“I expect him to last at least 6 rounds. I don?t think Wladimir will knock him out early. I expect a lot of criticism after the fight. We are really in a no win situation. If we knock him out early, critics will say he wasn?t sh*t anyway and if we take longer or it goes the distance the criticism will be even worse,” said Hall of Fame trainer/manager Emanuel Steward. Check out what else he had to say about Ring Magazine Heavyweight Champion Wladimir Klitschko?s upcoming title defense against Frenchman Jean Marc Mormeck this Saturday in Germany as well as a few other topics.
DL: How are things going out there Manny?
ES: Things are going fine. I?m pretty tired. These are long training days. I am up at 6:30 in the morning and start walking with Wladimir around 8am and the training day ends in the evening.
DL: Does anything concern you about Mormeck?
ES: Well a lot of the reporters have been getting on my nerves a little to be honest with you because everyone is acting like this fight is going to be a walk in the park and want to know who is next for Wladimir. Every opponent is dangerous and you have to be prepared to the fullest otherwise you?ll have what happened to Lennox against Rahman and Mc Call or what happened when Wladimir fought Corrie Sanders and on and on. Mormeck is a good fighter. His fight with David Haye was a competitive fight and he even had Haye on the floor. We expect Mormeck to come out and try to attack Wladimir somewhat like Mike Tyson bobbing and weaving and such.
DL: No doubt, you can?t take anyone lightly that?s for sure. You have seen first- hand what can happen when you do. Does Wlad train with the same intensity regardless of the opponent?
ES: Yes he does. After the Corrie Sanders fight and the fights that I trained Lennox for that he didn?t train as hard as he could have and paid the price neither one of us want to have that happen again. Wladimir trains with the same intensity and focus for every one of his fights. After we train we usually end up talking for an hour or an hour and a half afterwards regarding strategy and other things.
DL: Mormeck is only 5?11, is he the shortest fighter Wlad has faced in his career? I think that considering his lack of height, a close to mid-range uppercut would be a great punch to nail him with.
ES: I don?t know if Mormeck is the shortest opponent he has faced. Eddie Chambers was not very tall either. Wladimir will have to punch down more so than usual. As far as the uppercut is concerned, I agree that it would be a very effective punch for Wladimir, and we do work on it in training but that just isn?t a punch that he is comfortable throwing in a fight. Certain punches just aren?t comfortable for certain fighters to throw. With Lennox it was the left hook. Lennox had an excellent uppercut on the inside, but he just never became a left hooker.
DL: I wrote an article recently about how if the Klitschkos were American they would be gods. I also wrote one about the decline of boxing in America over the past decade for various reasons and one of them is due to the Soviet Union collapsing in 1991 and fighters like the Klitschkos being allowed to turn pro. Since you are in Germany right now, tell us what it is like out there.
ES: Oh, it?s amazing. People don?t realize how huge Wladimir and Vitali are out here, particularly Wladimir because he won the gold medal in the Olympics back in ?96. This fight is sold out and there will be 50,000 people in attendance, not to mention about 12 million watching on television. Wladimir is idolized by many of the Eastern European fighters coming up as well because of his amateur accomplishments. Guys like Povetkin really look up to Wladimir. The problem with American boxers nowadays is that the amateur program is really bad. It?s not what it used to be and they just don?t get enough international experience. Some of these young American amateurs have a lot of talent, but they have to face guys with a lot more experience who are much more seasoned. Most of the fighters I see coming along that will be a threat to be heavyweight champion in the future are European. One guy that I think will be a real challenge in the near future is David Price out of England. As far as American heavyweights go, I do like Seth Mitchell. He does a lot of things really well. He is a good, solid all around fighter with an athletic background in football.
DL: Are you a fan of MMA? I think that here in America many kids are growing up watching MMA and not boxing and that could add to the decline of boxing in America as well.
ES: Yes, I enjoy watching MMA fights. Some of them are very exciting. You are correct that many American kids nowadays are into MMA and not boxing so much. MMA is the hotter sport in America.
DL: Getting back to Wlad?s upcoming fight, how long do you expect the fight with Mormeck to last?
ES: I expect him to last at least 6 rounds. I don?t think Wladimir will knock him out early. I expect a lot of criticism after the fight. We are really in a no win situation. If we knock him out early, critics will say he wasn?t sh*t anyway and if we take longer or it goes the distance the criticism will be even worse.
DL: Well, a win is a win and the hell with these bastard critics! I?d like to see these pussies put on some gloves, trunks and a cup and get in there. Good luck on Saturday, sir.
ES: (laughs) Thank you very much.
