"We are prepared for whatever Victor Ortiz shows up. I know he can box a little bit, but eventually though, we're definitely going to have to exchange and we're going to bang. We're going to bang. But we worked on everything. If we gotta box a little bit, we will do that. He likes to come in and bring the fight and we're going to catch him coming in...I thought it was disrespectful of the promotion to do that, but hey, it's just that much more motivation for Josesito Lopez to spoil the September 15th show," stated welterweight contender Josesito Lopez, who talked about his upcoming clash this Saturday with former welterweight champion Victor Ortiz. Check out what he had to say about his plans to spoil Ortiz's already scheduled fall showdown with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez.
PC: Thanks for taking time out to talk with me on fight week. How has camp been treating you?
JL: Man, everything is good, man. I'm just wrapping up camp now. It's fight week, so it's just countdown to fight night now.
PC: Your trainer, Henry Ramirez, said this was an opportunity that he felt couldn't be passed up. Was that your mindset as well when you heard the name Victor Ortiz?
JL: Yes, everything just came together. My opponent [Kendall Holt] dropped out and then the following day, Victor Ortiz's opponent [Andre Berto] dropped out and it just kind of happened to work out and I'm excited.
PC: I didn't realize how big of a jr. welterweight you were until I spoke with Henry. How does it feel to have the extra 7 pounds and not have to suck down to 140?
JL: Oh man, it feels good not having to cut weight. For some fighters, and me, I'm a 5'10" junior welterweight, so at times, it can be a little hard work to get down to 140, especially fight week. But not having to worry about weight is great. I'm full of energy, I feel strong, and it keeps me that much more focused for the fight.
PC: You haven't fought since your controversial decision loss to Jessie Vargas. What have you been doing in your time off?
JL: I've been training the whole time actually. I was scheduled to fight at the beginning of the year and it just didn't happen, and then I was scheduled to fight June 22nd before the Ortiz thing came out, and everything just fell together and it was perfect, so I'm excited.
PC: We have seen Victor try to box and we know he can slug it out if he has to. Of course add in his southpaw stance and it's a difficult style to face. What kind of fight are you expecting from Ortiz on Saturday night?
JL: You know what? We really don't know what to expect from Victor. We are prepared for whatever Victor Ortiz shows up. I know he can box a little bit, but eventually though, we're definitely going to have to exchange and we're going to bang. We're going to bang. But we worked on everything. If we gotta box a little bit, we will do that. He likes to come in and bring the fight and we're going to catch him coming in.
PC: Being such a huge underdog is motivation enough for you, I'm sure, but now that Ortiz is scheduled to face Canelo Alvarez in September, I'm sure it's just fuel to your fire.
JL: You said it perfectly, man. As if I need any more motivation, that just adds a little more fuel to the fire. I thought it was disrespectful of the promotion to do that, but hey, it's just that much more motivation for Josesito Lopez to spoil the September 15th show.
PC: Recently, Victor has been known to get a little dirty in there and use his head and things like that. How will you deal with that if it comes to that?
JL: You can never really prepare too well for situations like that. We just hope for a good, clean fight, but we're fighters and whatever happens in the ring, we try to keep it as professional as possible and fight our fight and luckily for me, I'm a fan-friendly fighter and that's the way I fight.
PC: A lot of people thought you won the Jessie Vargas fight; of course he got the nod. How did you deal with that loss?
JL: Man, that loss was a tough one. I hear from a good 90-95% of the people that saw it that they had me up and had me winning. It's tough losing to a hometown fighter or in someone's backyard. It's really tough. I'm tired of hearing, "Oh, you gave a good fight." I don't want to just give a good fight. I want to win. I want to be a world champ and I want to win, and now it's like I'm going to win now and I'm going to win on June 23rd.
PC: Best of luck to you on Saturday night. Again, I thank you for your time. Is there anything else you want to say in closing?
JL: I just appreciate all of the support I've been getting and any support I can get is much appreciated. My fighting style and the way I leave it all in the ring is the way I give back, so I plan to do that on the 23rd. And I thank you for the interview.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]