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ZACHARY COOPER: "IT FEELS GOOD TO BE WITH GOLDEN BOY...THIS IS JUST THE BEGINNING"

By Percy Crawford | March 26, 2015
ZACHARY COOPER:

"I'ma be honest, it feels good to be with Golden Boy. I know I'm in the right place. I have always been a fan of Oscar since I was a kid, so I feel good being on a great promotional group like Golden Boy. What people fail to realize is a lot of the big names that are out there were originally and guided by Golden Boy, so you have to realize they find and produce the greatest talents. I'm excited and hungry to bring belts back to Washington," stated up-and-coming welterweight Zach Cooper, who talked about his recent signing with Golden Boy Promotions, his future plans, and more. Check it out!

PC: You told me the two draws you received in your last two fights were bogus and obviously Golden Boy felt the same way. Congratulations on the signing. How does it feel to have a home like Golden Boy Promotions?

ZC: Thank you again. Man, you know, truthfully, I know what I am capable of and when you fight at a level that I fight at, you believe you can beat anybody anywhere, so I took the unneccessary fights, but yeah, I beat hI'm bad to the point his own hometown was booing him. His coach said I won. That's my fault though. I should have knocked him out. I'ma be honest, it feels good to be with Golden Boy. I know I'm in the right place. I have always been a fan of Oscar since I was a kid, so I feel good being on a great promotional group like Golden Boy. What people fail to realize is a lot of the big names that are out there were originally and guided by Golden Boy, so you have to realize they find and produce the greatest talents. I'm excited and hungry to bring belts back to Washington.

PC: Of course people are going to make speculations or say things, such as they may try to feed you to the wolves or they may feel a certain way about your situation. How do you feel about that?

ZC: I feel Like I am the wolf or I am going to come back leading the pack. I'm ready to fight. I'm extremely happy to be with Golden Boy Promotions, but there's a lot of fighters that get signed and are content with being signed or content with being average. I want to be great. I want to transcend the sport to a different level with Golden Boy. Soon as I got the news, I was watching the Alexis Santiago fight. I went straight to the gym again and realized now I'm the hunted instead of the hunter and I refuse to go into the ring thinking "what if". I love this sport; there's nothing like it. The roar of the crowd, the smell of the beer in the air, the fans clammering for more blood. Every time you step in the ring, you have to be ready for what's next. Broken bones, fractured ribs, you have to realize this is unlike any other sport. We don't get fined for blows to the head. I'm willing to give up everything to gain everything. This is the original gladiator sport.

PC: How did this deal come together? Who reached out to you and let you know it was going down?

ZC: I got a text from my manager saying that the deal was almost done. I was scheduled to fight on a local show, but he told me to hold off because we had something in the works, so I pulled out. When I heard it was Golden Boy, I was extremely excited and it was a blessing because I had been such a big fan of their outfit, as well as Oscar and how he made an empire off of his own doing. I remember when I met Oscar for the first time. I remember when I was younger thinking about great fights with Ike Quartey and Ricardo Mayorga and Fernando Vargas.

PC: How motivating is it to have a big-time promoter now backing you?

ZC: I won't lie, it feels good. Real good. It's a blessing and I deserve it. I put in the work. I know for a fact I'm one of the hardest working athletes, without question, and I have the best team in my corner. You can attest. You know what I've been through and the ups and the downs so far. I'm always gonna grind. I'm always gonna work hard. It's motivating because I know what I'm capable of. One thing people will say about me is I have a huge following and I'm loyal to people that are loyal to me, and they've been loyal to me, so you're only going to get that in return full fold.

PC: What do you feel you need to do on your end to uphold your end of the deal as a fighter?

ZC: Win, plain and simple, and bring belts back to Seattle. I have a big following of people and they are ready to fly out wherever I fight. Win and bring excitement for the fans, like I do in my fights. I can bang and box and fight off the ropes in real fights, not just sparring, and continue to be loyal to Golden Boy Promotions for my contract.

PC: What would you like to get most from being with Golden Boy; exposure, more fights, meaningful fights?

ZC: To be honest, I want it all and I want to be greedy about it. I definitetly want to fight. I'm looking to fight hopefully 6 to 8 times this year and stay around weight, so when they call and say, "Are you ready to go," I can say yeah and stay active. I also want to help in the functions that Golden Boy does to give back to the communities and the fans. I definitely enjoy stuff like that because when you're in this type of position, you have to share Love.

PC: How soon can we expect a fight date and announcement?

ZC: Let me practice my post-fight comment when that's asked. I'ma leave that up to my manager and Golden Boy Promotions, and definitely stay ready for what is next (laughing). I'm definitely ready though; by mid to end of April.

PC: Congratulations again on the big news. I look forward to seeing you take full advantage of this opportunity. Keep me posted. Is there anything else you would like to add?

ZC: Thank you again. I appreciate that, but this is just the beginning. I have to go out and prove myself and show what I can do and that I can live up to the expectations that I have, not only for Golden Boy, but for myself.



[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]

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