"Manny Pacquiao started off as a sparring partner. He was a 106-pounder and he was that cat that nobody paid attention to. Manny Pacquiao went through a lot in his life and look at where he is now. Look where Bernard Hopkins is now. These are all people that went through the struggle and had to hustle and be gangsters to take care of their families and be real soldiers of the streets, and they turned it over into another life. Bernard Hopkins, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather, they all had a tough childhood. I'm a part of that foundation, so I don't know what people are thinking, but I think they know that I'm special and that's why they are staying away from me," stated welterweight Cleotis Pendarvis as he talked about the struggles he's had in securing fights. Check out what else the talented southpaw had to say as Pendarvis talks about the work he put in to help Amir Khan prepare for Paul McCloskey, his surprise that Naazim Richardson did not want him to help Shane Mosley prepare for Manny Pacquiao, and much more.
PC: What's good with you man?
CP: Ah man, just chillin' out in Cali. I'm just posted right now, man, getting ready to get back in the gym. I just had a little situation that came up.
PC: When someone looks up your record and sees that you've been inactive since June of 2010, what would you tell them has been the holdup?
CP: I had a couple of fights scheduled. One was against James de La Rosa, but he didn't want to take it. It's really nothing happening out there. It's a lot of people that's talking and everything, and I just want to set the record straight. A lot of cats are saying, "Cleotis not doing this" and "Cleotis not doing that", but the simple fact is there are a lot of people that just don't want to fight me period.
PC: Are you now willing to move around in weight since it's been so tough to secure a fight at welterweight?
CP: I'm actually willing to move around however I have to to become a prospect level again and then surpass that to become a world champion. I want people to see that everybody does make mistakes, but it's how you bounce back from those mistakes you made. I'm ready to bounce back and really prove myself in this game.
PC: You recently got some work in with Amir Khan. How is he looking and what type of work did you guys get in?
CP: It was some really good work. I definitely gave him some good work. Amir Khan is looking good and he's going to be ready for his fight. He's in real good shape. We went 3, 4 and then 6 rounds and it was pretty good work. I was supposed to go with him to the Philippines, but I had got an infection under my eye from the gloves or whatever, so I couldn't make it out there. I had to stay.
PC: You've worked with several world champions over the course of your career. Which fighter would you say you learned the most from?
CP: As far as learning? The one I learned the most from? It wasn't from the fighter as much as it was who would come to the camps, like Bernard Hopkins and people like that. That's who I was getting my knowledge from. The fighters who I was working with, I wasn't really...I was doing my thing. I was actually holding my own against all of them, so the knowledge actually came from the outside and different cultures that have been in this game for 40 years or so. They tell me, "You definitely can be world champion. What's going on? Why no one has signed you?" I just tell them, "It's a lot of haters...a lot!"
PC: You're kind of the guy people like to bring in when preparing for a southpaw. You've worked with Shane Mosley in the past. Why aren't you in camp to help him prepare for Manny Pacquiao?
CP: Truth be told, Naazim don't want me to go to camp right now with Shane because I guess he wants to put his own little twist to it. I guess he got Shane working with his sons and nephews and most of them are right-handed fighters and I think Shane needs the right work. You know, I'm getting out of that sparring partner look though because cats really don't appreciate the skills when I do bring them to the table. Shane wanted me out there, but I heard Naazim was like, "No!" Shane knows I'm going to give him quality work and I will have him ready for any southpaw that he will fight. I don't know what to say. I hear Ricardo Williams has been going out there and giving Shane a little work, but other than that man, good luck to him.
PC: Are there any dates you are hearing for your next fight? I know you don't want June to roll around and be out for a year.
CP: I'm looking at April 23rd or June 1st. whatever day it is, I'm going out to smash whoever it is that's in front of me. I'm going out to smash them and hit them with the 3 and 4-punch combinations. They ain't gonna see the speed coming. They won't be able to understand the footwork. I'm a totally different fighter than I was before. I'm older now, a lot smarter, a lot slicker and I hit harder. They gonna feel it. The thing is, are they gonna let these cats feel it? A lot of cats talk, but I fight. I'm not trying to disrespect nobody in the game, but I'm tired of being disrespected in the game. I feel like people always got things to say about me that's not true, so I'm going to tell the truth. I done been ready to fight Mike Dallas a couple of times and they didn't even want to go through with it. James de La Rosa, the same thing; they didn't want to go through with it. I couldn't get a rematch with Mauricio Herrera or Terrance Cauthen. I feel like they all caught me at about 85%; my losses and my draws. I'm from South Central, Los Angeles and I was going through some things. I ain't gonna even lie; I lost my brother, I almost lost my mother, and I lost my daughter, but I'm still standing and I'm still here. Now what? Now what? Give me a chance. I am 11-3-2 with 4 knockouts, but I got the State Championship of California at 140 pounds. But all of that is behind me. In my eyes, I'm 0-0-0. Now it's time to get these W's and do what I have to do. If y'all want to judge me on my past, go ahead, that's cool, but when y'all see the Cleotis Pendarvis that's coming to the game now, y'all gonna forget about the past.
Manny Pacquiao started off as a sparring partner. He was a 106-pounder and he was that cat that nobody paid attention to. Manny Pacquiao went through a lot in his life and look at where he is now. Look where Bernard Hopkins is now. These are all people that went through the struggle and had to hustle and be gangsters to take care of their families and be real soldiers of the streets, and they turned it over into another life. Bernard Hopkins, Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather, they all had a tough childhood. I'm a part of that foundation, so I don't know what people are thinking, but I think they know that I'm special and that's why they are staying away from me right now in that ring. It's gonna be a whirlwind when I come through though because I'm going to have people on my side, like you, and it's gonna be even more of a whirlwind because it's gonna be all real ones around me. That's all I'm going to allow in my atmosphere is real ones.
PC: Let me know when you hear something. I wish you the best this year. Give me some closing thoughts.
CP: You know what I learned, man? You never really eliminate the haters in your life; you just get new ones. I got the most respect for Floyd Mayweather because he came from a certain cloth and he stayed true to what he believes and he has to deflect haters all day long. A lot of people hate the fact that he's out there and he's living, but that man appreciates what he got in life and he's worked for it. When some new things happen, I'm definitely gonna call you, so stay up.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]