Final Press Conference Quotes From Andre Ward and Allan Green

According to an excellent press release given to me from Goossen Tutor Promotions, Andre Ward and Allan Green have release statements from the final press conference held Wednesday June 16th, 2010 from Oracle Arena( Curbside Club).

The press conference was held for their Super Six World Boxing Classic WBA title fight happening this Saturday June 19th (live on Showtime 10PM ET/PT).

The event is promoted by Goossen Tutor Promotions, TNT Boxing, and Dibella Entertainment and sponsored by Corona, Oakland Tribune, and River Rock Casino.

The press release explains that both fighters were respectful of each other; however, there was a clear sense of tension between the two.

Should Ward be victorious in his first title defense of the WBA 168 pound championship belt he would be in the semi finals. However Green would still have a chance in stage three against Mikkel Kessler.

Now if Green wins then all six fighters will be deadlocked into the final and stage three.

Comments from Andre Ward

"Well this is my favorite part of it right here… fight week baby. The hard work is basically over. All the interviews are basically over and it’s time to go to work. This is what I do best."

"To quote John Wooden, you know I don’t let the praises of the people or the criticism get to me. Because it’s a weakness to get caught up in either one. I appreciate the praises of the people, I honor that, I thank them for that. And those who… people who have a lot of negative things to say about me, even my opponent, his coach, his team, that’s fine. But I’m locked in on what I have to do. Fight in and fight out. I’ve sacrificed a lot for this moment. I’ve sacrificed my wife, my kids and they’ve sacrificed a lot, too….. I don’t think people realize what’s inside of me and what kind of focus I have. They think when you get this belt that it’s time to relax. They think that I’m the one that’s being hunted and to a degree I am, but I have a lot of desire in me, man. And I got a lot of passion in me. I don’t know if he wants this belt as bad as I want to keep it, but if he does, then it’s going to be a whole lot of fun on Saturday night. We’re going to have a good show. I have nothing negative to say about my opponent or his team. I’ve listened to what they’ve said; the disrespectful things, even the compliments, and I take it all to heart. I take them for their words and it’s pushed me and it’s driven me."

"Like I said at the first press conference we had, I train like I’m fighting a monster, period. So, that way mentally and physically that’s what I’m prepared for. It’s his time to show up. He’s done a lot of talking but it’s time to show up. It’s my time to show up and I will give the fans a tremendous performance come Saturday night. I’m not going to tell you guys how great I am, how great I’m going to be. I’ve got to continue to show you. I’ve been in this game a long time and I understand it’s about putting in the work and showing people."

"It’s not about these press conferences. It’s not about the interviews. It’s about putting in the work and when it’s time to show up, show up. And that’s what I plan on doing. So, I thank everybody that’s involved with this event, SHOWTIME, Oakland, we are getting ready to do it again. Thank you."

Comments from Allan Green

"Andre Ward is a good young fighter. He hasn’t lost since he was twelve or thirteen years old. We understand that. We’re not minimizing him or undermining him in any way. There’s no need for me to get chuckling here today. I see children here. I see people here having a good time, but Saturday night I will be the WBA super middleweight champion. That’s what I came here for."

"I know what I can do. To dissect me you’ve got to have a hell of a scalpel… to dissect Allan Green, a hell of a scalpel. Because a lot of people tend to think, they want to label me as a puncher. True, I am a puncher, but at the same time a lot of people fail to realize I’m a pure boxer. I do know how to box. I do know how to think. So if anybody’s got it in there mind thinking that I’m just coming to walk this young kid down and blast him out and blow him out the water like Kessler did…"

"Like I said, here’s the problem. Mikkel Kessler is from Denmark. He speaks English. Ward speaks English. Kessler understands English. Kessler doesn’t understand jive, that’s why he couldn’t deal with Andre Ward. I speak jive very well and will Saturday night"

Comments from John David Jackson (Green’s Trainer)

"Everybody’s pretty much picked Andre Ward to win. I don’t know why we even showed up. James Prince said he’s ready to go to war, but one thing you got to remember when you go to war, you leave your head open for punches. And this brother (Allan Green) right here, he’s got dynamite in both hands. So, if Andre Ward comes to go to war, that’s exactly what we want. And if he does that, he won’t be champ anymore.

Comments from Virgil Hunter (Ward’s Trainer)

"The talk is over and we can get down to the grit of it. In my opinion you’re not the champ until you retire the champ. You have to be able to hold on to the title and that’s where our mind set is. Allan Green is not taken lightly. His flaws, we’ve identified them. His strengths we have identified them too. A lot has been said about what comes out of his hands, but if you look at his record, we have the better knockout percentage. Judging from the fighter’s and competition he’s faced, this is the first time that he’s really going to get hit. This is the first time he’s going to find out how violent Andre really is."

"Everything we do, we do with speed. If he stays where he is in the speed zone, he’s going to get chewed up. We are going to find out who has the dynamite in the fists. We are going to do what we always do. We are going to shock your mind, take your heart and we are going to dissect you down and constrict you and then we are going to give you a venomous bite."

Dan Goossen (Ward’s promoter)

"This is the first time in history that the Bay Area has ever hosted two back-to-back championship fights within a twelve month period. First and foremost I want to thank the fans for coming out to Oakland and supporting their hometown hero. When this thing is all said and done, you’re going to see your Oakland fighter, you’re Bay Area fighter, become a pay-per-view star."

Well let's see just how well Green can speak this “jive” that he claims come Saturday night.

Are you excited? I certainly am and I can't wait for this fight to happen.

This press release then goes on to provide me with one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen in the sport of boxing and it was a very simple score board of where all the fighters currently stand through the five fights that have already been completed. Enjoy!

SUPER SIX WORLD BOXING CLASSIC SCOREBOARD (Through five fights)

  Record   Fighter   Points

  1-1     Arthur Abraham      3

  1-0       Andre Ward            2

  1-1      Mikkel Kessler        2

  1-1     Carl Froch               2

  1-1      Andre Dirrell           2

  0-0      Allan Green             0