Curtis Stevens and Hassan N'Dam are ready for tommorow's Middleweight fight at the Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, CA. pic.twitter.com/ttTDICXNWL
— RoundByRoundBoxing (@RBRBoxing) October 1, 2014
“It’s going to be fun,” said Hassan N’Dam (30-1, 18 KOs), about his 12-round Middleweight fight against Curtis Stevens (27-4, 20 KOs), which will air tonight on ESPN 2 at 9pm ET and is promoted by King Sports.
N’Dam, perhaps enlivened by his new promoter King Sports or perhaps on his own, had a lot to say to Stevens at their weigh-in yesterday at the Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, California, where the fight will take place.
N’Dam derided Stevens for his loss to Golovkin and argued that Stevens doesn’t do well against the elite fighters in the division.
Stevens is coming off two knockout wins after his eighth-round stoppage loss to Golovkin in November of 2013, while N’Dam is coming off a three-fight win streak after his loss to Peter Quillin in October of 2012—a fight in which he was knocked down six times.
Indeed, both are looking to erase the memories of previous losses with consecutive wins as they re-climb the Middleweight ladder.
Stevens blames his loss on his own mental state during his fight against Golovkin, claiming that he was thinking too much but that he plans to let his hands go a lot more on Wednesday against N’Dam.
N’Dam blamed his loss to Quillin on a lack of proper preparation, stating that he only had one good week of sparring, but that he is better prepared for his fight this time around.
The stage is set for tomorrow night #StevensNDam #ESPN #Boxing pic.twitter.com/RpmdINAz1B
— RoundByRoundBoxing (@RBRBoxing) October 1, 2014
Both are looking to make another run for a world title in this IBF title eliminator, which is currently held by Sam Soliman and which will be contested between Soliman and Jermain Taylor on October 8 on ESPN 2 as well.
As both Stevens and N’Dam made weight, weighing in at 158.8 pounds and 158.2 pounds respectively, N’Dam tried to stir up a bit of controversy, getting in Stevens’ face to get a reaction, but to no avail, as both fighters were quickly separated.
The winner of tomorrow’s fight may be considered a top 10 Middleweight if he looks good enough. The fight promises to be a good scrap between a former title-challenger in Stevens and a former title-holder.
While N’Dam was eager to stir controversy, a more composed Stevens had fewer words to say.
“I’ll do my talking tomorrow in the ring,” said Stevens, as he brushed off the slew of insults N’Dam had directed to him.
