FLOYD
MAYWEATHER AND JUAN MANUEL MARQUEZ
CONFERENCE CALL HIGHLIGHTS
OVER
85 MEDIA MEMBERS CALL IN TO LISTEN AS MAYWEATHER AND MARQUEZ DISCUSS
FIGHT, TRAINING AND OTHER TOPICS IN PREPARATION FOR MAYWEATHER VS
MARQUEZ: "NUMBER ONE/NUMERO UNO" SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 19 AT MGM GRAND
IN LAS VEGAS AND LIVE ON HBO PAY-PER-VIEW®
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"I
know in my heart that Marquez is going to be at his best. He always
comes out and performs to the best of his ability. I'm back training and
you're going to get one hell of a fight."
Floyd Mayweather
"I'm getting ready for the best Mayweather ever. I'm not thinking about
his retirement. I'm getting ready for the best guy possible...the best
fighter in the world."
Juan Manuel Marquez
FLOYD MAYWEATHER
Quotable One-Liners:
"The biggest fight in boxing is Mayweather vs. anyone. It doesn't matter
who I fight.
"I don't call out or chase opponents. Opponents have to chase me.
"It's like a t-bone steak. Basically I ate all the meat off the steak
and then threw them the bone.
"I know in my heart that Marquez is going to be at his best. He always
comes out and performs to the best of his ability.
"I feel that my family bond is stronger if we stick together and I feel
we're weak if we spread out.
"I'm going down in history as one of the best, one of the best of all
time, if not the best."
On Marquez:
"I know in my heart that Marquez is going to be at his best. He always
comes out and performs to the best of his ability. I'm back training and
you're going to get one hell of a fight.
"Marquez is a Mexican warrior. He represents the Mexican community
extremely well and the heritage extremely well. I know he's going to be
at his best when he comes to face the best, so the only thing I've got
to do is go out there and be me. Be sharp and be smart."
On retirement and getting back in the ring:
"I had my first fight in 1987 and I had never had a break, so I guess my
body needed a break. You know, everybody needs a break, everybody needs
a vacation. Boxing is still in me. I still miss the sport.
"I've been off almost two years now. So, when you've been off two years,
you have a chance to relax and just grow as a human being mentally. Not
physically, but mentally. Because I feel what makes you a man is taking
care of your responsibilities.
"If my body's going to be taking any type of abuse, and my hands are
going to be taking any type of abuse, I might as well do it and get
under the lights, and do what I like to do - to perform for my fans. I
can't wait to get out there on September 19.
"I'm the best at my job because I push myself to the limit at my job. I
get to the boxing gym before everybody else. If I get there when
everybody else is training, I train so long everybody leaves.
"I already know I'm not worried about the Pay-Per-View numbers. I
already know we're going to do good numbers. That's not what I'm
chasing. That's going to happen regardless. I want to go out there and
perform well for all the fans.
"Hopefully I will be remembered in my own way, and hopefully that's in a
good way. Like a lot people say Ali but I think Ali stood for one hell
of a cause in his era. And, I take my hat off to all of the champions,
but I just want to be known as just one great fighter. Just one great
fighter that fought the best in his era."
On his injury:
"Well when it happened, I tried to work through it. I was fine for a
while, but then it happened again and I was like, well you know what; I
can't try to be a superhero or be Superman.
"It's best to take your time - take a little time off, let it heal and
come back so when I do go out and perform I'll be able to perform to the
best of my ability for my fans.
"I've been through a lot of physical mishaps before, but only the strong
can survive. I'm one of the strong ones. So I just didn't want to go
into this fight like I went into other fights in the past where I wasn't
100%.
"I've been training since last week. All I've been doing is running,
basketball, or doing a lot of pull-ups and push-ups and dips. You know,
getting myself back into shape. Today I'm going to the boxing gym and
will probably start working on the floor."
On the Mayweather Family:
"My dad is coming around now. He is teaching his oldest grandson how to
box. So that's a good thing. He's coming to the birthday parties of his
granddaughters. He's spending more time with his grandkids, getting to
know his grandkids, and that's the main thing that counts.
"You've got to realize, my kids are the future of the Mayweather family
and of the Mayweather brand. I feel that we're stronger - I feel that my
family bond is stronger if we stick together and I feel we're weak if we
spread out.
"If you want to learn about the sport of boxing, all you have to do is
hang around the Mayweather family. All Roger does is watch boxing all
day and study boxing all day. Now me - all I do is sit in the movie
theater in my house and eat junk food, like I'm doing right now."
On Manny Pacquiao:
"Everybody on this phone knows that Pacquiao's not going to get a 50/50
with Floyd Mayweather. Go back and look at the numbers he did with David
Diaz. People seem to forget about certain things. If you go look at what
Pacquiao's grossed in his last two fights, and you see what I've grossed
in my last two fights, and you go from there. It's still is a business
even though it's a sport.
"Marquez is a guy that really deserves a shot at me so he can make some
good money. If Manny Pacquiao really wants to fight me, all he has to do
is say it.
"As of right now, Pacquiao - if he's one of the top fighters in the
sport - he's got to ask for the fight. I'm not trying to tear him out of
the frame. It's not a bad thing with Pacquiao. He has a bad deal."
On being pound-for-pound champ:
"If pound-for-pound pays any extra money, then you know I'm proud to
say, 'Oh, yeah, I'm pound-for-pound.' But if it doesn't pay extra money,
I'm happy with who I am as a person and I'm happy with my team.
"So, when these guys are beating each other and the title is switching
hands, it's no different from when people talk about Manny Pacquiao. And
I'm not saying that he hasn't done his job, but he hasn't done anything
that I haven't done. All he did was follow right behind me.
"I've beat everybody - it's like a steak. It's like a t-bone steak.
Basically I ate all the meat off the steak and then threw them the
bone."
On Arturo Gatti & Alexis Arguello:
"I just want to say, blessing to the Gatti family. Blessings to Arturo
Gatti, because he was one hell of a warrior.
"I just try to keep my mind focused on the positive and hopefully
raising my kids to be the best that they can be once they become young
adults in this world. I try not to keep my mind focused on tragedies,
but Alexis Arguello was probably one of the best junior lightweights to
ever put on a pair of gloves.
"We know Gatti never turned away from any opponent - never turned his
back on any opponent. He fought anybody that was put in front of him and
was a beast. He's a guy that could get knocked down four or five times
and come right back. I guess he had throwback fights - he'd get knocked
down four or five times, he'd come back in one shot. I mean, it would be
lights out for you."
LEONARD ELLERBE, CEO of Mayweather Promotions
"September 19 obviously is Mexican Independence Day weekend and it's the
biggest weekend of the year, but it's Floyd's night."
JUAN MANUEL MARQUEZ
Quotable One-Liners
"Obviously, I have a lot of heart. I'm Mexican. I like to get up there.
I like to fight.
"Winning will be the gift of my life (Marquez celebrates his birthday
August 23)."
On Mayweather:
"It's a very hard fight, but mentally I'm preparing myself to win and I
feel I can beat Mayweather.
"Winning will be the gift of my life (Marquez celebrates his birthday
August 23). The best gift of my life. I'm preparing myself and I'm
putting all the ingredients together so I can beat Mayweather.
"I'm getting ready for the best Mayweather ever. I'm not thinking about
his retirement. I'm getting ready for the best guy possible...the best
fighter in the world."
On the rescheduling:
"I did get some rest. Nacho is a very experienced trainer. He's a very
smart person and he knew that I shouldn't burn myself out. I took about
a week to ten days off and I came back fresh, motivated and ready to
go."
On Pacquiao:
"I feel that I beat him both times. The first one was very close and I
felt that I pulled it off. It was called a draw. And the second fight, I
felt that I clearly beat him. I clearly beat him and I should have been
on top on the points but for whatever reason, the judges - they saw a
different fight that night."
On being the underdog:
"I think that life is full of surprises. This is what motivates me. This
is what makes me train hard. When I wake up in the morning, it makes me
want to train harder, run faster and longer.
"I'm going to be in better condition and I'm going to be focused 100%.
These are the kind of fights that motivate me. I'm going to prove
everybody wrong.
"Everything's going great. I have a great plan and I'm feeling a lot
stronger already. I'm building up the right weight - not just to build
up weight, but to build myself up and be very strong. I can feel the
difference already.
"Obviously, I have a lot of heart. I'm Mexican. I like to get up there.
I like to fight."
OSCAR DE LA HOYA, President of Golden Boy Promotions
"Marquez wants to challenge the best and that's why we're here - because
he's challenging the best in Mayweather. We all know that Mayweather's
the best fighter on the planet and therefore Marquez wanted to fight the
best.
"The winner of this fight should be considered the best pound-for-pound
fighter on the planet. We can make a strong argument for that.
"People are going to watch to see Mayweather lose in September because
Marquez is that good."
"I felt more skill coming out of Mayweather than I did with Pacquiao.
That's the reason why we named the fight Numero Uno/Number One - because
they are fighting to see who the number one fighter is on the planet."
RICHARD SCHAEFER, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions
"To the millions of fight fans who were so greatly waiting for his
return - Floyd Mayweather is feeling better, everything is going well,
he is back in training and he has shown a recommitment to the sport of
boxing.
"Contrary to some reports, which probably originated from some promoters
and people who are not involved with the fight, this fight is doing
extremely well. It's shaping up to become one of the biggest
non-heavyweight gates in Las Vegas history. Several of the price
categories are sold out already."
"It will be the most covered weigh-in ever because everybody wants to
know what the weight is. So make sure you don't miss it."
# # #
Mayweather vs. Marquez: "Number One/Numero Uno," is
promoted by Mayweather Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions in
association with Marquez Promotions and is sponsored by Cerveza Tecate,
Quaker State, Dewalt Tools, Affliction Clothing and Southwest Airlines.
The 12-round bout will take place Saturday, September 19 at MGM Grand in
Las Vegas, NV and will be produced and distributed live on HBO
Pay-Per-View® beginning at 9pm ET/6pm PT.
HBO's Emmy®-Award-winning all-access reality series "24/7" returns to
HBO® with an all new edition as "Mayweather/Marquez 24/7" premieres
Saturday, August 29 at 10:15 pm ET/PT. The four-episode series will
chronicle the preparations and back stories of both fighters as they
train for their September 19 pay-per-view showdown.
Tickets priced at $1,000, $750, $600, $300 and $150, not including
applicable service charges, are on sale now. Ticket sales at $1,000,
$750, $600 and $300 are limited to 10 per person and ticket sales at
$150 are limited to two (2) per person with a total ticket limit of 10
per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call
Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also are available for purchase
at www.mgmgrand.com
or
www.ticketmaster.com. ; Tickets previously purchased for the July 18
date will be honored. |
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