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Anson Wainwright: Hello Martin and Welcome to Boxing Tribune.
Martin Castillo: Thank you for having me.
AW: First of all how did you get into boxing?
MC: My father loved boxing and being around him and looking up to him, I wanted to do it. My father was excited that I wanted to take up boxing at a young age. And it was a good opportunity for us to bond together.
AW: You had a very distinguished amateur career where you went 160-20 and represented your country in the Olympics. What else can you tell us about your amateur career?
MC: I enjoyed my amateur days. It was a lot of fun to travel around the World, and to represent my country in the Olympics. That was an honour. I fought some very good fighters, including Floyd Mayweather, Eric Morel, Jorge Arce and Joan Guzman. It helps me gain a lot of experience, because I got to see a lot of different styles, and compete with the best.
AW: Onto your pro career; in your last fight you suffered a fight-ending cut while defending your title in Japan against Nobao Nashiro. How is the cut healing up?
MC: My cut is fine. I’m planning to have surgery in November. I’m going to remove my scar tissue and possibly shave down the bones a little. I think it’s a necessary move because; I’ve always had problems with cuts.
AW: When do you hope to be back in action?
MC: After I am all healed up from my surgery. I plan to fight next year. Hopefully, I will make my comeback against Nashiro.
AW: You’re obviously very disappointed with what happened in your fight with Nashiro. You have indeed been cursed in this manner with a cut before against Felix Machado back in 2002. What can you tell us about this?
MC: Ya, I’ve had problems with cuts. But with this surgery it should help reduce my chances of getting cut. The Machado fight, I consider it a win. Everyone from the press had me winning the fight. But I was under a Don King show, and fighting a Don King fighter. The cut was on the side of my head. It wasn’t even going into my eyes. For some reason the doctor stopped it. As for the Nashiro fight, I understand why the referee stopped the fight. It was a really bad cut; about the size of my eyebrow. But I wished the referee would have let me continue.
AW: Would you say you over looked Nashiro?
MC: To some degree I did. I didn’t look at his film and honestly thought I was going to win. Even in the first round of our fight, I almost knocked him down. I thought it was going to be an easy fight. But to Nashiro’s credit, it wasn’t. I still feel I would have won if it went the distance. It was a draw up to the point when they stopped the fight. And I feel I was coming on as Nashiro was already out of gas. But that’s boxing.
AW: There are some very interesting fights at 115 what do you think of the current Champions and top contenders?
MC: Right now, I want to fight Nashiro again. I know I can beat him. I also, wouldn’t mind fighting Jorge Arce. He has already turned down a fight against me, but [I] would love to fight him.
AW: Who has been your toughest opponent to date? (include someone from the amateurs if you like.)
MC: My toughest opponent was against Hideyasu Ishihara. He was very tough and came to fight. In our first fight, I was giving less than a month notice and had to shed 21lbs for the fight. I did it, but wasn’t in the best condition. By the 6th round, I was dead tired. But [I] continued to fight on heart. I was losing the fight, but never quit. And in the 11th round, I was able to knock him out. It was a great moment for me.
AW: Who was your favourite fighter as a child?
MC: I admired Salvador Sanchez. I liked his style. I also, liked Sugar Ray Leonard. He was a great fighter.
AW: And finally Martin who do you think is the best boxer in the world Pound for Pound today?
MC: Floyd Mayweather.
AW: Thanks for your time.
MC: Thank you Boxing Tribune for this interview, and to all my fans. Don’t worry I will be back on top. I promise
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