In this special ?On The Ropes? boxing radio interview, I speak with former 2 division world champion, Tracy Patterson, and boxing expert Vinny Furlani. Patterson talks about learning from his legendary father, Floyd Patterson, and also discusses fighting and beating H.O.F boxer, Daniel Zaragoza. Vinny Furlani talks about his new project ?Train like a Champ? , which is a DVD aimed to teach people the finer points of boxing, starring himself and Patterson. Additionally, Both Vinny and Tracy give their thoughts on one of the biggest upcoming fights this year, Bradley-Pacquiao II. Here is what Tracy Patterson and Vinny Furlani had to say.
Tracy Patterson on learning from his father, Floyd Patterson
Over the years I learned many different things from my dad. He basically wanted everybody to be themselves, he didn?t want everybody to be like him or fight like him, but to develop their own style for fighting.
The most important thing he taught was defense, he felt if you had good defense and you got in there with somebody that had more experience than you and was a littler more advanced, at least if you had good defense, you wouldn?t get hurt. That was his most important thing as far as when he started training young men that walked to his gym.
On fighting hall of fame boxer Daniel Zaragoza
He was a very, very tough customer. It was a very difficult because his style was very awkward and it took me a while to figure him out. I had hand speed advantage, I had youth, I was a little younger than him. He was very experienced and he had fought all over the world.
I knew I had my hands full just on experience alone. It was a great experience for me to get in there with a guy like him and it was a learning experience. Throughout my career there?s a number of guys that I fought that make you rise to another level, and I think getting in there with him and fighting him for 24 rounds, it helps to build on that.
It helps to gain experience that you can?t get no other way, except being in there with a guy like Daniel Zaragoza. He was a 3 time world champion at the time I fought him, it was a great experience moving forward from there.
Vinny Furlani discussing his DVD training video with Patterson
I want to advance what I consider to be a lost art, which is boxing technique that produced a world champion like Floyd Patterson and Tracy Patterson. Boxing is a sport of repetition, it is not a sport you learn over night. It?s a sport where you start with the basics, you learn your boxing stance, then you learn to throw a jab and a straight right.
What we?ve done in this DVD is talk about your full body position from head to toe, the movements to leverage your entire body on a punch. For instance the cross, the pivoting of the back foot as the front foot goes planted, and the caution that you need to take if you?re not pivoting your back foot properly.
We?re not only talking about how to execute the punch, we?re talking about what to be cautious of and how to throw the punches. We call it whiplash, where your punch is coming back as fast as it?s going out. Tracy demonstrates it, I articulate it.
Whatever the point is, we give a 5 minute instruction that a coach can use to improve their fighters, a boxer can self teach themselves, or improve on the game they?re learning from a trainer already.
Fight fans can have fun working out and it will give you an incredible insight into the game and the skills and techniques required to be great. It was a lot of fun to put this together and we?re looking to share it with the world.
Patterson?s thoughts on boxers always trying to improve.
In boxing, once you feel like you?ve learned everything, then you?re pretty much done. You should always want to learn something, you can never learn enough in boxing. You should always want to improve, always look to get an edge one way or the other.
This is something that somebody can get a look at and get an edge on somebody, in boxing that?s what you look to do. It?s world class training from the beginning to the end. If boxing is what you?re looking to do, this is broken down in detail on how to get the job done.
Vinny Furlani view on Pacquiao-Bradley II
I think the fight is going to be closer in reality. Lets face it, Pacquiao won that first fight, from a decision stand point. So when you?re looking at it, if Bradley got the win then Pacquiao is gonna have a lot more problems because I think Bradley is gonna come in as an improved fighter.
I think Pacquiao is gonna understand the risks and try to get a knockout, but I?m impressed with Bradley?s speed. The way he dominated Marquez in his last fight, that just blew me away. I did not expect him to look that good with his speed and really made the fight easier because he leveraged his strength.
I think coming into this fight, it?s up in the air. Bradley has really impressed me the last 2 fights he?s had against Provodnikov and Marquez, he showed he can stand toe-to-toe and he showed he can move. I look at it as a great fight coming up.
Tracy Patterson views on how Pacquiao-Bradley II plays out
I think that Timothy Bradley is gonna be a much, much tougher fight for Manny this time around because now Timothy Bradley has a championship belt. When you become champion, now you have something that you want to keep and maintain. I think it?s gonna be a much harder fight for Manny than he probably thinks.
Me personally, I gotta go with Timothy Bradley, I think he has a slight edge because he?s younger and I think he wants to keep his belt. Manny?s been there already and he really doesn?t have a lot to prove. I just think that Timothy Bradley is gonna be hungrier and that makes the difference and I think he?s gonna win the fight.
I think he?s gonna outpoint Manny, I think he?s gonna stay away from Manny?s power shots. He?s just as fast as Manny, so I think he?s just gonna outbox him, who knows maybe he?ll catch him with something and stop him, we?ll see.
