by Geoffrey Ciani – In addition to being the newest addition of the On the Ropes Boxing Radio team in the capacity of expert commentator, heavyweight contender Chauncy Welliver (46-5-5, 16 KOs) is also currently rated in the top ten by two major sanctioning bodies (#8 in the WBO and #10 in the WBC). The “Hillyard Hammer”, who is best known for his activity and toughness, is now in the midst of an 11 fight winning streak dating back to September 2009. Welliver has discussed his immediate plans and other aspects of the current heavyweight landscape in recent editions of On the Ropes. Here is some of what he has said:
On whether he had any news pertaining to his next opponent:
“Yeah, it’s Marcellus Brown. He’s 7 foot tall. We’re trying to fight a tall guy and also Lance Whitaker looks like a go for May 7 with me down in New Zealand. It’s looked good to go about five or six times now, but we sent them the contract and they said they signed it and are sending it back. I’m actually going to go to the gym and see if he sent it back, but we’re fighting Marcellus Brown. He’s 7 feet tall. There is a fight going on in my hometown. It’s a kid named Skyler Anderson. There has never been anybody in the northwest for me to kind of have a “Super Fight” with. Well this kid is in Spokane. He’s 16-1. All of fights have been right there. Even though we live in Washington, Idaho is our boxing capital I guess you could say. I mean we live right there on the border. All of his fights have been there. People are saying, ‘Well this might be the guy to beat Chauncy’. So it’s kind of a “Super Fight” where we live. It’s being talked about in the papers already and we haven’t even gotten a date for it yet. So the only reason we’re fighting Marcellus Brown is to get used to a tall guy, because this kid is about 6’8”. We were thinking about fighting Kelvin David and we wound up going completely the opposite direction there. So we’re ending up fighting a guy who’s 7 foot tall.”
On how he feels he would match-up against someone like fellow contender Chris Arreola:
“You know he showed in his last fight that he’s getting serious. I actually like that fight. It’s a guy that’s going to stand right in front of me no matter what. He’s a warrior. I’m not going to have to go look for him and he’s not going to have to go look for me. Style-wise you’re not going to find a better matchup. I’d love a fight with Chris Arreola. If Chris Arreola wants to fight I know he’s probably not in the budget for New Zealand. If he ever wants to fight me in America we’re willing to go fight for his promoter. I’d love a fight with Chris Arreola. He’s an upper echelon heavyweight, one that a lot of people know. A fight that is obviously a couple of steps above what I’ve fought, me and Chris Arreola make potentially the heavyweight fight of the year. The guy’s got power but I’ve got a chin. I’m working on my power but at least I throw a lot of shots and I’ll be standing there punching with him so me and Chris Arreola would definitely be heavyweight fight of the year if we get it on.”
On whether he believes being a white American heavyweight contender can help with his popularity if he can beat some fellow contenders:
“I think it will help, at least I hope. I mean the one problem is American TV has more or less given up on heavyweight boxing, especially white heavyweights. Guys like Gerry Cooney kind of ruined it for guys like me. I would think that it would help. If I was around ten years ago I would say being a white heavyweight definitely helps, but I think American TV just does not care about the heavyweights enough, even American heavyweights. So I don’t see it doing a whole lot for me. I personally think just a win over an Arreola-type guy gives me a lot of exposure because obviously it would be on TV. As I said, I assure you that would be a great fight. I don’t think skin color would have anything to do with the exposure after that fight with how exciting it would be. Obviously yes, exposure is a major problem and getting on TV. I say this a million times, a lot of people see in the Solis fight I was fat. That was fifty pounds ago. Let’s give it up. If you know anything about boxing you can go to BoxRec and see that there has been plenty of weight loss. I’m obviously working very hard. So people are saying they don’t want to see my fat bubble gum body on TV. Well hey! It’s getting better so hopefully I can get the opportunity to fight on TV hopefully against an Arreola.”
His views on the upcoming heavyweight matchup between Robert Helenius and Sam Peter:
“I love it! I think it’s a great matchup if only for the experience levels. I think Sam Peter obviously has much more experience, but one thing that I think kind of counters that is I think Helenius has that Klitschko style. He’s got that style that would eat Peter up every time. Helenius is a good friend of mine. The guy is a great fighter. I’ve sparred him countless times. Does he have the chin? I mean he did fight Lamon Brewster but Lamon Brewster was more or less shot at that time of his career and he came out and said that he was shot at that point. If Sam Peter hits Helenius can Helenius take it? This is a great step for Helenius on the track he’s taking and I absolutely love the matchup. I give it a 50-50. It’s experience versus a lot of skill. I can’t wait to see it. I think Helenius probably wins it over in Germany but Sam Peter’s got that power to keep any fight interesting. This is a fight where Helenius is showing he’s on the fast track to the heavyweight title. This guy only turned pro a couple of years ago. It couldn’t have happened to a better guy if he beats Sam Peter and gets a title shot.”
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