The talent and skill were always there, but I took shortcuts, ... If I made weight, I thought I was in shape. I won my first sixteen fights on talent alone. Then I fought Eric Harding. That was a wake-up call. He broke my jaw. I knew I was hurt bad. There was pain from the bottom of my feet to the top of my head. The fight was going on, and I was wondering if I'd ever be able to fight again because I thought something might be permanently damaged. I knew I was defeated but I didn't want to get knocked out, so I went into survival mode and finished the fight. Then, after the loss, I asked myself, 'How bad do I want it? What am I willing to do to get it?' I started taking better care of my body and working harder. I worked my way back to being the number-one contender. I could have just sat back and waited for a title shot. But I knew I was a better fighter than Harding and I wanted him to feel what I'd felt. So I signed to fight a rematch against him and knocked him out. |
They feel they are catching me at the right time. I had to bulk up for the movie. They think I went Hollywood. I didn't forget where I came from. |
This fight is more about what Roy Jones lost than what I took, |
This fight won't go much past the sixth, |
To come out in Tampa, Fla., my hometown, it's going to be big. It's going down in history as one of the most memorable trilogies of all time. |
Tonight I had to really dig deep because you saw the best of Roy Jones. |
Tonight, I really had to dig deep, ... I let him know my will was stronger than his. |
We got prepared for the second fight. We came in shape. We came in conditioned. We worked very, very hard. We were determined to once again overturn a political decision, ... I became a champion that night because I knew I could go the length to get the job done, and that's why I'm coming into this fight with the same confidence I've always had. |
Whatever Roy Jones brings, it won't be enough. I've trained hard. I'm a better fighter. |
When I show up ready and prepared, I'm undefeated. I've never lost. I'm hard-headed in some ways and have to learn my lesson the hard way, ... It's the best lesson learned, unfortunately, but it costs you. |
Yes I won the last fight and I won it in grand fashion, ... But in the last fight I predicted I would knock him out and I did. He now says he SHOULD win and that does not sound like a man talking with a lot of confidence. If he wants to impress me, make a prediction. WILL YOU WIN OR WILL YOU LOSE? |
You've got to have it because everything's about the rhythm, ... Right now I'm on the Boyz N Da Hood from Atlanta and we're bumpin' Young Jeezy real hard, he's got some nice little beats and stuff. And when I want to mellow out I chill out to some Common and relax like that. You've also got to put the old school in the mix. I'm an old head anyway, I'm 36. |