"A lot more motivation this time around. The most motivated I've ever been...This time, he's going to have to walk through my blades. I'm going to be the one throwing all the punches and he's going to have to deal with it...He better be prepared because November 20th, he's gonna get knocked out," stated middleweight champion Sergio Martinez, who took a break from training to speak with FightHype about his upcoming November 20 rematch with Paul Williams. You don't want to miss what he had to say. Check it out!
RK: Champ, congratulations and thanks for giving us your time. How is training camp going so far?
SM: This is the best one ever. A lot more motivation this time around. The most motivated I've ever been.
RK: What kind of things did you take away from the first fight that you plan to implement in this one?
SM: I'm going to have a lot more endurance this time around so I can be at full speed the entire twelve rounds. We're working on cutting off the ring so I can bring it straight to him.
RK: You're both champions, both top five pound-for-pound, your styles are polar opposites, and your first fight was a classic. A lot of people are counting on this as being Fight of the Year. How do you feel about that kind of pressure?
SM: Of course it'd be an honor to win that kind of award. It's an honor alone just to be recognized as the best middleweight out there, along with Paul Williams, but at the end of the night, it's going to be my best fight, not Paul Williams'. It's going to be my night, not his or ours.
RK: Jim Lampley once described fighting Paul Williams as "walking into the blades of a helicopter." How do you deal with a guy who stands in front of you every second of every round and is just constantly throwing punches?
SM: Yeah, I'd say that's a pretty accurate description when fighting him, but this time, it's going to be the other way around. This time, he's going to have to walk through my blades. I'm going to be the one throwing all the punches and he's going to have to deal with it.
RK: It seems that lateral movement from an opponent is something Paul Williams struggles with, which you happen to use very well; working the ring, circling the opponent, and then suddenly jumping in range and striking. Is this something you and your trainer are trying to capitalize on?
SM: It's true that's the main characteristic of my style, but what's going to be the difference this time is the pressure. He's going to have to deal with a lot more pressure than in our first fight.
RK: Paul Williams just brought in Carlos Quintana as a sparring partner for his training camp. If I was Paul Williams and I wanted a sparring partner for a rematch against Sergio Martinez, I think I'd want Carlos Quintana. He's a southpaw who likes to use lateral movement like you. He's the only one besides yourself to have given Paul trouble in the ring, but Paul also knocked him out in the first round of their rematch. Are you concerned at all about this?
SM: No, Carlos Quintana is Carlos Quintana. He's not me. He's not Sergio Martinez at all. Williams sparring with Quintana is not going to be a problem for me.
RK: Do you consider this the most important fight of your career up to this point?
SM: Yes. Yes it is.
RK: You gonna try to knock him out?
SM: Of course. It's going to happen.
RK: You lost your first match against Paul Williams in a razor-thin close fight that could have gone either way, but you still earned a lot of respect for it. How disappointed were you after the loss?
SM: Honestly, I don't think I won that fight, but I also don't think Williams won that fight either. It should've been scored a draw. But if Williams is gonna talk like he thinks he won that fight, then he's a liar.
RK: There are a handful of great rivalries out there noted for the wars the guys went through, much lik your first fight with Paul Williams. Ali-Frazier, Bowe-Holyfield, Gatti-Ward are a few that come to mind. Many people feel like Paul Williams is the Ali to your Frazier or vice versa. How does it feel to know that many fans view you in this way and that your first fight was perhaps the first of a classic trilogy?
SM: Wow, it's an honor to be mentioned among those names and rivalries, but honestly, it's not even going to get to that point. I'm not going to let it turn into a war. I'm just gonna go in, finish him off, and end it right there.
RK: Antonio Margarito is the only absolutely convincing loss of your career. How badly do you want a rematch?
SM: As a person, I have no problem with Margarito at all, but as a professional, it's very important that I get revenge.
RK: Would you ever move up to fight the winner of the Super Six tournament?
SM: I don't think so. I'm too small. Small in size; not in heart.
RK: You're older than most fighters in their prime, but guys like Hopkins have carried on much older. Do you feel like you have another good five or ten years left in you?
SM: I don't want to fight for more than another two years, max. Two more years as middleweight champion and then I'll probably retire. I've accomplished pretty much everything I wanted in my career.
RK: And I imagine you don't want to get your brains scrambled either?
SM: (Laughing) Yeah, definitely.
RK: Ricky Hatton has had a few scandals recently and Mayweather had a recent run-in with the law as well. Boxers often seem to drift toward controversy more than other athletes, but you're considered to be one of the more class acts of the sport. How do you manage to stay out of trouble outside the ring?
SM: I think their issues are more the result of the social atmosphere they surround themselves in than anything else. I try to avoid all that and just spend time with my family. Even though we're boxers, we should be looked at more as people than athletes. It's just their personal problems really. I don't go out and party. I don't drink. I don't do drugs. I just train, eat right, and do what my trainer tells me.
RK: Who would you like to fight after Paul?
SM: I don't even think about that stuff until after my next fight. I'm only focused on the day of the fight. I'm not thinking about anyone else but Paul Williams. When I'm done with Paul, I'll sit down and figure that out.
RK: Any final words? Anything you want to tell Paul Williams?
SM: He better be prepared because November 20th, he's gonna get knocked out.
RK: Thanks again and good luck!
SM: Thank you, it was my pleasure.