Gabriel Rosado and Daniel Lemieux held a pre-fight conference call as each man was winding down training camp in advance of their clash this weekend. Take a look at the entire collection of questions and quotes here.
Gabriel Rosado
Thanks, Robert. I’m having a great camp, I’m excited about this fight. This is the last week of sparring and I’m just ready to roll.
Q
Can you talk about the difficulty and maybe the hesitance in parting ways with a trainer you’ve worked with so long?
G. Rosado
Yes, Billy Briscoe, he was my trainer for about 10 years. But it just kind of got to the point where I just felt that it wasn’t anything personal, it’s just business and I thought that in order for me to take it to that next level, I had to make a move. And Jesse Reid is one of the best trainers in the world. He’s trained 25 World Champions and it’s funny how it just worked out.
I just went to the gym and I asked if he could wrap my hands up one time and he wrapped me up. And then I asked him if he could work with me in the corner when I was getting ready for a sparring session and he just started giving me advice and I started listening to his advice and it was actually working. We just clicked from there and I just feel that I’m a much better fighter right now and I’m learning a lot of new things.
Q
I can only imagine, that maybe it was hard in having that discussion with Billy, saying I’m going to try something else. Is it difficult, emotionally, having to do that?
G. Rosado
It was difficult, but the thing is that me and Billy, we’re like family and when I brought it to Billy’s attention, what he told me is he felt that if that’s what I feel that I need to do to progress, he was all in and he said it was fine. We parted ways on a good note; I spoke with him not so long ago, a couple-probably about last week. So, everything’s all good, man. He just wants me to be better and I just feel like I’m having a great camp right now.
Q
You usually train in Philadelphia for your fights, if I’m not mistaken; where are you training with Jesse?
G. Rosado
I train with Jesse-I moved to Los Angeles so Jesse’s gym is actually about a 10 minute ride up the block in Burbank. I just go up, I’m in the gym usually around 11 in the morning and that’s when we do our start and we do our workouts. I’m back and forth from Los Angeles to Philly. I have a place in Philly and I have a place in Los Angeles. When it’s training camp, my last training camp, when I fought Vera, I did it in Los Angeles. I’m doing my training camp now in Los Angeles.
Q
What is your perspective on the fact that, they look at Lemieux as a guy that has to get past the gate keeper, Gabe Rosado, that’s how they label you, to move onto the bigger and better things. But I know you still have aspirations yourself, so how important is it to, yes, be in good fights all the time, but you got to win at some point, don’t you?
G. Rosado
Yes. Okay, I feel that I’ve had controversial decisions. I think the fans spoke up loudly when I fought J’Leon Love, and they all felt that that was a fight that I won. And then with Peter Quillin, it was a fight where I honestly felt I was on the verge of getting a knockout; I felt like I had the momentum on my side. I had Quillin on his heels. And it’s a fight that the fans were seeing this and the commentators all had me up on that fight, when the fight got stopped; and it got stopped in the championship rounds.
So, I think, they’re losses, but they’re fights that people say ‘He was winning on the commentators’ score card,’ it was a fight that people felt that-it’s not like taking a loss where I just flat out lost. When I fought Charlo, I flat out lost to Charlo. It was a fight that I think a lot of that had to do with me thinking I could make 154-pounds again and I killed myself to make the weight.
But when we’re talking middleweight, the only guy that really beat me legit at the middleweight division was Gennady Golovkin. But when you look at the Love fight and you look at the Peter Quillin fight, those are the fights that the fans felt I was winning and so did I. So, the fans, they know better and you can’t fool the fans and I think that’s why I’m getting this fight and, honestly, I really don’t feel that Lemieux’s the favorite in this fight.
The media might think that, but I think the fans will get this fight and Lemieux has something to prove because this is his first fight in America; not too many people know Lemieux. People know what I bring to the table and I think with me having Jesse Reid in my corner now and having a new team and doing training camp in Los Angeles, I think you’re going to see a much better fighter in me and I just can’t wait to prove that on the 6th.
Q
Are you insulted by being the “B-side” or do you just feel like I have losses that are better than what they look like on paper and so let me just go in there and take care of this kid?
G. Rosado
Yes. I’m really not insulted by it because, like I said, at the end of the day, what matters to me most is what the fans think and the fans keep me relevant and they want to keep seeing me fight. And I just use it as motivation. I think Lemieux, he’s the one with the title, he’s the one with the strap so he should be the A-side. I think I have the bigger name and I fought the bigger opponents and things like that. But, we are fighting for a title and traditionally the guy with the belt is the one with the A-side.
Q
Robert, from a promoter’s standpoint, from a matchmaker’s standpoint, what does this represent for both fighters?
R. Diaz
Well, I know a lot of times we’re into that culture, it’s a crossroad fight. But look, when you have fighters like David Lemieux and you have fighters like Gabe Rosado, fighting, bringing it together, putting these guys in, I think, after the fight, the fans are going to be like “wow, what a fight.” That’s what keeps boxing alive. We’re too quick to write off a guy because oh, he lost a fight. So what? As long as it’s a great fight, they don’t lose. The fans win; boxing wins.
So, let’s enjoy it while it’s still there. Hey, let’s see; this is going to answer a lot of questions. Gabe is focused, he’s ready, he’s hungry. He knows what this represents. He told you, new trainer, new weight division. I expect fireworks and I’m very excited about this fight.
Q
When you step out of the ring and you’re frustrated, what turns your frustration into a desire to turn it to go back to the ring?
G. Rosado
Yes, it definitely helps when I went through some tough losses in my career, the fans definitely speak up and they definitely show me love on social media and it’s mostly love more than it is negativity. And they definitely motivate me. The fans definitely keep me relevant because they speak up and they speak their minds. So, I definitely appreciate that and it definitely makes me want to go to the gym and work harder.
This fight right here is a fight where I want to win and I definitely want to win it for the fans because it’s kind of like they’re just waiting for me to get my break already. They’re just waiting for me to just get that win and I think, right now, I’m training to my full potential. I’m training really hard. Regardless of the bad decisions, or whatever the case may be, I think a lot of it had to do with me needing to be a lot more disciplined and refocused and I think that’s what I’m doing now.
Q
Talk about what you hear, in some of the messages that you’ve heard from fans that make you believe that you still have it and that you should go back.
G. Rosado
A lot of people just say that I’m an inspiration to them, things like that; I get that a lot and I think it’s because they know my background. I never had a big manager, I never started off with a big promoter. I pretty much worked my whole career having a graveyard shift or just doing odd jobs and training for fights. So I’m kind of like the blue collar guy so, I think the fans kind of relate to me and they’re pulling for me because it’s like they can relate to me on that level. I stay humble; I don’t get big headed or anything like that. I stay humble; I always remember where I come from and I think that’s why the fans relate to me.
Q
You said you met Jesse Reid in the gym; when gym was that and then what are some things that stand out that you learned from working with him so far?
G. Rosado
With Reid, he just saw a lot of potential in me. He just has me doing things that I really wasn’t thinking about in the past. He has me sitting on my shots a lot better, using my rotation, using my smarts, and it’s just a lot that I think is definitely going to show on the 6th. My last fight with Vera, even though it wasn’t a traditional boxing match, I did that camp with Jesse Reid, and I was a lot faster in that fight, I was a lot stronger in that fight, and I think we’re just going to use that momentum from that fight coming into this fight.
Q
What gym was it that Jesse Reid was wrapping your hands? Where you met him?
G. Rosado
We train at his gym and Powerhouse. I walked into the gym and asked him to wrap me up, he wrapped me up. And then I asked him to help me work in the sparring session, and he did. And he just started giving me advice; I started listening. And I was pulling it off in the sparring session and it just kind of made me feel like this is the guy I need.
Q
Hey, Gabe, I was just wondering of what you think of David Lemieux, obviously, he’s a big puncher and he’s got a lot of knockouts, but what do you think of him as a fighter and what his record is in terms of the competition that he’s fought throughout his career?
G. Rosado
I’m not taking David Lemieux lightly. I think he comes in there and he tries to go for the kill; he tries to go for the knockout, throwing a lot of big shots. It’s nothing that I haven’t seen in the past, I think I’ve fought the best Middleweights out there right now. I think I just need to use my experience and my ring smarts in this fight and we have a strong game plan in what we’re going to do and I feel that my game plan is going to succeed.
Q
What do you think about the level of competition, mostly, that he’s faced?
G. Rosado
I really don’t know much of who he fought. I know the two names that I really know are Marco Antonio Rubio and Fernando Guerrero. I just thought that-he’s a young guy so I’m not going to take him lightly. If he’s in the gym, he’s working on getting better. Maybe he learned from those mistakes and maybe he’s working on being a better fighter so I’m preparing myself for the best Lemieux and I’m just being smart and I feel that if I stick to my game plan, I should win.
Q
Gabe, do you feel like this is a fight that you absolutely must win?
G. Rosado
I look at every fight like that. But I think this time around I’m a lot more mature, I’ve been through a lot of iffy experiences in boxing. So I know what I need to do; I know what mistakes not to do, what I did in the past. Regardless of the decisions, the bad calls, or whatever the case may be, I feel that I take some blame for those losses as well.
I felt that maybe I should have been a little more disciplined, a little more focused, and I think living in L.A. right now and having Jesse Reid as a coach is definitely making me a lot more mature as a fighter. It’s making me more disciplined and I kind of see the big picture.
I don’t want to look past David Lemieux, but the goal is to be a World Champion so I definitely feel that winning this fight puts me in that position where I can get a world title again and I can fight one of the champions out there.
Q
What were some of the mistakes that you felt that you made in the past, in terms of not being disciplined?
G. Rosado
They weren’t big things, it’s the little things that mean a lot. I think, maybe, I wasn’t resting well enough. Maybe the diet wasn’t as good as it should have been. It’s just those little things. Now, when I train, I go straight to the house and I rest. We have a rhythm going on; we get up at five in the morning, do our rope work and then we relax for a little bit and then we go to the boxing gym. There’s a routine. Every day is a routine; there’s a schedule. I’m resting better, I’m eating better. So I think once you fall into a rhythm of doing things right, you see much better improvement. I think that’s what I’m doing now; that’s making a difference.
Q
We talked a little bit about some of the close losses that you had in recent times, but you did have that win in the BKB event in the summer against Bryan Vera. It was a nice knockout.
Can you describe what that was like and, also, even though it didn’t count as an official boxing match, the fact that you won and looked good and knocked the guy out, if that had a big impact on you getting this kind of fight on HBO?
G. Rosado
Absolutely, absolutely. It definitely was a different experience, but at the end of the day when the bell rang, it felt like a fight. The only difference is there were no ropes, but everything was boxing, all boxing rules; everything. Getting that win definitely got me the momentum going for this fight. So I feel very confident going into this fight because I felt strong against Bryan Vera. I did something against Bryan Vera that Chavez couldn’t do. I did everything the same as a regular boxing match. I had a strong training camp and I think people saw my skills in that fight and they saw a different me. They saw me faster, they saw me sharper, they saw me sitting on my shots. People took notice that I looked real good and it was the first time that me and Jesse Reid went into a fight. I was taking Jesse Reid’s advice. And the round that I actually knocked Bryan Vera out was the round that Jesse Reid told me to go get him.
L. Milner
Alright, thanks. We are going to turn it over, but Gabe, do you have any closing comments?
G. Rosado
No. No, that’s it. I just got to head to the gym and get ready for sparring.
R. Diaz
Gabe, thank you so much, man. Thanks for taking the time and we’ll look forward to seeing you next week, man. Take care.
Next on the call, he’s definitely one of the most popular fighters in Canada and he’s looking, on December 6th, to come in and make a big splash into the US. Again, fighting 12 rounds for the NABF middleweight title is David Lemieux. He can be introduced by our co-promoter, Camille Estephan, President of Eye of the Tiger Management. Camille?
Camille Estephan
Hello, everyone. Thank you, Robert. Nice talking to you folks today and very much looking forward to next week in New York. We’re calling this ‘David Lemieux version two.’ Very proudly saying that his camp has gone fantastically well; we’re exactly where we want to be and looking forward to grabbing this opportunity. What a wonderful opportunity it is. Gabe Rosado, we have a lot of respect for him, but we’re there to splash David Lemieux’s name all over the boxing world and we’re confident this is going to happen December 6th.
I’m going to turn it over to David. He will talk to you a little bit about his feelings about the fight, what his training’s been like, and then we’ll be opening up for questions.
David Lemieux
Hello, hello. Here is David. How’s it going?
Camp has been going great. I’m in the best shape right now I have ever been. I’ve trained very well against Fernando Guerrero, but nothing like I’ve been training now and I’ve reached some highpoints that I never thought I could reach and become so strong. My punches are coming off very, very well. And I’ve been doing some 10-rounds, 12-rounds sparring. We’re ready for anything. The shape is there, the endurance is there, and the power is more there than ever.
So, this is going to be an exciting fight for the fans and for everybody, and it’s going to be brutal. I’m very excited to be back in the ring. It’s the first time in the US as a pro so it’s going to be very interesting fighting at the Barclays Center on HBO for a main event. I’m very confident that I did everything I had to do. I’m not fighting for the fans; me, I’m fighting for my family. I want to feed my children. So I know that whatever I do is going to reward the fans and make sure that the fans are always satisfied because, as a pro, I’m there to do the best I can do. So let’s get down to business on December 6th.
Q
Hey, David, there are some people who might qualify someone like Gabriel Rosado who has been in some tough fights, but lost, say that he might be kind of slipping into the role of opponent. Is that a dangerous assumption to make against a guy like this?
D. Lemieux
Well, I don’t care what other people are saying about Gabriel Rosado. Whenever they give me a fighter, I don’t care about whatever is said outside. I take whatever they give me and then we start studying our subject. We’ve been studying Gabriel Rosado for a while now and we’ve been training to perfection to fight him and we’re not taking anything lightly. Gabriel Rosado’s a very good fighter. He’s very durable; he’s been in there with a lot of guys, a lot of tough guys.
I’m not really listening because any fighter can be dangerous and for sure he’s still young, he’s still fresh, he’s not beaten up. He’s going to come to fight and he has a lot of gas. He’s going to bring good stuff to the table, but once he meets me it’s going to be a head-on collision.
Q
Dave, how does Rosado stack up to, say, Marco Antonio Rubio at the time you fought him or even Joachim Alcine at the time you fought him, which were fights that you lost?
D. Lemieux
Well, there’s a very easy answer for that question. I’m nowhere near who I was when I fought Rubio or a controversial fight like Alcine, which I still to this day, don’t believe I really lost that fight, but still, there was a lot of changes that have been made. I believe, also, everything happens for a reason so I’m not taking away anything that’s happened in the past. I take it in a good way. Either it breaks you or makes you better. So it’s making me better now.
So I really put those fights in the past and if I had to do it again, I have zero concerns about fighting Rubio or Alcine. I was a different guy back then and now there’s a much more evolved man that is here now. David version 2.0.
Q
What are the circumstances that are different? Who’s training you now as opposed to who was training you then; management; what are the changes?
D. Lemieux
Actually, everything. Management, trainers, nutrition, nutritionist; everything from A to Zed. I have a new trainer since the Rubio fight with Marc Ramsay that has been going tremendously well. Also, we added a physical conditioning trainer, who is Jarek Kulesza, who has been doing a lot with me and it’s been going great-I’ve never had that in the past, personal, physical conditioning trainer and, I think, it has helped the rise of my career. It has brought me to a different level.
I am thankful to God that I’m with Camille Estephan, the best manager in the world, I believe. I always tell him, what is he doing in boxing, Camille. He’s too much of a good person to be in this sport. But, it’s a rough sport and you need a lot of rough people; he’s a rough man, but I’m very thankful that he’s on my side and we’re achieving a lot of great things.
I changed all my nutrition. I have a new nutritionist; I have a guy who does my meals before me-for every day I have two meals that are premade. So we’re counting all the calories and there’s no fat on me; it’s all muscle. Everything I eat, everything is all calculated. I’ve never had that in the past and we’re just putting more good on our side than ever before so if you like you said, everything from A to Zed has changed in my career to make me a World Champion in the future.
I’m wondering how long did it take you to-or do you feel like you’ve put those losses totally behind you or are there still people that you see that question what the heck happened?
D. Lemieux
I think all that has changed. I know that it has changed in my life, in my head. I know it’s changed, but the people are starting to know slowly and slowly it has changed, also, if they saw my last fight, especially against Fernando Guerrero, they saw I was in tremendous shape, I was in the best physical shape of my life, I was stronger, I was sharp. If you watch closely, you can see not just a puncher, but also a good boxer in there and so we’re mixing everything up and people, when they hear David Lemieux, they think he’s good for four rounds. He’s going to come in there and try to knock him out and then if he doesn’t, well, it’s no longer to his advantage.
Well, they’re going to have a surprise because I’m bringing a lot of tools to the table. And I’m not just going to be a puncher, I’m going to be a very good boxer and I’m going to be strong until the end, from the first to the twelfth; whatever needs to be done, it’s getting better and better with each fight. I think this fight is going to be the peak of my 25th year in life. It’s going to be extremely exciting and I’m very excited to give the fans what they want to see and give them a different perspective from what they’ve seen in the past, probably. Let them judge after this fight who David Lemieux is.
Q
David, do you think that there’s any Middleweight in the world that can stand up to your power?
D. Lemieux
I believe that there are a lot of great fighters out there and there’s a lot of guys who can, yes, for sure take punches and roll with it. Anything is possible. But I’m well-prepared I’m not worried about any Middleweight in the world, but for sure some guys will be tougher to put out and I’m looking forward to it, but anything is possible. I’m not saying it is impossible.
Q
I’m wondering, do you feel like there’s a little bit of, I don’t know about pressure, but a great desire on your behalf, to, not only beat Gabe Rosado, a known fighter that’s been in with everybody, but’s been on a little bit of a losing streak, to go in there and make a real statement to say, you know what, I want those bigger fights and I should be in those bigger fights sooner than later.
D. Lemieux
Absolutely. This is the whole meaning of my long trainings and hard work and preparations; this is where we’ve been waiting to be headed since the beginning of my career. Now we know how to do it compared to before where we were just guessing on okay, let’s get there, but there were some flaws in my base. So now everything has been changed and everything is there and I’m ready to mingle in with all these great Middleweights. There’s a lot of great fighters out there, like you named them. We have a lot of-I have a lot of options. There’s a lot of fun opportunities for the fans, especially to watch some great fights with us.
But, for sure, I’m looking right now for next week, December 6th, with Rosado because he’s a serious dude. He comes to fight and we’re taking him very seriously and I’m training extremely hard for it and my only concern right now is him and after that the doors are opened. First, I have to beat this guy and then we’ll walk in. But I’m extremely confident, I’m not worried. I never like to look too far in the future; it comes soon enough.
Q
Camille, can you talk about, in your mind, as the person that guides his career, where you want to go, if everything goes well for your side next Saturday?
C. Estephan
I echo the sentiments that David has. We really don’t want to look past-we take it a fight at a time. But, there’s no secret that the middleweight division is a very hot division right now. It’s a great division with Canelo, Cotto, Golovkin and the rest of them, Quillin, etc. And any one of those fights would be a good fight for the fans, would be a good fight for us, but Rosado is, maybe, underestimated because of his streak of losses in boxing, putting apart the BKB fight, but certainly not somebody to be overlooked right now. We got to take care of that business and we’re reaching for the stars, man.
I believe David’s capable of beating any one of these guys when he’s properly prepared.
Q
David could you talk about making your US debut and what it means to be fighting at Barclays Center and what kind of emotions you’re going to be having on that night?
D. Lemieux
Ever since I got the news that I’d be fighting, doing the main event on HBO in Brooklyn at the Barclays Center, I’ve been extremely happy and extremely excited for this fight. So I’ve been training tremendously hard for it. I’ve had my hardest camp ever. I have never ever slept so much in camp after each training; coming home, being exhausted, being with my daughter. Sleeping at the same time as my daughter, I’m like wow, I’m really exhausted after these trainings. It’s funny because I always said to myself, I only need four, five hours sleep, but now it’s not the same thing anymore. So, we’ve been having a great camp and I’m extremely excited to be fighting at the Barclays Center.
It’s going to be exciting and it’s a great opportunity for me and also for my whole team, for my family, for all the fans, everybody that supports me, everybody out there, it’s going to be a great fight, December 6th. We’re very excited to be fighting there.
Q
Camille, could you talk about that a little bit, too? About what it would mean for David to get a win at Barclays Center and what it would mean for Eye of the Tiger?
C. Estephan
It means the world to us of course, David is one of the main guys on the team. He has the potential to be a great one for many, many years. He’s young, he’s hungry, he’s disciplined, and couldn’t be more proud of him in his work ethic; so, we’re prepared.
But the other thing that we should mention is that, you do the main event on HBO at the Barclays Center, but as well it will be featured at the Bell Centre in Montreal in another show that will have a few thousand people where Pascal is fighting on the InterBox card. So, David’s fight will be projected on the big screen. So the fans in Montreal are very, very excited about that.
He’s basically, I don’t know if it’s ever happened before, where a guy makes a main event in two shows, simultaneously, one in New York; one in Montreal. Very exciting opportunity, and we’re going to grab it.
L. Milner
Okay. David, Camille, if you guys could make some closing comments.
D. Lemieux
We said pretty much everything that there is to say. We’re extremely excited for December 6th and we’re looking forward to it and it’s going to be a great fight. A great opportunity. Thank you.
