By Ryan Burton
On Saturday night at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, super welterweight contenders Julian "J Rock" Williams (24-1-1) and Nathaniel Gallimore (20-1-1) will clash in an IBF super welterweight eliminator in the opening fight of a Showtime tripleheader.
In this Q&A, Williams' trainer Stephen "Breadman" Edwards discusses the upcoming showdown and also the main event of the evening which pits WBA super welterweight champion Erislandy Lara against IBF champion Jarrett Hurd in a unification showdwon.
BoxingScene: First off what do you think of Nathaniel Gallimore as a fighter? He has upset his share of prospects and has also been talking a lot of trash.
Stephen Edwards: Trash talk is trash talk. It's no big deal. He's putting pressure on himself not Julian. He has to do everything he says he's going to do now. He has to be Mike McCallum mixed with Simon Brown. People are watching him now. So he has to be what he says he is. I actually think he's very good. He has good size for the weight. He seems to be a solid puncher and he's confident. Ironically his coach John Pullman and I are really cool. We discussed this fight and Gallimore before he started training him. Despite Gallimore being a good fighter, I'm very comfortable with the fight. We picked Gallimore.
BoxingScene: Now lets go back to Julian's last fight. I know you weren't very happy with his performance against Ishe Smith. What lessons can be taken from that fight and applied against Gallimore who is a younger fighter with a lot more power than Ishe?
Stephen Edwards: A fight is a fight. People make it seem like Ishe Smith is a bum. He's an ex-world champion who gave some very good fighters some very long nights. I never viewed him as old and washed because he won the title at 35. Some guys bloom and operate late. People forget what he did versus Danny Jacobs and Fernando Guerrero. My expectations of Julian are very high. I thought he should've done better. But I'm critical of him. I don't look at J Rock in awe of, I look at him in flaw of. But still in all he won 97-93, 98-92 and 99-91 in Smith's hometown. Gallimore may be younger and may be a bigger puncher but would we pick Gallimore to beat any of the guys who beat Smith? Julian just has to focus. It's just that simple.
BoxingScene: This fight is an IBF eliminator. If all goes well on Saturday you guys will be back in position to fight for a title three fights after the loss to Jermall Charlo. Are you pleased with the speed in getting back to a prime position in the division?
Stephen Edwards: Yes this is exactly what we planned. There are guys who get back to back title shots after losing fights. I think this timing is perfect. Three solid fights to get back to where we want to be.
BoxingScene.com: In the main event of the evening you have Erislandy Lara and Jarret Hurd unifying the WBA and IBF super welterweight titles. Who you do you favor in that fight?
Stephen Edwards: It's a tough call. I'm a gambler and the odds are going crazy. Lara is more skilled but from what I hear out in Vegas most people are riding with Hurd. I think it depends on who imposes their style on the other. I'm going to really enjoy that fight. I'm actually slightly leaning Lara but I'm not overconfident in that pick. It may come down to what the judge's prefer.
BoxingScene: Of course I would assume you prefer to immediately fight the winner of that fight after Gallimore. I know you are focused on Gallimore but do you have a preference in which guy you would rather face?
Stephen Edwards: No preference. At this level you have to be able to overcome all styles.
BoxingScene: A lot of people were really high on Julian leading up to the Charlo fight but as I am sure you are very aware a lot of fans jump on and off of bandwagons quickly. Do you think a statement needs to be made on Saturday to recapture the momentum you guys had built?
Stephen Edwards: I told Julian the 1st day I ever trained him that only 3 opinions matter. Mine, his and God's. I meant that. He knows that. I'm proud of him for taking the Charlo fight with all the gerrymandering that was going on that no one knows about. I'm proud he fought his ass off. He came up short. It doesn't mean he can't fight. Let whoever think whatever. I thought He was winning the Charlo fight, the judges had it 2 rounds apiece. He wasn't outclassed, he got caught. I'm not putting any pressure on him except to win. He has an exciting boxer puncher style so he is usually in good fights. Gallimore is the one claiming Julian is a bum. So he's going to have to back that up Saturday night. Jul going to do his thing.
BoxingScene: In closing what would you like to tell all of the fans who will be in attendance at the Hard Rock or watching on Showtime?
Stephen Edwards: Tune in it's going to be a really good fight. one of the better non title fights that you will see.
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