In a recent interview with Andy Lee on OnTheGrind, I asked how it felt to be sharing the bill with his old friend Jamie Power. "It's great to see Jamie doing well. Unfortunately his last fight didn't go his way but he'll be looking to rebound now especially infront of his home fans. He's a very proud Limerickman, and he'll be looking to impress," he remarked at the time. I caught up with Jamie while he was training in Limericks state-of-the-art University Arena in the run up to his next bout on the undercard of Andy Lee vs. Affif Belghecham. I heard he had totally overhauled his training in recent months and I was interested to observe this. Jamie had noticeably improved his physical condition for his last fight in which he was stopped on a cut.
Tonight, Jamie is fighting in front of his hometown crowd, which is something he relishes. I asked him how it felt the last time he fought in Limerick University, "It was exciting and nerve wrecking at the same time. Out of the 3000 people that were there to support Andy (Lee), I probably knew each and every one of them. My mother and father were there as well so it was brilliant, especially with the outcome." Fighting at home has its advantages, but it also brings added pressure. I asked Jamie how he dealt with this, "There's always pressure but I have a very good manager who kept whispering in my ear to keep me focused and keep me on the job; telling me what I had to do and what I need to do. Ken kept me zoned in on what I had to do."
When I asked him what it was like when his hand was held high at the end of the fight, I could see a sparkle in his eye as he explained, "It was an unbelievable feeling, especially putting on that Limerick Jersey. Everyone knew how proud I was to be from Limerick and they saw me and acknowledged that and I feel I made everyone very proud to be from Limerick."
Talk then turned to his last fight and how it affected him, "I recovered no problem from it. I probably learned more losing to Michael Sweeney than all my wins. Not many people from Ireland had beaten Andy in the amateurs. I think Michael is the only person, or one of very few, Mike's a class boxer and I have the utmost respect for him, his father and Sean Mannion. I hope Mike goes on to bigger and better things. I learned some hard lessons on what I should and shouldn't have done. As my old trainer in the Bronx used to say, you've gotta nail my feet to the canvas to keep me down cause I'll keep coming."
Jamie's whole training has been overhauled for his last two fights and he is noticeably excited at the prospect of applying what he's learned in the gym and getting another win under his belt. "I think in this fight and my last fight, we've gotten a lot more professional and again, that's down to my manager, Ken Moore. We've brought in a nutritionist, Blue Shinners, and he's really helped me with body recovery. I can't wait to get back in there. First and foremost, I'm a fighter and I'm a very proud Limerickman. I'm mad to get back in that ring and to show the people that the defeat is behind me and that I've learned from it. I'm ready to move on. I've brought in swimming, sparring lighter guys for speed and weight training. That, mixed with old school rough and tough training, which is what I was doing in St. Francis years ago and in Morris Park in the Bronx. No guts no glory; that's what I'm all about. There's no point in me pretending I'm a master boxer; I'm a fighter and I'm going to prove that on Saturday night."
Jamie is amazed at the improvement that changing his diet has had, "Blue Shinners has completely changed my diet. Even though I lost my last fight, I felt very fresh. I didn't feel out of it or anything. A lot of people ask how I got up from the first punch. That was down to Blue Shinners and what he has been doing for me. I don't think anyone else could have got up from that punch. Mike Sweeney's a very hard hitter, but I kept getting up. I feel 100% ready for this fight. A lot of that is down to my coaches, Finbar and Mario, my wife Tracy, who was working as an amateur nutritionist, making sure I don't have a sneaky ham sandwich and that I stick to my diet. I also owe a lot to the people at the Limerick University Sports Arena, who have given me the run of the place!"
The fights can be seen for free live on www.rte.ie/live from 5:30 pm EST and 2:30pm PT.