By Ryan Burton
BoxingScene.com sat down with unbeaten junior middleweight contender Julian "J-Rock" Williams (21-0-1, 13KOs) to discuss a variety of topics.
BoxingScene.com: J-Rock, let's get right to it. After your first round knockout of Luciano Cuello, you and Austin Trout exchanged words again. What happened with that potential fight? Especially after Trout said that he "showed you how to do it right" when it comes to fighting Joey Hernandez.
Julian Williams: You know Ryan, hearing about Trout is getting a little frustrating but me and you go back so I will answer it one last time. We were supposed to fight before the Cuello fight but we didn't. The PBC flew him out to announce my fight with Cuello so we could promote it and pump it up to the fans.
After the fight he looks me in the eye and tells me we are going to fight next. But I looked him in his eye and I shook his hand. I could feel he's not a fighter anymore in his spirit. He just happens to box for a living. I don't care what the media or oddsmakers say about Trout being a step up fight for me. I would f***ing ruin Austin Trout. He knows it and that's why he secretly went to the powers that be with us and asked not to fight me. I don't even want to fight him anymore because I'm not a bully and I know and he knows what I will do to him.
You guys in the media need to hold him accountable and stop asking me about him and ask him to tell the truth. He could have made a half a million dollars to face me. That's the last time I'm answering a question about him!
BoxingScene.com: Okay, with that lets move on to the next question. We also heard rumors of you participating in an IBF eliminator against possibly Michel Soro who a lot of people don't want to fight. He is the only guy to blemish hot prospect Antoine Douglas, who is very highly thought of. How close is that fight to coming to fruition and why would you choose that path?
Julian Williams: This is what happened, Austin Trout turned Soro down. Look at the IBF rankings. He was ahead of me and now he's at #11. I never knew that you get dropped if you turn down eliminators but I'm learning the business side everyday. I was wondering why Trout dropped in the rankings. So my trainer Steve Edwards calls me and says we are fighting Soro in an eliminator and he told me what happened. I said ok. I never get involved in the process of picking opponents. I have never had the luxury of anyone asking me are you willing to fight this guy or that guy and I don't want it. I pay my team for a reason. When I start doing that I won't be a fighter anymore. I believe in my heart that I can beat any man at my weight.
I'm really not choosing this path. But my trainer told me this is the only way I will get a title shot. So what else can I do? I didn't fight my entire life to not become a world champion. If I have to fight Soro, so what? He can fight but I can fight too. All I'm going to do is raise my game and beat him just like I would have Trout. I'm not scared of no man and I don't view Soro as the boogeyman. The boogeyman don't exist where I'm from. Right now I'm training for Soro but you know in boxing, things change. As long as I'm in the eliminator like I was promised it really don't matter to me. I want to be world champion sooner than later.
BoxingScene.com: A win in that eliminator would make you Jermall Charlo's mandatory. Charlo could have fought you last week but opted to fight Wilky Campfort instead. Why didn't he fight you?
Julian Williams: You have to ask Charlo and his team why. Again you guys in the media have to hold these guys accountable. I offered to fight him in Houston and he would have made more money than me. Obviously he didn't take my offer or I wouldn't have to fight for a mandatory spot. Campfort didn't have to fight a mandatory. But my trainer told me the offer is off the table as far as going to Houston and I agree. If I have to fight a tough guy like Soro then I'm not going to give Jermall hometown advantage too if we fight.
I honestly think Mr. Ronnie Shields really respects my fight game. I respect him as a coach. He cares about Mall and he knows in his heart that he don't need this work in his life. That's just my honest opinion. But me and Jermall are not going to fight. I'm telling the fans and media now so no one says it's my fault. They are already laying the ground work for him not being able to make weight anymore. Maybe it's true - he is a big guy. But truth be told nobody makes weight easy unless you're a freak like Floyd who walks around on weight. We all have to restrict our calories and go through some sh*t to make it. You don't hear me complaining. I just suffer and then I make my opponent's suffer. But Mall is moving up and I wish him the best.
BoxingScene.com That seems to be a very realistic possibility. You become the mandatory and he decides after to vacate the title and move up to 160 before you get your shots. Can you elaborate on that possibility?
Julian Williams: I don't care if I fight him. I never even wanted the fight until he became champion. I just want to be champion of the world, go to the hall of fame and retire in my 30s a very rich man. Jermall is not my enemy although he would be for 2 months leading up to our fight. I don't expect to fight him because I know he went to the powers that be also and said no. If you chase a man like that you lose something. I have to be mature about these things and learn acceptance. I would wind up going to camp, hiring sparring, torturing my body then he would pull out and play me. Then he would be my enemy and as a fighter I can't let my emotions get the best of me. It's a fight that most of the fighters in the PBC talk about, like who's better J-Rock or Charlo. I hear administrators talking about it. But it's not going to happen and I'm not chasing him to 160. If he was struggling to make 154 he would have fought me instead of Wilky Campfort before he left if that's what he wanted, right?
BoxingScene.com: You recently decided to do year round VADA/USADA testing. What was the thought process behind that and do you think that will motivate others to do the same?
Julian Williams: The thought process was simple. I want to prove I'm clean and I want to fight clean fighters. But here is the thing, I know I have fought guys who were dirty in the past and I still won. So I'm not going to try to avoid fights with guys who don't test. The fans and media will let their opinions be known. If I turn out to be a great fighter and I have a long way to go for that, I don't want people questioning my legacy.
I know that some people say VADA is the best and most credible and some say the same about USADA. I figured if I did both then no one would question me. I also believe lots of my contemporaries are dirty fighters and they cycle on and off drugs in between fights. A year has 52 weeks. A training camp is only 8 weeks long. Most guys only fight 2 or 3 times a year at my level. So in theory they more have time to be on drugs, cycle off when a fight is announced then benefit from it during camp. If you test all year around with or without a fight on the books then you take that opportunity away. I'm not a college grad but I'm no dummy. I see what's being done. My only problem is I have to figure out a way to pay for this, Ryan.
I will be in the USADA pool for my next fight. And the PBC tested me a few times before my last fight. But I want to be tested more. It doesn't bother me because I know I'm clean. I will fight a PED freak but I'm not crazy - it's not something I want to do. So I have my team looking for sponsors as we speak. I've made some good money but no where near a million dollars and I really can't afford both right now all year around. But I'm trying my best to get it done and I think the bigger my platform is and if I win a world title then I will have the platform I need to get it done for the rest of my career. Hopefully a huge sponsor will come along and help me. I don't see any other fighters volunteering to do what I'm doing.
Ryan, guys get seriously hurt in boxing and there is no room for cheaters I don't care who they are. This is a dangerous sport man. I just want to do my part that's all. Speaking of that, I want to take the opportunity to continue to pray for my man Prichard Colon. I really liked that kid and I hope he pulls through his situation.
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