By Charles White – Kindly taking time out of his busy training schedule, undefeated Northwest heavyweight prospect Vincent Thompson (6-0) had the following answers to my questions.
Vincent, how are you doing today sir?
VT: Just fine Charles. Thank you for interviewing me again!
And how is training going Vincent?
VT: Training is going great, just working hard man. You know how intense I am when training – always working hard at it.
What kinds of things are you working on in training?
VT: Every little weakness I have that my opponents may try to exploit in the ring. My team points my errors out and I am always willing and ready to correct them. Particularly sitting down more on my punches, counter punching and slipping…
Who are you sparring with these days?
VT: Chauncy “Hillyard Hammer” Welliver, Jonte “Rock Steady” Willis, and Sylvester “Doc” Barron and anyone else who is willing to spar.
In your last fight, you claimed a good victory by outpointing undefeated knockout artist Charles Ellis (now 6-1-1 with 5 ko’s). How do you rate your performance in that fight?
VT: Well, I always think I could have done better. Mind you I was sick during that fight, so I really toughed it out on that one. With that being said, on a scale of 1-10, I rate my performance a 6.
Did Ellis present you with any problems throughout the fight? Something perhaps you haven’t encountered in the ring as a professional so far?
VT: No, I just felt him out in the first 3 rounds and realized all he was trying to do was go for a knockout. His punches had some power them. Ellis was tough. But when you try to knock out a heavyweight who is pretty quick on his feet and a mover, like me, it was hard for him, especially since I knew what he was really going for. So all I had to do was avoid the bombs he was trying to throw my way. I could see him loading up and trying to catch me with one big punch. When I go into a fight, I never go in trying to get a knock out.
My father told me to just go in and win every round when I fight and if a knock out comes, it comes. At the end of that day I out-pointed Ellis and came away with a unanimous decision. He had something to prove more than I did. He had to live up to the rumor that he was supposed to be this big time knockout artist up here in the northwest. Well, I put that rumor to rest and just out-boxed him.
The Ellis fight also marked the first time you have gone 6 rounds in your professional career. I know you go more rounds than that in your sparring, but how did it feel going that far in a real bout?
VT: It felt real good knowing that I can go that far, especially in the professional bout and not just sparring. Those 3 minute rounds can be the longest 3 minutes of your life and if you are a fighter you know exactly what I mean.
So what’s next for you Vincent, do you have another fight lined up yet? If so, tell us about it.
VT: We are looking right now for challengers. I am stepping up to the plate. I am here and I am always ready for my next challenge.
While it is still very early in your pro career, about how long would you say before you start facing top 20-type opponents?
VT: Maybe in 24 to 36 months. The journey has just begun for me! Man, you know it is not easy finding guys willing to fight a southpaw. Most guys try to avoid us.
You are still very young and only have a few pro fights under your belt, so no rush obviously, but did you have a timeframe in mind with regards to where you want to be at in your career in the next few years?
VT: In 3 years or a little more I hope to be standing in front of the world heavyweight titlist. And when I beat him, then, I will be looking to unify the belts and bring them back home to America where they belong.
Tell us a bit about your team. Who is working with you and what do each of them bring to the table?
VT: I work with my dad, my coach, who motivates me and points out my bad habits, Jack Stafford, my other coach, who keeps me in shape and oversees a lot of my sparring sessions, and Sam Ditusa, my cut-man, who works the mitts with me and shows me new things. Together they bring heart & fire and the need for me to be the best at what I do.
There could be some good hometown rivalry-type fights between yourself and other Washington heavyweights such as Skyler Anderson or Jonte Willis. Have these type fights been considered for you at this point in time?
VT: It would be nice to fight one of the locals and to know who is top dog in the Northwest. But most of the boxers are demanding too much money to fight. They are afraid of losing that 0 on their record for the amount of money they are offered. And promoters are not willing to pay what the boxers are asking.
I will fight whenever and wherever because I do believe a true champion takes on all comers! With that said I must give Charles Ellis his props. It is uncommon in boxing today to get two ‘up and coming’ heavyweight prospects to face one another so early in their careers. Most of the guys want to build up a padded record before meeting any one that may be their equal.
How do you rate the current heavyweight champions?
VT: Boring! They aren’t fighting one another. Why can’t we pick up the pace in boxing by having quality fights? The UFC is big in having good fights. There is no ducking there, no record building. And UFC champs are not picking their opponents. Maybe we need some UFC fighters to come over to boxing. It seems like some of them have more heart than some of these boxers have.
Although it is obvious that you are far from taking on one of the champs right now, I’m curious, stylistically, which of the current champions do you see yourself matching up best against?
VT: To be perfectly honest with you I would take on whoever has the belt. But if i was in the position to fight one of them, I would choose Vitali, then Haye and save the best for last – Wlad.
What are some upcoming fights that you are looking forward to in the coming months?
VT: Well Charles, for myself, any and all fights that will further my career. There is no particular fight that I have in mind. But, I would like to see these heavyweight titlists go at it, all three of them, so we can see who is the undisputed heavyweight champ.
Thank you for your time Vincent. Any final message to the readers?
VT: I would like to thank Brett Summers from Arlington, WA, Bill McDonald & Ken Smith from Everett, WA, for working with me, giving me pointers and bringing their guys around for sparring.
Stay rooting for me. I am your next future American heavyweight champ of the world, I promise you! Also, thank you Charles for the interview!
For questions and comments, to schedule an interview, or to just chat about boxing, Charles White can be reached at cwhite1078@mysvc.skagit.edu or 360-333-5911.