"I'm proud of what I was able to accomplish in 2013. I was getting my feet wet, and I remember speaking to Al Haymon in September after my fight at the Barclays Center the same night and he was just telling me that he's looking forward to bigger events with me and me moving on up in 2014. so right now, I'm just waiting to put everything together and I'm looking forward to another great year," stated up-and-coming lightweight prospect Jamel Herring, who talked about his latest victory, his future plans, and more. Check it out!
PC: Congratulations on your last win, even though one judge didn't bother watching the fight and you ended up winning a split decision.
JH: Thanks man. I don't know what was up with that. I could understand if one judge had it close or two of the judges had it close in my favor, but the other two judges had it a shutout across the board, 60-54, and the one judge, I don't know what he was watching. I lost 4 rounds on his card. Maybe he had a grudge or something, but to me, I didn't take it too hard. It was a learning experience of how the game goes sometimes. It happens to the best of 'em I guess. In the end, the right man won and I'm just moving on to the next and going forward.
PC: Recap your 2013 for me my man. How do you feel you did?
JH: I'm proud of what I was able to accomplish in 2013. I was getting my feet wet, and I remember speaking to Al Haymon in September after my fight at the Barclays Center the same night and he was just telling me that he's looking forward to bigger events with me and me moving on up in 2014. so right now, I'm just waiting to put everything together and I'm looking forward to another great year.
PC: You are always in the gym and always in shape. Is the mentality to stay ready so you don't have to get ready?
JH: Oh yeah, of course. My main focus is to stay busy and perfect my craft. Mike Stafford told me last week that right now, we're on call. He can call anytime and say he has a card he wants to put me on. So right now, we just stay busy and stay hungry and get ready for anything and everything.
PC: You are really close to Adrien Broner and I wanted to let you speak on some of the backlash he received after his loss to Marcos Maidana. We are in a day and age now where one loss and you get clowned and mocked as to where years ago, a loss didn't mean the end, especially after an exciting fight like that.
JH: Yeah, I sit back and think you have greats like Ray Robinson, who had multiple losses into the double digits and it wasn't a bad thing. People didn't look down on it or anything like that. In today's society, it's like if you're not on Floyd Mayweather status, carrying your career along with that 0, it seems like people change and turn against you. The media looks down on you. Anybody can have a bad night. No one is perfect. And it wasn't just Adrien; we see it with Abner Mares. I'm a big fan of Abner. You know, truthfully, I think it comes down to the culture. If you get a Hispanic fighter, he's considered a warrior and he could have 7 or 8 losses and nothing is said. They give their fighters a chance to bounce back. They have a strong family behind them, which I respect. But once you get an African American athlete, it's like if you're not Floyd Mayweather or once you lose that 0, he has diminished skills, he hasn't fought anybody anyway, or he was a hype job. Yeah, Adrien had a bad night, but he's still talented. In the end, people can say what they want; the man still going down in history as a three-time world champion, and look at the age he is at now. He still has years to come and recover and get better. But it was an eye-opener for me. I don't want to say it put pressure on me to try and stay perfect, but I just think it's not fair because a lot of us out there, we do work hard and we risk our lives in that ring and I don't think we don't get the credit that we should be getting.
PC: What can we expect to see from you in the near future? What have you been working on?
JH: Actually, my goal is, by the end of this year, to grab a regional title. I think that will set me up great for the following year to have an even better year to put myself in at least top 10 contender-ship for a world title. Like I told them about my last fight, I was supposed to fight a guy that was a lightweight; I ended up fighting a guy closer to junior welterweight or welterweight because I had guys dropping out of fights left and right. You know, I work so hard, I wasn't gonna say, nah, forget it. I took a last minute replacement and fighting a guy that was bigger who had more experience than me. He had been pro for a few years. But I wanted to take a step further in my career anyway by fighting guys with a little bit more experience out there. I told my coaches and my team, Al Haymon, that I don't want to be that guy that's being babied, fighting too many bums because it's not gonna help me. It may pad my record, but in terms of experience, what good is it gonna do me? That's why I want to have a great year this year and stay busy, and every fight, move up. I don't want to go up and down the ladder of the fight game. But I understand it's a business first and I trust that every decision they make is the best decision for all of us.
PC: Is this the frustrating part of your career that a lot of fighters go through where you have to get 5 opponents lined up just to have 1 show up on fight night?
JH: It gets frustrating, but I look at it in the positive sometimes, like if these guys are dropping out at the last minute, it's obvious for a reason because of something you're doing and maybe they understand that you are the better fighter and they feel it isn't worth going that route. I was talking to our team and I remember my pro debut, they told me they found 4 guys for me to fight in my debut and I remember them saying two of 'em knew who I was and they said no, they weren't gonna fight me and I forgot what happened with one; I guess when it comes to the business side, it was money, and then one took the fight. I have been experiencing it since day one, my pro debut, and it does get frustrating, but I understand this isn't the amateurs no more where you get brackets and you fight whoever's on the other side of that bracket. But I respect that it's a business first in the pro game and I just try to maintain my focus and cool and just keep doing what I need to be doing.
PC: I look forward to seeing you back in action my man. Is there anything else you want to add before I let you go?
JH: Like I told you before, man, I'm always looking forward to our next interview and I'm always available for an interview. I just want to thank everybody out there who's supporting me. I hope they keep on following my career and they can hit me up on Twitter or Facebook @JamelHerring. As you see, I'm always talking to people. I'm never rude or anything. I always stay humble and anybody that shout me out, I kindly give a few words back. That's just me, so they can get at me on there.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]