On Friday, 28th of October, in the Pala Atlantico Venue of Rome, Guido “The Gladiator” Vianello (9-0-1, 9KO) will have his first-ever professional fight in Italy, on a show structured by his promoter, Top Rank, together with Italy’s leading boxing promoters, OPI Since 82 of the Cherchi family.

Vianello will compete in his hometown against Scotsman Jay McFarlane (13-6-0, 5KO) for an eight-round international contest.

Vianello is a prospect with solid fundamentals: he made his professional debut in the Temple of Boxing, the Madison Square Garden of New York, in the undercard of Lomachenko vs Pedraza. For his first four fights he trained under the tough regime of Abel Sanchez, the historical trainer of Gennadiy Golovkin. He participated to three training camps with WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.

Now, after four years in the United States, he is ready to bring back to Italy everything he learned.

How are you Guido? How is the training camp going?

“I’m good. I’ve been in London a few weeks to ultimate the preparation of the fight against McFarlane. He is not a well known fighter, nor does he have a strong resume, but I’m training as if he were a world champion. I could’ve stayed in Rome, but in the last four years I always trained away from home, sharing the camp between UK and US. Boxing outside of your comfort zone matters a lot. All Italian fighters should try to do that”.

What differences do you find between having a camp in Italy and training in US or UK?

“Generally speaking, my weight class is quite poor in terms of talent in Italy, so I cannot spar the names I can find abroad. But mostly it’s the mental side. I mean, I can work out in Italy as I do in US, the squats and the biceps curls are the same everywhere in the world. The thing is that when you train abroad you face real boxers, who have a real professional attitude to the sport. It’s the mentality, the state of mind: every fighter here in the UK or in the US has the hunger of becoming successful”.

What’s fascinating for you in this professional fight in Italy?

“It feels strange. Thanks to Top Rank I am used to major arenas. I debuted at MSG, I fought at MGM, the T-Mobile. These places feel like home and it’s very important to perceive that feeling. Now it’s the opposite: I’ve got to break the ice with the Italian soil as a professional boxer. It will be different than usual. But then again, I will have my people supporting me. It’s stimulating in a different way. I am very happy to show all the progress I’ve achieved finally live in Italy. I am happy and relaxed”.

Do you know McFarlane? Have you watched some of his fights and what is your opinion of him?

“He is an uncomfortable fighter, who brings wide haymakers and tries to push you around, so we also trained with scorbutic sparring partners that sometimes, instead of boxing, simply go for a brawl. I’ve seen some highlights and he has some weaknesses but also some key points”

You have an almost-perfect KO percentage. But you are also very quick and explosive. Is it something you work on constantly or is it something you have in your genetics?

“In my family, we live for sports, all sports, so I’ve practiced many different sports. I’ve been a tennis player, so I know how to move my feet. I’ve always been quick, but I decided to focus on this specific skill after sparring and training with Tyson Fury. He is the best and he wins with technique and quickness. Also Usyk works like him. Nowadays, what matters the most in the heavyweight division isn’t power but quickness. Usually I do have a big powerlifting load in the early weeks of camp, then I downgrade the weights in order to focus on pure boxing, padwork and sparring and mobility. At heavyweight, it is crucial to avoid getting hit by casual blows and useless punches, you’ve gotta protect yourself”

You said that in 2023 you want to upgrade. Does that mean a 10-round fight or a title fight?

“I am getting ready with a specific goal in my mind: reaching the biggest title ever. All the training camps, all the expenses I’m having, are all investments I’ve done do build up my path towards a world title. You’ve got to move around, make experiences around the world, undergo exhausting training if you want to compete at world level. I want to reach the best possible result: it’s all I can do”.