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Cloutier’s Canada Corner
Adonis
Stevenson: "Cloud Believes He Will Stop Me? Dawson Was
Saying The Same Thing..."
By Daniel Cloutier
MONTRÉAL - Adonis Stevenson was smiling Wednesday morning
when Tavoris Cloud said he has 100 times more chances than
his opponent to win by KO Saturday evening in the ring of
the Bell Centre. Stevenson and Cloud were face to face
Wednesday at the radio station Radio Énergie in Montréal
downtown, for the final press conference of this boxing show
organized by the GYM Group and televised by HBO.
Stevenson (21-1-0), a southpaw from Montréal, is at few
hours to proceed to the first defense of his WBC light
heavyweight championship of the world, a title he won June
8th at Bell Centre, in stopping Chad Dawson (32-3-0) in the
first round of a bout scheduled for 12.
Cloud (24-1-0), a fighter from Tallahassee, Florida, is a
former IBF champion of the world. At his last bout, March
9th at the Barclays Centre in Brooklyn, New York, Cloud lost
his IBF crown to the veteran Bernard Hopkins (56-3-2) with a
defeat by unanimous decision in 12 rounds.
“Cloud can pretend that his experience in world
championships bouts will help him to win by KO Saturday, who
cares? I heard exactly the same thing from Chad Dawson
during the month before our fight in June,” said Stevenson.
“As you know, Dawson lost by TKO, and Cloud will live the
same thing in few days. Cloud loves to attack, and it's
absolutely perfect for me. With his natural style, Cloud
will certainly make technical mistakes, and I will hurt him
each time he will make a mistake. I know that one of his
mistake with be fatal for him. He will fall. I don't know if
it will happens in the first, second, third, sixth or
seventh rounds, but it will happens, it is inevitable. But
between you and me, I am expecting a short bout.”
Cloud said that this Stevenson's comment is ridiculous. “I
never lost by KO, and it will never happen,” said Cloud.
“When Stevenson is pretending he will stop me Saturday
night, it is absolutely ridiculous. I have 100 times more
chances than him to win before the limit of the 12 rounds. I
won more fights than him by KO or TKO (19 versus 18). You
gonna tell me that I won only one of my last six bouts by
KO… so what? When you are fighting in world championship
bouts, when you are competing in the major leagues of pro
boxing, the skills and strategies are so much important than
the power of the punches. Stevenson does not know it, but I
know it. Clearly, I have more skills than Stevenson. And
these skills will make the difference, will make me dominate
all the rounds, no matter if the fight is short or long.
When the fight will start Saturday evening, Stevenson will
see the difference between Chad Dawson and me.”
Gary Shaw, the Dawson's promoter, is co-promoter of this
event, with Don King and Yvon Michel. Shaw got an option on
the Stevenson's first WBC title defence, because last June,
he gave to Stevenson the opportunity to fight Dawson in a
world title bout.
King, on his side, the promoter of Cloud. “When I made the
deal with Yvon to organize the fight Stevenson-Dawson, Yvon
got a secret, he told me that Adonis was a killer puncher,”
said Shaw in laughing Wednesday. “I saw the terrible damages
the Stevenson's fists can do June 8th, when I saw Chad on
the floor in the second minute of the fight. I have a great
respect for Cloud, he is a real warrior, but if he becomes
frustrate Saturday, he will be in serious trouble. If
Tavoris becomes wild and tries to exchange punch for punch
with Adonis, he will not finish the sixth or the seventh
round.”
Stevenson said he has only Cloud in mind actually, but he
does not hide his great ambitions on the international
scene. “The only thing important for me now, it's to beat
Cloud clearly”, said the Montrealer. “Sunday, if you want to
ask me questions on my next opponent, the British Tony
Bellew, I will answer them. But now, it's out of question.
My greatest ambition is to become eventually the light
heavyweight unify champion of the world. I want so much to
prove I am the new king of this division.”
All the big names associated to the GYM Group will be in
action Saturday evening at Bell Centre. Jean Pascal, the
former WBC light heavyweight champion of the world, Eleider
Alvarez and Kevin Bizier, who are both at one or two wins to
get a shot for a world title, Antonin Décarie, who hopes to
get a second chance in an elimination bout in the
welterweight division, David Lemieux, who is planning to
fight for the middleweight championship of the world next
year, and the great prospect, the Russian Artur Beterbiev, a
light heavyweight, will all be involved in the preliminaries
bouts of the evening.
Pascal (27-2-1), who wanted to be active this month to be
better prepared for his big match up with Lucian Bute
(31-1-0) January 18th (at Bell Centre), will face George
Blades (23-4-2), from Indianapolis. Alvarez (12-0-0), the
Montrealer Colombian who is NABA and NABO light heavyweight
champion, will fight his compatriot Edison “Panthera”
Miranda (35-8-0); Bizier (20-0-0), the NABA and IBF Inter
Continental welterweight champion, will be oppose to the
Hungarian Giuseppe Lauri (53-14-0); Lemieux(29-2-0) will
face a southpaw of 6'4'', Marcus Upshaw (15-10-2), from
Jacksonville, Florida; Décarie (27-2-0), who will fight for
the first time since his lost in Argentina, against the
Argentinian Carlos Luis Abregu (35-1-0), will be oppose to
the French Salim Larbi (17-3-2); and Beterbiev (1-0-0), who
will be involved in the opening fight of the evening, will
compete Rayco Saunders (23-22-2), from Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania.
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