"I plan to win! Just win! Not by knockout, not by decision; just win. However the win comes, whether it comes ugly, nasty, or dirty, it don't matter. My plan is just to win...he was the guy that accepted the fight so we have to do what we have to do. But I'm hungry for the fight. That's without question," stated undefeated heavyweight contender Bryant Jennings, who talked about his upcoming clash this Saturday with fellow undefeated heavyweight contender Artur Szpilka. Check out what else he had to say!
BT: What's up, Bryant? Big fight coming up this Saturday with Artur Szpilka. How do you see that playing out?
BJ: I plan to win! Just win! Not by knockout, not by decision; just win. However the win comes, whether it comes ugly, nasty, or dirty, it don't matter. My plan is just to win!
BT: Have you watched any tape on him or do you just let your trainers handle that?
BJ: Maybe like a round of about 3 or 4 fights, you know, just to see if anything has changed, but I let my trainers do all the rest.
BT: Is it difficult to get up for a fight with someone like Szpilka, who isn't really that big name that you've been hoping for?
BJ: Well, you know, he has a big following over there in his country. He definitely has a lot of supporters, so I guess he has something I can capture. You know, I'm coming back off of my little so-called layoff and he was the person that was willing to take the fight since I couldn't get a fight with one of these other guys; I guess they were tied up or just, I don't know for what reason, but he was the guy that accepted the fight so we have to do what we have to do. But I'm hungry for the fight. That's without question.
BT: Is it frustrating knowing that you're ready, willing, and able to fight some of the bigger names in the division, but for whatever reason, they seem reluctant to make a fight with you?
BJ: Yeah, when that happens, it makes it even more frustrating from a fans point of view. I've been yelling out, "Klitschko, Klitschko, Klitschko," since my 12th fight. I've been asking for guys like Robert Helenius and Dereck Chisora just so I can express my competitiveness and really see where I'm at. But then when those guys don't fight, then they ask me about guys that's up under me. First I was the hunter; now I'm hunted because now they're coming for my spot, so I want to go up higher and go for other people's spots.
BT: Are those fights not being made because of the politics of the sport or do you think some of those guys are legitimately ducking you?
BJ: Nah, I'm not even going to say that [they are ducking] because the guys that I've mentioned, I've seen these guys take tough fights. I know for sure that they have it in them, but I just think, from a business point of view, that maybe their financial needs are not met. I'm not going to sit here and say that they're scared or that they don't want to challenge me. I do believe that those guys got heart; I would hope that those guys aren't scared.
BT: Talk to me about your decision to change promoters.
BJ: Well, boxing is a business and we have to make every effort to better our interests. Something has to come good out of it and we took it to the next level. I felt as though I was ready for the next level and, you know, it just happened.
BT: You're definitely getting a big opportunity to take it to the next level this Saturday. Is there anything you're hoping to showcase to fans when you step onto the HBO stage?
BJ: I mean, I fight for fans, but I don't fight their fight. If you fight exactly the way the fans want you to fight, then obviously that's not your fight. I just want to showcase what I've been working on. As a boxer, there are some things that you don't even do in the ring that you've worked on, so I just want to go in there and bring whatever fight that I have into the ring and hopefully the fans will accept it and it will be something that they will want to see.
BT: When you hear fans or critics say things like, "He's boring. He's not entertaining," what goes through your mind as a fighter? Obviously you have to do what you have to do to win, but does hearing that type of criticism ever tempt you to switch your style or game plan in order to silence the critics?
BJ: Well, they still say that for Floyd Mayweather; they say the same thing about Rigondeaux. This is a dangerous sport. You can't really fight for the fans too much. I mean, you gotta do what you gotta do. It's safety first. You just fight your fight and hopefully the fans accept it. That's the type of pressure and the type of things that we have to go through as boxers. We're not only fighting for ourselves; we're fighting to try and impress our audience and it gets very difficult. It's very mental and sometimes, people get messed up and tied up into it. They forget to be themselves just because they're trying to fight for somebody else. We don't get to see what they're actually able to do because they're fighting for somebody else and not for themselves.
BT: Obviously there's a lot of big boys in the heavyweight division. In any other division, a 20-30 pound weight advantage can make a big difference on fight night. Being one of the smaller guys, does that kind of weight advantage make the same kind of difference in the heavyweight division?
BJ: The weight really doesn't matter, but what I like to do is, and I even tell my trainers this sometimes, you know, because they get wrapped up and tied up into who I'm fighting and forget that I am the fighter, so I make people have to adjust to me. I never want to have to adjust to another person. I want people to adjust to me. You know, the same way Floyd goes in and the same way Andre Ward goes in and the same way Rigondeaux goes in and they control the fight. I want to be able to control the fight. I want those guys to have to work to try and adjust to me; not me adjusting to them because I'm not going to fall into that trap. You never know what can happen, but I always like to keep control of the fight myself.
BT: Is that one of the reasons why it's nice to have a speed advantage over the bigger guys?
BJ: Yeah. A lot of guys, they just rely on their power too much. I'm just using technique; it's just simple. I'm trying to just make it easy. If I have to fight hard, then I'm ready to fight hard, but you're supposed to fight smart. Fight smart, get through the rounds, and be safe.
BT: When it comes to the heavyweight division, people love their brawlers. That said, is their any concern that being a technical boxer in the heavyweight division might make it difficult to win fans over?
BJ: Nah. Just as long as I'm in control of the fight. When I came into this game, you know, I did some studying as I came along and you gotta respect the game. I'm a technician and you know that you don't force knockouts. You don't try to do things out of your league and you don't try to let the crowd get to you too much. Of course we have an audience that we're trying to impress, but if they don't like it, then they're not fans of mine. Somebody out there is going to like it. Your fan base may not be as big, but if they can't beat you, then they just can't beat you. That's period, point blank. If they don't like it, then hey, forget it. It's a dog eat dog game already. You just can't send somebody in there and say, "Yo, I want you to do this," and it's out of their boxing character. It's like you're taking me away from my fight. So the way I fight is the way I fight. If it comes, it comes. Sometimes you may try to force it, but this fight's a long fight, so let's be safe.
BT: I know you're not looking past this fight, but ideally, if everything goes well, how soon are you realistically hoping to get that title shot given the politics of the sport?
BJ: That's an interesting question. I really can't answer that. How soon would I want it happen? I would want it to happen immediately. But how soon do I think? I don't know, man. I felt different before and it still hasn't happened, so I can't really answer that question, but I would like for it to happen soon.
BT: Before I let you go, Bryant, is there anything else you want to say?
BJ: Well, my Twitter and Instagram is BYJennings and my Facebook is Bryant By-By Jennings. You know, just shout out to my team and come January 25th, we gonna come ready.
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