Steve Cunningham knew that wasn?t true. The lack of respect Antonio Tarver showed when he said it?that was real?
?Nobody knows you.?
Steve Cunningham knew that wasn?t true. The lack of respect Antonio Tarver showed when he said it?that was real.
?Get 20,000 followers on Twitter then we can talk,? Tarver added.
Cunningham is a few thousand shy of that figure. What he does have is a ring r?sum? that includes wins over one top contender after another, an IBF belt at cruiserweight, and a reputation of fighting heavyweights other contenders pretend don?t exist. Four of his last five opponents were undefeated. Before that, he lost a decision to Tomasz Adamek that many felt he should have received. The same happened against Vyacheslav Glazkov his last time out. ESPN scored that one 116-112 for him. Sandwiched in-between those fights he traded knockdowns in brawls against against semi-beasts Tyson Fury and Amir Mansour. Now Steve is determined to fight off Tarver.
Tarver too knows all about determination. He was so determined to make the U.S. Olympic team that when he failed to in 1992, he resisted turning pro and stayed amateur until 1996, where he made the team and won bronze. As a pro his determination has carried him through a few setbacks, one of them a close loss to Roy Jones Jr., all the way to universal recognition as light heavyweight champion.
His determination helped get him a knockout win over Roy in the rematch and now is fueling his mission of redemption at heavyweight. Following a suspension after testing positive for a banned substance, Tarver is back and has made up his mind that beating Wladimir Klitschko and becoming heavyweight champion is the path to redemption.
Cunningham thinks Tarver is looking past him. He couldn?t care less.
Tarver says he?s not looking past Cunningham but rather, ?looking through him.?
Despite what Cunningham may think, Tarver says he has the utmost respect for Cunningham and will be ready when the bell rings in Newark. As ready as he was the night he knocked out Roy for the title. That night, before the fight, he famously asked Roy during the referee?s instructions, ?You got any excuses tonight Roy??
Cunningham is intending to ask his own question during the fight. ?Do you know me now??
