"Tapia is a great fighter. He's the type of guy who comes out and fights his heart out also, so it's not going to be a cat-and-mouse type of fight...I'm a knockout artist. It's the way I fight. I'm not going to lie to you and say I'm going to come in and just play around. Obviously I'm going to come in and throw some hard shots," stated former world champion David Lemieux, who spoke during a conference call promoting his upcoming clash with middleweight contender Glen Tapia on the May 7 Canelo vs. Khan undercard. Check out what else he had to say!
OSCAR DE LA HOYA: At this moment I'd like to introduce to you a good friend of mine. He is the president of Eye of the Tiger Management, the premier management manager in Canada. He has the best fighters, obviously with David Lemieux being the star fighter in Canada.
So here is Camille Estephan.
CAMILLE ESTEPHAN, President of Eye of the Tiger Management: Thank you, Oscar. Hello, everyone. So glad to be on this call. Really looking forward to May 7th. Fantastic card. Looking forward to David putting on a great show with Glen Tapia. Thank you for the opportunity.
OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you, Camille. It is really my pleasure to introduce to you the former IBF middleweight world champion. He has a record of 34-3, with 31 knockouts. David is currently ranked as one of the top middleweight fighters in the WBC, the IBF, and will make his ring return on May 7th after a sellout crowd at the Mecca of boxing at Madison Square Garden in New York when he faced Gennady Golovkin for the Middleweight World Championship on October 17th.
David is a fighter who is hungry once again, who is ready to show the world that he is the best middleweight out there, and wants to get back on track and become world champion once again. It is my pleasure to introduce to you, coming out of Canada with a record of 34-, 3 with 31 knockouts, David Lemieux.
DAVID LEMIEUX, Former IBF Middleweight Champion: Hi, Oscar. Thank you very much. Thank you, everybody, for tuning in. I'm extremely excited for the opportunity to be back, back on the show, back on business, back on Pay-Per-View. I think this fight has a lot of great opportunities, the Canelo-Kahn under-card, to show the world what I can do. I'm hungry. I'm hungrier than ever. I'm very excited for this fight.
Tapia is a great fighter. He's the type of guy who comes out and fights his heart out also, so it's not going to be a cat-and-mouse type of fight. I'm pretty sure of that. But I'm going to be prepared for everything. I'm coming off a fight against Golovkin that I'm not too happy with. I've been doing a lot of adjustments to make sure that, you know, if any scenario of that which it was again, won't happen again. So, you know, I'm doing the best I can do.
Brick by brick we're building a strong foundation. I'm ready to get back in business. In my last fight, I didn't make weight. I had some issues. I can talk about it all I want and say a lot of excuses whatsoever. There are no excuses. The people don't care about the excuses. One thing I can say, this fight I'm coming in, I'm making weight, and I'm coming here for business. You have my 100 percent. I'm going to be stronger and better than ever. I'm extremely excited to be on the show and to be giving the fans, you know, the best of me, and the fighting, give the fans what they want to see.
OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Thank you. We are now ready for questions from the media.
Q. David, you talked quickly about the weight issue. The media, the fans get very upset with fighters who are supposed to make weight, they're training for weeks for this, they're coming down. Not that it's an excuse, but are you having weight issues or should you be going up to 168? Are you going to kill yourself to make 160 from now on?
DAVID LEMIEUX: Not at all. I'm a 160 fighter. I didn't kill myself. I just tried something different. On the last week I had a little issue with the weight, with being sick, trying to make weight with the new adjustments, new nutritionist. I could go on and on with details, but it's not a problem for me to make 160. It will be made on May 6th.
Q. You say you're making adjustments after the Gennady Golovkin fight. For the most part, people think he is pound-for-pound the best middleweight around. Oscar will say, There's a guy by the name of Canelo out there. You did fight Triple G. You fought your heart out. You got knocked down, took a shot on your knee. We all commend you for continuing because you certainly could have rolled over and looked for some other ending. What kind of adjustments are you making and are you thinking, do you have this in your mind, that you want Golovkin no matter which way your career goes, that you're focused on him to have a rematch again?
DAVID LEMIEUX: I know myself and I know my qualities. Pound-for-pound, these champions, to me means nothing. To me, I just want to fight the most significant guy out there and to make my mark out there in any possible way.
I still think I can beat whoever I fight. I just have to be prepared, have a good time, no matter if they're pound-for-pound or if they're ranked No. 5 or whatever they are. I want to fight the best. I believe I can beat the best. I can be part of the top.
So to me, I have Glen Tapia, who is a tough opponent in front of me, so I'm preparing for this. I'm going to come in and have no excuse. I'm going to be ready for it.
Q. David, earlier on the call, Oscar mentioned that the wish of your fight against Glen Tapia would be a potential opponent for Alvarez. Wondering what your thoughts are on fighting Canelo if you're able to beat Glen Tapia and fight him?
DAVID LEMIEUX: I like Canelo. He's a good fighter. Like I said, I'm not afraid of nobody in the boxing world. I don't just say this to try to promote myself or to show. I'm actually wanting to beat everybody and fight all the top names out there. I don't want to avoid nobody.
Canelo, he's a significant fighter in the middleweights. First of all, I'd like to see him make the middleweight line. Yes, it would be a great fight. First I have things to accomplish and to make sure I get everything straightened out with Glen Tapia on May 7th. Then I'll fight anybody in the middleweights. It's not a problem for me.
Q. What's the lowest you think you could go if you were able to fight Canelo?
DAVID LEMIEUX: I'm a middleweight. I'll never go below 160, not even for X amount of money.
Q. David, how different is David Lemieux after the Golovkin loss, after the weight problem? How ready are you for Glen Tapia?
DAVID LEMIEUX: Putting it that way doesn't seem so nice, but it's going to come out good. David Lemieux is going to be at his best. He's going to have no problem with nothing. He's going to be better than ever. I'm going to be the fighter I am. I'm going to be very explosive and give the fans what they want to see. They want to see action, they want to see blood, they want to see knockouts. That's what I'm here for for the short and long run.
Q. How important is it for you, this Pay-Per-View, Las Vegas? How different will the show be for you, this showcase in Las Vegas?
DAVID LEMIEUX: Well, at my level, every fight is crucial, and every fight is very important. This is not just my career, but it's also my life and my legacy. I take this fight very, very seriously. I'm not going to leave anything to regret afterwards.
I'll make sure I come prepared. Every fight is extremely important. I'm extremely cautious also of the opportunity I have in front of me, fighting in Vegas, on a great card, new arena, on Pay-Per-View with all the boxing eyes watching.
Q. David, Glen spoke about this a little bit when he did his half of the call, about the fact that he had a lot of respect for you. He said your résumé is a lot better than his, even though you're coming off of a loss, you were fighting Golovkin, not just some club fighter. In Glen's two defeats he's been stopped both times in his last five fights, but he's also been stopped in a smaller weight class. You're known for your punching power. Do you think this is the kind of fight where that will give you a big advantage, you'll be able to stop him because you're maybe the naturally bigger fighter, he's been more susceptible against fighters that are not at the same level of a Triple G?
DAVID LEMIEUX: No. Every fighter has their quality. Triple G is Triple G. Glen Tapia is Glen Tapia. I think he's going to be very serious and very dangerous at 160. Even though he fought at 164, he's a big boy. Like you said, he had a lot of time to make weight. I think he's going to be much more comfortable at 160.
I don't think it's going to be an issue. I don't qualify a fighter by looking at it in those terms. I'm looking at the best Glen Tapia that's going to be out there on May 7th, and that's who I'm going to fight, that's against who I'm going to mingle.
Q. Do you think for him coming off of the long layoff, almost a year to the day, one day short of one year since his last fight, Oscar spoke about this, that maybe it's a good thing, he had time to go up in weight, to shake off that loss, basically heal from that mentally and physically, but also clear his mind basically and now come back in the heavier weight class? Where do you fall as far as the long layoff, how it might impact him?
DAVID LEMIEUX: Exactly like Oscar said. Look at Andre Ward, who was on a layoff. But it all depends of the fighter, what they do in their period of layoff. If they're out partying, they're out in clubs, partying, on vacation, yeah, that's going to catch up to them. But if they're in the gym, training, sparring, keeping the reflexes sharp, they're ready for it. If it's one year down the line, one month or two months, as long as they're in the gym training, it doesn't make a difference.
Q. Do you want to get a knockout in this fight? You're known for knockouts. You've shown tremendous power against many of your opponents. Is that how you want to make the case that, Hey, I'm back, Triple G is in my rearview mirror, I want to score a knockout and fight the winner of the main event?
DAVID LEMIEUX: I'm a knockout artist. It's the way I fight. I'm not going to lie to you and say I'm going to come in and just play around. Obviously I'm going to come in and throw some hard shots. If my shots connect, they hurt.
But, you know, I'm coming in there. I want to give the fans the best show. If it lasts one round, if the lasts 10 rounds, to me, as long as I look good, the fans are getting what they want to get, everybody is happy, I'm doing well, I'm winning round by round, that's my main focus.
I used to, back when I was a bit younger, go in the ring and try to knock everybody out. It works with the small guys. But when it's on top of the league, it catches up to you. I don't think like that no more. I'm going to go in there, win every round, I'm going to be the best I can be, looking at the highest peak of the mountain.
Q. Given what happened with the fight being canceled a couple weeks ago, how difficult is it going to be for you to make 160?
DAVID LEMIEUX: Not difficult at all. I'm already almost pretty close to my weight. The last fight I had a lot of adjustments to be made. I changed a few things that didn't work on my advantage. I can use excuses, but there's no excuses. People don't want to hear that. I'll make 160. It's not going to be a problem.
Q. David, when you heard that Glen Tapia had accepted this fight, were you surprised, given the fact he's had trouble with punchers in the past, getting knocked out in both of his losses?
DAVID LEMIEUX: Am I surprised? No, I'm not surprised. Every fighter has pride. Every fighter wants to fight. They want to, you know, fight the top guys out there. At least for the real fighters out there, that's what they want. But I'm not surprised. You know, if he wants to fight me, I'm ready to fight anybody. So it's good. It's going to be a good fight. He's a good fighter. It's exciting.
Q. I know you were very confident before you fought Triple G. I'm wondering, how long did it take to get over that fight? Were you over it immediately? Did it take some time to process what had happened?
DAVID LEMIEUX: No, no. I still think I can beat GGG if I prepare to my 100 percent. He's a great fighter. But I believe in myself. I believe I'm a good fighter, too.
Q. Didn't take long to get over that fight, what happened?
DAVID LEMIEUX: No, not at all. I wasn't affected by it.
(Question posed in French and translated by Camille Estephan.)
CAMILLE ESTEPHAN: He asked, do you feel there are major changes that need to be done, given that the last fight he didn't make weight with a new regime. Basically we are looking at going back to what we did prior to the last fight, which was a new technique. We are hiring a new nutritionist who will perfect things. We have done testing with regards to David's body composition and got a medical opinion as to is David a middleweight or should he be a super middleweight. And the medical opinion, given his bone density, body structure, is that definitely David can do 160 without a problem. So we don't foresee any issues.
Q. David, I was wondering, having the last fight canceled, did that in any way refocus you, sort of I don't want to use the word like 'scared' you into a better refocus place so that you can continue on with Pay-Per-View fights? There's no right time, but did it come along at the best time in a smaller fight in your hometown as opposed to a national stage?
DAVID LEMIEUX: You know what, everything happens for a reason. Looking at it now, maybe it was for the best thing that de la Rosa did not take the fight. I could have injured him badly if you're going in the ring and you're not too sure about what you're doing. I would have been tremendously strong in that fight. I'm going to be tremendously strong in the future. If he's not too sure about going in the ring with me, even though it was better for his-self, everything happens for a reason. Not going to be a problem.
Q. Oscar, with this fight, the loser, presuming there is one, doesn't end in a draw, is going to have lost his last two in a row. I was wondering, you being promoter of both, what you see in terms of the person not coming out victorious.
OSCAR DE LA HOYA: Yeah, I mean, obviously the wonderful part about this fight is both fighters know that it's a fight that they have to win. The loser just shakes himself off and has to rebuild. I mean, we as promoters, we believe in our fighters. The winner moves on to bigger and bigger fights, and the loser then has to go back to the drawing board. But we're always going to be supporting every fighter that is with Golden Boy 100 percent.
CECILIA ZUNIGA: Camille, David, do you have any final comments?
CAMILLE ESTEPHAN: Basically on my end, I'm really very excited because Golden Boy has shown their willingness always to put on the right fights for the fans, and we're very happy and proud to participate in those types of fights.
We want to thank Oscar for living up to his words with the fans, with the media, and with his fighters, including his partners, myself and David. A big up to you guys. David, all yours.
DAVID LEMIEUX: Yes, I'm extremely happy to be part of this event. It's going to be a great card. I'm extremely proud to be associated with Golden Boy, Oscar, Gomez, all the boys from Golden Boy are a great team. Great management with Camille Estephan. A lot of great people around me.
It's going to be a great opportunity for me to be back on track and to be back in business May 7th when I'm going to be at my best and give the fans what they want to see.
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Canelo vs. Khan, a 12-round fight for Canelo's WBC, Ring Magazine and Lineal Middleweight World Championships, is promoted by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Canelo Promotions and sponsored by "Cerveza Tecate, Born Bold," O'Reilly Auto Parts, Casa Mexico Tequila and DOOM® -- Fight Like Hell on May 13. David Lemieux vs. Glen Tapia is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Eye of the Tiger Management and Patrick Teixeira vs. Curtis Stevens is presented by Golden Boy Promotions in association with Main Events. The mega-event will take place Saturday, May 7 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be produced and distributed live by HBO Pay-Per-View beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.
Tickets priced at $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600, $400, $250 and $150, not including applicable service charges and taxes, with a total ticket limit of 12 per person (a limit of 10 per person at the $1,500, $1,000, $800, $600 and $400 price levels and a limit of two [2] per person at the $250 and $150 price level) are on sale now. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849). Tickets also will be available for purchase at www.t-mobilearena.com or www.axs.com.
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