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Jeison Rosario Training Camp Notes
WBA and IBF 154-pound champion Jeison Rosario stated his
intention to go toe-to-toe with WBC Super Welterweight
Champion Jermell Charlo when they clash this Saturday,
September 26 live on SHOWTIME PPV (7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT) in
the main event of part two of CHARLO DOUBLEHEADER, presented
by Premier Boxing Champions.
“Fight fans are going to get a war on September 26,” said
Rosario. “Charlo and I are two of the biggest punchers in
the division. We both fight with a lot of pride. We’re two
very aggressive fighters who want to fight in the middle of
the ring, so we’re going to bring the action and make this
an epic war.”
The 25-year-old Rosario has had a smooth training camp for
the biggest fight of his career, despite the pandemic, while
training in Miami, Fla. with his coach Luis “Chiro” Perez.
“Even on a normal basis, we stay in a training camp house by
ourselves, so this was just more of the same,” said Rosario.
“There’s no family and no outsiders. It’s nothing but
training. We know we’re facing a strong, explosive opponent,
so we’ve done everything during this 16-week camp to prepare
for him. We brought in great sparring partners with similar
style to Charlo’s, so I’m as ready for him as I possibly can
be.”
Rosario returns to the ring after a career-altering victory
over Julian Williams in January, in which he stopped
Williams to capture his WBA and IBF titles. Despite the
sensational victory, Rosario knows that Charlo will present
different challenges than he faced going up against
Williams.
“I think Williams was probably more skilled technically, and
he was harder to hit because he changes up his angles a
lot,” said Rosario. “Charlo is stronger, a bigger puncher,
and I think he’s a more athletic fighter than Williams.
We’re preparing for the best Charlo and we know that means
we have to be at our very best too.”
Prior to the Williams fight, Rosario began working Perez for
the first time, and he credits that work, the first “real
training camp” of his career, to his career-best performance
against Williams.
“Training with Coach Perez has led to a lot of improvements
and allowed me to reach my full potential,” said Rosario.
“My camps for the Williams fight and the Charlo fight are
the first real training camps of my career. After I fought
Jorge Cota, I knew that I needed to make changes and be more
dedicated.
“There are no distractions or excuses for me now. A better
diet, better conditioning and more focused training has all
played a part in the changes. For this fight, I’m going to
be even stronger than I was against Williams. My body wasn’t
really used to the training camp going into that fight. My
body is responding even better after my second 16-week
training camp.”
Hailing from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, a hotbed of
baseball talent that has produced household names such as
David Ortiz, Albert Pujols and Manny Ramirez, Rosario has
quickly made himself the fighting pride of the island. His
experience growing up living on the street as a child has
motivated him to reach this point, even if he didn’t always
see himself reaching this peak in the sport.
“I fight with a lot of pride and emotion,” said Rosario. “I
just try to be myself, but I also want to represent the
Dominican Republic the best way I can. I fight for my kids
and my country and I leave it all in the ring. One of my
biggest motivations for me was my economic status as a
child. Living in the street as a kid, we were very poor. I
didn’t want my kids to go through that, so that fed my
hunger to provide for my family and take care of them the
best I can.
“I always knew that I could be good, but I never imagined
being in this position. God’s timing is perfect. Everything
came when it was supposed to. I’ve been very lucky and got
the opportunities at the right time. I started training with
Coach Perez at the right time. I got the Williams fight at
the right time and took full advantage of the opportunity.
Now, we’re here with a chance to unify the division, and I
believe September 26 will be my time.”
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