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Here is an interview from a few weeks ago. Not sure if it's been posted. Props to fighthype.
MJ: What do you think about Pavlik now fighting two weeks after you were supposed to fight him?
PW: Everybody knows the deal. He just didn't want me to beat him and take his belts from him. At first, he said he couldn't do October, so he pushed it to December. Then he said he'd be ready January 23rd or something like that. Then, all of a sudden, two weeks later, he's fighting. Everybody knows the deal on that.
MJ: I was pretty surprised to see that myself. Are you ever going to try again to get a Pavlik fight or is he done in your book?
PW: I'll have to leave that to Mr. Peterson and Al and them. Definitely they have to put something up on the table money-wise or something. They have to do something big. We've been doing all this training for him and putting out money for different sparring partners. They pulled out one time, now they do it again. That cost us a lot of time and money. It's kind of shaky with him, so I feel like he has to put something up to accommodate us.
MJ: What did you think of the Pacquiao vs. Cotto fight last weekend?
PW: Pacquiao imposed his will on Cotto. Cotto did well for the first round, then once he got caught, he started backing up, going corner to corner to corner to corner. Of course Pacquiao's much faster, but you have to fight those guys. Pacquiao's a warrior, so all that punching and backing up and running and stuff, you can't run. You have to impose your will and man up. I think if he had thrown more punches and started fighting with him, he probably would have had a better outcome. By backing up and running, Pacquiao walked through him.
MJ: Would you want to fight either of those two guys down the road?
PW: Man, I'd love to get in there with Pacquiao. He throws a lot of punches and I throw a lot of punches. It would be an exciting fight, but I know that would never happen. They're talking about a Mayweather fight.
MJ: There was a recent interview where Floyd was asked questions about fighting you and he wouldn't answer. How do you feel about fighting him?
PW: I'd love to get in there and fight him too because he's considered one of the best fighters. But again, I know that would never happen. He wouldn't jeopardize getting in the ring with me. Like he said, I'm too big. He kind of contradicted himself because he jumped on Marquez and he's bigger than Marquez.
MJ: How do you think it would go if you fought Floyd?
PW: I'd definitely beat him; he knows that. Throwing fifteen punches per round, nah. He can't win the fight throwing fifteen punches per round. I know he's really slick and all that, but I'd just make him fight. He knows I'd make him fight the whole three minutes of the whole twelve rounds and I doubt it would go twelve rounds anyway. He has trouble with left-handed fighters anyway; I saw Zab Judah beat him for the first four rounds until Zab stopped fighting.
MJ: How do you respond to people when they bring up the Quintana fight as a reason not to fight you?
PW: Yeah, look at what happened in the second Quintana fight. He went to sleep in the first round.
MJ: I remember seeing that; it was impressive.
PW: Yeah, that let them all know. That's why they don't want to say anything about me because they know. Even in the first fight, a lot of people said it should have been a draw. They said he was landing the cleaner punches, but I was throwing more punches and landing more. I said I wasn't even worried about that; we'll just do it in the rematch.* When the rematch came, I showed them.
MJ: What was the difference for you between the two Quintana fights?
PW:* The difference was that in the first fight, I allowed him to do that. I just wasn't capitalizing on the stuff that he was doing when he was jumping in. I just wasn't making him pay. In the second fight, I made him pay for everything. One time in the first fight, when I hit him in the corner, I just let him walk up to me and grab me and tie me up. During the second fight, when I hit him in the corner, I didn't let him tie me up.* I just kept throwing.
MJ: So was the first fight just an off night or were you sick at that point?
PW: It was just an off night. I was too relaxed. We were training for Cintron and then two weeks before the fight, they pulled him. Then Quintana came, so I had to build myself up for that.
MJ: How do you think the Mosley vs. Berto fight will go and would you want to fight one of them in the future?
PW: That's going to be a very interesting fight. I think Berto may outbox him. Mosley has the power, but Berto is younger and slicker. He's hungrier. I'm going with Berto. It's time for those old guys to get out of our way. They won't fight us, so they need to get out of our way so we can make our mark in this business. They had their time and they did their thing. It's time for them to move up out of there. If they don't want to move out, we have to get them out.
MJ: Can you still make 147?
PW: Yes, if Pacquiao, Cotto, well, look, his market is about washed up, but I'd still get in there with him, Mayweather, if they call me out and want to fight me, I'd definitely go down to 147. I walk around at 157 to 159. If I'm not in gym, I might get up to 160, if that. It's not hard dropping that weight. When we put our time in the gym, we could drop it. I would still be fighting 147 right now if Michael Jennings or Cotto would have fought me for my WBO belt. We couldn't get a fight and I didn't want to be sitting around, so we started moving up into a different weight class, but when we couldn't get fights, we moved to another weight class. That's why we're fighting at 160 right now.
MJ: I'd love to see there be a welterweight tournament. Wouldn't that be something?
PW: Man, I've tried my best to get a fight at welterweight, but guys won't fight me. They literally will not fight me. When I won the title, I thought I'd be able to get fights, but months and months went by with nobody stepping up to the plate. It was crazy.
MJ: Here's one thing I've been wondering. Has your management ever tried to get you exposure to the mainstream public, like getting you on a reality show or in a movie to get the casual fans to know about you and raise interest?
PW: I think something will have to break through. That why we're talking about going back down to 147. I can go back down and stay around 150, so guys will know that I can make 147. A lot of people think I can't make that weight anymore, but I think there's no point in making the weight if I can't get a fight down there. Why go down there and fight somebody like a Joshua Clottey, who has no clout? I wouldn't want to do that. Why go down to that weight and fight him? He has no belts. Why come down that far? I would definitely come down to that weight if it were Pacquiao, Cotto or Mayweather. I'd definitely come down to that weight.
MJ: Would you be willing to go on network television for less money if it meant more fans would watch your fights?
PW: I'd go on network TV, but the way I built up my record and my status, beating all the top guys like Margarito and Winky Wright, the guys that nobody wanted to fight, I proved myself. I don't think I should take down [money] to get in the ring. I think I should stick to my guns. If I get in there, they have to pay me to get in there. Look at Mayweather, getting crazy money for fighting little guys. I think it's time for me to get that money.
MJ: What's the fight you want the most right now, if you could pick anybody?
PW: If I could pick anybody right now, I'd have to go with the hottest man out there and that's Pacquiao right now because he's hot. Everybody says he's the best welterweight out there right now. In my mind, if I settle in on welterweight, he wouldn't be the best. So for right now, he is the best because I'm not at that weight. I'm not knocking him, but he's never proved himself to me. He's never fought me. They say he's the best because he beat Cotto and he has the belt; he's really hot, but I'd like to get in there and prove myself with him and see how my skills match up to his skills. They say I'm too big for him, but he's a warrior. He fought De La Hoya, and Oscar's bigger than him. I don't think size matters; it's how big your heart is. A lot of guys now don't have heart.
MJ: What would you think if Roy, Bernard or Chad Dawson wanted to come down and fight you at a catch-weight?
PW: Let's get it on!
MJ: That's what I like to hear. Anything you'd like to say to the FightHype fans in closing?
PW: To all the fans out there, I appreciate all of your support. To people who are not my fans, I still appreciate that you tune in and see what's going to happen. Whether you're rolling with me or not rolling with me, you'll always get my best fight. Thank you for having me.
MJ: What do you think about Pavlik now fighting two weeks after you were supposed to fight him?
PW: Everybody knows the deal. He just didn't want me to beat him and take his belts from him. At first, he said he couldn't do October, so he pushed it to December. Then he said he'd be ready January 23rd or something like that. Then, all of a sudden, two weeks later, he's fighting. Everybody knows the deal on that.
MJ: I was pretty surprised to see that myself. Are you ever going to try again to get a Pavlik fight or is he done in your book?
PW: I'll have to leave that to Mr. Peterson and Al and them. Definitely they have to put something up on the table money-wise or something. They have to do something big. We've been doing all this training for him and putting out money for different sparring partners. They pulled out one time, now they do it again. That cost us a lot of time and money. It's kind of shaky with him, so I feel like he has to put something up to accommodate us.
MJ: What did you think of the Pacquiao vs. Cotto fight last weekend?
PW: Pacquiao imposed his will on Cotto. Cotto did well for the first round, then once he got caught, he started backing up, going corner to corner to corner to corner. Of course Pacquiao's much faster, but you have to fight those guys. Pacquiao's a warrior, so all that punching and backing up and running and stuff, you can't run. You have to impose your will and man up. I think if he had thrown more punches and started fighting with him, he probably would have had a better outcome. By backing up and running, Pacquiao walked through him.
MJ: Would you want to fight either of those two guys down the road?
PW: Man, I'd love to get in there with Pacquiao. He throws a lot of punches and I throw a lot of punches. It would be an exciting fight, but I know that would never happen. They're talking about a Mayweather fight.
MJ: There was a recent interview where Floyd was asked questions about fighting you and he wouldn't answer. How do you feel about fighting him?
PW: I'd love to get in there and fight him too because he's considered one of the best fighters. But again, I know that would never happen. He wouldn't jeopardize getting in the ring with me. Like he said, I'm too big. He kind of contradicted himself because he jumped on Marquez and he's bigger than Marquez.
MJ: How do you think it would go if you fought Floyd?
PW: I'd definitely beat him; he knows that. Throwing fifteen punches per round, nah. He can't win the fight throwing fifteen punches per round. I know he's really slick and all that, but I'd just make him fight. He knows I'd make him fight the whole three minutes of the whole twelve rounds and I doubt it would go twelve rounds anyway. He has trouble with left-handed fighters anyway; I saw Zab Judah beat him for the first four rounds until Zab stopped fighting.
MJ: How do you respond to people when they bring up the Quintana fight as a reason not to fight you?
PW: Yeah, look at what happened in the second Quintana fight. He went to sleep in the first round.
MJ: I remember seeing that; it was impressive.
PW: Yeah, that let them all know. That's why they don't want to say anything about me because they know. Even in the first fight, a lot of people said it should have been a draw. They said he was landing the cleaner punches, but I was throwing more punches and landing more. I said I wasn't even worried about that; we'll just do it in the rematch.* When the rematch came, I showed them.
MJ: What was the difference for you between the two Quintana fights?
PW:* The difference was that in the first fight, I allowed him to do that. I just wasn't capitalizing on the stuff that he was doing when he was jumping in. I just wasn't making him pay. In the second fight, I made him pay for everything. One time in the first fight, when I hit him in the corner, I just let him walk up to me and grab me and tie me up. During the second fight, when I hit him in the corner, I didn't let him tie me up.* I just kept throwing.
MJ: So was the first fight just an off night or were you sick at that point?
PW: It was just an off night. I was too relaxed. We were training for Cintron and then two weeks before the fight, they pulled him. Then Quintana came, so I had to build myself up for that.
MJ: How do you think the Mosley vs. Berto fight will go and would you want to fight one of them in the future?
PW: That's going to be a very interesting fight. I think Berto may outbox him. Mosley has the power, but Berto is younger and slicker. He's hungrier. I'm going with Berto. It's time for those old guys to get out of our way. They won't fight us, so they need to get out of our way so we can make our mark in this business. They had their time and they did their thing. It's time for them to move up out of there. If they don't want to move out, we have to get them out.
MJ: Can you still make 147?
PW: Yes, if Pacquiao, Cotto, well, look, his market is about washed up, but I'd still get in there with him, Mayweather, if they call me out and want to fight me, I'd definitely go down to 147. I walk around at 157 to 159. If I'm not in gym, I might get up to 160, if that. It's not hard dropping that weight. When we put our time in the gym, we could drop it. I would still be fighting 147 right now if Michael Jennings or Cotto would have fought me for my WBO belt. We couldn't get a fight and I didn't want to be sitting around, so we started moving up into a different weight class, but when we couldn't get fights, we moved to another weight class. That's why we're fighting at 160 right now.
MJ: I'd love to see there be a welterweight tournament. Wouldn't that be something?
PW: Man, I've tried my best to get a fight at welterweight, but guys won't fight me. They literally will not fight me. When I won the title, I thought I'd be able to get fights, but months and months went by with nobody stepping up to the plate. It was crazy.
MJ: Here's one thing I've been wondering. Has your management ever tried to get you exposure to the mainstream public, like getting you on a reality show or in a movie to get the casual fans to know about you and raise interest?
PW: I think something will have to break through. That why we're talking about going back down to 147. I can go back down and stay around 150, so guys will know that I can make 147. A lot of people think I can't make that weight anymore, but I think there's no point in making the weight if I can't get a fight down there. Why go down there and fight somebody like a Joshua Clottey, who has no clout? I wouldn't want to do that. Why go down to that weight and fight him? He has no belts. Why come down that far? I would definitely come down to that weight if it were Pacquiao, Cotto or Mayweather. I'd definitely come down to that weight.
MJ: Would you be willing to go on network television for less money if it meant more fans would watch your fights?
PW: I'd go on network TV, but the way I built up my record and my status, beating all the top guys like Margarito and Winky Wright, the guys that nobody wanted to fight, I proved myself. I don't think I should take down [money] to get in the ring. I think I should stick to my guns. If I get in there, they have to pay me to get in there. Look at Mayweather, getting crazy money for fighting little guys. I think it's time for me to get that money.
MJ: What's the fight you want the most right now, if you could pick anybody?
PW: If I could pick anybody right now, I'd have to go with the hottest man out there and that's Pacquiao right now because he's hot. Everybody says he's the best welterweight out there right now. In my mind, if I settle in on welterweight, he wouldn't be the best. So for right now, he is the best because I'm not at that weight. I'm not knocking him, but he's never proved himself to me. He's never fought me. They say he's the best because he beat Cotto and he has the belt; he's really hot, but I'd like to get in there and prove myself with him and see how my skills match up to his skills. They say I'm too big for him, but he's a warrior. He fought De La Hoya, and Oscar's bigger than him. I don't think size matters; it's how big your heart is. A lot of guys now don't have heart.
MJ: What would you think if Roy, Bernard or Chad Dawson wanted to come down and fight you at a catch-weight?
PW: Let's get it on!
MJ: That's what I like to hear. Anything you'd like to say to the FightHype fans in closing?
PW: To all the fans out there, I appreciate all of your support. To people who are not my fans, I still appreciate that you tune in and see what's going to happen. Whether you're rolling with me or not rolling with me, you'll always get my best fight. Thank you for having me.
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