"I think we've got a great shot to win if we get to him. Nobody thought we could beat Broner, but we did. Probably nobody is going to think we can beat Mayweather, but we will. We have to go in there thinking he's just a man, dude. He gets tired like everybody else, he can get hit like everybody else, he bleeds like everybody else, he gets hurt like everybody else, he can break down like everybody else, and we can win just like anybody else," stated world-class Strength & Conditioning Coach Alex Ariza, who talked about his fighter, WBA welterweight champion Marcos Maidana, and their upcoming May 3 showdown with undefeated pound-for-pound king Floyd "Money" Mayweather. Check out what else he had to say!
BT: What's up, Alex? It looks like you're gonna be putting in some serious work getting Maidana ready for the biggest fight of his career.
AA: I think it's the biggest fight of Maidana's career and the biggest fight of everybody's career at this point.
BT: After scoring the upset victory over Adrien Broner and capturing the WBA welterweight title, Maidana obviously earned his shot to face Mayweather the old fashioned way. That being said, a lot of people thought Amir Khan might get the opportunity instead. Was there ever any doubt in your mind that Maidana would be next for Floyd?
AA: Zero doubt. I mean, we're being honest, you know, and I love Amir as a person, but as a fighter, he hasn't really done what I thought he should be able to do and that he still can be able to do. You know, he had a bad fight against smaller fighters that were moving up in weight. He didn't look great against Julio Diaz; I thought it was very close and he got hurt and dropped with some shots that I personally don't think would've ever dropped him in the past. But then to see what Robert and Maidana have done over the past year, I mean, how can you argue the two. Maidana's blasting everybody out there. He's a 5 to 1 dog, you know. I mean, he doesn't just beat the dude [Adrien Broner]; he gave the dude a beating and he never took it easy. He took chances every round. He never backed off. He put himself in harms way every minute of every round and Broner's not an easy dude to hit. You have to work, man, and he worked for that win and he worked for that victory. He worked and Maidana won that spot to fight Floyd. You gotta earn that spot, man. You really do. The fans aren't stupid. The fans want what the fans want and the fans want that. We know that Maidana's got power, so knowing that he's got power and he's got pop, anything can happen.
BT: Would you say Floyd's the most difficult opponent you've had to prepare a guy for?
AA: 100%! 100%! He's just too well-rounded. He's a well-rounded dude, so I have to make my guy into a physical machine and Robert's gotta be able to have Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C, but you gotta be in tip-top shape to be able to change plans. I'm preparing my guy to go in there to win and I think we've got a great shot to win if we get to him. Nobody thought we could beat Broner, but we did. Probably nobody is going to think we can beat Mayweather, but we will. We have to go in there thinking he's just a man, dude. He gets tired like everybody else, he can get hit like everybody else, he bleeds like everybody else, he gets hurt like everybody else, he can break down like everybody else, and we can win just like anybody else.
BT: You already have a little experience being on the opposite side of the ring during a Floyd Mayweather fight. What was it like when you were working with Diego Corrales for that fight?
AA: I tell you what, dude, unless you've been that close to Floyd during an actual fight, you'll never know how fast and how technical that dude is. It's a whole different level, man. And being as young as I was, I think I was only 24/25 at the time when Chico fought him, just to see the speed and the elusiveness...man. That was Floyd too when he was in his early 20's as well.
BT: Remembering that experience, can you see how he's changed at all?
AA: I'll be honest, man, I like Floyd now more. I see him engaging more. I see him staying in the pocket more. I see him trading more. I see him take chances more. I see a killer instinct more, you know. I mean, I like the way that Floyd fights now more than I ever have when I used to watch him fight. I thought he was too defensive. Now, you see him more offensive. I mean, he'll stay there, dude. He'll sit in the pocket and he'll trade shot for shot and I think that's made him more appealing.
BT: I take it you think that will be something Maidana might be able to take advantage of.
AA: Without sitting down with Robert [Garcia] and figuring out what the strategy is, all I can think is we gotta be in Broner shape times ten. I mean, I'm being honest. That's the only thing I can think of. I gotta have a much faster, much quicker, more agile, more conditioned, more punch output; I mean, dude, we gotta take our game to a whole 'nother level. It's just a whole 'nother level of training. It really is. I don't want to over-think it too much because I have to also put things in perspective, keep myself grounded, and say, "Floyd is just another fighter," but, I mean, you're only fooling yourself if you prepare yourself like that, so I gotta prepare myself for somebody different. I can't fool myself like that.
BT: How much different do you think Maidana is now than he was when you were in the opposite corner from him with Amir [Khan]?
AA: Ten times different. Don't get me wrong, I've always been a fan of watching him fight, but he's just a completely different fighter. He really didn't have much style. He didn't look like he had much of a game plan. He was just out there throwing bombs and haymakers; not planning anything and not setting anything up. He was just in there basically making it a street fight, which was lucky for us that he didn't have Robert in his corner back then.
BT: Can you make any significant difference in Maidana's speed, whether it's hand or foot speed, given the amount of time you have to prepare for this fight?
AA: Well, when you talk about the speed and quickness of somebody, they already have a genetic makeup, a predisposition to either fast-twitch, or being quick or being slow. It's what you recruit after that, how you train, to get a little bit faster. But I think with somebody like Mayweather, even if you become lightning fast, it still does not take away the fact that he can see everything coming because he's technical. So it becomes a question of timing and I think that's really going to be Robert who's going to have to really focus on timing and moves and adjustments and angles and things like that because the fastest guy is still going to have problems with a Mayweather. So I can't go in there thinking speed, speed, speed, speed, speed, speed because speed can also get you into problems, as we've seen, and we don't want that. We just have to be balanced, rounded, and let Robert do his thing. I think he did a tremendous job with the way he trained Maidana to fight Broner. When I was watching him with Stevie Forbes, and God, dude, I think he's probably the only guy that should get so much credit, man, because he did such a tremendous job of sparring. I mean, he can fight on the inside, he can fight on the outside, he can counter; I mean, he was just unbelievable for sparring for Maidana. But it was hearing Robert tell him, "Take a step this way. Take a step that way. Don't stay in the center. Stay in the pocket or stay out of the pocket," and watching Robert design the fight for him and to watch it actually happen that night was amazing as well. But I think Robert's gonna really have to do a lot of the same thing for this fight. Unfortunately, there is no game plan for that cat, dude. There's just not. You just don't know what he's going to do.
BT: It seemed like Maidana's physical strength kind of surprised Broner. Floyd isn't really a big welterweight either. That being said, do you prefer for Maidana to come in a little lighter than normal to maybe help with his speed, or do you want him to be heavier so he can be the bigger man inside of the ring?
AA: You know what? I really have to sit down with Maidana and ask him how he really felt, but I can't compare Broner to fucking Floyd, dude. I mean, you're talking about Floyd who sat in front of Canelo. Floyd who sat in front of Cotto. Floyd who sat in front of De La Hoya. Floyd who sat in front of even fast guys, like Zab Judah, man, who was a big puncher and had speed back then. I mean, the comparisons aren't even close; they're just not. I hope there is something, but more than likley, there's nothing that we can do that he has not already seen. The only thing we can be is the best that we can be that night and just get in there and make it a war and make it a dog fight, dude. Like I said, we gotta be stronger, we gotta be as fast, if not faster, the punch volume has to be the same, if not more, and he's gotta make everything count.
BT: The good news is that you and Robert didn't even really get to work with Maidana that much prior to the Broner fight because you guys had to head out to China for Brandon's fight with Pacquiao.
AA: Look, we left with Mikey for a week and we left with Brandon for 2 weeks, so we only had really a good 3 solid weeks with Maidana and that was it. Everything else he did on his own and the other guys back at home took care of it and kept him moving around. We did really a crunch thing, which I don't think helped us for sure. I think we could've done a lot better if we would've had the amount of time that we needed to get him ready. This time, we will have that time. It'll be good though to sit across from Floyd again since I did it when I first started out so long ago. It's kind of funny how things come full circle again. To be in the opposite corner against him again will be something. I think it brings out the best in everybody.
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