By Ryan Songalia

Hector Camacho Jr., has been in the public eye for almost a decade now. In that period, he’s accrued a record of 42-2-1 (24 KO), though none of which has yet been of note. The disappointments in recent years, his misadventure with Jesse James Leija and the Andrey Tsurkan TKO, have been the headlines that most remember him by.

Now at the age of 28, “Machito” is in a must-win situation every time out. This Saturday night, Camacho faces Don Juan Futrell, 19-3-1 (10 KO), in an 8 round contest. BoxingScene spoke with the slickster and recorded his thoughts.

BoxingScene.com: Tell us about your opponent. What do you know about him?

Hector Camacho Jr: “I don’t know too much about him. He’s a slick little boxer, a southpaw. He’s a gym fighter from what I hear. He spars everybody from Mayweather to Steve Forbes. In boxing, you can’t underestimate anybody. After my recent downfalls and underestimating who I fought, some guys got past my talent because I haven’t been training right. I lost interest. I’ve been taking fights just to fight. It’s gotten back to me.”

For this fight, I’ve been focusing and busting my ass. I’ve been walking around heavy at 186. I’m down to 152 for the weigh-in. I’m feeling good and it’s been a long time since I fought. I’m ready to get back in there for one last hurrah, one last run.”

BoxingScene.com: So what you’re saying is that if you aren’t successful in this “last run” at a world title, that’s it?

Camacho Jr: “Yes and no. You have fighters who peak when they’re in their 30’s. I started out boxing great. My first five years, I was ranked number one. Then I went down after the Leija fight. That made me lose interest. I came back again and I made a run. Then the Tsurkan fight which was stopped prematurely.

If you look at the boxing scene, there’s not much out there. There’s nothing exciting coming up. Yeah, you can say it’s my last run. But I’m still young. I haven’t been beaten up.”

BoxingScene.com: Stylistically, how do you and your opponent match up?

Camacho Jr: He’s a slick southpaw, but he’s a small man. He’s been fighting 130, 135 pounds his whole career. Stylistically, I’m going to have to put the pressure on. I’m going to prove to this guy that he’s not in my league. This isn’t a sparring session, it’s a fight. I’m going to go out and push him around and let him see that I’m bigger than him.”

BoxingScene.com: How was training for this fight?

Camacho Jr: “It could’ve been better. The whole training camp’s been about me getting the weight down. He’s not a puncher, so I don’t have to worry about his power. I’m focused on this fight and the big fights after, like [Julio Cesar] Chavez Jr. I’ve been fighting heavy, but I’m working gradually to get down in weight.

After this, I’ll fight at 147 and then 142 and get a big fight out there like [IBF Junior Welterweight Champion Paulie] Malignaggi.”

BoxingScene.com: After this fight, when do you want to be back in the ring again?

Camacho Jr: “Next month. I’m trying to go back to fighting monthly. The only way I can keep my weight down is to stay active. I have another fight scheduled for August. I’m tired of these tune-up fights. It’s hard to get up for these fighters with no names. After September, I’ll be ready for a big name.”

BoxingScene.com: Tell the readers why, at this age, you are more motivated to be something significant now then you were before. Why should the fans believe in you now after having lost faith in the past?

Camacho Jr: “It’s like you just said, people lost faith in me. That bothered me. You have lesser fighters overachieving. I fall into the category of underachiever. I have all this talent, but I haven’t proven myself. I haven’t lived up to expectations. I’m looking from the outside in at these fighters on TV with half the talent I have. That motivates me to get going and make something of my career.”

BoxingScene.com: Give us a brief synopsis of how this fight is going to unfold.

Camacho Jr: “It’s going to be an action fight. I want to go in there and press the issue. I’ve been in the gym working on body shots. Forget about styles, forget about speed, I’m going to try to get him out of there. I want to get this fight out of the way, get on with my next bout, and then only big fights. This fight isn’t going to the scorecards.”

BoxingScene.com: Is there anything you want to say to the fans out there?

Camacho Jr: “To my boxing fans, I know I’ve disappointed you at times. I know I haven’t lived up to expectations. Give me time, I’m a work in progress. Stay tuned.”

Any questions or comments? Send them to me at mc_rson@yahoo.com