Anthony Crolla wants to continue his incredible run of wins going and defeat Jorge Linares as they clash in a Lightweight unification blockbuster at the Manchester Arena tomorrow night, live on Sky Sports. Crolla puts his WBA crown on the line for the second time against the three-weight great, who brings his WBC Diamond strap to the UK. The vacant Ring magazine title is the third prize on offer to the winner, offering Crolla the chance to become the first English Lightweight to win that belt.
With Crolla bettering his last performances in each of his three World title fights – a draw against Darleys Perez followed by KO wins in the rematch and against Ismael Barroso – ‘Million Dollar’ knows that he has to raise his level once again and he’s ready to prove that he is the elite man in the 135lbs division.
“I never stopped believing but it’s been a mad ride,” said Crolla, who today scaled 9st 8lbs 5oz, three ounces more than Linares. “If someone had said a few years ago that this night was going to happen, I might not have believed them, it’s a ride I’ve enjoyed every minute of.
“I have to pull out another career-best performance again. Anything less is not going to be enough. He’s the best fighter that I’ve shared the ring with and you only have to look at his record to know the level he’s operated at for a long time and see how big a task it is. I bring something different to the table that he’s seen before and I believe I’ll have too much for him.
“Winning the Ring belt is one of the ultimate prizes in the sport, not many Brits have done that and it’s only right that I am fighting a great fighter for it. I’m humbled and blessed by both fighting Jorge and fighting for the Ring belt, but that’s not the end of my ambitions, I’ll be happy when I have the belt on my mantelpiece and then get back in the gym and go on and do more great things.
“I’m just so proud that I’ve been able to pay the fans back for their incredible support I’ve received. I’m not the kind of fighter that will run his mouth at press conferences or call people out, but I will happily fight anyone. You can’t want it more than me, no-one does. I’m still taken aback by it all really, I’m just a normal lad that trains hard, but things are going well and the harder you train, the luckier you get.
“There’s a lot more talented lads than me. But my will to win matches anyone’s. I think I’m improving as a fighter as well. I rarely come out really banged up now. Nine times out of 10 in any sport, the team or person with the best defence wins. But a lot of it comes down to my will and how I prepare for a fight. I train very hard and my engine has always been good.”
Crolla’s clash with Linares is part of a huge night of action in Manchester as John Ryder defends his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield.
Callum Johnson lands his first title action against Willbeforce Shihepo for the Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight title, unbeaten Light-Heavyweight Hosea Burton will be in title action Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks.
Anthony Crolla vs. Jorge Linares final press conference quotes
Anthony “Million Dollar” Crolla (31-4-3, 13 KOs) and Jorge “El Nino de Oro” Linares (40-3, 27 KOs) hosted their final press conference today, in Manchester. The fighters are set to go head-to-head for in a unification battle for the WBA, WBC Diamond and vacant Ring Magazine Lightweight Championships at the Manchester Arena on Saturday September 24, live on Sky Sports.
Jorge Linares says he won’t make the same mistakes the Ismael Barroso did against Anthony Crolla when they clash for the WBA, WBC Diamond and vacant Ring magazine Lightweight titles at the Manchester Arena on Saturday, live on Sky Sports.
Crolla defeated Barroso with his now-trademark bodyshot in the seventh round of the first defense of his WBA crown at the arena in July, soaking up the early pressure from the hard-hitting challenger before imposing himself and knocking out the dangerous Venezuelan in style.
Linares believes that his fellow countryman was too aggressive too early in the fight, and that he is ready to tough it out for 12 rounds to take the titles back home.
“Ismael is a very good fighter but he made a big mistake in the fight,” said Linares. “He came out too strong and too fast and too aggressive, trying to KO Anthony, and when you are at this level, you cannot go looking for the KO because when you do that, you end up receiving the KO, and that’s what happened.
“Anthony worked to fight for 12 rounds but Ismael didn’t. He came rushing out and Anthony absorbed the early attack and imposed himself on Ismael and won the fight in style. The difference is that I prepare to go the distance and that’s what you need to do at this level.”
Saturday’s fight is special to Linares for more than the titles on offer as he looks to fulfil a promise to the late president of the WBA, Gilberto Mendoza.
“It’s not who is the more difficult or complicated fighter in the division, all the champions are great fighters,” said Linares. “We can all box and punch hard, so no one fight is any harder or easier than the other, the only fight that counts is the one in front of you, and for me that’s Anthony. Fights with Terry Flanagan and Dejan Zlaticanin can come next year but this fight is personal to me, not because of Anthony, but because of the WBA.
“Prior to Mr Mendoza passing away, I told him I would win the WBA title back for him to Venezuela, so this really means a lot to me because of that. All the belts are on the line, the WBC Diamond belt is beautiful and not many people have won it, so to be added to that list would mean so much.
“The Ring magazine belt is very prestigious and not many win that either because number one and two in the world need to fight to have it on the line, like it is here, that adds so much and the personal promise from the heart to Mr Mendoza for the WBA makes this fight so special.”
Linares’ clash with Crolla is part of a huge night of action in Manchester as John Ryder defends his WBA International Middleweight title against Jack Arnfield.
Callum Johnson lands his first title action against Willbeforce Shihepo for the Commonwealth Light-Heavyweight title, unbeaten Light-Heavyweight Hosea Burton will be in title action Conor Benn tastes his fifth night of action in the paid ranks.
Face value tickets for September 24 will also be available from http://www.stubhub.co.uk/matchroom-boxing-tickets/. StubHub is the official ticket partner and marketplace of Matchroom Boxing and Anthony Joshua.