by Geoffrey Ciani (Interviewed by Jenna J & Geoffrey Ciani) – This week’s 120th edition of On the Ropes Boxing Radio (brought to you by CWH Promotions) featured an exclusive interview with former two division champion Robert Guerrero (29-1-1, 18 KOs) who just won the interim WBA and WBO lightweight world titles when he defeated Michael Katsidis (27-4, 22 KOs) by lopsided unanimous decision. Guerrero spoke about that performance, a potential fight against Juan Manuel Marquez, a possible jump to 140, Pacquiao-Mosley, Lopez-Salido, and more! Here are some excerpts from that interview:
On how he rates his performance in his victory against Michael Katsidis:
“I’d give myself maybe a C+. There are a lot of things in there that I worked on in the gym that I didn’t get to do in the ring. That’s why you go back and assess yourself and start improving.”
Regarding the specific areas of his game where he believes he could improve:
“I mean there are a lot of things, stepping off to the right more, throwing more feints, and I mean there was a number of things we did in the gym that I didn’t get to do. You know what I was doing in there it was getting the job done and we turned out a good night.”
Whether he was ever bothered by the pressure being applied by Katsidis:
“No, not at all. I knew he was going to come stronger. One of the game plans going in was to really get behind that jab and with every move he made just keep sticking him with that jab and setting him up. I know Michael Katsidis. He’s that type of fighter where he puts so much pressure that guys fold and their game plan just goes out the window with him. It was a matter of staying focused and not losing my cool and staying right behind that jab and letting him run right into it.”
On whether he was hurt any of the body shots Katsidis landed in the 8th:
“No. You know he caught me with I think two or three low blows during that round, but other than that the body attack he imposed on me didn’t affect me at all. Part of me standing there and weathering the body attack was my part of my game plan to let him know, hey I’m strong and I can hold my ground if I want. I pretty much went out there to put in his mind that I was in charge of the fight and I was going to dictate it.”
His views on whether he can realistically expect to facer Juan Manuel Marquez in his next fight:
“Yeah, I mean it could be a possibility. They tried to make the fight before. It didn’t get made. We’ll see what happens. We’ll see if he’s going to go up to 140 pounds or stay at 135. I know he’s very interested in trying to get that Pacquiao fight. I don’t blame him. We’ll see what happens. I’m the number one mandatory challenger to fight him. I’m excited that I’m right there. Marquez either has to fight me or go up in weight.”
On whether he is tempted to make the jump to 140 to land some bigger name fights:
“Oh yeah, definitely! I mean I feel real good at 135 pounds. I have no problem making 140-147. I got the height and the reach, and the speed and the power for it. I’m excited to be right in the area where there is the possibility of a Mayweather fight, a Pacquiao fight, Marquez, Bradley, Zab Judah just won the IBF title and there are so many big fights out there, Amir Khan, Marcos Maidana who just beat Morales in the main event. There are so many big fights out there. Pretty much I’m at the right spot at the right time.”
On whether making the jump to 140 might happen sooner rather than later if he is unable to secure a fight against Marquez at 135:
“Oh yeah. Yeah definitely, we’ve been looking at a lot of names out there and one of the biggest names out there is Floyd Mayweather. If I could get that fight I would take that fight in a heartbeat. It’s about making big fights and fighting the best and going out there and putting on great shows for the fans. As everybody has seen Saturday night that’s what I’m willing to do is to put on a great show for the fans and to come out and give it my best.”
His views on the Morales-Maidana fight and whether he was surprised that Morales had a turn back the clock type of performance:
“No, not at all. I knew Morales coming into this fight was going to be in great shape. From the press conference when we announced the fight and just seeing how good he looked not being in top shape, how well he had been taken care of himself he looked good. Last week leading up into the fight me and him were doing our shake outs in the same gym at the same time and seeing how good he looked and how fit he was and his power and strength and everything and how his speed looked. I wasn’t surprised at all how he went out there and performed. I think he deserves a lot of credit for going out there and standing right there with Marcos Maidana and actually hurting him a bunch of times with body shots. I take my hat off to him because he came out and he fought a great fight. I take nothing from him because everybody was counting him out and saying he would get knocked out, and he came out and did his thing.”
Regarding which of the 140 pound champions (Timothy Bradley, Amir Khan, and Zab Judah) he would most like to fight in the event he makes the jump to 140:
“Any one of them. It doesn’t matter. They’re all good champions. I mean Zab Judah has a great resume. He fought a number of great fighters. Amir Khan’s out there. He’s a young hot champion coming out just beating Marcos Maidana. I mean there are so many fights. Then Bradley, Bradley’s a great fighter too. He has got quick hands, he comes in strong, and he does his thing. I’d fight any of them. It doesn’t matter. They’re all solid top notch great champions and like I said it’s about making those big fights and it’s going to be who matches up the best for me put on the great fight for the fans.”
Whether he is at all disappointed him that the big name fights have eluded him thus far:
“Yeah, I mean I think this fight with Michael Katsidis has kind of put me where I could get those big mega fights. That’s one of the things I wanted in my career was having a marquee name. I was a three time IBF world champion and now I’m the WBA and WBO interim champion. So it’s exciting that everything is starting to fall into place. I have to be patient and it’s here now and I got to take advantage of it, but the main thing is being 100% ready and in great shape and working on getting better:
His views on the upcoming fight between Juan Manuel Lopez and Orlando Salido:
“I think Lopez beats him. You know Lopez is on his game. He’s a very strong fighter. The one thing with Orlando Salido is he’s been at featherweight for the longest time and when you’re not on the juice and you’re not on the sauce you don’t fight the same. I think after he fought me he’s never looked the same ever. I think that was the strongest and the fastest he’s ever looked and it showed in his drug test. I think Lopez is going to go out there and take care of business.”
On whether he believes Shane Mosley has enough left to pull off the upset against Manny Pacquiao:
“Oh yeah! You can never count Shane out. I mean I’ve been in the gym with him. I’ve sparred with him. He’s just one of those tremendous athletes that just pulls them out of the bag. He just pulls them out of the bag. It’s like everybody was counting him out when he fought Margarito and he came out and he just shocked the world. You had seen Saturday night with Morales who everybody was counting him out and he came back in spectacular fashion and showed the world he had something left. I think this is a fight where Shane is going to come out and show he still has something in the tank. I think he’s going to be ready for this fight. I think he’s going to be ready and this is his opportunity to pull out that last big trick.”
On when he expects to be back in the ring:
“Hopefully I can get in there soon. I feel real good. I’m just a little bit sore. I have no injured arms or anything. I just got my hand a little sore. It’s a little bruised up from the fight. I’m going to get it looked at tomorrow by a hand specialist and see what’s going on there, but as soon as I get word when I’ll be able to get back into the ring hopefully maybe in the next three or four months I’ll be ready for another fight to rock and roll. I’m excited. Golden Boy is doing a great job with me and I think I’ll be ready to fight and it will be all right there. So I’m hoping to get back there pretty soon.”
On whether there was anything he would like to say to all of his fans and supporters:
“I want to thank them for watching. I appreciate them. That’s why I come out and give it my all to fight for them. I hope they enjoyed the fight Saturday night because I worked very hard and I’m going to keep working hard, so keep on watching because the best of Robert Guerrero is yet to come and I’m going to be working hard just to get better.”
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For those interested in listening to the Robert Guerrero interview in its entirety, it begins right at the start of the the program.
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