Boxing

National Conference Call Transcript: Joe Calzaghe, Byron Mitchell

Photo © Tom Casino / Showtime

27.06 - Calzaghe and Mitchell discussed their upcoming super middleweight championship fight at Cardiff International Arena in Cardiff, Wales, Saturday, June 28, at 10 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING. Calzaghe, Britain’s longest reigning titleholder and its 2001 Boxer of the Year, will make his 13th consecutive title defense when he battles former two-time World Boxing Association (WBA) super middleweight champion and current WBO No. 9 contender, Mitchell. Frank Warren’s Sports Network will serve as the event’s promoter.

Question: Can we get some opening comments?

Calzaghe: I am looking forward to the fight. I have not boxed since December, so it has been a long last few months. I am very happy to get back in the ring. I am in great form. I get excited about fighting top fighters. I am looking forward to it, and I know it is going to be a great fight.

Mitchell: I am doing well, and very much looking forward to the fight on Saturday. I feel like a little redemption would not hurt. I feel like I need to be where I belong, and it just so happens that Joe (Calzaghe) and I have to be the two combatants to put this show together.

Question: What are the strengths and weaknesses of your opponent?

Calzaghe: Mitchell is a good all-around boxer, and he can also punch. I have to be like I usually am, which is aggressive. I also have to be controlled and careful because we will have two big punchers in the ring. I just have to use my boxing range and do what I have trained to do. I can box as well as fight. Either way you can be tactical at times. We obviously have our own plans as far as what we are going to do.

Mitchell: I think his (Calzaghe’s) biggest strength is that he has a big heart. He has never-ending desire. He loves to be in the ring and loves to fight. He is the type of fighter you do not have to go look for. He is not going to run. That is what you miss in boxing matches these days because you have one guy chasing another guy. I view his strength as determination and being strong willed like myself. The only weakness I see with Calzaghe is his inactivity over the past six months.

Question: Do you have a time frame for moving up in weight after this fight?

Calzaghe: I suppose I will move up within the next 12 months because I feel I am stagnating and not fighting as often as I want to. I am not getting the opportunity for any unification fights. In boxing, when you win a championship, you want to fight other champions, top fighters and look for other goals. I think it would be a natural progression. I have been fighting as a professional for 10 years, and I have always made this weight, but the older you get, the harder it becomes as you get bigger and more mature. Take Roy Jones out of the light heavyweight division and it is not a great division. Maybe things can open up during the next 12 months. You have James Toney who comes out of nowhere and wins the cruiserweight title. Now, he has a big fight with Holyfield, so anything is possible.

Question: Do you think your opponent’s style is perfect for you?

Calzaghe: I can adapt. I can box as well as fight. I am never the same in any one fight. Some people can just fight, and some can just box, but I can do both. Obviously, you are using that in the ring.

Mitchell: I would not say Calzaghe is the perfect opponent for me. I would say our two styles go hand and hand. That in itself makes for an exciting fight. I am sure everybody will get what they look for. I think this fight can be similar to Gatti-Ward, but maybe not as much of a war.

Question: Can you comment on Mitchell’s statement that Calzaghe is more of a slapper than a puncher?

Calzaghe: Until you get in the ring and feel somebody’s punches and realize how good somebody is, that is when you will know. I have obviously been in boxing for a long time, and I have full respect of my opponent. You do not become a champion. It is as simple as that. I am just looking forward to Saturday. I am in great shape and very focused.

Mitchell: The comment I made about him being a slapper did not come out exactly that way. I do recall saying he does not throw his punches correctly all the time. I do not know if that is due to the position of his opponent and the time he wants to throw the punch. He does have pretty fast hands, so, when his opponent is so close to him, he does not get the distance he needs to throw the punch. That is what I meant by my comment.

Question: Byron, are you expecting an easy night against Calzaghe?

Mitchell: By no means am I expecting an easy night against Calzaghe. He did not become a world champion by scribbling something on paper. He is a true champion, and he has proven that over 12 times, going for his 13th defense. I am not looking for an easy fight at all.

Question: Joe, will the fight delays you have experienced over the past few months give you an extra edge in this fight?

Calzaghe: I hope it will give me an edge. The delays have been very frustrating, but, as boxers, you cannot control some things. With the politics involved in boxing, it can be frustrating for us. I had an easy win in December and wanted to fight in March. There was a two-month delay. It has been taxing for me physically and mentally. When you are not fighting, you are training all the time, but you do not want to go stale because you have been in the gym all the time. You can overdo it. There have been times when training has been boring, but as the fight is getting closer, it kind of gets my appetite up. Obviously, this has been hard work the last three or four months. We are professional fighters, so sometimes you just have to ride with it and not get frustrated because some things you cannot control.

Question: Byron, how difficult was it to get over what happened in Germany against Sven Ottke?

Mitchell: I cannot keep reliving what happened in Germany. Nothing is going to bring that back. I can learn from that and move on. Nothing drastic happened in that fight. Obviously, I did not do enough to influence the judges that I won. I have no excuses. That hometown crap is a hill of beans. I did not do enough to influence the judges.

Question: Are you worried about fighting in Europe again?

Mitchell: Boxing is my job, and this is part of my work. This is what I do, and I knew going into the sport that traveling was involved. I would like to fight more around my home state of Florida, or in Alabama. In order to fight the best fighters, you have to travel. It is an experience for me. I do not think it is such a bad idea. I do not regret being here. I give Frank Warren all the credit in the world for inviting me. I am just glad to be here.

Question: After going the distance in many of your recent fights, are you looking for a knockout against Calzaghe?

Mitchell: It is not all about knockouts anymore. What do you learn from that? If a knockout comes, it comes. It is not anything I plan on. We would all like an early night, but that is not what we are looking for. If it comes, it comes.

Question: In some of your recent fights, you fell behind on points before scoring a knockout. How do you plan to avoid falling behind in this fight?

Mitchell: I just plan to stay ahead of the game. My head is where I need to be. Mentally, I am where I need to be. Before the (Frankie) Liles fight, I had only been eight-rounds once, and suddenly I was fighting for a championship going 12 rounds. It took me by surprise. The art of boxing has been lost, and I am just looking to explore my talents more than I used to. I just used to be a fighter and knew nothing about boxing or the art of boxing. Now, I just take it as it comes, and if a knockout comes, it comes.

Question: Would you like a rematch with Ottke?

Mitchell: Of course I would like a rematch with him. I know what to do, and how to do it this time. I found out my mistakes, and I would look to capitalize on them next time.

Question: Joe, would you like to fight Ottke?

Calzaghe: Obviously, I would like a unification fight, but I do not see him as the best. I think of (Charles) Brewer and Mitchell as better fighters. Ottke just runs. He only works in spurts. I see other fights as bigger fights. I am not going to waste time worrying about him when I do not even rate him as a champion.

Question: Do you have any plans to come to the United States and fight?

Calzaghe: I would like to come to the U.S. and fight. I was injured a few years ago when I was supposed to fight on the (Felix) Trinidad – (Oscar) De La Hoya card. As long as I have a good performance on Saturday, I would like to. The top three contenders are Americans, Brewer, (Omar) Sheika and (Antwun) Echols. I would like to fight Bernard Hopkins in America. That would be my defining fight since he is rated so highly in America. I think he is beatable. I will have to wait and see and take care of first things first. We will see what happens Saturday, but I would like the experience of coming to America.

Question: What is the atmosphere like fighting in Cardiff?

Calzaghe: It is a great atmosphere. It is a great sports country. They love this sport. I am under a lot of pressure, but pressure brings the best out of me. I suppose it is a bit different than Germany. There is more of an atmosphere here, and I am looking forward to it.

Question: Byron, do you think the crowd will affect you?

Mitchell: No, the crowd in Cardiff will not affect me. When I fought (Bruno) Girard, it was the largest crowd I had fought in front of. If that crowd did not bother me, I am sure this crowd will not bother me.

Question: Joe, what future fight do you see as a career defining fight?

Calzaghe: I can only fight the fighters they put in front of me. I have not avoided anybody. I am not fighting a unification fight, but I am fighting the best fighters. All I can do is keep winning against the top contenders, and hopefully a big money fight will come along.

Question: Where will a win over Mitchell put you?

Calzaghe: Mitchell is a former two-time world champion. I can just win and win as impressively as I can, and hopefully a big fight will come. Unfortunately, my last few fights have been against opponents I did not really want to fight, so it was difficult to get up for them. Echols was supposed to be my opponent in August and he pulled out. I like to fight the top fighters. To be a true world champion, you have to fight the best. That is all I can do is fight the best and, hopefully, I will get credit for that.

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