27.09.04 – RICARDO MAYORGA, thru translator Tony Gonzalez: “With the money I win from my bet ($100,000), I’m going to go back to Nicaragua, buy a new limo or maybe two, and call them Tito.”
Have the hurricanes in Florida disrupted your training?
Ricardo Mayorga: No, no interruptions at all because of the hurricanes.
What do you plan on doing to stay away from Felix’s left hook?
Ricardo Mayorga: I prepare myself to either block it or take the punch, I’ve prepared for both of those, but most importantly I’m preparing to knock him out.
How do you think Trinidad’s layoff is going to affect the fight?
Ricardo Mayorga: It’s going to affect him immensely, were basically looking at a Tito who is going to retire from boxing, and when a boxer retires from boxing he no longer has any heart. I don’t think Tito will be the Tito of old rather he’s just going to be a former shell of himself on October 2.
What makes you so confident at 160lbs against Felix?
Ricardo Mayorga: Generally good boxers don’t go down that easy and we know that Tito has a weak chin and I think I can knock him out this time around because he’s been put on the canvas.
What round do you think that your going to knock out Tito?
Ricardo Mayorga: I predict that around three or five I really don’t want to cause the Trinidad family any grief so I will please ask the dad to stay close and do not let the fight go on longer than needed.
What is your game plan if the fight goes twelve rounds?
Ricardo Mayorga: In order for Tito Trinidad to be with me for 12 rounds he’s going to have to be born again and born again with a new jaw because there is no way he’s going to withstand my pressure.
What was your opinion watching Oscar De La Hoya’s fight against Hopkins this past Saturday?
Ricardo Mayorga: My respect to Oscar, he proved to me that he was brave trying to stand in front of Bernard and bring it to him, I respect his decision to stay down on the canvas even though I felt he could have gotten up. But I think his time is up and I think its my time now.
What fighters would you like to take on after Trinidad?
Ricardo Mayorga: I would like to fight Oscar De La Hoya and Bernard Hopkins and “Sugar” Shane Mosley.
What do you think about Vargas coming back to fight in the middleweight division, would you like to fight him?
Ricardo Mayorga: Of course, I’d love to fight Fernando Vargas, he loves fighting in the big fights and that’s something I’m crazy about. I would love to take that fight as well.
Is that $100,000 bet for real, and if so does it weigh on your mind?
Ricardo Mayorga: No, it’s a real bet, its not putting any sort of pressure on me and I’m going to make sure that he pays me after the fight, that $100,000. With that money I’m going to buy myself a limousine maybe two in Nicaragua and name them “Tito” so that everyone can remember when I knocked out Tito Trinidad.
On a scale of one to ten what do you consider your physical state to be coming into this fight?
Ricardo Mayorga: I find myself at 20 because I’m a great fighter, I cant wait to get my hands on Tito because the problems that I’ve had really haven’t been any problems they pretty much fell off me and at this point I’m prepared to take on Tito.
How do you plan to deal with all of the Puerto Rican fans that Tito brings to the Garden?
Ricardo Mayorga: In the type of shape that I find myself right now training here at the Fight Club which is a great gym I think there will be no distractions whatsoever and you’ve got to keep in mind there might be 16 thousand Puerto Rican fans in the bleachers but I’m only fighting one in the ring, and that’s Tito Trinidad so he better watch out.
Why aren’t you giving Tito any more respect?
Ricardo Mayorga: Please remind yourself of my previous comments, and my opinion stays the same that Tito is retiring from boxing and I’m really, really having the thought that once you retire from boxing, boxing leaves your heart that’s why I’m not respecting him as much as I would have before.
Is this the biggest fight you’ve ever been in?
Ricardo Mayorga: I would say that monetarily it would be the biggest fight of my career and obviously by beating Tito I will gain much more fame that I have right now, I would say that, that its going to be a great fight and one that I’m going to be a victor in.
Do you think you’ll be at 160 or are you going to go down and fight Cory Spinks again?
Ricardo Mayorga: If I need to come down, I’ll come down to 154 lbs. For whoever I’m looking to fight whether it be Oscar De La Hoya, Fernando Vargas, Winky Wright, Shane Mosely, anybody who presents themselves at 154 and even at 160 if they want to come up.
Do you think the De La Hoya/Hopkins fight was good for the fans or no?
Ricardo Mayorga: No I don’t think it was a good fight, I think it was a boring fight and like I said before I do respect Oscar, he’s the only one who felt that punch, he’s the only one who knows if he could have gotten up but I respect him just the same.
Ricardo Mayorga: I can tell you this much it will be a very active fight from my side, from the first round I’m going to be looking for the knock out, hopefully I’ll knock him out within three to five rounds. I know from my end I will be very active and I don’t know if he’s going to get on his wheels and start running but I know I’m going to be pressuring him for 12 rounds at least.
Who was the hardest puncher you’ve faced and what weight would you like to come in at?
Ricardo Mayorga: I’d like to go up at 158 or 159 lbs for this fight to get into this ring at this weight would be good. The hardest punch I’ve ever been hit with was probably Vernon Forrest, that’s probably the hardest I’ve been hit in my career.
QUOTES FROM PAPA TRINIDAD IN EL VOCERO
The quotes listed below from Felix “Papa” Trinidad Sr. were taken from a story that appeared in El Vocero in San Juan, Puerto Rico, written by Carlos Narvaez that appeared on Sept. 20, 2004. Papa comments on De La Hoya vs. Hopkins and his son’s upcoming bout with Ricardo “El Matador” Mayorga in Madison Square Garden on Oct. 2.
“I saw the fight, but like I said before, I have no reaction towards it. Since people started to talk about that fight, I saw it as shady business because the weight was below the limit, and both fighters were allowed to fight for all the titles. Honestly, it’s not worth our time to have any opinion on the fight itself.”
“We are concentrated on our fight with Mayorga and we will stick to that. But I have only one message for Hopkins, and he has received it a very long time ago. Tito is now at a different level, and we are basing our work on that premise. With all due respect to the boxing organizations, they allowed the unification fight in the middleweight division, and they disrespected the entire category. Tito will fight, with or without a title, because the real fighters come first, and later are all the belts.
“On October 2 you will see a more mature fighter with much more punching power and better ring generalship. Also, Tito is a fighter that believes in God above all. We are currently working on keeping his weight steady and we are ready for the biggest fight of the year.”