National Conference Call Transcript: Kirk Johnson, Lou Duva

05.06 - Johnson, the Duvas and Lilien participated on a conference call to discuss Johnson's fight against world heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis on Saturday, June 21, at STAPLES Center in Los Angeles. Johnson, from Nova Scotia, recently knocked out Lou Savarese and now has designs on springing an upset on Lewis and capturing the world heavyweight title. In the co-feature, former World Boxing Organization (WBO) heavyweight champion Vitali "Dr. Iron Fist" Klitschko will continue his quest for a shot at the world heavyweight crown when he takes on undefeated Cedric "The Boss" Boswell. The event is presented by Lion Promotions, in association with Prize Fight Promotions, Duva Boxing and STAPLES Center. Los Angeles last played host to a world heavyweight title fight 44 years ago when Floyd Patterson defended his crown for the third time with a 13th-round TKO over Roy Harris on Aug. 8, 1958, at the old Wrigley Field.

Question: Kirk, can you give us an opening statement?

Johnson: I just want to say to those haters out there, and to those reporters; I like what you guys are doing. You are giving me fuel to win the fight. That night, June 21, everybody else is going to be shocked. My team will not be shocked because we already know it is going to happen, but everyone else will be shocked. This will be one of my easiest fights ever.

Question: Lou, can we get some comments from you?

Lou Duva: I think he is going to knock out Lennox Lewis. I saw it when he fought Lou Savarese. I saw the intensity. He knows what happened with the Ruiz fight and he put that out of his mind. I think Johnson is a hell of a fighter. He has a great trainer. It is not that Lewis is a bad fighter. It is not that Emanuel Steward is a bad trainer. You just come to a point when somebody has to come up and somebody has to go down. I think Johnson is on his way up and Lewis is on his way down. I think Lewis will get knocked out and knocked out good. If Johnson fights at all like he did against Savarese, it is going to be all over and you will have a new heavyweight champion of the world.

Question: Kirk, can you tell us what fights you have won that have earned you the right to fight for the heavyweight title?

Johnson: The last 10 years, Kirk Johnson never lost a fight. The only loss I have on my record is a DQ that had a lot to do with the politics of the game. If you look at that fight, I was winning very easily. The bottom line is that the last two low blows were not low blows. I am the most talented heavyweight out there. All the other top heavyweights have a legitimate loss. I am the only heavyweight fighter that has a very controversial loss on his plate. The last 10 years, have you guys put someone in front of my face that can beat Kirk Johnson? Every time I wanted to fight guys like Michael Grant or Shannon Briggs, they would not give me those types of fights. When I win the Lewis fight easily, you will say we kept Johnson in the back too long.

Question: Do the doubters give you fuel to prove people wrong?

Johnson: I am not trying to prove people wrong. The way I see it, people are going to talk and disagree. That is life. I have been training to be champion of the world. Ever since I was 10 years old, I wanted to be welterweight champion of the world. Unfortunately, I grew too big and I am a heavyweight. Now I have the opportunity to win the heavyweight championship of the world and I am going to do that.

Question: Does it bother you that the WBC belt is not at stake in this fight?

Johnson: I do not care about that because Lewis is the man that beat the man. After I beat Lewis, you will recognize me as the world champion.

Question: Why do you think this will be your easiest fight?

Johnson: The bottom line is, when I go into this fight, if I am doing everything right, it will be my easiest fight. If I use my quickness, footwork and speed, I will be ready to go 12 rounds with great success. That is the bottom line.

Question: Can you talk more about this being your easiest fight, considering Lewis is much better than any of your previous opponents?

Johnson: It is known that when you fight someone with great talent, it brings out your best game. The bottom line is, Lewis presents me with a situation where my best has to come out. I am not saying that the training is easy or the fight is going to be easy, but when you look at the fight, you are going to say Kirk Johnson had no problems in the fight. I am going to be on my game, elevate my game and do what I have to do.

Question: Whom have you been sparring with?

Johnson: I have been sparring with some good guys that have the same height and size as Lewis. They have been throwing right hands at me and jabs at me. My movement is great and my condition is great. I am going to be Kirk Johnson. I am not going to sit here and try to impress anyone. I am going to do my thing.

Question: How much do you think the referees took away from you in the Ruiz fight?

Johnson: They took the fight from me. The bottom line is the last two low blows where not low blows. When I did something to Ruiz, he warned me. I hit Ruiz on the hip and they called that a low blow. When Ruiz hit me on my hip, they never called a low blow. That is all water under the bridge now.

Question: How come you never hit Savarese low, even though he is taller than Ruiz?

Johnson: If you look at that fight, the difference was you had a different referee in there; a referee that was not influenced by promoters or anyone else. When Ruiz fought Roy Jones and had a different referee, look at what happened.

Question: Dino, are you concerned about the appointment of the IBO judge from Florida and his possible influence in Lewis' favor?

Dino Duva: Honestly, I can appreciate that question, but the referee from Florida is a very experienced judge. I do not know of any controversies he has been involved with as far as scoring a fight. He has never been in a situation where he has been accused of any wrong doing. I do not think it is fair to say the IBO is naming Lennox's judge. If Lewis is the IBO champion and decides to put his belt on the line, we have to respect that. From what I know, John Rupert is probably the IBO's best judge. As far as the implication that it is an IBO plant to favor Lewis, I do not believe that. In the Ruiz fight, we were worried about the common links between Ruiz and (referee Joe) Cortez. We did have concerns about Cortez. We were concerned about how he judged some of the previous Ruiz fights. We voiced our objections in advance, but our objections went unheard.

Question: Do you believe Lewis learned to not take anyone lightly from his loss to Rahman?

Johnson: I do believe he learned not to take anyone lightly. He went up against a guy that threw the right punch at the right time and those things happen. Lewis came into that fight prepared, but Rahman just caught him. Everytime a world champion loses, people want to say they took his opponent lightly. When I beat Lewis, I do not want anyone to say he took me lightly. I am going to beat him because I am better than him at this time.

Question: How do you think Lewis will come out in this fight?

Johnson: I do not know what he is going to do. Whatever he does, I will be able to adapt. I am a reflex type of fighter.

Question: Which one of your high profile fights are you most proud of?

Johnson: I am most proud of the Larry Donald fight because I was able to box against him and take the fight to him, even though he has one of those difficult styles to go up against.

Question: Can you talk about how you and (head trainer) Curtis Cokes stuck together during the recent hard times?

Johnson: When Cokes had his stroke, I was back in Canada. When I got back to camp, I forgot Cokes had the stroke because he was back at the gym working and talking. It was a rough time, but he bounced back really strong, and I bounced back strong too. That is why we were able to stay together. My goal now is go out and win the championship of the world.

Question: Are you surprised you got another title shot so quickly?

Johnson: No, I am not really surprised I got another title shot so quickly. Both Klitschkos have a loss. Tua, Tyson and Holyfield have all lost recently. Who is really out there for Lewis to fight besides me? Someone who has beaten every legitimate contender. The only so-called loss I have is a DQ. Lewis wants to show everyone he is the only man to physically beat Kirk Johnson. I am not surprised that he wants to be the first fighter to say he beat me.

Question: Lou, do you think that Johnson is fighting Lewis at the right time in his career?

Lou Duva: Not only is he coming at the right time, I think Johnson is a much better fighter than people have seen. He will knock out Lewis. Lewis is in for a fight that night. Cokes will get the message out to Johnson that night. We are all going to be in his corner and it is going to be a team effort. Johnson will knock out Lewis.

Question: How are you going to handle Lewis if unforeseen circumstances arise in the fight?

Johnson: I have been fighting for 21 years of my life, so I have fought all different styles. I do not know how it is going to go, but I am going to win. I am not worried about Lewis saying I am a slugger or whatever. If you have seen me fight before you know that if my mind is right, I am going to go out there and do what I need to do to win. I will decide what I am going to do when I get in the ring.

Question: Do you think Lewis is going to be rusty?

Johnson: When I beat Lewis, it is going to be because I am a better fighter.

Question: How is your weight?

Johnson: I do not weigh myself. The only day I weigh myself is the day I have to weigh in for the fight. I have been running, training and eating the right way. My training has been going very well.

Question: Dino, can you comment again about the common links between Cortez and Ruiz?

Dino Duva: In the organizational rules of boxing regarding neutrality, they speak of three criteria; not being from same state, same country, or from the same ethnic background. Every one of those criteria were violated in the Ruiz fight. They both live in Nevada, both U.S. citizens, and are both from Puerto Rican descent. It is not a racist thing. I am not going to accuse Cortez of doing anything intentionally. I believe there is strong pressure on a guy like Cortez when is refereeing a bout when he has those kinds of common links to a guy like Ruiz. It is an uncomfortable and unfair position to put him in.

Question: Lou, is there something you see in the two fighter's styles that gives you the confidence that Johnson will win this fight?

Lou Duva: I think Johnson has the style to knock out Lewis. In the Savarese fight, I saw an enormous amount of intensity in the way he was putting things together and how he knew what he had to do to win the fight. If he takes that same intensity into the ring against Lewis, it is going to be a night of redemption. I think Johnson is going to hit Lewis on the chin and knock him out. He can play with the jab and the right hand all he wants, but when Johnson hits him on the chin, it will be all over. I think Lewis is at the end of his road. Lewis has been a great champion, but there comes a time when a better champion comes along, and I think it is going to be Kirk Johnson.

Question: Kirk, do you think people in Canada are excited about the fight and whom do you think they are rooting for?

Johnson: I do not know. I am down here in Texas, so I have not been paying attention to that. I know they care about the fight and are talking about it. That makes no difference to me. I am going to go in there and do what I have to do.

Question: Dino, is there an added satisfaction to see Lewis lose since you used to promote him?

Dino Duva: No, there will not really be any added satisfaction because I used to promote Lewis. The reason for me not promoting Lewis has to do with other factors, not because of problems between he and I. I respect Lewis a great deal. Back in the early '90s, I was touting Lewis as the greatest heavyweight in the world and up until June 21, I still believe that. I will be satisfied that night because it is Lewis and that means Johnson will be beating "the man."

Question: Lou, what will it mean to you and your organization if you beat Lewis?

Lou Duva: Just another championship as far as I am concerned. I think it will mean a lot to the sport of boxing. It will be good to have a new face as champion. It means that on any given night, someone can go out there and win the heavyweight championship of the world. Evander Holyfield did it. I really feel it can lend a lot to the sport. They say as the heavyweights go, that is how boxing goes. I believe there is a new sheriff in town and his name is Kirk Johnson.

Question: Can you compare both yours and Lewis' skills and maturity from your amateur days to now?

Johnson: I basically have the same skills now as I did as an amateur, but they are more under control now. My punches are not all over the place. I throw punches now when I am balanced and in range. Lewis was awkward as an amateur and is awkward as a pro, but he got bigger and stronger.

Question: Do you see any specific weaknesses in Lewis that you plan to exploit?

Johnson He has never fought anyone like a Kirk Johnson. There is not one particular thing I am looking to exploit. I am going to go in there and do what I do. I will use my type of speed and quickness, and do what I have to do to win the fight.

Question: Why do you avoid looking at weight targets?

Johnson: Why do I need to look at weight? I fought at 238 pounds against Ruiz. I fought my last two fights at 243 pounds and looked and felt better. I do not have a sculptured body like Roy Jones Jr. or Holyfield. Larry Holmes had his body and Ali had his body. I am going to carry my weight into the later rounds regardless of what I weigh. I could cut a few extra pounds to look good for the reporters or on the scale, but that is just extra energy that I am taking away from my body. I am no longer killing myself to lose weight.