TalkingBoxing with JOAN GUZMAN
"I want to represent the Dominican Republic like Chavez used to represent Mexico"
by
Jason Peck
4/19 - Super-bantamweight has an exceptional surprise neatly tucked away and about to explode, but not just yet. In the division that began the epic trilogy between Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales, World Boxing Organization junior featherweight champion
Joan Guzman destroyed a tough Agapito Sanchez in seven rounds in February of 2004. Alright, so maybe he wasn't tucked away to deep in the pile, but truth be told, Guzman will one day be in the mainstream of the boxing world with a unification clash that has alluded him.
Instead of a unifying this week with World Boxing Council champion Oscar Larios, who has seemingly avoided an attempt at the WBO strap, Guzman faces undefeated Fernando Beltran Jr. this Friday night in a Sycuan Ringside Promotions event in Hidalgo, TX. A win against the dangerous Mexican would keep his dream of unifying a reality, so long as Larios accepts the challenge.
The 28-year old, native of the Dominican Republic has some serious power. A fight fans paradise with 17 wins by way of the knockout. Enough so that Ring Magazine labeled his knockout punch, "terrifying." Guzman gave us his thoughts on the upcoming Beltran fight and a future Larios showdown with translations provided by Ricardo Lois, Guzman’s top-notch personal relations manager.
JOAN "LITTLE TYSON" GUZMAN
Jason Peck: How has training been going?
Joan "Little Tyson" Guzman: I’ve been training for Chololo, now I’m in the final days before the fight.
Jason Peck: What do you see in your next opponent, Fernando Beltran Jr.?
Joan "Little Tyson" Guzman: I haven’t seen him fight to be honest, but he hasn’t lost in 24 fights, which makes him dangerous. That’s why I’m coming into this fight strong.
Jason Peck: Is it safe to assume the unification fight with Oscar Larrios is out?
Joan "Little Tyson" Guzman: I don’t know if they’re rumors or what; there’s talk of him fighting Tapia next, or Israel Vasquez. He’s not mentioning Joan Guzman, so you can figure it out.
Jason Peck: If unification is out, then what other options are there to knock Larrios down as #1?
Joan "Little Tyson" Guzman: I’d fight Israel Vasquez or Mahyar Monshipour, he’s a French champ. I’d like to unify the titles before I move up.
Jason Peck: What did you think of his last performance against Wayne McCullough?
Joan "Little Tyson" Guzman: When he went to sign the contract to fight Larios, he mentioned it wasn’t an easy fight. It was a good action fight, no fighter is easy. But 4-5 days ago a news conference came on and they said there was a shoulder injury so he [Larios] couldn’t fight anymore.
Jason Peck: What about 122-lbs that suits you?
Joan "Little Tyson" Guzman: I bring a lot of tools not seen yet, the type of skills and tools seen by champions, and I want to bring the big fights.
Jason Peck: What inspires you to fight now?
Joan "Little Tyson" Guzman: I recognize the Dominican Republic had a tradition with baseball and we had a champion in track at 400 meters. I want to be a star in boxing. I was an established amateur fighter, I want to represent the Dominican Republic like [Julio Cesar] Chavez used to represent Mexico, someone to be proud of.
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