26.10.06 – Carlos Baldomir held a conference call October 24th and members of the media asked him various questions regarding his upcoming fight with Floyd Mayweather. A week earlier his trainer Amilcar Brusa also answered questions. Here, then, follows a transcript of both of these calls. All questions posed to Carlos Baldomir were translated by Gabe Ruelas, a part of Goossen Tutor Promotions..
OPERATOR: Good afternoon my name is Mary and I will be your conference operator today. At this time I’d like to welcome everyone to the Univision Baldomir/Mayweather conference call. All lines have been placed on mute to prevent any background noise. Thank you. It is now my pleasure to turn the floor over to your host Kelly Swanson. Ma’am you may begin your conference.
KELLY SWANSON: Thank you Mary and welcome everybody. For those of you who joined us last week and are re-joining us we really appreciate it. We have the champion on the phone and before we get to the champion at this time I’d like to introduce Dan Goossen, President of Goossen Tutor Promotions. Dan.
DAN GOOSSEN, PRESIDENT, GOOSSEN TUTOR PROMOTIONS: Well thank you Kelly and you know as Kelly just said thank you to everyone that was on it last week. For the ones that are new that weren’t on it let me go through everything that I said last week; only joking you guys. Hey first off we also have on the phone Glen Quirioga, the President of Sycuan Ringside Promotions, and Scott Woodworth the Vice President of Sycuan Ringside Promotions, which are the promoters of Carlos Baldomir who has done a fantastic job of getting them in this position of this mega fight Pretty Risky. I don’t want to keep anyone going but if anyone has any questions for those gentlemen also you know feel free to ask, but I just want to open it up.
We also have Gabe Ruelas on here who’s going to be interpreting for Carlos. And before I go any further and bring Carlos on I want to ask him one question. Back on our opening press conference in Beverly Hills for Pretty Risky about a month and a half ago, two months ago, Carlos said that he was going to knock out Floyd Mayweather in four rounds. I want to ask him right now Gabe is if he still feels he’s on track to knock out Floyd Mayweather in four rounds at Mandalay Bay on November 4th.
GABE RUELAS: (Spanish Spoken).
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken).
GABE RUELAS: OK he says he never gave a round number but he said he was going to knock him out but he still feels the same way.
DAN GOOSSEN: OK great. I want to know bring Carlos up to say a few words and then we’ll open it up to questions from the media. Gabe, why don’t you ask Carlos to open it up and say a few words and go from there?
GABE RUELAS: (Spanish Spoken).
CARLOS BALDOMIR: First of all I’d like to apologize for last week. It was a totally misunderstanding that I had with my manager. First they told me one time then they gave me a different time and I – before you knew it I was packing and I was getting some luggage together. And that’s why I was able to miss it but of course I’m here to apologize and today I’m here to answer all your questions that you have for me.
QUESTIONS
Dan Rafael from ESPN. Please go ahead.
DAN RAFAEL, ESPN: Hey guys how are you today? Alright; Gabe are you there?
GABE RUELAS: Yes.
DAN RAFAEL: Hey could you ask Carlos does he view Floyd Mayweather like many of us do as the number one fighter in the world pound for pound. And if he does could you ask him why he does?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Basically I do think he is the best fighter out there but – as far as talent, but I think once we get together I think that I’m going to come out with the victory.
DAN RAFAEL: Why does he say that if he believes that he’s the best in the world? And if he does beat Floyd Mayweather who he believes is number one in the world, what will that say about Carlos Baldomir?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken).
GABE RUELAS: First of all because of my last two outings with Gatti that I had and also because I’m a true champion. I believe in myself, what I did with him and Judah.
DAN RAFAEL: OK one last question for him Gabe if you don’t mind. You know it seems to me that the similarity in terms of like speed and that sort of thing it may be a little bit of a similar fight the way it went with the Judah fight. Does he believe that it will be a similar sort of fight as it was Judah where he has to impose himself physically on his opponent the way he was able to do against Zab?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken). Basically it will come down to me, my willingness to be able to push him throughout the whole fight. And coming forward, throwing punches throughout the whole fight without giving him a chance. But it’s going to be me coming forward the whole time.
DAN RAFAEL: So does he think it is similar to the Judah fight then?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: OK he says basically yes, it’s sort of like the same thing but I think this fight will probably be even easier because the other guy was a southpaw. This guy is a righty so it will be easier for me.
OPERATOR: Yes our next question comes from, oh OK. OK our next question comes from David Avila from Riverside Press. Please go ahead.
DAVID AVILA, RIVERSIDE PRESS: Hi everybody the first question is for Carlos. How did he feel fighting, I mean working out in California gyms for all those years? Did he ever worry that he may not get his chance at the world title?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Basically I had a really hard time. The hardest thing was waiting of course for the opportunity. I mean after I fight everyone and beat everyone. But I knew it was a matter of time. The hardest thing was waiting. But I knew it would get here, it would come, I would take advantage of it as I did.
CHUCK JOHNSON, USA TODAY: Yes I’d like to ask Carlos. He mentioned about knocking Floyd out. Does he think it’s essential that he knock Floyd out? And if not how can he win a decision from Floyd given Floyd’s boxing ability?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Basically because I am strong. I wasn’t able to knock Judah out because he kept holding on the whole time. But this guy he’s fast but I will be able to knock him out.
CHUCK JOHNSON: Can, does he think he can win a decision from him?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Yes definitely. I am confident that if it does go the full rounds that I can win a decision. And me I will know in my head whether I won or lost that fight but me believing in myself and knowing that I won that fight it will be enough for me. I don’t necessarily need the people to see that I won the fight as long as I feel I won the fight in case I don’t knock him out.
CHUCK JOHNSON: So specifically I mean I’m just asking in terms of Floyd’s boxing ability that’s what he hangs his hat on. He’s not necessarily a big, such a big puncher. So does he think he has boxing ability to deal with Floyd’s boxing ability?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Yeah his velocity, his speed not bother me at all one bit because before he was 130, 135 and 147 that his speed is not going to be the same in this weight. Obviously he will notice during the fight that he’s not going to be as fast. So his speed is not bothering me one bit at all.
CHUCK JOHNSON: Alright, thank you Carlos.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Robert Morales from the Los Angeles Daily News, please go ahead.
ROBERT MORALES, LOS ANGELES DAILY NEWS: Hello everyone. Gabe would you ask Carlos if he can tell us just a little bit about his life growing up in Santa Fe, Argentina?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Well basically I have told this many times. You know obviously it’s from my background where I come from. I come from a very humble family. My background I mean I had to fight hard and train very hard to get to where I’m at.
ROBERT MORALES: OK and has he been back to Argentina since he won the championship? And has he become you know like a hero over there?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Well yes basically the last two outings you know with Mayweather and Judah. I mean with Gatti and Judah, I have gone back home and they have truly welcomed me like a true hero and a legend. And you know if I was, I’m not thinking of losing but if I was to give a great fight and yet lose I’ve already done my legacy in Boston but they will still treat me like a hero when I go home.
ROBERT MORALES: Can you ask him Gabe in his first 37 fights he had five knock outs but in his last 21 fights he’s had eight. What’s the different between the two different careers basically?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Basically because from 1999 to 2006 I just trained much harder. I dedicated myself much more and I took it more seriously. That’s all there was.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Franklin McNeil from Newark Star Ledger. Please go ahead.
FRANKLIN MCNEIL, NEWARK STAR LEDGER: Hi Carlos first let me apologize I got on the call a little late so if my question is redundant I want to apologize right now. But basically I want to ask Floyd Mayweather has fought 36 times and 36 times he’s come away victorious. I’d like to know what does he bring different to this fight than some of the other guys that Floyd has fought?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Basically there’s nothing different like you said. Besides all those 33, 36 fighters the only thing different that I am going to bring here is more heart and more balls.
FRANKLIN MCNEIL: OK thanks.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Andres Rodriguez from ESPN. Please go ahead.
ANDRES RODRIGUEZ, ESPN: (Spanish Spoken).
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken).
GABE RUELAS: OK I’ll say it in English. Carlos what makes you think that you’re going to beat Mayweather in this fight him being so fast? And his response is this not, the big difference here like I said before the change in weight he’s not going to be as fast as people think that he will be. He will find out during the fight and that’s what it’s going to boil down to me putting the pressure throughout the whole fight and I am going to win the fight.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Robert Morales from the Los Angeles Daily News. Please go ahead.
ROBERT MORALES: Yeah sorry folks I did have a couple of family type questions for Carlos. Is he married? And how many children does him and his wife have if he is married?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Yes I have four kids.
ROBERT MORALES: That’s OK. Do they live here with him in Los Angeles? And what part of L.A. because I understand he lives in L.A.?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: OK they have been here. We live in L.A. and they’re in L.A. right now. They will be coming here probably the day of the rain (ph) but they are living in L.A., some in Vegas right now.
ROBERT MORALES: OK and real quick, how long have they been in L.A.? And what is the biggest difference living here than in Argentina?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: The difference is now they can be with me. When I’m training they can see me here. We’re living in the same state but after saying all that, my country, I would never change it for anything.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Eddie Goldman from Seconds Out Radio. Please go ahead.
EDDIE GOLDMAN: Great, great. Now last week on the teleconference one of your trainers the great veteran Amilcar Brusa said that he learned something by training Carlos Famoso Hernandez who scored the first knock down on Mayweather back when they fought in 2001. Is there anything from that fight that you’re going to try and adapt in your fight now that you’re fighting at welterweight against Mayweather?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: OK no. Basically I’m just going to do what I am going to do. You guys forget that he’s fighting at a heavier weight now. He’s not going to be as fast as people think. Yes he’s not going to be as fast. It’s my plan. I’m just going to come in to fight.
EDDIE GOLDMAN: Is there something that you see in Mayweather’s game that leads you to believe that you can actually knock him out since he of course still is undefeated?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: I mean it’s very simple; I’m going to come in to fight. Throwing punches throughout the whole fight and I will know when I hurt him. If I do hurt him he will end up going down.
EDDIE GOLDMAN: OK so no prediction on a round then but you’re predicting a knock out?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Well again like I said before I’m not, I can’t say a round but I will tell you this. When I, throughout the whole 12 rounds if it has to go 12 the minute that I hurt him he will go down and that will happen throughout the fight. I cannot say what round.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Ludo Saenz from Notifight.com. Please go ahead.
LUDO SAENZ, NOTIFIGHT.COM: (Spanish Spoken).
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken).
LUDO SAENZ: (Spanish Spoken).
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken).
LUDO SAENZ: Gracias Carlos.
GABE RUELAS: Carlos what are you planning different this time against Mayweather since you say that he’s not going to be as fast as before when he fight at 135/140 pounds. What’s the difference? And he said that basically like I’ve already answered before two guy’s questions, it’s not about the speed, he’s not going to be as fast as he was in the lighter weight. And that day we will see. I’m just, when he throws the right hand he’s not going to be a fast right hand like he did at a lighter weight. He will find out throughout the fight, as the fans will.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Dan Rafael from ESPN. Please go ahead.
DAN RAFAEL: Thanks Gabe. Could you ask him is he aware of the fact that Floyd is unable to train with his uncle Roger Mayweather who is you know in jail for a few months? And does he believe that will be any advantage because Roger wasn’t going to be able to train him on the night of the fight given the suspension from April. But now he’s not even available for Floyd to work with during his training camp. And what would it be like for him to be able to all of a sudden to not have his regular training crew with him? How would that affect him?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Basically it’s either going to be a big excuse and a great excuse for Mayweather when he loses.
DAN RAFAEL: Can you ask him also, you know he came out of nowhere really to most people to win the title and then to defeat Arturo Gatti. And now he’s getting a little bit of a reputation and you know people that viewed him as an underdog in the past maybe are giving him some, you know a little bit of a chance here to win this fight against Floyd even though he is the underdog. Is he enjoying the spotlight more than being more or less the anonymous fighter that he had been for so many years?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Well it’s a big difference and it’s beautiful that now people do come to me all the time, especially after beating like the last two opponents, Zab and Gatti. I mean it is great when they come to me the whole time. And I know that this is already a legacy that I’ve built and I’m just trying to make it bigger. It is great and I have a great time when people come to me and congratulate me.
DAN RAFAEL: Can you ask him if, did he have any boxing idols growing up? Was he always, was he a fan of the sport as a kid or you know as a young adult?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Basically yeah, Carlos Monzon was my, he wasn’t really my idol but he’s someone that I looked up to and I that I said that made me want to become a fighter, that I said I am going to be a fighter.
DAN RAFAEL: And can you also just ask him briefly how in fact did he actually start organized boxing? And did he not, was he one of these kids that maybe fought on the street as a kid and you know found a gym for some discipline or what was the reason behind him starting to box?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: I wasn’t a troublemaker out on the street at all. It just was, what made me want to become a fighter is that my relatives made friends when Monzon was fighting and we would all gather like 50 or 60 together in a house, 50 people, and we would watch the fight. And that’s what made me sort of want to become a fighter, watching Monzon fight.
Our next question comes from Chuck Johnson from USA Today. Please go ahead.
CHUCK JOHNSON: Yeah Carlos, you mentioned that Carlos Monzon wasn’t necessarily an idol. Did you have any idols growing up and if so who were they? And what would you be doing if you weren’t a fighter? What do you think you’d be doing?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: He was just my idol because that how I started watching fight. But I just said as a kid I thought for once what am I going to be doing 20 years from now and that’s one of the things that, because I was watching Monzon fight, I said that’s what I want to do. I want to be like this guy.
CHUCK JOHNSON: So who’s had the biggest influence on his boxing career Gabe?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: No one has had the influence on me. It’s been me, myself.
CHUCK JOHNSON: Himself?
GABE RUELAS: Yes, himself.
OPERATOR: You have a follow-up question from Dan Rafael from ESPN. Please go ahead.
DAN RAFAEL: Hey Gabe. Would you ask him, you know I had asked him previously about you know how he got started in boxing. You said it was about going with his friends, 50, 60 people to watch Monzon fight. Did that just lead him to go to a gym one day randomly and say you know let me get a pair of gloves and see what I can do? Is that what happened?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: The thing about it is you know when I was watching those Monzon fights I was about five years old. When I was 13 I watched him again and I knew in my mind at that age that I just wanted to be a fighter and I went to a gym.
DAN RAFAEL: So he actually started boxing at age 13, after seeing a Monzon fight?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: I started at 13 but at 16 I had my first fight.
DAN RAFAEL: First professional fight Gabe?
GABE RUELAS: No amateur, I am sure. (Spanish Spoken)
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken).
GABE RUELAS: Yes.
DAN RAFAEL: OK and so how is it that he winds up training, is it just a coincidence that he ends up training with the trainer that had trained Monzon?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Inaudible) At this point soon as I got to where I’m at now. Through him I met my new trainer.
DAN RAFAEL: OK so did, so Monzon’s trainer still does not train him presently then?
GABE RUELAS: No.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Chuck Johnson, USA Today. Please go ahead.
CHUCK JOHNSON: Gabe could you ask Carlos what does he enjoy most about boxing? I mean obviously it’s a living for him. But what really, what about the game really turns him on?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Basically I mean first of all I love the sport especially because of the last two outings was great but I did see a change and the change was obviously fame and more money. And I saw that it wasn’t just a sport, it was a business. I like that, the business side.
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken). Because of all the fights that I’d previously had had I hadn’t made money. And the last couple of fights I’ve made some very good money compared to before so now I know that in the future there’s more money.
CHUCK JOHNSON: So did he surprise himself the night he beat Zab Judah?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: No two months before that fight I knew that I was going to be a world champion.
CHUCK JOHNSON: What did, what made him feel that way? I mean why did he know that?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: The reason is that Judah was talking Mayweather when he was fighting me throughout the whole conferences. In the fight he kept thinking about Mayweather and not me. And I knew because of that that he’s my (inaudible) fighter was going to be his downfall.
CHUCK JOHNSON: So did it bother Carlos at all that you know, I guess because (inaudible) weren’t paid or not, that Zab Judah actually fought what was supposed to be a title fight against Mayweather after he had lost to him. Does it bother him that that undisputed welterweight championship tag didn’t immediately go to him?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: I never really cared for the other title because in my mind always was the WBC and they always ranked me throughout my career. Whenever I was ranked the WBC was always there for me. So that’s why I wanted to win that title.
CHUCK JOHNSON: So does it matter to him that, does he want to be recognized the undisputed welterweight champion?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: That’s great, but as long as I beat Mayweather the titles are sort of on the side because people will know that I will win the fight. And when they see you win the fight I mean that’s all they have to see, regardless of any titles.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Ed Deveikis from 13thround.com. Please go ahead.
ED DEVEIKIS, 13THROUND.COM: Hello Carlos my question is are you taking this fight personally with all the trash talking that Floyd Mayweather has done before the fight?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: No I respect Mayweather in front of me. When he’s in front of me he has respect in me very good. And he hasn’t done so in the papers but in front, in me my person he’s been a very nice person.
ED DEVEIKIS: OK as far as training goes, now he, Carlos has been predicting a knock out. Has he been doing anything to increase his power?
CARLOS BALDOMIR: Preparation, me getting ready for the fight, it’s all been the same. The only difference is that I have some very good sparring with fast fighters but overall it’s the same.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Juan Britofe from Notifight.com, please go ahead.
JUAN BRITOFE, NOTIFIGHT.COM: Carlos, (Spanish Spoken).
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken).
GABE RUELAS: Part of this team, he needs to have money men next to Carlos Monzon if you beat Mayweather. And Carlos says he doesn’t think so because Monzon was a great fighter but overall it’s his family, that he knows by him defeating Mayweather it will be great for all of them.
JUAN BRITOFE: (Spanish Spoken).
CARLOS BALDOMIR: (Spanish Spoken).
GABE RUELAS: Carlos some news letters, some magazines that were talking about you having some problem with the weight. Was that true? He’s saying that never, he was always on weight. He never had any problem at all whatsoever. It’s just that the papers sometimes they just like to get headlines so – or say stupid things.
END
QUESTIONS FROM THE ORIGINALLY SCHEDULED BALDOMIR CONFERENCE CALL WITH BALDOMIR TRAINER AMILICAR BRUSA ON OCTOBER 17
EDDIE GOLDMAN, SECONDSOUT RADIO: I do have a question for Senor Brusa. During the fight that Carlos had with Zab Judah, the first two or three rounds Judah seemed to be out-boxing him. And at Madison Square Garden you climbed up the stairs to speak with Carlos, and from that point on, Carlos took over the fight. And as we all know, he ended up winning the fight and upsetting Zab Judah. Can you tell us a little bit about what you told him at that moment and how that fight got turned around?
IRMA MORENO: Okay, he just said that he, you know, just gave him the advice to finish off the fight. I mean, just fight as well as he could.
DAN GOOSSEN: What did he say?
EDDIE GOLDMAN: Okay, what I want to know, what is he going to tell Carlos specifically to defeat Mayweather, because we know Mayweather, of course, is undefeated. Most people have him at the top of the pound-for-pound list, and as Dan mentioned earlier, Mayweather’s still a big favorite. So how does he see Carlos being able to defeat Mayweather?
IRMA MORENO: (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: Okay, he just said that with all the sparring and the training in the gym, you know, they’re going to use that against Mayweather. And plus, he has the insight because he also trained Carlos Hernandez when he fought against Mayweather. So they’re just going to use all that and go in to win the fight.
IRMA MORENO: Okay, he just said he has all the confidence that Baldomir will beat Mayweather.
OPERATOR: Thank you. Our next question is coming from Franklin McNeil of Newark Star Ledger.
FRANKLIN MCNEIL: Okay. I do want to ask Amilcar how does he see Mayweather, or how does he see Carlos doing something different than Hernandez did against Mayweather. I mean their styles are somewhat different. How does he get Carlos to fight, or does he think Carlos can fight any way differently than Hernandez did?
IRMA MORENO: (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: He sees the rivalry against Baldomir and Mayweather as, you know, it’s going to be tough, but they’re going to go in there to fight, and he’s going to win.
FRANKLIN MCNEIL: And does he feel… I mean, obviously Mayweather, that fight with Carlos Hernandez was more than five years ago, and I would think that there’s been some differences in Floyd from that time to now. Does he see anything different in Floyd that he can exploit?
IRMA MORENO: (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: He just says that Carlos Baldomir, he’s a very tough fighter, a very intelligent fighter, and we’ll see when we get to the ring how that all goes into play.
OPERATOR: Our next question is coming from Clifton Brown of the New York Times.
CLIFTON BROWN, NEW YORK TIMES: Yeah, I wanted to ask him does he feel he helps Baldomir most with his strategy or just with his morale during a fight. st when he’s in the corner during one of Carlos’ fights, in general does he feel like he helps him more with strategy as far as making changes during the fight or does he usually… Is it usually just a thing where he is really helping him to remain confident and focused on, you know, beating the guy?
IRMA MORENO: Okay, si. (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: Okay, he’s just saying that you know what? He works on both; both the morale and the strategy, and during the fight, you know, he sees what works best for him, and that’s what they work on.
CLIFTON BROWN: Okay. I have one more question. Ask him how much tape, if any, does he watch…will he watch of Mayweather to prepare Carlos for this fight? How much tape does he watch or is he a trainer who just doesn’t really rely too much on videotape and just works more with his own fighter?
IRMA MORENO: (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: Okay. He says they do watch the tapes of Mayweather just so that they know how to prepare with the sparring in the gym. So they do watch but not a lot.
OPERATOR: Our next question is coming from Jerry Magee of San Diego Union Tribune.
JERRY MAGEE: Dan, I’m wondering why do you guys call this “Pretty Risky”. It’s either risky or it isn’t. To call it “Pretty Risky” seems to me a reflection on Baldomir.
DAN GOOSSEN: Well to tell you the truth, Jerry, originally I wanted to call it “Pretty Damn Risky”. Okay? But I was voted down by a few people just based upon the word “damn”. After hearing the 60 Minutes interview the other day with…on these Duke players and hearing what they got away with saying on the air… Kim, one of the…I guess strippers…with what she was able to say on the air on national TV, I thought we should get away with “Pretty Damn Risky”. Because that’s really what I thought it was, was a pretty damn risky fight. Obviously, we utilized “pretty” based upon Floyd’s nickname and “risky” was based upon Baldomir being a risk. So tying the two in, it may not sound as risky as you may have just mentioned, but in reality it’s a pretty damn risky fight for Floyd for the reasons that I mentioned. And we just tied in Floyd’s name with “pretty” and tabbing Baldomir as “risky”. Does that make any sense to you?
JERRY MAGEE: Yeah, it does. Thank you kindly.
DAN GOOSSEN: Good.
JERRY MAGEE: You know, I happened to see Baldomir when he made an appearance recently at Camp Pendleton when Sycuan had its Salute to Heroes, and to my unschooled eye, he was wearing… He was fully dressed, but he looked to me like he was considerably more than 147 pounds. What kind of report can you give us on where he is with his weight?
DAN GOOSSEN: Well, we had the 30-day weigh-in, and at the time he was one pound less than what they allow. I think it’s approximately 11 pounds, 12 pounds, what is it there, about 12 pounds over the 47 limit. So that was, what, a week ago I think we sent out that press release on that. So, you know, he’s within the confines of where he should be at this stage.
DAN GOOSSEN: He weighed 158, I think it was.
JERRY MAGEE: Isn’t 11 pounds quite a bit to lose in three weeks?
DAN GOOSSEN: Well, again Jerry, it’s within… You know, for a fighter, no. For us, yes. But you know, from the guidelines of the WBC, he weighed one less than what their rules and regulations stipulate. So, as of yesterday when I spoke to Senor Brusa and Javier Zapata, they were right on track for the 47-pound weight limit.
JERRY MAGEE: Thank you, Dan.
OPERATOR: Our next question is coming from William Trillo of Boxing2006.com.
WILLIAM TRILLO, BOXING2006.COM: Thanks, how are you all doing? Yeah, I’ve got a couple questions for Mr. Brusa. I wanted to know what you think about Floyd’s weight. He’s moving up. Do you think this is going to be a hindrance for him in regards to his hand speed and his athletic ability, and do you think he’s going to be maybe a step slower than he was at 40 and 35?
IRMA MORENO: (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: Okay, he just thinks that, you know, it’s going to be tough for Mayweather because he hasn’t fought in the welterweight division, and he feels Carlos has, you know, the upper hand on him because he has been fighting here for at least 14 fights.
WILLIAM TRILLO: Okay. Mr. Goossen?
DAN GOOSSEN: Yes?
WILLIAM TRILLO: Your promotion in Los Angeles, you have that word “risk” in it, and again you’ve got the word “risk” in this promotion, the last one being with No Reward, this one Pretty Risky. Part of the risk, part of the reward and what have you, is the fact that there is going to be a close decision and the decision may not go the way that you see it at the time of the fight. Are you prepared for that and what about the judges going in and the whole risk factor?
DAN GOOSSEN: Well, I mean, you know, this is certainly… Any fight that is meaningful in our business could aptly be named “No Risk, No Reward”. You’ve got to go out there and fight the best guys; you’ve got to challenge yourself if you want to be the best. You know, as it relates to a decision, I mean, you know, those things are purely in the fighters’ hands, okay? As we saw with the James Toney-Sam Peter fight, I didn’t get involved in the judges. I don’t want to get involved in the judges. I rely on the fighters and the judges and the commission, all, you know, going out there and doing their best. The only problem I had, and I’ve had, you know, some good back-and-forth with some writers pro and con on it, is that there was such an overwhelming outcry from media members that I tried to… You know, after the Peter-Toney fight I tried to negotiate right then and there with Dino Duva and Sam Peter because I thought it was better for boxing just to not have to go to an organization and request that based upon a controversial decision, which I believe there was with that fight, that I would prefer to do it man-to-man and what’s best for the boxing business.
You know, I don’t anticipate having that situation here November 4th. Baldomir has promised to knock out Floyd Mayweather in the 4th round. God knows that a lot of his fans believe it, his team believes it. I don’t know if his trainer, Senor Brusa, believes it, but Floyd is under the impression that that is something that Baldomir believes he is going to do to Floyd. I know Floyd; he won’t go out there and say anything other than he is going to win, but knowing the style Floyd has, the ability he has, I believe it’s going to be one of those fights where he stops Baldomir. So hopefully we have no controversy. I don’t believe we will. We’re in a great state, and just look for a great fight, and you know if Baldomir shows up on this call on the last few minutes, we’ll ask him his opinion on what he said about knocking out Floyd Mayweather.
OPERATOR: Our next question is coming from Jason Gonzales of Fightnews.com.
JASON GONZALES: (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: The question was, you know, how he sees it about fighters using the 10-ounce gloves, and the trainer, Senor Brusa, says he doesn’t see anything wrong with either one of them using them. He doesn’t have a problem.
JASON GONZALES: (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: Okay, the question was Mayweather being a more intelligent fighter than Zab or Gatti, how they were going to fight against that, and he just says, you know, that Baldomir is just going to be able to go in there and train hard and fight against that.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Alex Figueroa of First Hour Newspaper.
ALEX FIGUEROA, FIRST HOUR NEWSPAPER: (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: Okay, the question was that, you know, they know that he is concentrating on the fight with Mayweather right now, but does he foresee a fight with Miguel Coto? And the answer was, you know, hopefully. Bring on, you know, everybody, because he’ll fight anybody they put in front of him.
ALEX FIGUEROA: Thanks.
DAN GOOSSEN: I wonder what Floyd would say about that.
KELLY SWANSON: We’ll find out next week.
OPERATOR: Our next question comes from Dexter David of Guianese Express.
DEXTER DAVID: I’d like to ask the trainer what would be his… Do you have a (inaudible) game plan coming into it? I mean, you know, is he going to be aggressive against Floyd or, you know, more offensive, you know (inaudible)?
IRMA MORENO: Senor Brusa? (Spanish spoken)
AMILCAR BRUSA: (Spanish spoken)
IRMA MORENO: Okay, he says that they really don’t go in with any game plan, and they wait until after the first round, because that’s when they can kind of feel each other out man-to-man, and then that’s when they go into a strategy mode.