March 15, 2025 • 46 mins
What does it take to transform from a struggling Sicilian kid with no opportunities to a cruiserweight pro boxer sparring with heavyweight world champions? Giovanni Scuderi's journey is a masterclass in persistence against impossible odds.
Standing 6'6" tall, Scuderi breaks every stereotype about Sicilians. With remarkable candor, he recounts leaving his poor working family, arriving in America with nothing, and learning English from scratch while pursuing his boxing dreams.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
It's time for the main event.
It's the Sparin' Podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Oh, it's a knockout.
New York, italian like myself.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
What kind of Italian are you?
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Yeah yeah.
That's me, yeah, but we're thereal Italian right now, Real
Paesan, giovanni Scuderi.
What's going on?
Speaker 1 (00:28):
Thank you guys.
Thank you for having me.
What's going?
Speaker 2 (00:30):
on brother.
Yeah, when are you at right now?
I know you live in New York,right, but I've seen you.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
You've been in Philly .
I'm training right now withBoosie, the father of, you know,
boots Hanks, yeah, so yeah, newteam.
You're driving.
No, I'm doing back and forth.
I got a place in New York andsomewhere here in Philly.
Speaker 3 (01:01):
He's a real tyrant.
The mob.
Speaker 1 (01:06):
He got two houses.
Speaker 3 (01:07):
He got like three, maybe four Real estate.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
Speaking of the mob, I guess I'm half Sicilian myself
.
You got to be the tallestSicilian ever.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Yeah, there is just a few tall guys in Sicily.
There is not that many.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
Is this a stereotype with that?
Yeah, man.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Sicily, there's not that many.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
Is this a stereotype with that?
Speaker 2 (01:26):
Yeah, man, sicily is like the island of Italy.
It's very, very small, verysmall people come from there,
but not him.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
Yeah, 6'6", 6'6".
Yeah, if we talk about history,we've been conquired by so many
people and we are somixed-blooded, bro, we can be
dark-skinned with a beard.
We can be like, dark skinnedwith beard, you can be blonde.
In sicily, you know, we've beenconquered from uh, spanish
people, vikings, arabic, so weall, you know.
(01:55):
You can see people like me orshort people and any kinds
that's.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
that's crazy, like, because I've actually been to
sicily.
I was only there for like aweek, but I got to be honest,
man, I didn't see anyone tall.
You should have stayed anotherweek.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
Yeah, one more week, another week, maybe, maybe We'll
be, maybe lucky to see somebody.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
Yeah, maybe no, but I got a question, so we are
Giovanni's right.
There's a lot of pizzerias outhere, so that's kind of like
you're related to them, you know.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Giovanni's.
No, bro, I wish.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
Yeah, I wish they out here getting money.
They out here getting money on.
Yeah, I wish they out heregetting money.
They out here getting money onyeah.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
So what brought you from Italy to New York?
So obviously you fought amateurin Italy, correct, mm-hmm?
And then what made you move?
Was it for the recognition inAmerica, or something happened?
Speaker 1 (03:01):
I come from a poor family in Sicily.
We're a place where we don'thave a lot of job opportunities,
we don't have opportunities inthe boxing sport itself.
So I had this dream to changemy life and I feel like the
American dream was what I needed.
(03:21):
So I came to this country,decided I wanted to become a
boxer because, even if I hadsome amateur fights in Italy, I
feel, when I become a boxer, itwas in the United States, but I
had my first two Golden Gloves.
Then I won and then, you know,moved to New York and turned pro
(03:42):
.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
So what age did you start?
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Late Like 18.
19, 18, 18 probably, yeah.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
Somebody came up to you and was like yo, you, a big
Italian heavyweight you can takeover the game type shit.
That's what they said prettymuch.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
Not even, bro.
They wanted me to play soccerover there in italy.
It's not.
It's not like, uh, the cultureof boxing, it's not like here in
the states.
You know, over there like youplay soccer.
So, yeah, if you want to box,you know you gotta come here.
(04:22):
Yeah, yeah, that makes sense,that makes sense, did you?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
so now I know you know you got to come here.
Yeah, yeah, that makes sense.
That makes sense, did you?
So now I know you were with ourguy Andre Rozier, so you you're
you're done with him.
Was it a good falling out orwas it?
Is there drama or you don't gotto get into it?
Speaker 1 (04:36):
No, we don't have any drama, especially if on my side
.
You know like I love the man.
Besides the boxing relationship.
I feel like we've been for solong together and it's like part
of family.
I have no feelings in thisregard.
I don't know how I feel aboutit.
(04:57):
I went on another team, butthere's a love.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
That's awesome.
So he's one of the onlytrainers where, when you're
listening not the only one, butone of the few where you're
watching on TV or you're thereringside you actually hear him
over the crowd.
You hear him yelling out theydon't need to mic him up you
hear him screaming.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Stay on the stick.
Stay on the stick, that's oneof the things I like about him.
And so now you said you'regoing to Philly with boots in
his team, what's the sparringlike over there for heavyweight?
I know it's kind of difficultto find heavyweight sparring.
Is it better in Philly?
How do you spar?
Speaker 1 (05:39):
boots, boots don't give a fuck Boots sparring
anybody bro.
And especially what I like of agym like this, like, uh, like
you know, I've been in camp withalexander uzik.
Total different style, totaldifferent, like you know,
mentality of work.
But the similarity that I sawin both teams is combat school,
(06:01):
which means work on techniqueevery day defense catching, you
know, sleeping shots, cannonshots, you know, working on your
form.
And that's where I like Buzi,because he's a teacher.
He makes you work on theselittle details, and what I see
(06:23):
Uzik was doing as a championwith a lot of experience, was
working on the little things youunderstand.
So that's the similarity forgreatness, if you want to be
good, bro, you gotta beconsistent on the little things.
Be a student, you know.
And another thing that I likeof Boots' team is that it's a
(06:48):
good environment.
Everybody is a hard worker,everybody is good and like this,
you can learn from theenvironment For anybody around
you, not just from the coach.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
So when you were like , are they repetition?
I know a lot of guys when theyswitch trainers and stuff, that
the repetition of certain things, like like canelo and his team
we we talked to tfimo lopez andhe was like the biggest
difference with him is likerepetition of the same shot over
and over and over.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
Listen if you think about it, and custom mother used
to say that boxing is a, thisis a sport.
Anybody can become a fighter.
It's repetition, you know thatis who get it faster.
You know there is who need moretime, but it's true repetition
that you become a good fighter.
You know doing the same thingover and over and over and
(07:38):
master it.
Do it correctly, yeah, you know, not skip any step.
So are you put up over there inPhilly, though you have like a
place to stay?
Speaker 2 (07:44):
correctly, yeah, you know, not skip any step.
So are you put up over there inPhilly, though you have like a
place to stay in Philly?
Speaker 1 (07:49):
Yeah, you're in.
Speaker 2 (07:50):
Philly and you're okay.
Okay, because I did see you.
You were.
I think you were coming backfrom Philly the other day.
You posted you got pulled overor something when it's nice out,
they come out.
Speaker 1 (07:58):
You know, everything good start to get nice, in
Philly.
Yeah, what is when there is agood weather, you know yeah, he
posted something.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
He was like let's have some fun.
What is the biggest difference?
Like culturally, maybe likesparring wise or gym wise, from
New York and Philly, or is it isit?
Is it a lot of the same stuff?
Speaker 1 (08:27):
I don't know.
I can say from what I like inthis gym.
There is a lot of respect herein philly, so you know, so more
than in new york.
In new york, in new york I don'tknow, maybe because I spent a
lot of years in new y I feellike there is too much animosity
.
Man, you know you got to watchout for everybody around you
(08:49):
close to you, Jealousy and thisand that, why?
You know why that, and I'venever been a person like that.
But I feel like a lot of peopleover there like you know, man,
too much like fucking talkingand animosity and bullshit,
buying your back all this stuff.
I'm glad that I left.
To be honest, I love New York.
(09:11):
It's in my heart.
But, yeah, I just don't want tostay focused on the boxing
business and don't really dealwith all this bullshit at the
gym every day.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
And that's just going to elevate you, because you
know it's more of a mind gamethan anything at your level and
you got to keep your mind clear.
So if that wasn't working, youmade the change and that just
shows how much of a professionalyou really are.
What did you take away fromUsyk's camp?
I was going to get into it alittle later, but what was?
Speaker 3 (09:45):
I have a question before that though.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
Okay, go ahead.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
Let's back from.
So you was in New York, right?
So you was at Gleason's Gym inNew York.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
No, that's where I first, like you know, as an
immigrant, as somebody thatdoesn't know nothing in New York
City.
You know New York City, youknow boxing situation where do
you go?
You got the famous Gleason andthat's where I spent like the
beginning of the time.
Then I trained with MarkBreland.
Then he's the coach who made me, because when I get here in the
(10:19):
States, when I was here in theStates, I was just an amateur
green as fuck.
You know what I mean.
Then he saw something in me.
I started training with him andhe's he's the person that
introduced me to the real boxing.
Teach me, like the, the oldschool heart Painting jab.
Seven, six different types ofjab, and we would do it the jab
(10:43):
over and over.
And I I remember the firstthree months I was training with
him we only used the jab.
I was dying to throw out myhand but I used to have the left
hand and it was like two arms.
I didn't even need the righthand.
I was like mixing it upcombination with the left hand.
You know what I mean and alittle bit low.
(11:03):
Yeah, you know what I mean anda little bit low.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
Yeah, go ahead, go ahead.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
A little bit lost, like the heart of the jab.
You know I was training withhim and then you know I haven't
been able to reach out to him.
But I would love to, you know,bring him on the team again.
You know, because I've.
Really.
It's like when you're a kidthat you don't understand what
your father is saying, and thenyou grow up one day oh, now I
understand, now it makes sense,now that I'm, you know, I'm
(11:30):
experienced and I feel like now,today, I'm a fighter.
I really, really would love tohave somebody like Kim just to
talk to me and, like you know,make me think on the right way.
I'll set up a shot, I'll doopen on an opponent with the
feints and everything else.
But I'm very lucky because Ifind Boosie pretty much
preaching the same things.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
You're a smart guy because if you look what
happened to Deontay Wilder whenhe got rid of, that's horrible.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
That's horrible.
You saw what happened.
The ego of a fighter is thiswhen you fall, that's horrible.
The brilliant saved his ass.
You saw what happened.
But you know the ego is, yeah,the ego of a fighter is this you
know, when you fall down,fighters that's what they do.
They gotta find an excuse.
Yeah, so it's so easy tofucking put it on you.
Okay, I fucked up.
That guy was better than metonight, you know.
(12:20):
So, sometimes your ego, yourpride, make you do bullshit like
this and turn against thepeople that really love you
Because, yeah, eardrum broken,bleeding, there was no way you
could have turned over the fight.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Everybody agrees.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
The only person on your corner that tried to
protect you because, okay, youmade something on the sport of
boxing.
You got some money.
Enjoy that with your family.
Don't risk your fucking lifefor this bullshit.
You know what I mean.
So he did the right thing as acoach.
He tanned him.
Speaker 2 (12:53):
Yeah, he did the right thing, of course, of
course.
And did you ever?
When you said you came up, markBreland, it was when, earlier,
obviously in your career, whenyou got to America, did you ever
move around with Deontay Wilder?
Was he with him with that?
Speaker 1 (13:04):
I was supposed to, like you know, going down over
there in Alabama for some camp,but then I had my shoulder
injury.
I had two surgery on my rightshoulder and that's why I fell
off with Mark Billings For acouple of years.
I wasn't able to train him.
I should have like doubled thefights and I had known.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Yeah, yeah.
When I was reading up about you, I read about the injuries.
I saw that and that's part ofthe game, man.
Especially for a big guy likeyourself, it's a lot more common
with the big guys.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
No, I feel like now that I'm more mature and more
experienced and wise, I feellike sometimes us athletes, us
fighters, we do everything wrongand we don't even realize the
diet is wrong.
You don't eat enough, you knowyou're over training or you're
beating up your body and thenyou know you end up having like
(13:53):
injuries.
Then you don't take the righttime to recovery, you go again
at it, you get injured even moreand then you need a surgery.
It's just like you fight thismentality, this brain and the
things that I don't know.
I would never probably getinjured, but now I got two
surgeries the right one, one onthe left one.
Now I'm healthy, I'm good and Ihave a big care of my body.
(14:15):
Now I'm good.
I'm still young.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
You got the tattoos that covered up the scars or
something.
Speaker 1 (14:25):
No, no, I had the tattoo before.
You see, they got their wings,but I still fly.
Okay, I still fly, you got thewings, but I still fly I like
that?
Speaker 2 (14:34):
Yes, sir, I like that one.
I was going to actually ask youabout your tattoo too.
What does it signify?
Is it part of your nickname?
Speaker 1 (14:47):
No, no, it's a how I like what it represents.
You know it's a, it's a animal.
Again, he's a hunter.
They can see in the dark, youknow, and uh, very, very wise,
very, you know, rare, you know.
So I like this, this qualities,I like that little brother
(15:07):
sometimes.
Speaker 2 (15:08):
Sometimes I do that I have the deep meaning, you know
yeah, yeah, what a um when youwere, when you were in who six
camp, right, I'm sorry I'mbouncing all over the place
because I, as I intervieweveryone, I get a little star
struck.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
So don't mind me camp was there?
Speaker 2 (15:26):
was there a strong language barrier?
Was there a strong languagebarrier there, or was it like
the name?
Speaker 1 (15:32):
of translators.
No, what I like of them is thateverybody's serious.
You know, it's totallydifferent the type of camp from
any other camp.
You go over there to work, sothere is not much conversation
(15:53):
and stuff like that.
But you know, I'm Italian, Ilike to talk, so I still like
break through the barrier, youknow, and then we end up like
become actually very goodfriends with, not just with him,
with all the team and, uh, Iwas blessed to be allowed to not
just stay for the sparring buteven for other like you know,
(16:15):
exercise, like running orwrestling.
I was his main wrestlingpartner partner because that's
what we did on the second camp.
Yeah, no, I figured out, yeah.
And what people don't understandabout Uziq?
What people don't understandabout Uziq is, even if he don't
(16:37):
have the crazy power on hisshots, he's very, very strong
physically.
You see somebody 6'9", 270pounds, 80 pounds.
He didn't bully him in the ring, it was opposite.
Honestly, you're right, you'reright, you know it's a smaller
man, he's very strong and it'sbecause you know the wrestling,
the wrestling that they do, thecore has excise.
(16:59):
He's like, he's not that heavybro 220.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Yeah, when they first told you that you're in his
camp and they're like, hey,we're going to wrestle, were you
like what the fuck?
What do you mean?
We're going to wrestle.
Did you take him back?
Speaker 1 (17:13):
I didn't even know.
I didn't even know.
I pretty much told him like Ihave a fight coming up and stuff
like that.
You know, even if he's a greatcamp like this with a great
champion like this, it's notgood for you, it's good for him,
yeah, but I still accept to doit because, you know, I feel
like Alexander Usyk is gonna bein the history like one of the
you know, one of the greatest.
(17:34):
Yeah, you know, and in some ways, in some, in some ways, he
remind me, like Ali, becausethere is a lot of little things
that people don't know what hedo for his country, how he help
like people, how he have a bigheart, how he have a big ego
like other fighters.
You know how he's religious,and the thing that he remind me
(17:56):
of Ali is how he was, like, youknow, for the other people.
He wasn't selfish at all.
Sorry guys, my camera justdropped off.
He wasn't selfish at all.
Sorry guys, my camera justdropped off.
He wasn't selfish at all.
He was trying to, you know,help everybody and it's fate.
One thing that I realized afterthe first camp you know, fury is
(18:16):
very smart doing these tricks,like stretching those camps by,
you know, having a cat or someother bullshit like that, and he
messed up the rhythm of thecamp music, you understand.
So he trained for seven monthsstraight.
So sometimes it'scounterproductive when you do
something like that.
There is other things.
I can't even say some thingsbecause I signed an NDA, but
(18:40):
there was some other problemduring the first camp.
Yeah, bro.
Speaker 3 (18:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
And yeah, bro, yeah, they're very professional, bro,
yeah, they're very professional.
So they should, you see, likeyou know, allow, like you know,
to say, and stuff like that.
And I was expecting for him topull back from the fight Because
he suffered, like you know, alittle injury and then, like he
sent everybody home becausethere was that injury, and he
(19:10):
still fought and still beat hisass and dropped it in the ninth
round and I realized thatmotherfucker is for real, bro,
like Ali is ready to die forthis shit.
And what I realized is not eventhis, it's not even his courage
, it's his faith, because whenyou believe in God, you know the
way they do it, why you shouldbe afraid of any other man.
(19:32):
You understand that's what Irealized from both of them.
They're not afraid, they havethe extreme confidence and come
from the faith.
He was like doing the rosaryand his prayer, like you know,
five, six times a day, doingtraining and stuff like that,
very religious, wow, wow, youknow.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
That's the stuff we don't see.
Speaker 1 (19:50):
You don't really promote it.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
You know, that's something we could bring up too.
No, but they're religious.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
But that's a lot of things like nowadays.
They don't even want that outthere.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
I don't understand that, but that, like what's
going on in saudi and stuff,they're pushing the muslim faith
.
But I've never seen anythingabout usik praying in between
camp.
They didn't advertise thatthat's kind of.
Speaker 3 (20:19):
They don't do that.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
It's kind of weird that we don't see that.
But I'm just, you know, I'm nottrying to create controversy or
anything, but it's a good point.
Speaker 1 (20:25):
I didn't know that, I knew we live in a very strange
world nowadays, brother, so it'svery, very strange word.
You know especially themainstream and stuff like that.
You know they, they decide whatthey want to show you or not,
and stuff like that so and again, I'm not trying to create them.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
But I I never knew that.
Listen, I'm a boxing nerd.
I don't watch the sport toomuch.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
I think right now, like Usyk is the most religious
person I know, like he'sliterally like bro, the most
religious person I know.
And I have some family membersand stuff like that you know
that are very religious.
But no, bro, that guy likeafter every sparring spine.
So the first thing that he doeswhen you get at the gym you got
(21:10):
like a small, like a littlething, like it's a prayer, by
the pole of the heavy bag wherehe's hanging the heavy bag.
So you go over there he doeshis prayer, then he start the
workout, blah, blah, blah.
Then he does the cross afterthe spine.
He pray again, pray again.
You thank God, that's hisroutine, bro, all day long.
Sunday in camp, every Sundaygoing to church, yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
That's awesome.
I know some camps when youbring sparring.
It sounds like I know theanswer to this.
I don't even know why I'masking, but they took care of
you over there too.
Sometimes they put sparringpartners up in some kind of
fucking shack or something.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
Oh, brother, I can show you.
I'm going to send you somepictures.
We were in a five-star hotel.
Okay, and by the beach in Spain,everything paid off and great
experience, and we used to playlike we do with Uziq.
Another thing about Uziq theyall know how to play any sport
(22:13):
and I'm talking about from thedoctor, from the coach, from the
physical therapist.
You know everybody.
Yeah, because I think there is,I think there is this culture
over there in this.
You know Ukraine and you knowEuropean place like this where
they play any sport.
So you gotta understand like wewere, like everybody was tall,
(22:34):
like I was the smallest of thegroup, everybody was like 6'8",
6'9" and we play against histeam, right.
So we're talking about Catman.
You know the chef, you know thedoctor.
They was like 5'10", 5, 10, 5,5, 6 foot tall.
They beat our ass, bro, sevenfoot tall guys.
They beat us at volleyball atthe beach and you're like
(22:57):
basketball basketball dude, theyplay ball, come on.
Speaker 3 (23:01):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, we used to.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
We used to play.
We used to play any sport.
We used to do tennis a lot likeuzik used to play any sport.
We used to do tennis a lot Like.
Uzik used to do this likesparring, then play tennis, then
play volleyball, then playbasket, competitive, and every
day, every day, every day, hewould play any type of sport.
Like this guy is way more inshape than you guys think, way
(23:28):
more than like you, more thanguys half of his age, yeah,
that's what's up bro, that'ssomething, you learn something
new.
Speaker 3 (23:35):
I appreciate you for telling that story.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
Of course, wow, that's great bro, that's great.
Because you look at Usyk asAmericans, I'm like that guy
don't play basketball.
He got this whole team outthere.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
They know how to do everything and you got to see
how he plays soccer too, bro,Like they know how to do
everything.
Speaker 2 (23:53):
Yeah, yeah.
I think it's soccer, obviously,because you know Europe Soccer
is massive.
Obviously, but who else was inthat camp with you that you
mixed it up with sparring-wise,if you could say?
I'm just curious.
Speaker 1 (24:13):
I knew, knew, obviously you were.
Yeah, there was like some.
Some other friend fromaustralia.
There's actually a greatfighter, you know, there's like
six, seven and all.
He just fought recently anotherguy from uh, from pennsylvania
uh, taurus is his name, his lastname, uh, six, seven he's.
Speaker 2 (24:26):
He was like 6'0" he brought in all the tall guys.
Speaker 1 (24:32):
Yeah, all the tall guys, I was the smallest, like I
said, I was like 215, 6'6" sothey used to call me like
middleweight.
But I bring something, I bringsomething to the table and those
big guys maybe didn't bring.
It's my fame, the tricks youknow.
Make him think because you know, yeah, like I, I think I think
(24:57):
something that was that I hadgood, like you know, it was my
fame, my jab, you know all other, like all tricks you know.
Step aside all these littlethings that remind of fury and
uh, you know they like that ofme.
Yeah, I, I keep him like sharp,like uh thinking, you know,
most of the time, like you canuse power, you can use your
(25:19):
reach, you can use your, butsometimes it's nice when you
have another like athlete infront of you to stimulate you,
uh, to think.
You know, with the feints andstuff like that, and I feel like
I was doing this for him a lot.
Speaker 2 (25:36):
I wasn't easy to catch?
Speaker 1 (25:39):
no really, bro, but it's something that actually not
really, but it's something thatyou never do enough.
If we see Caballel, if you seeCaballel, look.
If we see Caballel, look whathe's doing to all those
heavyweights Destroying the body.
With all of them.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
Killing the body.
All of them.
Speaker 1 (26:00):
No, but if you think about it, all these last fights
over there in Riyadh, right, allthese big fights against?
Like who he fought?
The Russian dude, the Cuban guy?
What's his name?
Sanchez, sanchez.
He's destroying the body, bro,and stop him with body shots.
(26:21):
He stopped him with a straightjab to the body, a lot of shots
and dropping with a straight jabto the body.
Speaker 3 (26:27):
But what big guy really work out.
They abs, though you know whatI'm saying.
It's true.
Not too many big guys Isworking.
Speaker 1 (26:33):
Do abs no no, it's not even about that, brother.
Like, listen, like, when you'rea big guy you need more oxygen,
right, you need more gas.
And if I got the gas, that'sthe way, bro, you cannot fight.
Then Then, bro, you cannotfight.
Then it's not even about likeheadshots, bro, like they can
take it, but the body, bro, youcannot breathe, you cannot fight
.
That's rule number one.
Speaker 2 (26:56):
You know, I knew it, so I didn't really count the
what's his name?
They call him the mountain, Ithink, or the wolf, the Russian
guy he fought.
Speaker 1 (27:05):
Yeah, I'm sparring with him.
If you go on my Instagram,there is like a clip that I'm
sparring with him.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
I'll check that out.
Yeah, I'll check that out.
You know he's a huge, massiveman.
You don't want to get hit byhim, but I kind of knew, like
you said, the oxygen he wasgoing to peter out.
Speaker 1 (27:22):
But when he beat Frank Sanchez boxer.
Speaker 2 (27:25):
Yeah, I was like a Jits real, and then our guy
Zhang, we love Zhang, I loveZhang, man he was as cool as a
man.
Speaker 1 (27:33):
Yeah, he's a great dude, but I wish he was at this
level like 10 years ago when hisbody would allow him to do what
he wants.
He's a great fighter, Verytechnical and stuff like that,
but let's remember that you knowhe's 300 pounds and he's like
40 years old, so he's been doinggreat actually.
Speaker 3 (27:53):
He came in overweight .
Speaker 2 (27:55):
That body was.
He had a plan to attack thatbody, and that's what he did.
That's how good Zang is, thoughhe still knocked him down.
I was like, oh, he's knockedhim down.
Speaker 1 (28:06):
Listen, he's a sharp shooter and you know, with the
weight that he got, you know allyou gotta do is touch you.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
You know so yeah, did you ever, you ever spar with
zhang at?
Speaker 1 (28:16):
all.
No, I never.
I never had the you know thechance.
But let's remember, I'm acruiserweight brother, I'm
working overtime here with thoseheavyweights, but I'm a
cruiserweight.
I walk around 200, 210 pounds,115 pounds, but I'm fat.
So yeah you know what I mean,that's crazy like I actually,
yeah, I'm a cruiserweight, ifyou think about it, like you
(28:37):
know.
So I'm tired to give away.
I'm tired to give away 50, 60pounds, all those big guys out
there it's true, that's true,that's you are.
And then everybody complainabout why.
You know, but you should havedropped that guy, you should,
motherfucker.
I weigh 50 pounds less.
You know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (28:54):
You're right, you're right.
So, speaking of that, I have aquestion for you, and it's
nothing against you, obviouslyat all.
I think it was Brandon theheavy guy, was it?
I have it written down.
Hold on, oh, carmack.
Carmack, yeah was that the Hulutheater?
Yeah, yeah, was that a littlediscouraging to you?
You see a guy with a body likethat and we know it doesn't mean
(29:16):
anything.
The guy can still box, butyou're this like Adonis of a man
.
And then you got this guy withall this listen, I never
underestimate, ain't nobodyright?
Speaker 1 (29:25):
Every man that steps in the ring, you know, is a
dangerous man.
Now I didn't feel bad or stufflike that, because I know how he
can fight.
You know, people underestimatehim for his looks.
And he had enough time toprepare for my fight.
You know, and if you see,actually, if you look at his box
(29:47):
rack, he always like beenfighting overweight, overweight.
We're talking about 300 pounds,320.
For my fight he was actually inshape, but you cannot see it
because the flap is skin.
It was 274 pounds, somethinglike that.
So he actually was in shape.
All the other fights that hehad after me, if you see the
(30:10):
weight, you can tell it was outof shape.
And if you can see it's because, like, I can move on my feet
and stuff like that.
So I wasn't just having fun inthere.
But you know, if you stay thereand fight like a regular
heavyweight, a guy like this,you know I give you a fight.
You know I make it look likethis because I use my brain and
(30:30):
I take away what he got.
What he got is stay there andbang, but he can never catch me
if I move.
That's my attributes.
No, you did great.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
I was actually.
I was there ringside for thatfight and the surrounding fans,
but they were talking all kindsand I'm like, no, no, no, like I
knew it was his skin.
I'm like, look at his skin,like that's not fat.
He lost the weight, this guy.
That guy came in shape in asense.
It's just not the shape youwant to see, I was just curious
(31:01):
if, like as a fighter, if that'sa little like.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
God damn this guy.
This guy's freaking, but you,you're smarter.
You're smarter than that.
Listen, for me it's business,brother.
You know, give me a tenor.
Give me the more of those guyslike this, I don't care, you
know, it's business.
I gotta move forward, I gottamake experience, I gotta learn.
You know and, uh, you know, andthat's what fights like this
are for you know, for let peopleyou know they don't know.
You know, you see what you gotand keep on learning and
practicing things.
And yeah, bro, there is goingto be a new surprise, a new
(31:36):
version of me, because you guysdon't know these little things.
But pretty much for my last like10 fights, 12 fights, what not
I was like I told them all.
I always said for all like mycareer things.
I was like I was set for alllike my career things that are
nice.
I've been having the greatAndrew Razia on my corner, but
nobody knows that.
I've been training by myself.
I'm in my basement, in my houseand people still judge you,
(32:01):
because people still judge youand stuff like that, but they
don't know that I don't havelike a, like a team behind.
And now that I actually do, thenI have a coach and I have a
team that I can work on thingswith.
I want to really show peoplewhat I can do, because people
don't know what I can do whenpeople see me in the ring.
(32:21):
I haven't been 100.
I have to take fights withshort notice to make shit happen
, and we knock the camps andstuff like that.
And that's okay because that'sthe first part of your career,
when you're learning and stufflike that.
But now I'm really seriousabout it and I really want to
(32:41):
show what I can do.
I'm going to sharpen up on mytool a little bit more, maybe
another couple of fights and getsome other stuff straight and
then I'm ready to really takerisks.
Because if you don't take risks, bro, in this life, you know,
getting money makes no money,you know.
You got all the experience man,I don't know what's next for you
(33:03):
right now, but you definitelygot all the experience.
Speaker 3 (33:06):
And then people that you're destined for greatness,
then people that you youdestined for greatness, the
people that you've been in thering with.
You know what I'm saying, so,and you're doing all the right
things, obviously.
Speaker 2 (33:14):
If the team wasn't working out for you with Rozier,
you switched, you took anotherrisk and you took a risk coming
to this country and it pannedout for you.
You had to dig through somedirt, I'm sure, obviously, and
here you are.
But there's another Italian guywith a little bit different of
a track.
He's not from the roughupbringing like you were, and I
think you know who I'm going togo with this.
I think I've messaged you abouthim, guido Vianello, and again,
(33:37):
he is a heavyweight.
He's a smaller heavyweight.
You think we can get a littleItalian vs Italian going on
sometime, or what?
Would you take that fight?
Speaker 1 (33:50):
If I move up to heavyweight.
I've been fighting heavyweight,but I'm not looking to fight
heavyweight, at least until Ibecome more champion.
Also, we're great friends.
I never had a chance to meethim before, but then, before my
fight for the title in Argentina, we ended up meeting each other
in Vegas and we ended up comingtogether.
So we're sparring each other inVegas and we end up I mean, I
came together, so we're sparringeach other for the fight
(34:11):
against the Russian dude overthere and I help him out a
little bit with the sparring andsome advice, because I'm
sparring the dude and I told him.
I said, listen, bro, if you useyour attributes and move around
, the guy cannot touch you.
He load up every shot and stufflike that.
Speaker 2 (34:29):
I won so much money on that fight.
Speaker 1 (34:31):
Yeah, and me and Michael Hunter actually helped
him out for the fight.
We helped each other.
We fought at the same time.
I fought in Argentina, hefought over there.
I don't remember what it wasthe fight in Canada or something
like that.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
What's Hunter been up to man?
Where's he been?
Where's he been at?
Where's Hunter been at?
What happened to?
Him I haven't seen him in aminute.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
Listen, this guy got so much potential, so much
potential.
Let's remember what he did.
Let's remember what he did toBacoli bro, yeah, and nobody
knows, they call him like ashort notice.
If we're doing gland, he'sbought us a money.
Bet on himself and stop the guyhe's a stopper
(35:17):
colleague yeah yes stop, stop mycolleague, but it's a
cruiserweight to.
He's one of the most curiousguys, guys that I know.
You know, unfortunately hehasn't had luck with promoters
and stuff like that.
And uh, nobody really knows,true, yes, and uh, you won the
(35:39):
fight, you know?
Blah, blah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:52):
He was on my radar a few years ago and I was very
high on him because I'm like, ohwow, an American heavyweight,
this guy could do it.
You know he had a tough resumetoo and a tough climb.
So you, saying his name,brought it right back.
I was like actually, oh shoot,he's fighting Christopher
Lovejoy in April.
I'm seeing.
Speaker 1 (36:07):
I didn't even know that.
I Actually oh shoot, he'sfighting Christopher Lovejoy in
April, I'm seeing.
I didn't even know that, yeah,and then he told me there should
be a mandatory fight with thewinner of Pulev against the
other dude from England.
What's his name?
The guy that break the jaw tothe other dude with a right hand
Can't remember his name rightnow.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
Oh, char, no, no, no, he's fighting somebody else
from England from England.
Speaker 1 (36:38):
Hmm, yeah yeah, it's a good fight.
Actually, you should fight thewinner of this fight.
Wba already send, like themandatory fight yeah.
Speaker 2 (36:51):
You said that name, it brought me back.
Speaker 1 (36:53):
Fabio Woodley.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
Fabio Woodley yeah, oh yeah.
Speaker 1 (36:57):
Who left Fabio Woodley?
The winner is, I guess, MichaelHunter.
He's already called by the WBA.
Speaker 2 (37:05):
It feels like England has the stronghold on the
heavyweight division.
Obviously, I know you're notheavyweight, but they have the
top heavyweights right now.
Yeah, they do.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
Not so much, but they got the top heavyweights right
now.
Speaker 2 (37:14):
Yeah, they do Not so much, but they got the top
heavyweights.
Speaker 3 (37:19):
What's next for you?
Nothing for me.
Speaker 1 (37:22):
Are you going to be in Atlantic City?
Yeah, I'm going to be there.
We actually was talking aboutme on the car over there, but
then I got sick, got the worstflu I've had in my life, and I
didn't move from the bed forseven days bro, yeah, everybody.
Speaker 2 (37:35):
My life and I didn't move from the bed for seven days
.
Bro, yeah, everybody, everybodydid.
Man, I had it too, we all did.
It's crazy.
You're on the east coast, yeah,damn so.
Speaker 1 (37:42):
You're not, yeah, so no, I'm not gonna be in the car.
Yeah, I'm still recoveringactually right now, but I'm
gonna be there, you know, forthe fight.
You know, support the team.
And then you know we just like,uh, stay ready.
You know, keep learning,working hard, sharpening up
everything.
And then you know, seek, youknow, for another couple of
(38:04):
fights and then maybe sign witha big promotion.
So, like I got the looks, I canspeak italian, I can speak
spanish, I can speak english, Ican fight, I can sell tickets.
I feel like now is the time tosign with a big promotion,
because you cannot do everythingby yourself.
I've been doing a good job withmy team right now, but I need a
(38:26):
big promoter now.
Speaker 2 (38:28):
Real quick and we'll get out of here shortly.
You've already gave us morethan we bargained for, speaking
of the looks and I'm a straightmale, but you're a tall,
good-looking italian man.
What's the love life like?
Are you?
You shooing these americansaway?
What's going on with that?
Speaker 1 (38:42):
absolutely, bro.
I find like a great woman, youknow, and you have a great woman
.
Speaker 2 (38:48):
You have a.
Speaker 1 (38:48):
You have a great woman yeah, I find a great woman
and and that's it, bro.
Like you know, it is boxing.
You know?
Do you remember the greatmoment?
That is what I used to say.
The hardest thing in boxing isbeing bad at nine o'clock with
no body on your side that's true, amen, I think you're, you're
(39:09):
mature.
Yeah, I feel like you know,especially for our sport, you
know, yeah, sorry yeah, no, no,no, you're good.
Speaker 2 (39:16):
I was saying your maturity speaks for you, and I'm
thinking of this tall Italiandude with the accent walking
around New York City.
Like me, I'm like a carsalesman.
I gotta try and get what yougot.
They're probably throwingthemselves at this guy.
I was just curious about that.
But hey, I'm happy for you, man, I'm married.
I'm married too.
I have a great woman.
But you know, I was like, damn,this fucking guy is probably
(39:37):
killing us.
I was like, like you said, deadby nine is the hardest thing
they ain't be around.
Speaker 3 (39:41):
On the blacks, it's got to be hard Boots, ennis yeah
.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
Boots Ennis in Philly .
You're like the token white guy.
Now too, man he's, so you willbe at the fight.
Obviously we're going to bethere.
You have anything else?
I don't really have anythingelse.
I think he's said more than wewanted.
I'm a big fan.
I know you said you have yourgripes with New York, but
(40:07):
technically we know you're fromItaly, but you're a New Yorker,
so here you are all right.
No, absolutely, bro.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
I got to give everything to New York.
New York made me.
You know All my friends and thepeople that helped me.
You know this journey like comefrom New York and all my
connection, everything is in NewYork.
I just like you know I'm herein Philly like strictly for
business.
You know I don't care aboutlike, yes, we welcome friends
and stuff like that, but I don'tcare about this shit anymore,
(40:35):
bro, I'm like straight focus.
You know I stay home, go to thegym, do this twice a day.
I don't want no new friends, Idon't want no drama, I don't
want nothing.
You know, just me, my lady andbusiness and boxing, bro,
because next time, you know, ifI want to do something big, you
know I got to stay focused now.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
And that's awesome to hear, man, you have the mindset
for it.
I see you got the heavy bag.
You got two fans for life.
Speaker 3 (41:02):
Yeah, fans for life, Fans for life.
Thank you guys.
Speaker 2 (41:06):
Probably the craziest fans too.
Speaker 3 (41:07):
I hope you do fight, because we're going to be there,
I hope you're going to be there, I might need you to throw a
punch.
Absolutely, bro, you to throw.
Absolutely, bro, you're good,absolutely, absolutely.
And uh, yeah, bro, you wannaleave the fighters, you wanna
leave anybody like a motivation,you know.
That's why I like to ask thefighters to, you know, give
something motivation, bro.
Speaker 1 (41:29):
Motivation, yes, motivation, I young kid, you
know, is like it's cheesy, butnever give up.
You know why I never give up?
I wasn't supposed to literallysee nothing that I see in this
life or have what I have.
You know, I was born in a veryhumble family, in a city, a
(41:51):
small city in Sicily, and I haveno really opportunity, you know
, to change my life and stufflike that and through like
simple things like sport,training every day, why
everybody used to tell me yo goget a job, bro, boxing's not
going to pay.
That's Italy, bro.
What are you doing?
And I used to be broke andtraining, raining, you know,
(42:13):
cold, you know, sunny, no matterwhat.
I used to be broke and training, raining, you know cold, you
know sunny, no matter what.
I used to grind and grind andgrind and cry, sometimes alone
and no money and no friends.
You know, nobody understand me.
And then I move here in theUnited States.
I had to work and training andmore, you know, suffering.
Then I finally, you know, metMark Breland, signed my first
(42:37):
contract.
Then the injury, the first time,no money, I lost everything, I
lost the manager, I lost thesponsors.
Then I get back again.
I make it Because I don't havefamily that I can call.
Yo send me 10 grand.
I gotta pay rent.
I gotta do this, I gotta dothat.
No medical insurance no,nothing, no education.
I got to do this, I got to dothat.
No medical insurance no,nothing, no education.
I learned English, you know,since I'm in the States.
(42:58):
Then the second surgery came andI lost everything again.
Then I go back on my feet again.
Then the third surgery came,brother, I come back from
fucking everything in this life,you understand.
So the thing is just never giveup Like literally nothing.
Told me that I couldn't make it.
Just keep going forward.
No matter what happens in life,take it, take it on the chin,
(43:22):
get up and keep on doing whatyou're doing.
If you like something, just gostraight because it's going to
lead you to something good.
If I stop boxing nowadays rightnow, god forbid, let's not
conclude.
I got so many connections andfriends and knowledge that I
could do whatever the fuck Iwant in this life and all coming
from persist every day in onething only.
(43:44):
So, whatever you're doing outthere, just keep on doing it and
do it all the way.
Don't do a thousand things, doone, but do it good.
Speaker 2 (43:52):
Yeah, focus, focus, focus, focus.
Yes, sir, you've showed us.
Yeah, focus, focus, focus,focus.
Yes, sir, you've showed us.
We're going to look fast.
I love that I'm about to go run10 miles right now.
Speaker 1 (44:03):
Let's go.
I'm just kidding.
Speaker 3 (44:06):
I was thinking about my life.
Every time he was talking, thewhole time he was talking, I was
thinking about my life.
Speaker 1 (44:10):
It's true, bro.
Sometimes in our life, you knowyou get overwhelmed.
You don't know what you do.
Do what you know.
The only thing that you knowkeep going forward and then give
up on yourself.
You give up on yourself, bro.
Who's going to help you?
Who's going to help you?
It's going to be you, bro.
You're right, man.
Speaker 2 (44:30):
Yo man, thank you so much, man.
You're an inspiration, you are.
Listen, it's St Patrick's Dayweekend.
I am half Irish.
I'm going to the Irish fightstomorrow at MSG, but we had to
get my Italian side here.
Speaker 1 (44:43):
Thank you for coming, man, I appreciate you.
And you're an inspiration foreverybody out of Sicily too,
there's not.
Speaker 2 (44:49):
Sicily is often forgot about.
Like you're an inspiration foreverybody out of Sicily, man.
Speaker 1 (45:02):
Everyone about, like you're an inspiration for
everybody out of sicily.
Man, it's everyone here's italy, italy, italy, rome.
Listen, sometimes when I, whenI meet those you know guys older
than me, under 50, you knowlate 40s and stuff like that,
and have family members that areimmigrants then came here in
this country like 80 years ago,100 years ago, and, you know,
change everything for them.
I told them I'm like yourfather, I'm like your
grandfather, like I made myself.
I came in this country.
I maybe didn't came with a boat, I came with a flight, but it's
(45:25):
the same shit for me, man, Ilearned english here.
You know I had no education.
You know I learned twolanguages.
Speaker 2 (45:32):
You speak great english like you.
Like guido don't speak englishlike you.
What the hell?
Yeah, you speak great English.
Speaker 1 (45:38):
And he got the education, bro, he went to squad
.
I dropped out of school, bro,when I was like 12 years old.
Speaker 2 (45:45):
But yeah, he's alive, bro, he can learn.
Speaker 1 (45:47):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (45:48):
Guido is playing tennis.
Man, I had to learn, bro,survival.
Speaker 1 (45:52):
you know Survival skills when you're out there.
You got to work.
You better learn how to speakand do stuff you know, like you
would definitely.
Speaker 2 (46:01):
Sometimes it's a blessing, that's right man.
Speaker 1 (46:05):
Sometimes it's a blessing when all you got is
yourself, bro.
Sometimes it's a blessing, youknow.
Speaker 2 (46:10):
It definitely gives you some skills, you know You're
wise beyond your years andyou're a dog in the ring and
obviously a dog outside of thering.
Nothing can stop you.
Willie and Puma are fans forlife.
Thank you so much for the time.
We'll let you go now.
Thank you, guys, you got theheavy bag back there, you got
the heavy bag back there.
I'm sure you're ready, man,always, always ready.
Speaker 1 (46:32):
You got the Yankee hat on.
Speaker 2 (46:34):
Keep that.
Yankee.
Hat on too.
I know you're in Philly, butjust let them know you're from
New York, alright, so take care.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (46:41):
Pleasure to meet you guys.
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2 (46:43):
Alright, I'll see you in Atlantic City in a month or
two.
Alright, take care.
Speaker 1 (46:48):
I'll see you there.
We'll talk more.
Alright, brother, bye-bye, bye.
It's time for the main event.
It's the Sparin' Podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
Oh, it's a knockout.
New York, italian like myself.
Speaker 3 (00:21):
What kind of Italian are you?
Speaker 2 (00:22):
Yeah yeah.
That's me, yeah, but we're thereal Italian right now, Real
Paesan, giovanni Scuderi.
What's going on?
Speaker 1 (00:28):
Thank you guys.
Thank you for having me.
What's going?
Speaker 2 (00:30):
on brother.
Yeah, when are you at right now?
I know you live in New York,right, but I've seen you.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
You've been in Philly .
I'm training right now withBoosie, the father of, you know,
boots Hanks, yeah, so yeah, newteam.
You're driving.
No, I'm doing back and forth.
I got a place in New York andsomewhere here in Philly.
Speaker 3 (01:01):
He's a real tyrant.
The mob.
Speaker 1 (01:06):
He got two houses.
Speaker 3 (01:07):
He got like three, maybe four Real estate.
Speaker 2 (01:10):
Speaking of the mob, I guess I'm half Sicilian myself
.
You got to be the tallestSicilian ever.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Yeah, there is just a few tall guys in Sicily.
There is not that many.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
Is this a stereotype with that?
Yeah, man.
Speaker 2 (01:24):
Sicily, there's not that many.
Speaker 3 (01:25):
Is this a stereotype with that?
Speaker 2 (01:26):
Yeah, man, sicily is like the island of Italy.
It's very, very small, verysmall people come from there,
but not him.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
Yeah, 6'6", 6'6".
Yeah, if we talk about history,we've been conquired by so many
people and we are somixed-blooded, bro, we can be
dark-skinned with a beard.
We can be like, dark skinnedwith beard, you can be blonde.
In sicily, you know, we've beenconquered from uh, spanish
people, vikings, arabic, so weall, you know.
(01:55):
You can see people like me orshort people and any kinds
that's.
Speaker 2 (02:02):
that's crazy, like, because I've actually been to
sicily.
I was only there for like aweek, but I got to be honest,
man, I didn't see anyone tall.
You should have stayed anotherweek.
Speaker 1 (02:13):
Yeah, one more week, another week, maybe, maybe We'll
be, maybe lucky to see somebody.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
Yeah, maybe no, but I got a question, so we are
Giovanni's right.
There's a lot of pizzerias outhere, so that's kind of like
you're related to them, you know.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
Giovanni's.
No, bro, I wish.
Speaker 3 (02:40):
Yeah, I wish they out here getting money.
They out here getting money on.
Yeah, I wish they out heregetting money.
They out here getting money onyeah.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
So what brought you from Italy to New York?
So obviously you fought amateurin Italy, correct, mm-hmm?
And then what made you move?
Was it for the recognition inAmerica, or something happened?
Speaker 1 (03:01):
I come from a poor family in Sicily.
We're a place where we don'thave a lot of job opportunities,
we don't have opportunities inthe boxing sport itself.
So I had this dream to changemy life and I feel like the
American dream was what I needed.
(03:21):
So I came to this country,decided I wanted to become a
boxer because, even if I hadsome amateur fights in Italy, I
feel, when I become a boxer, itwas in the United States, but I
had my first two Golden Gloves.
Then I won and then, you know,moved to New York and turned pro
(03:42):
.
Speaker 3 (03:44):
So what age did you start?
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Late Like 18.
19, 18, 18 probably, yeah.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
Somebody came up to you and was like yo, you, a big
Italian heavyweight you can takeover the game type shit.
That's what they said prettymuch.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
Not even, bro.
They wanted me to play soccerover there in italy.
It's not.
It's not like, uh, the cultureof boxing, it's not like here in
the states.
You know, over there like youplay soccer.
So, yeah, if you want to box,you know you gotta come here.
(04:22):
Yeah, yeah, that makes sense,that makes sense, did you?
Speaker 2 (04:24):
so now I know you know you got to come here.
Yeah, yeah, that makes sense.
That makes sense, did you?
So now I know you were with ourguy Andre Rozier, so you you're
you're done with him.
Was it a good falling out orwas it?
Is there drama or you don't gotto get into it?
Speaker 1 (04:36):
No, we don't have any drama, especially if on my side
.
You know like I love the man.
Besides the boxing relationship.
I feel like we've been for solong together and it's like part
of family.
I have no feelings in thisregard.
I don't know how I feel aboutit.
(04:57):
I went on another team, butthere's a love.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
That's awesome.
So he's one of the onlytrainers where, when you're
listening not the only one, butone of the few where you're
watching on TV or you're thereringside you actually hear him
over the crowd.
You hear him yelling out theydon't need to mic him up you
hear him screaming.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Stay on the stick.
Stay on the stick, that's oneof the things I like about him.
And so now you said you'regoing to Philly with boots in
his team, what's the sparringlike over there for heavyweight?
I know it's kind of difficultto find heavyweight sparring.
Is it better in Philly?
How do you spar?
Speaker 1 (05:39):
boots, boots don't give a fuck Boots sparring
anybody bro.
And especially what I like of agym like this, like, uh, like
you know, I've been in camp withalexander uzik.
Total different style, totaldifferent, like you know,
mentality of work.
But the similarity that I sawin both teams is combat school,
(06:01):
which means work on techniqueevery day defense catching, you
know, sleeping shots, cannonshots, you know, working on your
form.
And that's where I like Buzi,because he's a teacher.
He makes you work on theselittle details, and what I see
(06:23):
Uzik was doing as a championwith a lot of experience, was
working on the little things youunderstand.
So that's the similarity forgreatness, if you want to be
good, bro, you gotta beconsistent on the little things.
Be a student, you know.
And another thing that I likeof Boots' team is that it's a
(06:48):
good environment.
Everybody is a hard worker,everybody is good and like this,
you can learn from theenvironment For anybody around
you, not just from the coach.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
So when you were like , are they repetition?
I know a lot of guys when theyswitch trainers and stuff, that
the repetition of certain things, like like canelo and his team
we we talked to tfimo lopez andhe was like the biggest
difference with him is likerepetition of the same shot over
and over and over.
Speaker 1 (07:17):
Listen if you think about it, and custom mother used
to say that boxing is a, thisis a sport.
Anybody can become a fighter.
It's repetition, you know thatis who get it faster.
You know there is who need moretime, but it's true repetition
that you become a good fighter.
You know doing the same thingover and over and over and
(07:38):
master it.
Do it correctly, yeah, you know, not skip any step.
So are you put up over there inPhilly, though you have like a
place to stay?
Speaker 2 (07:44):
correctly, yeah, you know, not skip any step.
So are you put up over there inPhilly, though you have like a
place to stay in Philly?
Speaker 1 (07:49):
Yeah, you're in.
Speaker 2 (07:50):
Philly and you're okay.
Okay, because I did see you.
You were.
I think you were coming backfrom Philly the other day.
You posted you got pulled overor something when it's nice out,
they come out.
Speaker 1 (07:58):
You know, everything good start to get nice, in
Philly.
Yeah, what is when there is agood weather, you know yeah, he
posted something.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
He was like let's have some fun.
What is the biggest difference?
Like culturally, maybe likesparring wise or gym wise, from
New York and Philly, or is it isit?
Is it a lot of the same stuff?
Speaker 1 (08:27):
I don't know.
I can say from what I like inthis gym.
There is a lot of respect herein philly, so you know, so more
than in new york.
In new york, in new york I don'tknow, maybe because I spent a
lot of years in new y I feellike there is too much animosity
.
Man, you know you got to watchout for everybody around you
(08:49):
close to you, Jealousy and thisand that, why?
You know why that, and I'venever been a person like that.
But I feel like a lot of peopleover there like you know, man,
too much like fucking talkingand animosity and bullshit,
buying your back all this stuff.
I'm glad that I left.
To be honest, I love New York.
(09:11):
It's in my heart.
But, yeah, I just don't want tostay focused on the boxing
business and don't really dealwith all this bullshit at the
gym every day.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
And that's just going to elevate you, because you
know it's more of a mind gamethan anything at your level and
you got to keep your mind clear.
So if that wasn't working, youmade the change and that just
shows how much of a professionalyou really are.
What did you take away fromUsyk's camp?
I was going to get into it alittle later, but what was?
Speaker 3 (09:45):
I have a question before that though.
Speaker 2 (09:47):
Okay, go ahead.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
Let's back from.
So you was in New York, right?
So you was at Gleason's Gym inNew York.
Speaker 1 (09:53):
No, that's where I first, like you know, as an
immigrant, as somebody thatdoesn't know nothing in New York
City.
You know New York City, youknow boxing situation where do
you go?
You got the famous Gleason andthat's where I spent like the
beginning of the time.
Then I trained with MarkBreland.
Then he's the coach who made me, because when I get here in the
(10:19):
States, when I was here in theStates, I was just an amateur
green as fuck.
You know what I mean.
Then he saw something in me.
I started training with him andhe's he's the person that
introduced me to the real boxing.
Teach me, like the, the oldschool heart Painting jab.
Seven, six different types ofjab, and we would do it the jab
(10:43):
over and over.
And I I remember the firstthree months I was training with
him we only used the jab.
I was dying to throw out myhand but I used to have the left
hand and it was like two arms.
I didn't even need the righthand.
I was like mixing it upcombination with the left hand.
You know what I mean and alittle bit low.
(11:03):
Yeah, you know what I mean anda little bit low.
Speaker 2 (11:07):
Yeah, go ahead, go ahead.
Speaker 1 (11:09):
A little bit lost, like the heart of the jab.
You know I was training withhim and then you know I haven't
been able to reach out to him.
But I would love to, you know,bring him on the team again.
You know, because I've.
Really.
It's like when you're a kidthat you don't understand what
your father is saying, and thenyou grow up one day oh, now I
understand, now it makes sense,now that I'm, you know, I'm
(11:30):
experienced and I feel like now,today, I'm a fighter.
I really, really would love tohave somebody like Kim just to
talk to me and, like you know,make me think on the right way.
I'll set up a shot, I'll doopen on an opponent with the
feints and everything else.
But I'm very lucky because Ifind Boosie pretty much
preaching the same things.
Speaker 2 (11:53):
You're a smart guy because if you look what
happened to Deontay Wilder whenhe got rid of, that's horrible.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
That's horrible.
You saw what happened.
The ego of a fighter is thiswhen you fall, that's horrible.
The brilliant saved his ass.
You saw what happened.
But you know the ego is, yeah,the ego of a fighter is this you
know, when you fall down,fighters that's what they do.
They gotta find an excuse.
Yeah, so it's so easy tofucking put it on you.
Okay, I fucked up.
That guy was better than metonight, you know.
(12:20):
So, sometimes your ego, yourpride, make you do bullshit like
this and turn against thepeople that really love you
Because, yeah, eardrum broken,bleeding, there was no way you
could have turned over the fight.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Everybody agrees.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
The only person on your corner that tried to
protect you because, okay, youmade something on the sport of
boxing.
You got some money.
Enjoy that with your family.
Don't risk your fucking lifefor this bullshit.
You know what I mean.
So he did the right thing as acoach.
He tanned him.
Speaker 2 (12:53):
Yeah, he did the right thing, of course, of
course.
And did you ever?
When you said you came up, markBreland, it was when, earlier,
obviously in your career, whenyou got to America, did you ever
move around with Deontay Wilder?
Was he with him with that?
Speaker 1 (13:04):
I was supposed to, like you know, going down over
there in Alabama for some camp,but then I had my shoulder
injury.
I had two surgery on my rightshoulder and that's why I fell
off with Mark Billings For acouple of years.
I wasn't able to train him.
I should have like doubled thefights and I had known.
Speaker 2 (13:23):
Yeah, yeah.
When I was reading up about you, I read about the injuries.
I saw that and that's part ofthe game, man.
Especially for a big guy likeyourself, it's a lot more common
with the big guys.
Speaker 1 (13:33):
No, I feel like now that I'm more mature and more
experienced and wise, I feellike sometimes us athletes, us
fighters, we do everything wrongand we don't even realize the
diet is wrong.
You don't eat enough, you knowyou're over training or you're
beating up your body and thenyou know you end up having like
(13:53):
injuries.
Then you don't take the righttime to recovery, you go again
at it, you get injured even moreand then you need a surgery.
It's just like you fight thismentality, this brain and the
things that I don't know.
I would never probably getinjured, but now I got two
surgeries the right one, one onthe left one.
Now I'm healthy, I'm good and Ihave a big care of my body.
(14:15):
Now I'm good.
I'm still young.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
You got the tattoos that covered up the scars or
something.
Speaker 1 (14:25):
No, no, I had the tattoo before.
You see, they got their wings,but I still fly.
Okay, I still fly, you got thewings, but I still fly I like
that?
Speaker 2 (14:34):
Yes, sir, I like that one.
I was going to actually ask youabout your tattoo too.
What does it signify?
Is it part of your nickname?
Speaker 1 (14:47):
No, no, it's a how I like what it represents.
You know it's a, it's a animal.
Again, he's a hunter.
They can see in the dark, youknow, and uh, very, very wise,
very, you know, rare, you know.
So I like this, this qualities,I like that little brother
(15:07):
sometimes.
Speaker 2 (15:08):
Sometimes I do that I have the deep meaning, you know
yeah, yeah, what a um when youwere, when you were in who six
camp, right, I'm sorry I'mbouncing all over the place
because I, as I intervieweveryone, I get a little star
struck.
Speaker 3 (15:22):
So don't mind me camp was there?
Speaker 2 (15:26):
was there a strong language barrier?
Was there a strong languagebarrier there, or was it like
the name?
Speaker 1 (15:32):
of translators.
No, what I like of them is thateverybody's serious.
You know, it's totallydifferent the type of camp from
any other camp.
You go over there to work, sothere is not much conversation
(15:53):
and stuff like that.
But you know, I'm Italian, Ilike to talk, so I still like
break through the barrier, youknow, and then we end up like
become actually very goodfriends with, not just with him,
with all the team and, uh, Iwas blessed to be allowed to not
just stay for the sparring buteven for other like you know,
(16:15):
exercise, like running orwrestling.
I was his main wrestlingpartner partner because that's
what we did on the second camp.
Yeah, no, I figured out, yeah.
And what people don't understandabout Uziq?
What people don't understandabout Uziq is, even if he don't
(16:37):
have the crazy power on hisshots, he's very, very strong
physically.
You see somebody 6'9", 270pounds, 80 pounds.
He didn't bully him in the ring, it was opposite.
Honestly, you're right, you'reright, you know it's a smaller
man, he's very strong and it'sbecause you know the wrestling,
the wrestling that they do, thecore has excise.
(16:59):
He's like, he's not that heavybro 220.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
Yeah, when they first told you that you're in his
camp and they're like, hey,we're going to wrestle, were you
like what the fuck?
What do you mean?
We're going to wrestle.
Did you take him back?
Speaker 1 (17:13):
I didn't even know.
I didn't even know.
I pretty much told him like Ihave a fight coming up and stuff
like that.
You know, even if he's a greatcamp like this with a great
champion like this, it's notgood for you, it's good for him,
yeah, but I still accept to doit because, you know, I feel
like Alexander Usyk is gonna bein the history like one of the
you know, one of the greatest.
(17:34):
Yeah, you know, and in some ways, in some, in some ways, he
remind me, like Ali, becausethere is a lot of little things
that people don't know what hedo for his country, how he help
like people, how he have a bigheart, how he have a big ego
like other fighters.
You know how he's religious,and the thing that he remind me
(17:56):
of Ali is how he was, like, youknow, for the other people.
He wasn't selfish at all.
Sorry guys, my camera justdropped off.
He wasn't selfish at all.
Sorry guys, my camera justdropped off.
He wasn't selfish at all.
He was trying to, you know,help everybody and it's fate.
One thing that I realized afterthe first camp you know, fury is
(18:16):
very smart doing these tricks,like stretching those camps by,
you know, having a cat or someother bullshit like that, and he
messed up the rhythm of thecamp music, you understand.
So he trained for seven monthsstraight.
So sometimes it'scounterproductive when you do
something like that.
There is other things.
I can't even say some thingsbecause I signed an NDA, but
(18:40):
there was some other problemduring the first camp.
Yeah, bro.
Speaker 3 (18:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (18:46):
And yeah, bro, yeah, they're very professional, bro,
yeah, they're very professional.
So they should, you see, likeyou know, allow, like you know,
to say, and stuff like that.
And I was expecting for him topull back from the fight Because
he suffered, like you know, alittle injury and then, like he
sent everybody home becausethere was that injury, and he
(19:10):
still fought and still beat hisass and dropped it in the ninth
round and I realized thatmotherfucker is for real, bro,
like Ali is ready to die forthis shit.
And what I realized is not eventhis, it's not even his courage
, it's his faith, because whenyou believe in God, you know the
way they do it, why you shouldbe afraid of any other man.
(19:32):
You understand that's what Irealized from both of them.
They're not afraid, they havethe extreme confidence and come
from the faith.
He was like doing the rosaryand his prayer, like you know,
five, six times a day, doingtraining and stuff like that,
very religious, wow, wow, youknow.
Speaker 2 (19:49):
That's the stuff we don't see.
Speaker 1 (19:50):
You don't really promote it.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
You know, that's something we could bring up too.
No, but they're religious.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
But that's a lot of things like nowadays.
They don't even want that outthere.
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (20:09):
I don't understand that, but that, like what's
going on in saudi and stuff,they're pushing the muslim faith
.
But I've never seen anythingabout usik praying in between
camp.
They didn't advertise thatthat's kind of.
Speaker 3 (20:19):
They don't do that.
Speaker 2 (20:20):
It's kind of weird that we don't see that.
But I'm just, you know, I'm nottrying to create controversy or
anything, but it's a good point.
Speaker 1 (20:25):
I didn't know that, I knew we live in a very strange
world nowadays, brother, so it'svery, very strange word.
You know especially themainstream and stuff like that.
You know they, they decide whatthey want to show you or not,
and stuff like that so and again, I'm not trying to create them.
Speaker 2 (20:45):
But I I never knew that.
Listen, I'm a boxing nerd.
I don't watch the sport toomuch.
Speaker 1 (20:50):
I think right now, like Usyk is the most religious
person I know, like he'sliterally like bro, the most
religious person I know.
And I have some family membersand stuff like that you know
that are very religious.
But no, bro, that guy likeafter every sparring spine.
So the first thing that he doeswhen you get at the gym you got
(21:10):
like a small, like a littlething, like it's a prayer, by
the pole of the heavy bag wherehe's hanging the heavy bag.
So you go over there he doeshis prayer, then he start the
workout, blah, blah, blah.
Then he does the cross afterthe spine.
He pray again, pray again.
You thank God, that's hisroutine, bro, all day long.
Sunday in camp, every Sundaygoing to church, yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
That's awesome.
I know some camps when youbring sparring.
It sounds like I know theanswer to this.
I don't even know why I'masking, but they took care of
you over there too.
Sometimes they put sparringpartners up in some kind of
fucking shack or something.
Speaker 1 (21:48):
Oh, brother, I can show you.
I'm going to send you somepictures.
We were in a five-star hotel.
Okay, and by the beach in Spain,everything paid off and great
experience, and we used to playlike we do with Uziq.
Another thing about Uziq theyall know how to play any sport
(22:13):
and I'm talking about from thedoctor, from the coach, from the
physical therapist.
You know everybody.
Yeah, because I think there is,I think there is this culture
over there in this.
You know Ukraine and you knowEuropean place like this where
they play any sport.
So you gotta understand like wewere, like everybody was tall,
(22:34):
like I was the smallest of thegroup, everybody was like 6'8",
6'9" and we play against histeam, right.
So we're talking about Catman.
You know the chef, you know thedoctor.
They was like 5'10", 5, 10, 5,5, 6 foot tall.
They beat our ass, bro, sevenfoot tall guys.
They beat us at volleyball atthe beach and you're like
(22:57):
basketball basketball dude, theyplay ball, come on.
Speaker 3 (23:01):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, we used to.
Speaker 1 (23:03):
We used to play.
We used to play any sport.
We used to do tennis a lot likeuzik used to play any sport.
We used to do tennis a lot Like.
Uzik used to do this likesparring, then play tennis, then
play volleyball, then playbasket, competitive, and every
day, every day, every day, hewould play any type of sport.
Like this guy is way more inshape than you guys think, way
(23:28):
more than like you, more thanguys half of his age, yeah,
that's what's up bro, that'ssomething, you learn something
new.
Speaker 3 (23:35):
I appreciate you for telling that story.
Speaker 2 (23:37):
Of course, wow, that's great bro, that's great.
Because you look at Usyk asAmericans, I'm like that guy
don't play basketball.
He got this whole team outthere.
Speaker 1 (23:48):
They know how to do everything and you got to see
how he plays soccer too, bro,Like they know how to do
everything.
Speaker 2 (23:53):
Yeah, yeah.
I think it's soccer, obviously,because you know Europe Soccer
is massive.
Obviously, but who else was inthat camp with you that you
mixed it up with sparring-wise,if you could say?
I'm just curious.
Speaker 1 (24:13):
I knew, knew, obviously you were.
Yeah, there was like some.
Some other friend fromaustralia.
There's actually a greatfighter, you know, there's like
six, seven and all.
He just fought recently anotherguy from uh, from pennsylvania
uh, taurus is his name, his lastname, uh, six, seven he's.
Speaker 2 (24:26):
He was like 6'0" he brought in all the tall guys.
Speaker 1 (24:32):
Yeah, all the tall guys, I was the smallest, like I
said, I was like 215, 6'6" sothey used to call me like
middleweight.
But I bring something, I bringsomething to the table and those
big guys maybe didn't bring.
It's my fame, the tricks youknow.
Make him think because you know, yeah, like I, I think I think
(24:57):
something that was that I hadgood, like you know, it was my
fame, my jab, you know all other, like all tricks you know.
Step aside all these littlethings that remind of fury and
uh, you know they like that ofme.
Yeah, I, I keep him like sharp,like uh thinking, you know,
most of the time, like you canuse power, you can use your
(25:19):
reach, you can use your, butsometimes it's nice when you
have another like athlete infront of you to stimulate you,
uh, to think.
You know, with the feints andstuff like that, and I feel like
I was doing this for him a lot.
Speaker 2 (25:36):
I wasn't easy to catch?
Speaker 1 (25:39):
no really, bro, but it's something that actually not
really, but it's something thatyou never do enough.
If we see Caballel, if you seeCaballel, look.
If we see Caballel, look whathe's doing to all those
heavyweights Destroying the body.
With all of them.
Speaker 2 (25:55):
Killing the body.
All of them.
Speaker 1 (26:00):
No, but if you think about it, all these last fights
over there in Riyadh, right, allthese big fights against?
Like who he fought?
The Russian dude, the Cuban guy?
What's his name?
Sanchez, sanchez.
He's destroying the body, bro,and stop him with body shots.
(26:21):
He stopped him with a straightjab to the body, a lot of shots
and dropping with a straight jabto the body.
Speaker 3 (26:27):
But what big guy really work out.
They abs, though you know whatI'm saying.
It's true.
Not too many big guys Isworking.
Speaker 1 (26:33):
Do abs no no, it's not even about that, brother.
Like, listen, like, when you'rea big guy you need more oxygen,
right, you need more gas.
And if I got the gas, that'sthe way, bro, you cannot fight.
Then Then, bro, you cannotfight.
Then it's not even about likeheadshots, bro, like they can
take it, but the body, bro, youcannot breathe, you cannot fight
.
That's rule number one.
Speaker 2 (26:56):
You know, I knew it, so I didn't really count the
what's his name?
They call him the mountain, Ithink, or the wolf, the Russian
guy he fought.
Speaker 1 (27:05):
Yeah, I'm sparring with him.
If you go on my Instagram,there is like a clip that I'm
sparring with him.
Speaker 2 (27:10):
I'll check that out.
Yeah, I'll check that out.
You know he's a huge, massiveman.
You don't want to get hit byhim, but I kind of knew, like
you said, the oxygen he wasgoing to peter out.
Speaker 1 (27:22):
But when he beat Frank Sanchez boxer.
Speaker 2 (27:25):
Yeah, I was like a Jits real, and then our guy
Zhang, we love Zhang, I loveZhang, man he was as cool as a
man.
Speaker 1 (27:33):
Yeah, he's a great dude, but I wish he was at this
level like 10 years ago when hisbody would allow him to do what
he wants.
He's a great fighter, Verytechnical and stuff like that,
but let's remember that you knowhe's 300 pounds and he's like
40 years old, so he's been doinggreat actually.
Speaker 3 (27:53):
He came in overweight .
Speaker 2 (27:55):
That body was.
He had a plan to attack thatbody, and that's what he did.
That's how good Zang is, thoughhe still knocked him down.
I was like, oh, he's knockedhim down.
Speaker 1 (28:06):
Listen, he's a sharp shooter and you know, with the
weight that he got, you know allyou gotta do is touch you.
Speaker 2 (28:12):
You know so yeah, did you ever, you ever spar with
zhang at?
Speaker 1 (28:16):
all.
No, I never.
I never had the you know thechance.
But let's remember, I'm acruiserweight brother, I'm
working overtime here with thoseheavyweights, but I'm a
cruiserweight.
I walk around 200, 210 pounds,115 pounds, but I'm fat.
So yeah you know what I mean,that's crazy like I actually,
yeah, I'm a cruiserweight, ifyou think about it, like you
(28:37):
know.
So I'm tired to give away.
I'm tired to give away 50, 60pounds, all those big guys out
there it's true, that's true,that's you are.
And then everybody complainabout why.
You know, but you should havedropped that guy, you should,
motherfucker.
I weigh 50 pounds less.
You know what I mean.
Speaker 2 (28:54):
You're right, you're right.
So, speaking of that, I have aquestion for you, and it's
nothing against you, obviouslyat all.
I think it was Brandon theheavy guy, was it?
I have it written down.
Hold on, oh, carmack.
Carmack, yeah was that the Hulutheater?
Yeah, yeah, was that a littlediscouraging to you?
You see a guy with a body likethat and we know it doesn't mean
(29:16):
anything.
The guy can still box, butyou're this like Adonis of a man
.
And then you got this guy withall this listen, I never
underestimate, ain't nobodyright?
Speaker 1 (29:25):
Every man that steps in the ring, you know, is a
dangerous man.
Now I didn't feel bad or stufflike that, because I know how he
can fight.
You know, people underestimatehim for his looks.
And he had enough time toprepare for my fight.
You know, and if you see,actually, if you look at his box
(29:47):
rack, he always like beenfighting overweight, overweight.
We're talking about 300 pounds,320.
For my fight he was actually inshape, but you cannot see it
because the flap is skin.
It was 274 pounds, somethinglike that.
So he actually was in shape.
All the other fights that hehad after me, if you see the
(30:10):
weight, you can tell it was outof shape.
And if you can see it's because, like, I can move on my feet
and stuff like that.
So I wasn't just having fun inthere.
But you know, if you stay thereand fight like a regular
heavyweight, a guy like this,you know I give you a fight.
You know I make it look likethis because I use my brain and
(30:30):
I take away what he got.
What he got is stay there andbang, but he can never catch me
if I move.
That's my attributes.
No, you did great.
Speaker 2 (30:40):
I was actually.
I was there ringside for thatfight and the surrounding fans,
but they were talking all kindsand I'm like, no, no, no, like I
knew it was his skin.
I'm like, look at his skin,like that's not fat.
He lost the weight, this guy.
That guy came in shape in asense.
It's just not the shape youwant to see, I was just curious
(31:01):
if, like as a fighter, if that'sa little like.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
God damn this guy.
This guy's freaking, but you,you're smarter.
You're smarter than that.
Listen, for me it's business,brother.
You know, give me a tenor.
Give me the more of those guyslike this, I don't care, you
know, it's business.
I gotta move forward, I gottamake experience, I gotta learn.
You know and, uh, you know, andthat's what fights like this
are for you know, for let peopleyou know they don't know.
You know, you see what you gotand keep on learning and
practicing things.
And yeah, bro, there is goingto be a new surprise, a new
(31:36):
version of me, because you guysdon't know these little things.
But pretty much for my last like10 fights, 12 fights, what not
I was like I told them all.
I always said for all like mycareer things.
I was like I was set for alllike my career things that are
nice.
I've been having the greatAndrew Razia on my corner, but
nobody knows that.
I've been training by myself.
I'm in my basement, in my houseand people still judge you,
(32:01):
because people still judge youand stuff like that, but they
don't know that I don't havelike a, like a team behind.
And now that I actually do, thenI have a coach and I have a
team that I can work on thingswith.
I want to really show peoplewhat I can do, because people
don't know what I can do whenpeople see me in the ring.
(32:21):
I haven't been 100.
I have to take fights withshort notice to make shit happen
, and we knock the camps andstuff like that.
And that's okay because that'sthe first part of your career,
when you're learning and stufflike that.
But now I'm really seriousabout it and I really want to
(32:41):
show what I can do.
I'm going to sharpen up on mytool a little bit more, maybe
another couple of fights and getsome other stuff straight and
then I'm ready to really takerisks.
Because if you don't take risks, bro, in this life, you know,
getting money makes no money,you know.
You got all the experience man,I don't know what's next for you
(33:03):
right now, but you definitelygot all the experience.
Speaker 3 (33:06):
And then people that you're destined for greatness,
then people that you youdestined for greatness, the
people that you've been in thering with.
You know what I'm saying, so,and you're doing all the right
things, obviously.
Speaker 2 (33:14):
If the team wasn't working out for you with Rozier,
you switched, you took anotherrisk and you took a risk coming
to this country and it pannedout for you.
You had to dig through somedirt, I'm sure, obviously, and
here you are.
But there's another Italian guywith a little bit different of
a track.
He's not from the roughupbringing like you were, and I
think you know who I'm going togo with this.
I think I've messaged you abouthim, guido Vianello, and again,
(33:37):
he is a heavyweight.
He's a smaller heavyweight.
You think we can get a littleItalian vs Italian going on
sometime, or what?
Would you take that fight?
Speaker 1 (33:50):
If I move up to heavyweight.
I've been fighting heavyweight,but I'm not looking to fight
heavyweight, at least until Ibecome more champion.
Also, we're great friends.
I never had a chance to meethim before, but then, before my
fight for the title in Argentina, we ended up meeting each other
in Vegas and we ended up comingtogether.
So we're sparring each other inVegas and we end up I mean, I
came together, so we're sparringeach other for the fight
(34:11):
against the Russian dude overthere and I help him out a
little bit with the sparring andsome advice, because I'm
sparring the dude and I told him.
I said, listen, bro, if you useyour attributes and move around
, the guy cannot touch you.
He load up every shot and stufflike that.
Speaker 2 (34:29):
I won so much money on that fight.
Speaker 1 (34:31):
Yeah, and me and Michael Hunter actually helped
him out for the fight.
We helped each other.
We fought at the same time.
I fought in Argentina, hefought over there.
I don't remember what it wasthe fight in Canada or something
like that.
Speaker 2 (34:47):
What's Hunter been up to man?
Where's he been?
Where's he been at?
Where's Hunter been at?
What happened to?
Him I haven't seen him in aminute.
Speaker 1 (34:54):
Listen, this guy got so much potential, so much
potential.
Let's remember what he did.
Let's remember what he did toBacoli bro, yeah, and nobody
knows, they call him like ashort notice.
If we're doing gland, he'sbought us a money.
Bet on himself and stop the guyhe's a stopper
(35:17):
colleague yeah yes stop, stop mycolleague, but it's a
cruiserweight to.
He's one of the most curiousguys, guys that I know.
You know, unfortunately hehasn't had luck with promoters
and stuff like that.
And uh, nobody really knows,true, yes, and uh, you won the
(35:39):
fight, you know?
Blah, blah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (35:52):
He was on my radar a few years ago and I was very
high on him because I'm like, ohwow, an American heavyweight,
this guy could do it.
You know he had a tough resumetoo and a tough climb.
So you, saying his name,brought it right back.
I was like actually, oh shoot,he's fighting Christopher
Lovejoy in April.
I'm seeing.
Speaker 1 (36:07):
I didn't even know that.
I Actually oh shoot, he'sfighting Christopher Lovejoy in
April, I'm seeing.
I didn't even know that, yeah,and then he told me there should
be a mandatory fight with thewinner of Pulev against the
other dude from England.
What's his name?
The guy that break the jaw tothe other dude with a right hand
Can't remember his name rightnow.
Speaker 2 (36:31):
Oh, char, no, no, no, he's fighting somebody else
from England from England.
Speaker 1 (36:38):
Hmm, yeah yeah, it's a good fight.
Actually, you should fight thewinner of this fight.
Wba already send, like themandatory fight yeah.
Speaker 2 (36:51):
You said that name, it brought me back.
Speaker 1 (36:53):
Fabio Woodley.
Speaker 2 (36:54):
Fabio Woodley yeah, oh yeah.
Speaker 1 (36:57):
Who left Fabio Woodley?
The winner is, I guess, MichaelHunter.
He's already called by the WBA.
Speaker 2 (37:05):
It feels like England has the stronghold on the
heavyweight division.
Obviously, I know you're notheavyweight, but they have the
top heavyweights right now.
Yeah, they do.
Speaker 1 (37:12):
Not so much, but they got the top heavyweights right
now.
Speaker 2 (37:14):
Yeah, they do Not so much, but they got the top
heavyweights.
Speaker 3 (37:19):
What's next for you?
Nothing for me.
Speaker 1 (37:22):
Are you going to be in Atlantic City?
Yeah, I'm going to be there.
We actually was talking aboutme on the car over there, but
then I got sick, got the worstflu I've had in my life, and I
didn't move from the bed forseven days bro, yeah, everybody.
Speaker 2 (37:35):
My life and I didn't move from the bed for seven days
.
Bro, yeah, everybody, everybodydid.
Man, I had it too, we all did.
It's crazy.
You're on the east coast, yeah,damn so.
Speaker 1 (37:42):
You're not, yeah, so no, I'm not gonna be in the car.
Yeah, I'm still recoveringactually right now, but I'm
gonna be there, you know, forthe fight.
You know, support the team.
And then you know we just like,uh, stay ready.
You know, keep learning,working hard, sharpening up
everything.
And then you know, seek, youknow, for another couple of
(38:04):
fights and then maybe sign witha big promotion.
So, like I got the looks, I canspeak italian, I can speak
spanish, I can speak english, Ican fight, I can sell tickets.
I feel like now is the time tosign with a big promotion,
because you cannot do everythingby yourself.
I've been doing a good job withmy team right now, but I need a
(38:26):
big promoter now.
Speaker 2 (38:28):
Real quick and we'll get out of here shortly.
You've already gave us morethan we bargained for, speaking
of the looks and I'm a straightmale, but you're a tall,
good-looking italian man.
What's the love life like?
Are you?
You shooing these americansaway?
What's going on with that?
Speaker 1 (38:42):
absolutely, bro.
I find like a great woman, youknow, and you have a great woman
.
Speaker 2 (38:48):
You have a.
Speaker 1 (38:48):
You have a great woman yeah, I find a great woman
and and that's it, bro.
Like you know, it is boxing.
You know?
Do you remember the greatmoment?
That is what I used to say.
The hardest thing in boxing isbeing bad at nine o'clock with
no body on your side that's true, amen, I think you're, you're
(39:09):
mature.
Yeah, I feel like you know,especially for our sport, you
know, yeah, sorry yeah, no, no,no, you're good.
Speaker 2 (39:16):
I was saying your maturity speaks for you, and I'm
thinking of this tall Italiandude with the accent walking
around New York City.
Like me, I'm like a carsalesman.
I gotta try and get what yougot.
They're probably throwingthemselves at this guy.
I was just curious about that.
But hey, I'm happy for you, man, I'm married.
I'm married too.
I have a great woman.
But you know, I was like, damn,this fucking guy is probably
(39:37):
killing us.
I was like, like you said, deadby nine is the hardest thing
they ain't be around.
Speaker 3 (39:41):
On the blacks, it's got to be hard Boots, ennis yeah
.
Speaker 2 (39:45):
Boots Ennis in Philly .
You're like the token white guy.
Now too, man he's, so you willbe at the fight.
Obviously we're going to bethere.
You have anything else?
I don't really have anythingelse.
I think he's said more than wewanted.
I'm a big fan.
I know you said you have yourgripes with New York, but
(40:07):
technically we know you're fromItaly, but you're a New Yorker,
so here you are all right.
No, absolutely, bro.
Speaker 1 (40:14):
I got to give everything to New York.
New York made me.
You know All my friends and thepeople that helped me.
You know this journey like comefrom New York and all my
connection, everything is in NewYork.
I just like you know I'm herein Philly like strictly for
business.
You know I don't care aboutlike, yes, we welcome friends
and stuff like that, but I don'tcare about this shit anymore,
(40:35):
bro, I'm like straight focus.
You know I stay home, go to thegym, do this twice a day.
I don't want no new friends, Idon't want no drama, I don't
want nothing.
You know, just me, my lady andbusiness and boxing, bro,
because next time, you know, ifI want to do something big, you
know I got to stay focused now.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
And that's awesome to hear, man, you have the mindset
for it.
I see you got the heavy bag.
You got two fans for life.
Speaker 3 (41:02):
Yeah, fans for life, Fans for life.
Thank you guys.
Speaker 2 (41:06):
Probably the craziest fans too.
Speaker 3 (41:07):
I hope you do fight, because we're going to be there,
I hope you're going to be there, I might need you to throw a
punch.
Absolutely, bro, you to throw.
Absolutely, bro, you're good,absolutely, absolutely.
And uh, yeah, bro, you wannaleave the fighters, you wanna
leave anybody like a motivation,you know.
That's why I like to ask thefighters to, you know, give
something motivation, bro.
Speaker 1 (41:29):
Motivation, yes, motivation, I young kid, you
know, is like it's cheesy, butnever give up.
You know why I never give up?
I wasn't supposed to literallysee nothing that I see in this
life or have what I have.
You know, I was born in a veryhumble family, in a city, a
(41:51):
small city in Sicily, and I haveno really opportunity, you know
, to change my life and stufflike that and through like
simple things like sport,training every day, why
everybody used to tell me yo goget a job, bro, boxing's not
going to pay.
That's Italy, bro.
What are you doing?
And I used to be broke andtraining, raining, you know,
(42:13):
cold, you know, sunny, no matterwhat.
I used to be broke and training, raining, you know cold, you
know sunny, no matter what.
I used to grind and grind andgrind and cry, sometimes alone
and no money and no friends.
You know, nobody understand me.
And then I move here in theUnited States.
I had to work and training andmore, you know, suffering.
Then I finally, you know, metMark Breland, signed my first
(42:37):
contract.
Then the injury, the first time,no money, I lost everything, I
lost the manager, I lost thesponsors.
Then I get back again.
I make it Because I don't havefamily that I can call.
Yo send me 10 grand.
I gotta pay rent.
I gotta do this, I gotta dothat.
No medical insurance no,nothing, no education.
I got to do this, I got to dothat.
No medical insurance no,nothing, no education.
I learned English, you know,since I'm in the States.
(42:58):
Then the second surgery came andI lost everything again.
Then I go back on my feet again.
Then the third surgery came,brother, I come back from
fucking everything in this life,you understand.
So the thing is just never giveup Like literally nothing.
Told me that I couldn't make it.
Just keep going forward.
No matter what happens in life,take it, take it on the chin,
(43:22):
get up and keep on doing whatyou're doing.
If you like something, just gostraight because it's going to
lead you to something good.
If I stop boxing nowadays rightnow, god forbid, let's not
conclude.
I got so many connections andfriends and knowledge that I
could do whatever the fuck Iwant in this life and all coming
from persist every day in onething only.
(43:44):
So, whatever you're doing outthere, just keep on doing it and
do it all the way.
Don't do a thousand things, doone, but do it good.
Speaker 2 (43:52):
Yeah, focus, focus, focus, focus.
Yes, sir, you've showed us.
Yeah, focus, focus, focus,focus.
Yes, sir, you've showed us.
We're going to look fast.
I love that I'm about to go run10 miles right now.
Speaker 1 (44:03):
Let's go.
I'm just kidding.
Speaker 3 (44:06):
I was thinking about my life.
Every time he was talking, thewhole time he was talking, I was
thinking about my life.
Speaker 1 (44:10):
It's true, bro.
Sometimes in our life, you knowyou get overwhelmed.
You don't know what you do.
Do what you know.
The only thing that you knowkeep going forward and then give
up on yourself.
You give up on yourself, bro.
Who's going to help you?
Who's going to help you?
It's going to be you, bro.
You're right, man.
Speaker 2 (44:30):
Yo man, thank you so much, man.
You're an inspiration, you are.
Listen, it's St Patrick's Dayweekend.
I am half Irish.
I'm going to the Irish fightstomorrow at MSG, but we had to
get my Italian side here.
Speaker 1 (44:43):
Thank you for coming, man, I appreciate you.
And you're an inspiration foreverybody out of Sicily too,
there's not.
Speaker 2 (44:49):
Sicily is often forgot about.
Like you're an inspiration foreverybody out of Sicily, man.
Speaker 1 (45:02):
Everyone about, like you're an inspiration for
everybody out of sicily.
Man, it's everyone here's italy, italy, italy, rome.
Listen, sometimes when I, whenI meet those you know guys older
than me, under 50, you knowlate 40s and stuff like that,
and have family members that areimmigrants then came here in
this country like 80 years ago,100 years ago, and, you know,
change everything for them.
I told them I'm like yourfather, I'm like your
grandfather, like I made myself.
I came in this country.
I maybe didn't came with a boat, I came with a flight, but it's
(45:25):
the same shit for me, man, Ilearned english here.
You know I had no education.
You know I learned twolanguages.
Speaker 2 (45:32):
You speak great english like you.
Like guido don't speak englishlike you.
What the hell?
Yeah, you speak great English.
Speaker 1 (45:38):
And he got the education, bro, he went to squad
.
I dropped out of school, bro,when I was like 12 years old.
Speaker 2 (45:45):
But yeah, he's alive, bro, he can learn.
Speaker 1 (45:47):
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (45:48):
Guido is playing tennis.
Man, I had to learn, bro,survival.
Speaker 1 (45:52):
you know Survival skills when you're out there.
You got to work.
You better learn how to speakand do stuff you know, like you
would definitely.
Speaker 2 (46:01):
Sometimes it's a blessing, that's right man.
Speaker 1 (46:05):
Sometimes it's a blessing when all you got is
yourself, bro.
Sometimes it's a blessing, youknow.
Speaker 2 (46:10):
It definitely gives you some skills, you know You're
wise beyond your years andyou're a dog in the ring and
obviously a dog outside of thering.
Nothing can stop you.
Willie and Puma are fans forlife.
Thank you so much for the time.
We'll let you go now.
Thank you, guys, you got theheavy bag back there, you got
the heavy bag back there.
I'm sure you're ready, man,always, always ready.
Speaker 1 (46:32):
You got the Yankee hat on.
Speaker 2 (46:34):
Keep that.
Yankee.
Hat on too.
I know you're in Philly, butjust let them know you're from
New York, alright, so take care.
Thank you so much.
Speaker 1 (46:41):
Pleasure to meet you guys.
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 2 (46:43):
Alright, I'll see you in Atlantic City in a month or
two.
Alright, take care.
Speaker 1 (46:48):
I'll see you there.
We'll talk more.
Alright, brother, bye-bye, bye.
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