FORMER WORLD CHAMPIONS ABNER MARES & VICTOR ORTIZ ARE READY TO MAKE THEIR MARKS IN A BIG WAY ON SATURDAY, DEC. 13 AT MGM GRAND
LIVE ON SHOWTIME®
MEDIA WORKOUT QUOTES AND PHOTOS,
DEL MARES GYM, BELL GARDENS, CALIF.
[slideshow_deploy id=’30675′]
Photo Credit: JC Galvez/RBRBoxing
“Hungry is the key word for me right now. I’m hungry to become a world champion again and to get back to where I was.” — Abner Mares
“I want to be one of the greats. I want to be the pound for pound king and I know what it takes to get there.” — Victor Ortiz
Tickets Still Available!
BELL GARDENS, Calif.(Dec. 3, 2014) – Former world champions Abner Mares and “Vicious” Victor Ortiz participated in a media workout on Tuesday at the Del Mares Gym in Bell Gardens, Calif., as they prepare for their respective upcoming fights on the undercard of “ROYAL BATTLE: Amir Khan vs. Devon Alexander” on Saturday, Dec. 13, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas live on SHOWTIME® (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT).
Mares (27-1-1, 14 KOs), a former three-division world champion making his first start since reuniting with trainer Clemente Medina, will be face off against Mexico’s Jose Ramirez (25-4, 15 KOs) in a 10-round battle in one of four fights on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING®.
Ortiz (29-5, 22 KOs), of Ventura, Calif. will battle Denver’s Manuel Perez (21-10-1, 4 KOs) in a scheduled eight-round match that will be featured on the SHOWTIME BOXING on SHO EXTREME telecast.
Here’s what the boxers as well as trainers, Medina (Mares) and Joseph “Hoss” Janik (Ortiz’ Assistant Trainer to Joel Diaz), had to say Tuesday at the Los Angeles-area gym:
ABNER MARES, Former Three-Division World Champion
“Training camp has been going great, it’s pretty much done. We have our last sparring session on Friday, closing with another 10 rounds.
“I’m ready for this next opponent [Jose Ramirez], who I know little about, and that scares me. When you don’t know much about a fighter it reminds you that he can bring anything.
“I had been working with Virgil Hunter in Oakland, Calif., prior to coming back to Clemente [Medina, trainer]. I had to sit down with Virgil. I learned so much from him, he’s such a wise man. Everything that he says means something and I was fortunate enough to work with him. He taught me a lot and, if anything, you will see many things I learned from Virgil in my next fight on Dec. 13.
“It’s been a long camp for me, I thought I was originally going to fight on Nov. 22 but then they told me not until December. This environment here at my own gym is great for me. My family is here and I feel very comfortable with Clemente.
“At first, I was disappointed in myself [after losing to Jhonny Gonzalez], very discouraged. I really wanted the rematch and it was going to happen in February, but then I got injured. Now, I’m back.
“I really needed this time away. Things happen for a reason. I needed more time to spend with my kids and my family. If it wasn’t for the free time I wouldn’t have built my own gym.
“I think I grew mentally as a person with my time off. I just turned 29 this past Friday; I’m blessed, healthy and hungry. Hungry is the key word for me. I’m hungry to become a world champion again and to get back to where I was.
“It’s not that I want to become world champion again, I’m going to. I’m going to let my actions speak louder than my words. I’ve been in this situation before. No one knew about me when I entered the SHOWTIME Bantamweight Tournament and then I won that and no one expected it. I’ve won many fights that people didn’t expect me to win.
“I’ve fought all the best fighters you could think of in my weight class and I plan to do that in 2015. The featherweight division is packed with great talent, strong fighters and it motivates me to get in better shape and become the beast I once was.”
