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Exclusive interview: Paul the punisher williams 7-24-09
July 24, 2009
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: PAUL WILLIAMS
By Doveed Linder
DL: Your fight with Winky Wright was an unbelievable showcase against a top guy. You have to be very pleased with your performance. " Oh, yeah. Being in there with a two-time undisputed champion was a real good experience for me. I felt real good after the win."
DL: Somewhere along the line, you developed a reputation as the most avoided fighter in boxing. Do you think there’s any truth to that?
PW: It’s definitely true, sir. I mean nobody wants to fight. Right now, I still don’t know who I’m fighting. All I know is I’m getting ready. I’m getting ready for a fight in October I think and I don’t know who. It’s kind of hard training and you don’t know who you’re training for. But it don’t bother me none.
DL: Have you been going after some of the big names and have they turned you down?
PW: We definitely go after the big names and stuff and they turn us down. And that’s why we haven’t really started camp yet. We’re just messing around at the gym back home and stuff. I mean once one of them bigger names step up then I can really train like I want to train and get into training camp, but until then I’m just tryin’ to stay active.
DL: You’re known as the man who fights from 147 to 160. Do you think if you picked just one weight division and planted your flag that you would have a better chance of forcing these guys to fight you?
PW: No. We had, we had… We had 47 and nobody would fight us there. We moved up to 54 and couldn’t get no fights there. Moved up to 60 and couldn’t get a fight. It’s like guys are picking and choosing. It don’t mater if I was at one weight class or another weight class. Everybody in the boxing world knows that if they say they gonna fight, it don’t take but 2 minutes to sign a contract and it’s on. So it don’t matter what weight class. Bottom line is that guys just don’t want a hard fight.
DL: At welterweight there’s Mayweather, Mosley, Cotto, Pacquiao… It seems that’s where the action is hot. If you developed a ranking in the welterweight division, do you think you could force one of those guys to fight you?
PW: No. Mayweather, Cotto… All them guys at 147… They not going to fight me. That’s why I had to give my belt up. And when I gave my belt up, I think Michael Jennings was my #1 mandatory to fight me. He wouldn’t want to fight me. So Cotto was ranked #2, so he was the next in line to step up for that belt. But he turned it down. Next thing I know, we look on TV and Cotto and Michael Jennings are fighting for my belt. Now what does that tell you? It’s kind of funny, ‘cause I am still a champion at 147 with the WBO. I know if I want to go back down and fight for my WBO belt, who gonna fight me? Nobody. It’d be a waste of time. Guys will not fight. That’s the sad part about it though. They talk all this junk like they the best or they’ll fight this guy or that guy… But when it all boils down to it, when it’s time to fight, they not gonna fight. They pick and choose guys to fight. If they got a chance to beat a guy, or if it’s not gonna be a real hard fight… That’s what they looking for.
DL: Does anything interest you at junior middleweight?
PW: Right now, I just want to fight. Mr. Perterson, Al, Dan… They put it together for me, I’m definitely down for it. You ask me who I want to fight? I say I fight everybody. Put ‘em all in the ring at once. They got to make the right decisions for me. They know I’m ready to fight. But the problem is getting the guys to fight that everybody wants to see. HBO don’t want to put on a fight with a guy that’s not worthy of fighting me and he get in the ring and one round it’s over. They at least want a competition. I want a competition. That makes me step my skill level up when I got a guy that’s trying to fight like that.
DL: Are they flat out turning you down? Are they flat out refusing you?
PW: You can ask Mr. Perterson all that. He can tell you better than I can. All I know, he tells me, “They’re not gonna fight. They’re not gonna fight.” They asked all they guys and they turned us down. I mean he could tell you better than I could tell you - the guys that they asked for that turned us down.
DL: After your fight with Winky, I read that you might go up to 168 or even 75. Is there any truth to that?
PW: It still may be true if Joe Calzaghe comes out of retirement. I would definitely fight Joe Calzaghe. The other guys around there – there’s no money behind them. It would just be a fight. And me, I’m not looking to go down. I heard that Clottey been calling me out, but I don’t fight no losers. I fight all winners. I done proved myself. I don’t think I should go back down the ladder to get a fight with somebody. I think I should be fighting the top of the line guys.
DL: It seems like if a fighter can go from 147 to 168 that at some point he’s either going too high or too low. What are your thoughts on that?
PW: My thing is I’ve done been in the ring with heavyweights and all that. And I know how to work with them guys. I know how to handle myself in the ring. So I’ll go to just about any weight that me and Mr. Peterson feel comfortable with. And I think Joe Calzaghe is the best out there at 168 and he proved that. He beat my favorite fighter, Roy Jones, and I want to revenge that.
DL: You talk about big punchers… You looked great against Winky, but he’s not considered a big puncher at 160. And some of the fans out there consider you a natural welterweight and that a big puncher at 160 would be too much for you. What do you think of that?
PW: All I can tell my fans is that put us in the ring. Get them and put us in the ring. And then that proves to my fans, it don’t matter, big punchers or whatever they say… I just want to get in the ring with them guys. I mean if everybody’s saying that I’m a natural welterweight and if I get in there with a big 160 guy he’s gonna knock me out or he’s gonna hurt me or the guy’s too big, why don’t them guys step up to the plate?
DL: As many punches as you throw, that had to serve you well in the amateurs. What can you tell us about your amateur career?
PW: I didn’t really have a big amateur career and stuff. It was just for fun. I basically learned the fundamentals of boxing, you know… Jab, left hand… Basically learning the boxing style. And that’s about it in the amateurs.
DL: At what point did you decide to be champion of the world?
PW: That’s when I turned pro in ‘99. I think I was 17, just turned 18… Mr. Peterson told me if I was serious about it, he’d get me to be a world champion. He never told me he’d get me to be a 2-time world champion.
DL: There was a lot of controversy earlier this year about Antonio Margarito’s handwraps and you fought him before this ever came up. Do you have any thoughts on this one way or the other?
PW: No, ‘cause basically, bottom line, you can’t prove it. You can’t prove that he had ‘em with me. So I took my stance, it doesn’t matter if he did have ‘em, if he didn’t have ‘em… I can’t prove it. I was determined to win that fight. A lot of fighters said he had his hands wrapped, but you can’t say he did ‘cause they never proved it. Maybe it’s just that one time that he had it. But you know, it’s kind of messed up on his part that he got caught with it, but like I said, you can’t prove it.
DL: Switching gears a little, who do you think is going to win the Super Six?
PW: What’s that?
DL: The big tournament that’s coming up at 168? Kessler, Froch…
PW: Well, to tell you the truth, I don’t even know. I ain’t in it, so I don’t care. All them fighters get they big fights and get they big straps and it’s fun to watch, but I’m to the point where I’m about me now. I proved myself to everybody when I got in the ring with Margarito and took on the fight with him when nobody wanted to fight him. That was ’07 when Margarito was Margarito. And nobody didn’t want to fight him, but I stepped up to the plate and I proved to everybody that this guy right here… This guy right here called Margarito out two years ahead of time and he proved to everybody… Margarito landed some good shots on him, it was a good war and it was good fight in there that whole 12 rounds. It was a good action packed fight. So why won’t those other guys step up to the plate and fight this guy? It makes you real mad if you’re on the internet and they have everybody believing what they sayin’ and stuff how this guy turned him down, this guy turned him down, this guy turned him down… But in actuality it’s not true.
DL: So you’re saying that you beat the most avoided guy and now you ARE the most avoided guy.
PW: Yeah. It’s a curse. I want to give it back to him. But I got to say I really appreciate the boxing fans and everybody that’s giving me that reputation. That’s like the highest compliment they could give me. Nobody in the boxing business is willing to get in the ring with me and fight me. All them guys in the different weight classes – you got to blind fold them and get them in the ring with me. I appreciate everybody that gave me that compliment. I appreciate that.
DL: Is there anything you would like to say in closing, Paul?
PW: To my fans out there, just know I’m gonna get back in training camp in a couple of weeks. Hopefully, at that time, I’ll have some big fight on the line, so somebody steps up to the plate that got the balls to get it the ring to prove to they fans that hey, I’m gonna try to take on Williams and prove to my fans that I can beat him and stuff. And my fans, they know once I get in there they’ll look for some more action and I may got another little trick for them like that little uppercut I did. Everybody was so hot about that little uppercut I did. I may got another little trick for them.
EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: PAUL WILLIAMS
By Doveed Linder
DL: Your fight with Winky Wright was an unbelievable showcase against a top guy. You have to be very pleased with your performance. " Oh, yeah. Being in there with a two-time undisputed champion was a real good experience for me. I felt real good after the win."
DL: Somewhere along the line, you developed a reputation as the most avoided fighter in boxing. Do you think there’s any truth to that?
PW: It’s definitely true, sir. I mean nobody wants to fight. Right now, I still don’t know who I’m fighting. All I know is I’m getting ready. I’m getting ready for a fight in October I think and I don’t know who. It’s kind of hard training and you don’t know who you’re training for. But it don’t bother me none.
DL: Have you been going after some of the big names and have they turned you down?
PW: We definitely go after the big names and stuff and they turn us down. And that’s why we haven’t really started camp yet. We’re just messing around at the gym back home and stuff. I mean once one of them bigger names step up then I can really train like I want to train and get into training camp, but until then I’m just tryin’ to stay active.
DL: You’re known as the man who fights from 147 to 160. Do you think if you picked just one weight division and planted your flag that you would have a better chance of forcing these guys to fight you?
PW: No. We had, we had… We had 47 and nobody would fight us there. We moved up to 54 and couldn’t get no fights there. Moved up to 60 and couldn’t get a fight. It’s like guys are picking and choosing. It don’t mater if I was at one weight class or another weight class. Everybody in the boxing world knows that if they say they gonna fight, it don’t take but 2 minutes to sign a contract and it’s on. So it don’t matter what weight class. Bottom line is that guys just don’t want a hard fight.
DL: At welterweight there’s Mayweather, Mosley, Cotto, Pacquiao… It seems that’s where the action is hot. If you developed a ranking in the welterweight division, do you think you could force one of those guys to fight you?
PW: No. Mayweather, Cotto… All them guys at 147… They not going to fight me. That’s why I had to give my belt up. And when I gave my belt up, I think Michael Jennings was my #1 mandatory to fight me. He wouldn’t want to fight me. So Cotto was ranked #2, so he was the next in line to step up for that belt. But he turned it down. Next thing I know, we look on TV and Cotto and Michael Jennings are fighting for my belt. Now what does that tell you? It’s kind of funny, ‘cause I am still a champion at 147 with the WBO. I know if I want to go back down and fight for my WBO belt, who gonna fight me? Nobody. It’d be a waste of time. Guys will not fight. That’s the sad part about it though. They talk all this junk like they the best or they’ll fight this guy or that guy… But when it all boils down to it, when it’s time to fight, they not gonna fight. They pick and choose guys to fight. If they got a chance to beat a guy, or if it’s not gonna be a real hard fight… That’s what they looking for.
DL: Does anything interest you at junior middleweight?
PW: Right now, I just want to fight. Mr. Perterson, Al, Dan… They put it together for me, I’m definitely down for it. You ask me who I want to fight? I say I fight everybody. Put ‘em all in the ring at once. They got to make the right decisions for me. They know I’m ready to fight. But the problem is getting the guys to fight that everybody wants to see. HBO don’t want to put on a fight with a guy that’s not worthy of fighting me and he get in the ring and one round it’s over. They at least want a competition. I want a competition. That makes me step my skill level up when I got a guy that’s trying to fight like that.
DL: Are they flat out turning you down? Are they flat out refusing you?
PW: You can ask Mr. Perterson all that. He can tell you better than I can. All I know, he tells me, “They’re not gonna fight. They’re not gonna fight.” They asked all they guys and they turned us down. I mean he could tell you better than I could tell you - the guys that they asked for that turned us down.
DL: After your fight with Winky, I read that you might go up to 168 or even 75. Is there any truth to that?
PW: It still may be true if Joe Calzaghe comes out of retirement. I would definitely fight Joe Calzaghe. The other guys around there – there’s no money behind them. It would just be a fight. And me, I’m not looking to go down. I heard that Clottey been calling me out, but I don’t fight no losers. I fight all winners. I done proved myself. I don’t think I should go back down the ladder to get a fight with somebody. I think I should be fighting the top of the line guys.
DL: It seems like if a fighter can go from 147 to 168 that at some point he’s either going too high or too low. What are your thoughts on that?
PW: My thing is I’ve done been in the ring with heavyweights and all that. And I know how to work with them guys. I know how to handle myself in the ring. So I’ll go to just about any weight that me and Mr. Peterson feel comfortable with. And I think Joe Calzaghe is the best out there at 168 and he proved that. He beat my favorite fighter, Roy Jones, and I want to revenge that.
DL: You talk about big punchers… You looked great against Winky, but he’s not considered a big puncher at 160. And some of the fans out there consider you a natural welterweight and that a big puncher at 160 would be too much for you. What do you think of that?
PW: All I can tell my fans is that put us in the ring. Get them and put us in the ring. And then that proves to my fans, it don’t matter, big punchers or whatever they say… I just want to get in the ring with them guys. I mean if everybody’s saying that I’m a natural welterweight and if I get in there with a big 160 guy he’s gonna knock me out or he’s gonna hurt me or the guy’s too big, why don’t them guys step up to the plate?
DL: As many punches as you throw, that had to serve you well in the amateurs. What can you tell us about your amateur career?
PW: I didn’t really have a big amateur career and stuff. It was just for fun. I basically learned the fundamentals of boxing, you know… Jab, left hand… Basically learning the boxing style. And that’s about it in the amateurs.
DL: At what point did you decide to be champion of the world?
PW: That’s when I turned pro in ‘99. I think I was 17, just turned 18… Mr. Peterson told me if I was serious about it, he’d get me to be a world champion. He never told me he’d get me to be a 2-time world champion.
DL: There was a lot of controversy earlier this year about Antonio Margarito’s handwraps and you fought him before this ever came up. Do you have any thoughts on this one way or the other?
PW: No, ‘cause basically, bottom line, you can’t prove it. You can’t prove that he had ‘em with me. So I took my stance, it doesn’t matter if he did have ‘em, if he didn’t have ‘em… I can’t prove it. I was determined to win that fight. A lot of fighters said he had his hands wrapped, but you can’t say he did ‘cause they never proved it. Maybe it’s just that one time that he had it. But you know, it’s kind of messed up on his part that he got caught with it, but like I said, you can’t prove it.
DL: Switching gears a little, who do you think is going to win the Super Six?
PW: What’s that?
DL: The big tournament that’s coming up at 168? Kessler, Froch…
PW: Well, to tell you the truth, I don’t even know. I ain’t in it, so I don’t care. All them fighters get they big fights and get they big straps and it’s fun to watch, but I’m to the point where I’m about me now. I proved myself to everybody when I got in the ring with Margarito and took on the fight with him when nobody wanted to fight him. That was ’07 when Margarito was Margarito. And nobody didn’t want to fight him, but I stepped up to the plate and I proved to everybody that this guy right here… This guy right here called Margarito out two years ahead of time and he proved to everybody… Margarito landed some good shots on him, it was a good war and it was good fight in there that whole 12 rounds. It was a good action packed fight. So why won’t those other guys step up to the plate and fight this guy? It makes you real mad if you’re on the internet and they have everybody believing what they sayin’ and stuff how this guy turned him down, this guy turned him down, this guy turned him down… But in actuality it’s not true.
DL: So you’re saying that you beat the most avoided guy and now you ARE the most avoided guy.
PW: Yeah. It’s a curse. I want to give it back to him. But I got to say I really appreciate the boxing fans and everybody that’s giving me that reputation. That’s like the highest compliment they could give me. Nobody in the boxing business is willing to get in the ring with me and fight me. All them guys in the different weight classes – you got to blind fold them and get them in the ring with me. I appreciate everybody that gave me that compliment. I appreciate that.
DL: Is there anything you would like to say in closing, Paul?
PW: To my fans out there, just know I’m gonna get back in training camp in a couple of weeks. Hopefully, at that time, I’ll have some big fight on the line, so somebody steps up to the plate that got the balls to get it the ring to prove to they fans that hey, I’m gonna try to take on Williams and prove to my fans that I can beat him and stuff. And my fans, they know once I get in there they’ll look for some more action and I may got another little trick for them like that little uppercut I did. Everybody was so hot about that little uppercut I did. I may got another little trick for them.
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