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KEITH THURMAN SOUNDS OFF ON DESIRE TO UNIFY WELTERWEIGHT TITLES: "JUST MAKE THESE FIGHT HAPPEN"

By Ben Thompson | June 29, 2016
KEITH THURMAN SOUNDS OFF ON DESIRE TO UNIFY WELTERWEIGHT TITLES:

FightHype.com recently caught up with undefeated WBA welterweight champion Keith Thurman fresh off of his impressive victory over former world champion Shawn Porter. Although Thurman was pleased about his performance, he made it clear that there's still more work to be done. Eager to unify the welterweight division, Thurman is becoming more and more vocal about his strong desire to face the other 147-pound champions, including WBC champion Danny Garcia, IBF champion Kell Brook, and WBO champion Jessie Vargas. Check out what he had to say about his career goals in the sport of boxing.

KEITH THURMAN ON HIS DESIRE TO UNIFY:

"You know, we just want to make these fights happen, man. There's no reason for it not to happen. Technically, with a lot of the stuff that I say, I've been trying to educate people, man. I got an 0 and I'm not afraid to let it go. If you can beat me, beat me. Shawn Porter's the same kind of fighter. He put his 0 on the line; he got beat, you know what I'm saying. He got some good victories and everything and then he put himself on the line to be champion again and he got beat, but he's not getting beat by chumps. You have to respect Shawn Porter and he does deserve a spot in the Top 5 welterweight in America or of the world. His stock isn't going down, but he's learning where his position is right now at 147. Maybe in the future one day, he can get a rematch with Kell Brook; maybe one day, he'll get a rematch with Keith Thurman and have an opportunity to redeem himself and elevate himself later on in his career. We're all young. We got plenty of time. None of us are going nowhere. I mean, the one thing that people respect about the UFC guys is that they fight each other, they lose, and they keep fighting, you know. It is what it is. You're watching world-class fighters go toe-to-toe. When the best in the world are fighting the best in the world, nobody should be talking junk about the results no matter what the case, you know what I mean, and especially when it's clear that both fighters came to perform in the way that me and Shawn Porter came to perform. I think it's time to stop making excuses, man, and just make these fights happen, man, for the boxing community, for the fan.

I believe there's an article that said that Shawn Porter lost in a champion-like effort. You can still see the champion within Shawn without him holding a title. He's still going to be a 7-figure fighter even though he's got two blemishes. It's a sport, man, you know what I'm saying. It's a sport. Even though it's the fight game, the fight game is a sport, but because it's a sport, you win some, you lose some, and you keep it going until the day you retire, man. You put your all on the line. I remember the day that I was going to turn pro and I told myself my goal is to climb the ladder and do my best to see where I belong in the world of boxing to see if I am the best fighter in the world, but if I am not, let's say that I was number 2, if I'm rated in the top 10 anywhere, if I can hold a position in the top 10, then I get to have a career in boxing, and that's all I've ever wanted for myself is a career in boxing and I just don't see how any of us young fighters who have these beautiful careers in boxing can complain about anything. That's why you don't hear me complaining.

Like you said, man, you gotta enjoy each game, you know what I mean. You gotta enjoy the game, you gotta enjoy the development, you gotta enjoy the build up of some of these super fights, but these super fights are to come. There's no reason for these great fights not to come. At one point, the real issue in boxing was the fans were aggravated with "when is this fight going to come, when is this fight going to come, when is this fight going to come?" You know, we can't tell you exactly, but we just know that it should just be more accessible. There's just a lot more that we should be able to do. Bob Arum made statements that he's ready and willing to do business. I think we're creating a shift right now; we're creating a shift and we're doing healthy things for the sport of boxing and just making it the sport that it is and knowing that it's up to the fighter to prove that he is the best in the world, and all that a manger and promoter can do is present that opportunity. That's how I feel.

BE SURE TO CHECK BACK SOON FOR MUCH MORE WITH WBA WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPION KEITH THURMAN

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