of power he has, the whole fight can be changed with one shot. As long as he doesn’t let Klitschko fight on the outside and box, it will be a very interesting fight.
J.S: How long was it after the Povetkin loss that you were back in the gym?
J.E: About a week and a-half. I was pissed off and I wanted to get the frustration out and the best place to do that is in the gym. One good thing that happened was, with some of the money I got from the Povetkin fight I bought my own gym. I have my own personal gym now.
J.S: Do you plan top stay at the low 240s from now on? Is that a good weight for you?
J.E: Yeah, that’s a good weight for me. At that weight I can still fight and be able to push a guy around, and I’m still fast at that weight. I know it looks good to be coming in at 220 or so, but it’s longevity I’m looking at. It’s really tough for a guy who is 220 to compete with the really big guys like the Klitschkos and the really big Russian guy (Nikolai Valuev). You know, I’m only 6’1″ so I have to be able to fight the big guys with weight strength. I don’t want to be too small.
J.S: You mentioned a possible fight with Tye Fields, but are there any other names you’d like to fight soon – if you could click your fingers as it were?
J.E: No, there’s nobody in particular. I just wanna fight. That’s the type of ego I have. I don’t care who it is, I just wanna fight!
J.S: But if you had your way you’d fight again this year?
J.E: Definitely. I will make sure I have one more fight before this year is over.
J.S: Do you feel, then, just as ambitious and just as determined despite the loss to Povetkin? I know you only have two close points losses on your record – there are no doubts after the April loss?
J.E: No way are there any doubts. Doubts only surface when you feel as though you have lost. I feel like I won both my losses (to Povetkin and a MD loss to Travis Walker). I honestly think I won both those fights, but what can I say? Things work out the way they work out. The best of us have lost, but it’s not about that – it’s all about how you bounce back.
J.S: Well, we wish you all the best with the remainder of your career, Jason. It’s been a pleasure speaking with you. I look forward to seeing you back in action this year.
J.E: Thank you for your time.