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Q&A: Joan Guzman
Team Guzman
Former two time world champion, Joan Guzman, was planning to make his return to the ring in late July; however, due to a medical condition that he was diagnosed with Team Guzman decided that it was more beneficial to their fighter if he were to make his return in the fall so his condition can be treated. Joan Guzman’s manager, Jose Nunez, informed us that “while Guzman was training everyone noticed that something was definitely wrong with him. He wasn’t himself and everyone knew that something wasn’t right. I took him to the doctor where he had many blood tests done. Guzman was diagnosed with having low levels of testosterone and high levels of blood urea nitrogen (BUN.)”
“This explains a lot” states Nunez. “Low testosterone levels lead to fatigue, muscle loss and difficulty in losing weight. According to the doctor, this may be one of the reasons as to why Guzman was having trouble losing weight for his past couple of fights. “It wasn’t that he wasn’t working as hard as he should be in the gym; it’s just that his body wouldn’t allow him to lose the necessary weight,” said strength coach, David Honig, of Extreme Fitness. Team Guzman is now aware of this and is going to work on getting everything under control so that Guzman may be in optimal condition come his return to the ring in the fall of this year.
We also had a few minutes to sit down and talk with Joan Guzman himself and this is what he had to say in regards to his past bouts and his future in the 140lb. division:
You were preparing for your return to the ring at the end of this month, how did you feel when you were training and what did you think when you got back the results of your blood work?
I was training intensely for my fight in July and was feeling fatigued. I knew something was wrong with me and my manager took me to the doctor. I was diagnosed with having low levels of testosterone and now my doctor, nutritionists, and entire team are going to put together a diet and training regime that will keep everything under control and get me back to how I used to be.
What weight class will your next fight be held at?
I plan on fighting at 140lbs. There are lots of good fights in that division.
Who would you like to fight?
I’m willing to fight anyone including, Tim Bradley, Amir Khan, Marcos Maidana, Devon Alexander, the winner of Marquez vs. Diaz etc. I’ll fight anyone!
Do you get upset when your name is not mentioned amongst the best in the 140lb division?
It really bothers me but I don’t stress it too much. People don’t really know what weight class I plan on fighting at so I’m just letting everyone know that I’m making my comeback in the fall and it will be at 140lbs. What really upsets me is when people say that I’m not dedicated to the sport or don’t have respect for boxing. I love boxing and this is all I know. Mayweather Sr. himself said that he wouldn’t work with me anymore because my strength coach was making me do too much. I just do as I’m told and don’t complain. During my training for Nate Campbell I was also filming a documentary which is called “Life of a Champion” and I can’t wait for a network to pick it up and show the world how hard we really worked during that camp.
A lot of fighters are claiming that your weight issues are some of the reasons why they won’t agree to fight you. What do you have to say about that?
I definitely understand why they say that and I brought that upon myself but if they really want to fight me we can add clauses to our bout agreements that I can be weighed 30 days prior to the fight and we can agree to a monetary penalty for every pound that I’m over. Just to prove to everyone that this will not happen again.
What are your opinions on your last two fights, which were both against Ali Funeka?
Many people think that in our first fight I was given an early Christmas present by the judges in the way of the fight being declared a draw. I’ve seen the fight plenty of times and think the correct decision was made. When we fought in March I was working with a new trainer, Lee Beard, and was better prepared for what he was going to bring. I had some weight issues there but I got in the ring and put on a great performance that lead to me winning. A couple of months later I was informed that Funeka had tested positive for a banned diuretic and was being suspended. This diuretic is used to hide steroids or to lose weight. Either way he cheated and it makes me believe that maybe for our first fight he was using the same thing. Everyone just focused on me and very few have commented on Funeka.
Will your next fight be televised on a major network?
I’m afraid not. My promoters, Golden Boy Promotions, tried very hard to get me on HBO. I had accepted a fight against Casamayor but I was informed that HBO didn’t want to put me back on because they were upset with my weight issues. I just hope that they read this and give me another opportunity to showcase myself on their network. My team and I now know what we have to do in order to keep my condition under control and I am sure that I will not face any more weight problems in the future.
Is there anything you would like to say in closing?
I really want to give thanks to GBP for not turning their backs on me and making all their efforts to keep me active. I also want to thank my team for being there and supporting me through everything. To my fans, thanks for the support and keep in mind that I’ll be getting back in the ring soon and look forward to fighting anyone at 140lb
Team Guzman
Former two time world champion, Joan Guzman, was planning to make his return to the ring in late July; however, due to a medical condition that he was diagnosed with Team Guzman decided that it was more beneficial to their fighter if he were to make his return in the fall so his condition can be treated. Joan Guzman’s manager, Jose Nunez, informed us that “while Guzman was training everyone noticed that something was definitely wrong with him. He wasn’t himself and everyone knew that something wasn’t right. I took him to the doctor where he had many blood tests done. Guzman was diagnosed with having low levels of testosterone and high levels of blood urea nitrogen (BUN.)”
“This explains a lot” states Nunez. “Low testosterone levels lead to fatigue, muscle loss and difficulty in losing weight. According to the doctor, this may be one of the reasons as to why Guzman was having trouble losing weight for his past couple of fights. “It wasn’t that he wasn’t working as hard as he should be in the gym; it’s just that his body wouldn’t allow him to lose the necessary weight,” said strength coach, David Honig, of Extreme Fitness. Team Guzman is now aware of this and is going to work on getting everything under control so that Guzman may be in optimal condition come his return to the ring in the fall of this year.
We also had a few minutes to sit down and talk with Joan Guzman himself and this is what he had to say in regards to his past bouts and his future in the 140lb. division:
You were preparing for your return to the ring at the end of this month, how did you feel when you were training and what did you think when you got back the results of your blood work?
I was training intensely for my fight in July and was feeling fatigued. I knew something was wrong with me and my manager took me to the doctor. I was diagnosed with having low levels of testosterone and now my doctor, nutritionists, and entire team are going to put together a diet and training regime that will keep everything under control and get me back to how I used to be.
What weight class will your next fight be held at?
I plan on fighting at 140lbs. There are lots of good fights in that division.
Who would you like to fight?
I’m willing to fight anyone including, Tim Bradley, Amir Khan, Marcos Maidana, Devon Alexander, the winner of Marquez vs. Diaz etc. I’ll fight anyone!
Do you get upset when your name is not mentioned amongst the best in the 140lb division?
It really bothers me but I don’t stress it too much. People don’t really know what weight class I plan on fighting at so I’m just letting everyone know that I’m making my comeback in the fall and it will be at 140lbs. What really upsets me is when people say that I’m not dedicated to the sport or don’t have respect for boxing. I love boxing and this is all I know. Mayweather Sr. himself said that he wouldn’t work with me anymore because my strength coach was making me do too much. I just do as I’m told and don’t complain. During my training for Nate Campbell I was also filming a documentary which is called “Life of a Champion” and I can’t wait for a network to pick it up and show the world how hard we really worked during that camp.
A lot of fighters are claiming that your weight issues are some of the reasons why they won’t agree to fight you. What do you have to say about that?
I definitely understand why they say that and I brought that upon myself but if they really want to fight me we can add clauses to our bout agreements that I can be weighed 30 days prior to the fight and we can agree to a monetary penalty for every pound that I’m over. Just to prove to everyone that this will not happen again.
What are your opinions on your last two fights, which were both against Ali Funeka?
Many people think that in our first fight I was given an early Christmas present by the judges in the way of the fight being declared a draw. I’ve seen the fight plenty of times and think the correct decision was made. When we fought in March I was working with a new trainer, Lee Beard, and was better prepared for what he was going to bring. I had some weight issues there but I got in the ring and put on a great performance that lead to me winning. A couple of months later I was informed that Funeka had tested positive for a banned diuretic and was being suspended. This diuretic is used to hide steroids or to lose weight. Either way he cheated and it makes me believe that maybe for our first fight he was using the same thing. Everyone just focused on me and very few have commented on Funeka.
Will your next fight be televised on a major network?
I’m afraid not. My promoters, Golden Boy Promotions, tried very hard to get me on HBO. I had accepted a fight against Casamayor but I was informed that HBO didn’t want to put me back on because they were upset with my weight issues. I just hope that they read this and give me another opportunity to showcase myself on their network. My team and I now know what we have to do in order to keep my condition under control and I am sure that I will not face any more weight problems in the future.
Is there anything you would like to say in closing?
I really want to give thanks to GBP for not turning their backs on me and making all their efforts to keep me active. I also want to thank my team for being there and supporting me through everything. To my fans, thanks for the support and keep in mind that I’ll be getting back in the ring soon and look forward to fighting anyone at 140lb
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