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Stephen Fulton Jr. vs. Danny Roman & David Morrell Jr.
vs. Kalvin Henderson Final Press Conference
Unified WBC and WBO 122-pound world champion Stephen Fulton
Jr. and former unified champion Danny Roman went face to
face for the first time Thursday at the final press
conference before they meet in the SHOWTIME main event this
Saturday, June 4 from The Armory in Minneapolis in a Premier
Boxing Champions event.
The press conference also featured WBA Super Middleweight
Champion and Minneapolis fan-favorite David Morrell Jr. and
Kalvin Henderson previewing their co-main event showdown on
the SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING® telecast beginning at 9
p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT. Kicking off the telecast will be the
premiere of Gervonta Davis’ sensational stoppage of Rolando
Romero last Saturday night as he defended his WBA
Lightweight Title in front of a star-studded, sold-out crowd
that included celebrities across the entertainment and
sporting gamut.
Philadelphia’s Fulton will look for another signature
victory on Saturday, after unifying super bantamweight
titles last November by winning a close decision over
Brandon Figueroa in one of 2021’s best fights. He will be
opposed by Los Angeles’ Roman, who can regain his unified
status in the division in a matchup built to deliver
fireworks.
Here is what the fighters had to say Thursday:
STEPHEN FULTON JR.
“I’ve been recognized more since unifying the titles and it
feels great to be able to take pictures with my fans.
“It meant everything to me to unify the belts because I said
I wanted to do that. When I won my first title in early 2021
and then unified later in the year, that was an amazing
feeling because I’ve been through some things leading up to
that fight. Not just my camp, but home. So there was a lot
going on with me. But mentally I was there and I stuck
through it and unified and now I’m here.
“The last four fighters I faced were undefeated, so I’m used
to this road. I always step up to the occasion. I always
show up when I get to these stages. My whole life has been
like that. Right now I am living in the moment. I haven’t
been looking past anything. We’re living for today. So when
Saturday comes, I’m going to live for it and have fun and
I’m going to enjoy it. I’m going to enjoy defeating him.
“It feels good to be in the position and be the hunted. It
feels good to be in this position because I’ve called him
out when he had his titles and they didn’t look my
direction. But then when they didn’t have the titles they
looked my direction because I had it. Now I’m giving him the
opportunity that he didn’t give me.
“You’ve all seen I can fight on the inside, I can fight on
the outside. I can fight whichever way I want. So how I wake
up Saturday morning is going to determine how I fight
Saturday night. I can do whatever I want. I don’t have one
style to me.
“He’s lost three times, and maybe one draw. There’s four
ways to get to him. There’s no way to get to me yet. There’s
no one who’s figured that out.
“I’m more focused. I’m hungry. It’s gonna be a good fight.
Just be there. I’m going to have fun. I’m going to have a
ball in that ring. I feel like when I took it serious
earlier in my career, I wasn’t having any fun. Now I’m
taking the risk. That’s why I picked him and chose him.”
DANNY ROMAN
“This is the biggest opportunity of my life and we’re here
to take advantage of it. I’ve had obstacles too. When I lost
my titles to MJ, [Murodjon Akhmadaliev] there were politics
involved. But that’s boxing and now I’m focused on who’s in
front of me now and that’s Stephen Fulton. I’m not
overlooking my opponent.
“It’s been a year since I last fought, and I’m paying
attention to that. This opportunity doesn’t come around
twice so I know what I have to do to get that ‘W.’ I’ve been
in his position before and you don’t want to lose those
belts. I was a unified champion too. So I know what it
takes. He’s going to try and look his best, and I’m going to
go in there and give everything I have to get him.
“This fight will be like a chess game and whoever can make
the right adjustments will win the fight.
“We’re going to have fun. I expect a great fight. He’s
giving his best, I’m giving my best.
“It means everything to represent my Mexican-American
culture. We’re just another step away toward making history
just like the great Mexican fighters. It means a lot.
“We’re here to win, and we’re going to win.”
DAVID MORRELL JR.
“I came here from Cuba in 2019 and I’m so happy that I was
able to follow the guidance of Luis DeCubas Sr. and be
embraced so much by the state of Minnesota. It has allowed
me to pursue my dreams and be at a high level in my career
as a fighter in Minneapolis. Every fight that I have here at
The Armory becomes more meaningful. The support of the
people here means absolutely everything to me.
“I’m glad that Henderson has the confidence that he thinks
he’s going to win. I appreciate that. But it’s a shame that
he’s going to go home with a loss. I’m happy that he’s
confident like that because we’re going to put on a great
show. But at the same time, when he says that he’s going to
come and win, that’s not going to happen.
“Me and my team are totally focused on Henderson on Saturday
night. After, if you want me to talk about David Benavidez,
I know I can fight against Benavidez because I have the
courage that’s necessary to fight against somebody like
Benavidez. I have the guts. I’m a champion and I know I can
do it.
“This fight is all about opening more doors for me. In more
than one way. First of all, this is my first time fighting
on SHOWTIME. I won’t take that for granted. I know that if I
perform well on this stage, doors will open for me with
SHOWTIME and with my career. Winning this fight is going to
allow me to fulfil the projects and the fights that I want
to have later on in my career and later on this year.
“My prediction for Saturday is that I will be happy. I don’t
have time for pain. I’m too happy right now. My little
brother asked me for a knockout between rounds one and five,
and I guess I’ll have to come through for him. That’s my
prediction.”
KALVIN HENDERSON
“This is a huge opportunity. I have a huge chance to come in
here and try to dethrone the champ. I just want you guys to
know that we’re not here to say, ‘We’re here for the
experience.’ Or just to say, ‘We got an opportunity to fight
for the title.’ We’re here to fight and we’re here to win.
“All of the pressure is off of me. Everybody’s expecting me
to come in here and lose and lay down. The pressure is on
the champ. We’re in his hometown in America. Everybody is
expecting him to do great things, so I just have to go in
there and show out and do what I do best.
“He’s supposed to feel that he’s going to win. He’s the
champ. He’s 6-0 with five KOs. He’s already fought in
Minnesota a few times. He’s supposed to feel that way. And I
feel the same way too. So we’re going to see on Saturday
night.
“I don’t think he’s overlooking me. I think he’s taking this
fight very seriously and he’s trained very seriously for
this fight. But so did I. In the past, I’ve also messed up
my opponents’ future plans for fights after that. That’s
what we’re going to do on Saturday. Mess up all his future
plans.
“I ain’t worried about the crowd being pro-Morrell. It’s not
my first time doing this and skills travel. My prediction
for this fight is pain.”
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