"I think he's a solid fighter. He brings a lot to the table. He is a good fighter, he is a determined and young guy, just like myself. I think he does a lot of good things, but nothing spectacular to me that I have to worry aboutÂ…They can expect an extremely fan-friendly fight with a lot of speed, power, and smarts with high boxing IQ and knowledge; inside of the ring know-how. I just want to give the fans a fight that they will enjoy," stated undefeated jr. middleweight contender Daquan Arnett, who talked about his upcoming January 30 showdown with fellow undefeated contender Eddie Gomez. Check it out!
PC: I'm looking forward to your fight against Eddie Gomez. How is preparation going?
DA: I feel great. Everything is going good and camp is going extremely well. Everything is on course and on track for the win.
PC: Like I told Eddie, it's very rare we get to see two young undefeated guys fight this early in their careers. He was a little surprised you guys are meeting so early. What was your reaction when you got the call?
DA: My management team had asked me about this fight earlier this year. They mentioned it and I jumped on it then. When I first heard about it, which that was earlier this year, it kind of shocked me a little bit that we were fighting so early, but these are the kind of fights that I asked my management team for. I want the big fights and to be put on the big stage.
PC: A lot of fans feel like we have gotten away from undefeated prospects facing one another. How important is that for you guys to be the ones to bring that back?
DA: It's important to me because, like you said, we are definitely out of that day and age where top upcoming fighters fight other top upcoming fighters. But for me, I want to be that different fighter that does things a little bit different. I give the people what they really want to see. I don't want to be another guy with a padded record. I don't want to move my way up through the ranks with a padded record. You can see already I have already faced two undefeated fighters and I only have 11 fights. That's very rare, so I'm a little bit different with how I handle the course of my career.
PC: You guys came up around the same time, so I'm sure you are somewhat familiar with him. What do you think of Gomez as a fighter?
DA: I think he's a solid fighter. He brings a lot to the table. He is a good fighter, he is a determined and young guy, just like myself. I think he does a lot of good things, but nothing spectacular to me that I have to worry about.
PC: What do you think will separate you from him at the end of the night?
DA: I feel like when it comes down to it, it's going to come down to who has the better boxing skills and the better boxing IQ. I learned a lot about that being in training camp with Floyd Mayweather. He taught me a lot about the different levels that you can go through mentally knowledge-wise in the boxing game. I have elevated a lot over the last year, even though I haven't fought very frequently.
PC: It looked like you were gonna be well on your way to being very active this year, but it didn't happen that way. How were you able to keep it together and stay in the gym learning?
DA: It hasn't really been a problem because me and my management team knew we would get a big fight such as this one lined up some time this year. I was patient and waiting on my moment, and the training camp this year with Floyd Mayweather kept me active and I was in the gym every day sparring with top guys; Ishe Smith, Ashley Theophane, J'Leon Love, Shawn Porter and Floyd Mayweather himself. I was steadily active in Vegas and back home and just staying in the gym every day, so it didn't bother me because I knew the time away from fighting, I was still becoming a better fighter. I was still becoming a better boxer outside of sanctioned competition.
PC: Golden Boy is giving you guys the type of exposure that you used to have to have 20 plus fights to get. How important is it to build a fan base so early into your career?
DA: It's a great, great thing because now, like you said, at 21, I'm already getting this kind of exposure and I'm so early in my career, by the time I'm 25 or 26, I hope to be a household name by then because of the amount of exposure that I'm already getting to the public.
PC: What can people expect from Daquan Arnett on January 30th?
DA: They can expect an extremely fan-friendly fight with a lot of speed, power, and smarts with high boxing IQ and knowledge; inside of the ring know-how. I just want to give the fans a fight that they will enjoy.
PC: It's at Barclays. He's a New York guy. Do you have any concerns about going into his backyard so to speak?
DA: To me, I don't get into the whole hometown thing because when we are in that squared circle, it's only me and him. Nobody can throw or slip a punch for him, so that doesn't get in my mind. When I'm on my way to that ring, I got tunnel vision. I don't see nobody in the arena. During those 3 minutes of each round, it's just me and him.
PC: When you look around the 147-pound division, what do you see from both veterans and prospects?
DA: I love what I see. It's a lot of great fights to be made. It's jam packed with talent from the bottom up-and-coming to the top veterans, like you said. It's a lot of talent and great fights to be made and I'm excited to be in the mix.
PC: I wish you good luck on January 30th and I look forward to a great fight. Is there anything else you want to add?
DA: Thank the fans for supporting me, and continue to support me and I will do my best to continue to give you guys great fights. And they can follow me on Instagram and Twitter @DaquanArnett and thank you!
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]