David Lemieux Interview Transcript

By Golden Boy Promotions - 12/01/2014 - Comments

David Lemieux – Camp has been going great. I’m in the best shape right now I have ever been. I’ve trained very well against Fernando Guerrero, but nothing like I’ve been training now and I’ve reached some highpoints that I never thought I could reach and become so strong. My punches are coming off very, very well. And I’ve been doing some 10-rounds, 12-rounds sparring. We’re ready for anything. The shape is there, the endurance is there, and the power is more there than ever.

So, this is going to be an exciting fight for the fans and for everybody, and it’s going to be brutal. I’m very excited to be back in the ring. It’s the first time in the US as a pro so it’s going to be very interesting fighting at the Barclays Center on HBO for a main event. I’m very confident that I did everything I had to do. I’m not fighting for the fans; me, I’m fighting for my family. I want to feed my children. So I know that whatever I do is going to reward the fans and make sure that the fans are always satisfied because, as a pro, I’m there to do the best I can do. So let’s get down to business on December 6th.

Q

Hey, David, there are some people who might qualify someone like Gabriel Rosado who has been in some tough fights, but lost, say that he might be kind of slipping into the role of opponent. Is that a dangerous assumption to make against a guy like this?

D. Lemieux

Well, I don’t care what other people are saying about Gabriel Rosado. Whenever they give me a fighter, I don’t care about whatever is said outside. I take whatever they give me and then we start studying our subject. We’ve been studying Gabriel Rosado for a while now and we’ve been training to perfection to fight him and we’re not taking anything lightly. Gabriel Rosado’s a very good fighter. He’s very durable; he’s been in there with a lot of guys, a lot of tough guys.

I’m not really listening because any fighter can be dangerous and for sure he’s still young, he’s still fresh, he’s not beaten up. He’s going to come to fight and he has a lot of gas. He’s going to bring good stuff to the table, but once he meets me it’s going to be a head-on collision.

Q

Dave, how does Rosado stack up to, say, Marco Antonio Rubio at the time you fought him or even Joachim Alcine at the time you fought him, which were fights that you lost?

D. Lemieux

Well, there’s a very easy answer for that question. I’m nowhere near who I was when I fought Rubio or a controversial fight like Alcine, which I still to this day, don’t believe I really lost that fight, but still, there was a lot of changes that have been made. I believe, also, everything happens for a reason so I’m not taking away anything that’s happened in the past. I take it in a good way. Either it breaks you or makes you better. So it’s making me better now.

So I really put those fights in the past and if I had to do it again, I have zero concerns about fighting Rubio or Alcine. I was a different guy back then and now there’s a much more evolved man that is here now. David version 2.0.

Q

What are the circumstances that are different? Who’s training you now as opposed to who was training you then; management; what are the changes?

D. Lemieux

Actually, everything. Management, trainers, nutrition, nutritionist; everything from A to Zed. I have a new trainer since the Rubio fight with Marc Ramsay that has been going tremendously well. Also, we added a physical conditioning trainer, who is Jarek Kulesza, who has been doing a lot with me and it’s been going great-I’ve never had that in the past, personal, physical conditioning trainer and, I think, it has helped the rise of my career. It has brought me to a different level.

I am thankful to God that I’m with Camille Estephan, the best manager in the world, I believe. I always tell him, what is he doing in boxing, Camille. He’s too much of a good person to be in this sport. But, it’s a rough sport and you need a lot of rough people; he’s a rough man, but I’m very thankful that he’s on my side and we’re achieving a lot of great things.

I changed all my nutrition. I have a new nutritionist; I have a guy who does my meals before me-for every day I have two meals that are premade. So we’re counting all the calories and there’s no fat on me; it’s all muscle. Everything I eat, everything is all calculated. I’ve never had that in the past and we’re just putting more good on our side than ever before so if you like you said, everything from A to Zed has changed in my career to make me a World Champion in the future.

I’m wondering how long did it take you to-or do you feel like you’ve put those losses totally behind you or are there still people that you see that question what the heck happened?

D. Lemieux

I think all that has changed. I know that it has changed in my life, in my head. I know it’s changed, but the people are starting to know slowly and slowly it has changed, also, if they saw my last fight, especially against Fernando Guerrero, they saw I was in tremendous shape, I was in the best physical shape of my life, I was stronger, I was sharp. If you watch closely, you can see not just a puncher, but also a good boxer in there and so we’re mixing everything up and people, when they hear David Lemieux, they think he’s good for four rounds. He’s going to come in there and try to knock him out and then if he doesn’t, well, it’s no longer to his advantage.

Well, they’re going to have a surprise because I’m bringing a lot of tools to the table. And I’m not just going to be a puncher, I’m going to be a very good boxer and I’m going to be strong until the end, from the first to the twelfth; whatever needs to be done, it’s getting better and better with each fight. I think this fight is going to be the peak of my 25th year in life. It’s going to be extremely exciting and I’m very excited to give the fans what they want to see and give them a different perspective from what they’ve seen in the past, probably. Let them judge after this fight who David Lemieux is.

Q

David, do you think that there’s any Middleweight in the world that can stand up to your power?

D. Lemieux

I believe that there are a lot of great fighters out there and there’s a lot of guys who can, yes, for sure take punches and roll with it. Anything is possible. But I’m well-prepared I’m not worried about any Middleweight in the world, but for sure some guys will be tougher to put out and I’m looking forward to it, but anything is possible. I’m not saying it is impossible.

Q

I’m wondering, do you feel like there’s a little bit of, I don’t know about pressure, but a great desire on your behalf, to, not only beat Gabe Rosado, a known fighter that’s been in with everybody, but’s been on a little bit of a losing streak, to go in there and make a real statement to say, you know what, I want those bigger fights and I should be in those bigger fights sooner than later.

D. Lemieux

Absolutely. This is the whole meaning of my long trainings and hard work and preparations; this is where we’ve been waiting to be headed since the beginning of my career. Now we know how to do it compared to before where we were just guessing on okay, let’s get there, but there were some flaws in my base. So now everything has been changed and everything is there and I’m ready to mingle in with all these great Middleweights. There’s a lot of great fighters out there, like you named them. We have a lot of-I have a lot of options. There’s a lot of fun opportunities for the fans, especially to watch some great fights with us.

But, for sure, I’m looking right now for next week, December 6th, with Rosado because he’s a serious dude. He comes to fight and we’re taking him very seriously and I’m training extremely hard for it and my only concern right now is him and after that the doors are opened. First, I have to beat this guy and then we’ll walk in. But I’m extremely confident, I’m not worried. I never like to look too far in the future; it comes soon enough.

Q

Camille, can you talk about, in your mind, as the person that guides his career, where you want to go, if everything goes well for your side next Saturday?

C. Estephan

I echo the sentiments that David has. We really don’t want to look past-we take it a fight at a time. But, there’s no secret that the middleweight division is a very hot division right now. It’s a great division with Canelo, Cotto, Golovkin and the rest of them, Quillin, etc. And any one of those fights would be a good fight for the fans, would be a good fight for us, but Rosado is, maybe, underestimated because of his streak of losses in boxing, putting apart the BKB fight, but certainly not somebody to be overlooked right now. We got to take care of that business and we’re reaching for the stars, man.

I believe David’s capable of beating any one of these guys when he’s properly prepared.

Q

David could you talk about making your US debut and what it means to be fighting at Barclays Center and what kind of emotions you’re going to be having on that night?

D. Lemieux

Ever since I got the news that I’d be fighting, doing the main event on HBO in Brooklyn at the Barclays Center, I’ve been extremely happy and extremely excited for this fight. So I’ve been training tremendously hard for it. I’ve had my hardest camp ever. I have never ever slept so much in camp after each training; coming home, being exhausted, being with my daughter. Sleeping at the same time as my daughter, I’m like wow, I’m really exhausted after these trainings. It’s funny because I always said to myself, I only need four, five hours sleep, but now it’s not the same thing anymore. So, we’ve been having a great camp and I’m extremely excited to be fighting at the Barclays Center.

It’s going to be exciting and it’s a great opportunity for me and also for my whole team, for my family, for all the fans, everybody that supports me, everybody out there, it’s going to be a great fight, December 6th. We’re very excited to be fighting there.

Q

Camille, could you talk about that a little bit, too? About what it would mean for David to get a win at Barclays Center and what it would mean for Eye of the Tiger?

C. Estephan

It means the world to us of course, David is one of the main guys on the team. He has the potential to be a great one for many, many years. He’s young, he’s hungry, he’s disciplined, and couldn’t be more proud of him in his work ethic; so, we’re prepared.

But the other thing that we should mention is that, you do the main event on HBO at the Barclays Center, but as well it will be featured at the Bell Centre in Montreal in another show that will have a few thousand people where Pascal is fighting on the InterBox card. So, David’s fight will be projected on the big screen. So the fans in Montreal are very, very excited about that.

He’s basically, I don’t know if it’s ever happened before, where a guy makes a main event in two shows, simultaneously, one in New York; one in Montreal. Very exciting opportunity, and we’re going to grab it.

L. Milner

Okay. David, Camille, if you guys could make some closing comments.

D. Lemieux

We said pretty much everything that there is to say. We’re extremely excited for December 6th and we’re looking forward to it and it’s going to be a great fight. A great opportunity. Thank you.

C. Estephan

Same here, guys. And don’t blink.

R. Diaz

Well, I want to thank everybody; the fighters, David, Gabriel, thank you so much for taking the time. Again, live on HBO, Boxing After Dark, December 6th from the Barclays Center. There are still tickets; very reasonable. You can get them through Barclays and Ticketmaster. And, again, look out for the Black Friday special. Thanks again, everyone. Don’t miss it. Lemieux versus Rosado.

Lemieux vs. Rosado is a 12 round NABF middleweight bout which is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Eye Of The Tiger Management and sponsored by Corona Extra, AT&T and Mexico – Live It To Believe It! Dulorme vs. Lundy is a 10-round junior welterweight bout promoted by Golden Boy Promotions, Gary Shaw Productions and CES Boxing. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. ET with the first bout at 6 p.m. ET. The HBO Boxing After Dark telecast begins at 10:00 p.m. ET/PT.

Tickets priced at $150, $80, $50, $25 and $15, plus applicable taxes and service charges are on sale and are available for purchase at www.barclayscenter.com, www.ticketmaster.com, all Ticketmaster locations, by calling 800-745-3000 and at the American Express Box Office. For group tickets, please call 800-GROUP-BK.