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This white woman came up to me, and I'm thinking, WOW. When I was a kid, she would have been robbed and raped and left for dead. This is a real strange scenario, and I just wanted to cry. I'm like, "Who am I? Where's my heritage?
I like strong women - not necessarily a masculine woman - but I like strong women...say a woman who runs a C.E.O. corporation. I like a strong woman with confidence - massive confidence - and then I want to dominate her sexually.
Why should they ask me to put on a uniform and go ten thousand miles from home and drop bombs and bullets on brown people in Vietnam while so-called Negro people in Louisville are treated like dogs and denied simple human rights?
Power is more than the punch. I get so much power and belief in myself from God, and from God the power passes through my legs, through my hips, up to my shoulders, through my arms, and into my fists...I'm written to be a legend.
Before I fought Adonis Stevenson in 2013, I had 4lbs to shift in a morning before weighing in. I had zero energy left to train, so the nutritional adviser said the only way was to drag it from my body in a hot bath full of salts.
A lot of the time you have good fighters with good records, some top-class fighters, and they do some kind of crazy stuff, and there's nothing that you can do to stop them from doing it. That's the hardest part of training others.
In raising children, life brings forth those things where you do what you should never have done and what I taught you never to do. And when my kids have done those things, I just kind of look at them and say, 'Now you know life.'
I waited all those years for a title shot, and when I finally got it, I had to pay $20,000 for the opportunity. My purse was only $18,000. So to make money, I had to bet $10,000 on myself at 8-5. That was how it was in those days.
To be the first Puerto Rican to win a world title in four divisions would be an achievement. Gomez, Benitez, there have been a lot of good fighters from Puerto Rico before me. When I started boxing, Tito Trinidad was our big star.
At times, I come across as crude or crass, that irritates you when I come across like a Neanderthal or a babbling idiot at times. But I like to be that person. I like to show you all that person because that's who you come to see.
I had to get up run in the morning for 2 hours, go to the gym and also get good opponents as sparring partners because I'm a big believer in that how you train is how you will fight at least when it came to me that's how it worked.
Boxing is a hurt game if you can't be at your best, can't be 100 per cent mentally and physically switched on to performing, to win titles, defend titles, defend yourself in the correct fashion, then I don't think you should fight.
I am not going to change just to promote a fight. My stance is to not go back-and-forth and I am not fighting Freddie [Roach]. That's not the man I have to box with so I am not going to go back-and-forth firing darts at each other.
I had a job to do in the ring, and the businessmen around me had a job to do outside the ring, I did my job by beating up most of the guys they put in front of me and staying in shape, but the people I trusted didn't do their jobs.
Leading up to the fight [Trevor Berbick] took every opportunity he could to badmouth Larry Holmes and I just blew up. After I beat him in the ring, he tried to get me going again, saying he deserved another fight, wasn't happening.
There is not too much left for me to do, but I am sure there are a couple of great fights out there for me. I have basically achieved my goals. There are a few fights the public wants to see, and that is really what is left for me.
I'm not a Republican, but I have some conservative views on certain things. I'm not a Democrat, either. It's just very difficult that these people hate each other over a belief. I think it all comes down to ego and competitiveness.
What I want to do in life is just be a respectful man and just take care of my children and guide my family in the right direction. I'm not looking to be a chairperson, I'm not looking to be ambassador or anything in that capacity.
I love looking back at the older fights; they don't make them like they used to. Just watching Tommy Hearns, the technique in his punching, the brilliance and the combinations from the likes of Ray Leonard and 'Sugar' Ray Robinson.
I have been dealing with those types of complicated things and my scholastic background, so I think that helps me - my nutrition and my understanding of the human body, and the processes for recovery and proper dietary restrictions.
You can hit the bags, the pads, and you can run and do your fitness and your weights as much as you want, but if you don't spar you just don't have that true experience, that true knowledge of how to beat a man in one-on-one combat.
As a matter of fact, there was a period of time, especially in my first career, when that's the only one who would work out with me: my dogs. As you get better and better working out, there's no one who can keep up with you running.
I never went to bed in my life and I never ate a meal in my life without saying a prayer. I know my prayers have been answered thousands of times, and I know that I never said a prayer in my life without something good coming of it.
There were a lot of fighters who were better than me that got knocked out and stopped because they stayed in the game too long. That never happened to me. I don't know that feeling. I thank God so much that that didn't happen to me.
I had to hold my tongue from since, when I got here til when I was about 22 years old. I ain't holding my tongue no more. So it's best that I don't get no manager, don't get no promoter cos' they're the people tryna tell me what do.
I don't think I have HIV. I don't think that I ever had HIV. I think I had hepatitis. I got rid of the hepatitis, and since then, every single time I have tested for HIV, it has been negative. The original test was a false positive.
In the school of boxing that I come from, that's frowned upon, giving up free shots, cos we know what those kinda shots do to a man's career, regardless of whether it shows up now, or shows up when you least need it. It takes a toll.
I have seen videos of Sugar Ray Robinson and Willie Pep who did a million other things than just punch, to set up a perfect shot or to offset their opponents' rhythm. Boxing is incredibly complicated. It's not Rock'em Sock'em Robots.
A sight game is that I am hurt, but I aim to make you believe I am not even hurt, and with this confidence appearing on my face, I don't panic, otherwise your opponent will know that you are hurt. That's the whole art game in boxing.
Deep down, I reckon the sweetest moment will come when it's finally all over. When, at last, I know that I can stop fighting. Of course it'll also be a little sad. The sweetest moments, y'know, always come with just a little sadness.
In boxing, I had a lot of fear. Fear was good. But, for the first time, in the bout with Muhammad Ali, I didn't have any fear. I thought, "This is easy. This is what I've been waiting for". No fear at all. No nervousness. And I lost.
In boxing, I had a lot of fear. Fear was good. But, for the first time, in the bout with Muhammad Ali, I didn't have any fear. I thought, 'This is easy. This is what I've been waiting for'. No fear at all. No nervousness. And I lost.
The reality of growing up is we changed schools so many times, my brother was my best friend. We have a five-year age gap, and my brother inspired me. He started boxing, and I just want to show that I could do things better than him.
You know, I accept some things with a laugh. Amir Khan was supposed to be a killer, and look what I did to him. Then it gets back to me that people thought I was lucky. Well, I must be lucky my whole life then, because I keep winning.
I came up poor. My mother only had a fourth-grade education. My dad didn't have any education at all. But they were very structured. They worked hard. You know, they didn't complain. They didn't murmur. And they believe in the Christ.
After doing an honest evaluation of myself, I recognize that there are certain issues that I need to work on. Like everyone, I have my flaws, and I do not want to be one of those people that is afraid to admit and address those flaws.
I really feel that if it wasnt for the accident, Id still be fighting. I would have handled some of these fighters. I would have made sure that the doctors would have declared me physically sound; and after that, I would have trained.
Ray Leonard is more the family man, kind of quiet. He's not as outgoing as Sugar Ray Leonard. Sugar Ray Leonard was very determined, very focused, very outgoing and very selfish, if you will. There are two different individuals there.
I knew the HIV virus was something anyone could get but also believed the chances were very slim... I honestly believed I had a better chance of winning the lottery than contracting this disease. I have never been so wrong in my life.
If something happens and you're behind, and you get hit in the mouth early like that, you have two options: You can either pack it in mentally and internally and go into survival mode and quit, or you're going to get up and go to work.
For my training camp against George Groves my main sparring partner was a 6ft 7inch cruiserweight who fought nothing like George. It was just wrong. Wrong preparation. I was as fit as could be, but strategically I didn't prepare right.
There is so much hate among people, so much contempt inside people who'd like you to think they're moral, that they have to hire prizefighters to do their hating for them. And we do. We get into a ring and act out other people's hates.
I can't say that I ever worried much about what people thought or said of me. I like to be liked, and have often wished that I could be as much loved as Jim Driscoll, say, but I have never been able to bow down to rules and regulations
Something's bound to happen to you in a tough fight: cut eye, broken nose or broken hand or something like that. So you could make excuses out of anything, you know, but you got to keep on going if you're a champ or you're a contender.
I'd get beat up a lot early on. I wasn't the strongest, fastest or most skilled guy there, but I had a lot of heart and kept showing up. I just started getting better and by the time I was 13 I was knocking older kids and amateurs out.
Politicians are always saying that they are in support of Iraqi citizens and now they are increasing the price of petrol. We were oppressed for 35 years. We are like a sick patient who is in need of care, and they are increasing prices
I am excited by and impressed with Anthony Joshua, but Anthony has a long way to go. At first, I thought Anthony was similar to a Frank Bruno figure, but after a few fights, I realised he's nothing like Frank Bruno. He's very athletic.
They call me Ricky Fatton. Mind you I've had a lot on my plate recently. I got measured for this suit the other week. They measured my pants, jacket, top to bottom. Bloody hell Ricky you're a Mark F they said, a size up from a marquee.
Dad's tiny - his passport picture is a full-length shot. He looks like he just hopped off a key ring. Mum is a different matter, she's a bit of a handful to say the least. I love her more than anyone on this Earth. But she's a monster.
I got some real rough dental work done not long ago, and my mouth's still numb right here [points to the left side of his chin]. So it kind of messes with my speech a little bit, so don't y'all think that I took too many cos I haven't.