Kelly Swanson
We are delighted to have with us today two unbelievable American heavyweights, both in Seth Mitchell and Johnathon Banks, who are gearing up to fight each other this Saturday as the co-main event of the Adrien Broner vs. Antonio DeMarco WBC Lightweight World Championship. Both of the fighters are on the phone, as well as Dave Itskowitch from Golden Boy Promotions and Tom Loeffler from K2 Promotions.
David Itskowitch
Thank you, Kelly. Thank you, everyone, for joining today. We’re very excited about the show this weekend at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. Our main event is Adrien Broner versus Antonio DeMarco for the WBC Lightweight World Championship. And of course our co-main event is Seth Mitchell versus Johnathon Banks, a 12-round fight for Mitchell’s NABO and the vacant WBC International Heavyweight Championship Saturday, November 17th at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. The event is presented by Golden Boy Promotions and R&R Promotions in association with Gary Shaw Productions, sponsored by Corona, AT&T, and Caesars Atlantic City. We are going to be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 10:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific.
We have great seats still available starting at just $25. We’re extremely excited to be back in Atlantic City, especially in light of recent events. And in that vein, in an effort to raise funds for Hurricane Sandy relief Golden Boy is going to be donating $2 for every ticket sold and $1,000 per knockout registered during the event to the Boys & Girls Club of Atlantic City. Oscar De La Hoya and Caesars Atlantic City are going to match those funds. So we’re happy to be doing something for the community, happy to be bringing a big event to Atlantic City. They had a Carrie Underwood concert this weekend, and from what I understand the turnout was great, so Atlantic City is up and running and open for business.
Now to turn things over to the fighters. Now to introduce Johnathon Banks I’d like to introduce Tom Loeffler, who is the Managing Director of K2 Promotions, who is Banks’ promoter. Tom.
Tom Loeffler
Thank you, David. We’re really excited to be involved with this event. I think you have two great, young American heavyweights fighting each other. Seth Mitchell obviously has gotten a lot of exposure recently on HBO. Johnathon has been fighting quite a bit on our big Klitschko events over in Europe, although he did come up through the Kronk system in Detroit, an outstanding amateur career, and I think the winner of this fight can clearly be considered the best American heavyweight out there. It’s an exciting complement to the main event, which Adrien Broner is clearly one of the best pound-for-pound fighters on the lightweight division.
So we’re excited about it. Johnathon had a really big night last Saturday where he got a lot of publicity, actually more publicity as a trainer than as a fighter, where he trained Wladimir Klitschko for his successful world championship defense last Saturday. So with all that being said, want to introduce Johnathon Banks from Detroit, Michigan.
Johnathon Banks
Okay. Thanks, Tom. Hello, everybody. Once again, like Tom said, this is Johnathon Banks. I look forward to this fight. It’s been a long time coming, keep backing up, backing up, backing up, kept changing the date, but hey, I’m just looking forward to it. I know Seth is looking forward to the fight. And he’s a fighter, I’m a fighter; we just really happily, like I said for both of us, we both just really looking forward to Saturday night.
Itskowitch
Okay. Thank you, Johnathon. Now to make a few statements, I want to introduce a fighter that all of us at Golden Boy are very proud to work with. We believe he is the future of the heavyweight division. He’s a former standout Michigan State University linebacker who found his true calling in the boxing ring. He’s quickly becoming the kind of fighter that we believe can reinvigorate the heavyweight division in the United States and around the world. Recently he blasted through top contenders Timur Ibragimov and Chazz Witherspoon in a combined five-rounds Showing that he not only has the power, but the heart to succeed. With a record of 25-0-1 with 19 knockouts from Brandywine, Maryland, Mr. Seth “Mayhem” Mitchell.
Seth Mitchell
Thanks, Dave; thanks for the introduction. I want to thank everybody that joined in on the conference call. Obviously I want to thank Golden Boy; I want to thank my team for allowing me to have another opportunity to perform on this big stage.
I’m excited. Like Johnathon said, this fight has been postponed for a while; the first time it was due to a hand injury that I had gotten in my fight against Chazz Witherspoon. But, on record, my hand feels great. I’ve been training very hard, again very excited for this fight, very motivated. It’s going to be a good fight. I respect Johnathon Banks, he has a lot to bring to the table, but at the end of the day I truly believe in my heart that I’ll be victorious. Whatever he comes to the table with I’ll be able to respond by training. We have about three to four game plans, and it’s going to be a great fight. I don’t know if you can tell by the excitement in my voice, but I’m ready to show up on the 17th.
This is the stage that I want to be on. I believe it’s my time. I think that I don’t talk much, I’m very humble, but I’m pleased with myself and I’m pleased that I have the capability and the tools to become heavyweight champion in the world, and on the 17th Johnathon Banks is just another step, another hurdle that I have to get over. I’m not underestimating him; I expect him to bring his A game, and with the unfortunate passing of Emanuel Steward, may his soul rest in peace, that probably is going to bring more excitement and more enthusiasm out of Johnathon Banks, which is only going to make for a better fight. But at the end of the day my hand will be raised.
Again, I want to thank everybody who has joined in on the phone call, and tune in; if you can’t be there on the 17th definitely tune in, because it’s going to be a hell of a night of boxing.
Q
Seth, it’s kind of an interesting situation you’re in; you’re getting another fight on HBO, but your opponent, Johnathon Banks, is now the trainer for the Heavyweight Champion, Wladimir Klitschko, a man that has mentioned you as a possible opponent, somebody that you and your team have talked about in the future fighting some day, and being able to step up to that challenge. How much do you think a victory over his trainer is going to get his attention to put you in a position to be one of his challengers in the near future?
Mitchell
I think, well it’s funny, I was thinking the same thing as I was watching the fight this Saturday. But I think a victory over Johnathon Banks will ultimately get me closer to my title shot, whether it’s Klitschko or whoever it is. But it’s still I think it will still be at the latter part of 2013. My team and I we have a plan, and we had a plan since day one, and the latter part of 2013 had always been that plan. But to answer your question, I think I’m looking at first to get Johnathon Banks would definitely increase those chances and Wladimir would probably want to fight me.
Q
Would want to fight you if you knock off his trainer. Is that what you mean?
Mitchell
Yes
Q
More so than he does already.
Mitchell
Absolutely. Absolutely.
Q
Okay. And Johnathon, I know we spoke before you had the fight that you trained Wladimir for this past Saturday against Wach, but I’m wondering for you how difficult of a process was it to go back and forth mentally from being the guy that has to be the trainer for the heavyweight champion, because I know you were doing the double duty of training for this fight as well as getting Wladimir ready, to go back and forth mentally from okay now I’m getting the champ ready for his fight, and then when you go into your own training with your own trainer, Sugar Hill, to then mentally go to the point where okay now I’m a fighter now the trainer. How difficult was that, and now how are you dealing with it that your Klitschko fight is behind you and now you can focus 100% on getting reading for Seth?
Banks
Okay, first of all … it’s wasn’t as big issue as-well I guess what I want to say it sounds bigger than what it really is, the issue is what I’m talking about. It wasn’t a big issue at all. It’s all a part of boxing; I’m a fan of boxing, I love boxing, and it’s just all a part of it, it’s all a part of boxing. I didn’t have to step outside my box one time, I didn’t have to step outside the sport … one time; it was all inside in boxing. It actually sounds harder than what it really was. It wasn’t an easy task. It had a little difficulties because, like I said, I had a big fight coming up and I also had to get Wladimir ready for his big fight. But I thought that I handled it pretty well. I’m glad his fight is over with, and I’m looking forward to mine.
Q
Can you just talk a little bit about your experience in being the head man in his corner for the first time on Saturday; how did it go for you, how did you feel about it, and were you a little concerned when Wladimir got touched in the fifth round there? It looked like he might be in a little bit of trouble at the end of the round, and you maybe had to-I mean you did do a good job staying calm in the corner, but how you were handling that emotionally when you saw what happened?
Banks
Like I said, it was all a part of boxing. I saw that Wach touched him with the right hand, but the thing about it is Wladimir I didn’t see him getting in trouble; his knees wasn’t getting buckled, it wasn’t a sign of he was going down. Wach I don’t believe he had any energy to turn it up if he wanted to anyway, so it wasn’t a problem. I mean my whole thing was I know Wladimir and I know if he get caught with a clean shot he’d want to rush and get it back, and my job was to keep him as calm as possible, to let him know everything was cool, and to continue to fight.
Q
How comfortable were you being the guy that everybody looked to in the corner for the first time? That’s a pretty big spot never having been in that position; now all of sudden it’s not just training any old guy, you’re training the heavyweight world champion.
Banks
Well it was comfortable, because it wasn’t my first time training someone, because I have been doing that off and on for a very long time anyway. So it wasn’t my first time out, but it was my first time on the highest stage in boxing, so that made it a little-I mean it was a little nervous starting out, but it is what I do. Boxing is what I do, it is my life, so I just went right into it. The same as if a reporter, like you as a reporter, you just write the big story or small story. The format is the same. You just have to do. So it’s the same thing.
Q
Johnathon, I was just wondering will you go to Emanuel Steward’s memorial service tomorrow? Will you be able to do that or what is your plan for the rest of your week?
Banks
Yes, the memorial service is right here in Detroit tomorrow, and yes, I will attend it.
Q
Okay. Can you comment, just let us know what Emanuel meant to you? Obviously he meant a lot to your life; can you elaborate on what he did for you?
Banks
Okay. You’re talking about going back to a 15-year-old kid that looked up to this guy who kind of start growing up in and around Lennox Louis training camps, him finding Big Bear to training Oscar, and then later on coming and training. I mean he kept me in boxing, he kept me around boxing, and I really, really learned a lot from him as far as life, as far as a man, as far as a fighter, and as far as actually the fundamentals of training about boxing. Because I used to even live with him for a few years at one point, so I mean there was that one point for years and years we were together every day, we traveled together. Even when he went to Germany I would go with him a lot of the time. So as far as what he meant, I mean everything I guess what a father would ever mean to a kid, so he meant a lot to me. Because I mean the guy was a great mentor, he was a great father figure, he just was a great overall person, and for me and to be a part of his life was nothing but a blessing for me.
Q
On Saturday night, obviously, it’s a big night for you, a huge fight for you, and obviously an emotional time the last couple of weeks after Emanuel passed away. How do you kind of channel that in a positive direction and not allow yourself too become too emotional when that fight?
Banks
It’s all basically like this; if you really think about I really think about a lot of things Emanuel told me, when it comes to fighting you have to shut everything out. Fighting is like going to war; you have to shut everything out and you got to go to war. No matter what’s going on at home when you got to go you got to go, and that’s just the situation that it is at hand. Saturday night I have to go. No matter what’s going on this week, no matter what’s going on last month, on Saturday night I have to be prepared to go.
Q
Thank you, Johnathon. I just have one question for Seth. Seth, I was just wondering what you feel you got out of your fight against Chazz Witherspoon where you were in a little bit of trouble and obviously fought through it and won the fight. How much did that help you develop as a fighter?
Mitchell
I believe it helped me develop a lot. I tell people all the time if they were to ask me how I would respond to adversity I would have told them I would have responded how I responded in the Chazz fight, but until you get put in that situation you really don’t know. For me to get put in that situation and come through as I did I think that it showed signs of a true champion, somebody that definitely has the heart, has determination, and show recovery. I wasn’t over anxious, I stayed composed, I stayed calm, so I think it helped me out a lot and let me know that I can fight through adversity when in trouble. At the same time, I don’t want to continue to put myself in those situations. It let me see why I got in that situation and things that I need to work on. So overall I think it helped me out a lot.
Q
I wanted to talk about your defense. You obviously had trouble when you first started fighting Chazz, and is your defense something you’ve been working on since that fight?
Mitchell
Definitely. As a fighter I definitely don’t think I know it all. I’m only just been boxing almost six years now, and I just don’t think I know it all. I continue to be a sponge. I’m still, even though I’ve kind of accomplished a lot in a short amount of time, I still consider myself wet behind the ears. There’s still more to learn, and that’s what’s exciting to me. When I come to the gym I still I want to learn, I’m thirsty for knowledge. My trainer, Andre Hunter, I think he does a great job. We sit and we talk, we go back to the fundamentals, and we just work on becoming a better fighter, and most definitely, definitely working on my defense.
I don’t really get hit with too many combinations, but in that fight Chazz was able to man the right hand, and I was just glad that I was able to overcome it. But to answer your question, I’ve definitely been working on my defense. We’ve been working on quite a few things, and hopefully on the 17th you’ll be able to see that come out, see that show that night.
Q
You have like 10 knockouts in a row. My question is will your experience against Witherspoon make you a more patient fighter or will you come out looking for that knockout right away or how do you handle that? I guess it’s different for every situation, but can you talk about that?
Mitchell
It may look that way, but to be honest I don’t necessarily go out there looking for knockouts. I consider myself an aggressive box of punches. I come to fight, I’ll tell you that much, I do come to fight. But I just try to put my punches together at a high work rate for a heavyweight, and I just point that behind my jab and the knockouts have just been coming.
But if I need to change my style for this particular fight I’m capable of doing that. A lot of people they think that I’m just a bull, but if I have to be a matador I definitely can do that. I believe that I possess all the skills; I have decent power in both hands, good speed, I’m very athletic. I just have only had to show one or two things, and if I only have to show it in that fight that’s what you’ll see, but if I have to show something else you’ll see that as well.
Q
What about Johnathon concerns you most at this point?
Mitchell
Johnathon, he’s a good fighter. He’s had a lot of tutelage, he’s been around a lot of good fighters, trained with Emanuel Steward, he’s sparred with Lennox Lewis, he’s sparred with the Klitschkos, so he has a lot of experience. And he knows his way around the ring and he’s definitely showed that he can get off the canvas and get up and win it, so he shows that he has heart. And he’s a good counter puncher; he likes to set traps and he has a nice little tricky right hand. We’ve been watching him, so I’m well prepared for Mr. Banks. But at the end of the day I truly believe in my heart that my hand’s going to be raised at the end of the night, whether it goes one round or whether it goes twelve rounds.
Q
Hey, Johnathon, I wanted to ask you, about mentally the transition from being trainer to fighter during the course of the day. I wanted to know mentally and physically, first of all, how you did that. Did Wladimir come in in the morning and you trained him and then you trained after him, or was it vice versa? And then physically how was that for you at the end of the day; were you worn out, how did you feel? Because nobody does that.
Banks
Yes. Well our schedules I set my schedule to train when Wladimir trained in the morning I trained before he did; by the time he got in the gym I was just there ready, waiting on him. And the afternoon was the same schedule; I just trained before him so by the time he got there I was dressed for him and ready to go. At the end of the day, yes, I was completely exhausted. I slept like a baby every single night.
Q
So it was instead of two-a-days it was four-a-days for you.
Banks
Four-a-days. Yes, it was four-a-days. Yes.
Q
Seth made a reference to this that you’ve sparred with Lennox, you’ve sparred with the Klitschkos. Does that give you any kind of advantage in terms of assessing your opponents and enduring what they bring to the table in the course of a fight? And that’s one question. The other question is as a trainer cerebrally does that give you an advantage in assessing your opponents?
Banks
Well to answer the first question, I’m going to say no. Sparring with those guys it doesn’t give me an advantage, because none of those guys are Seth Mitchell. And, first off, I just want to say I take my hat off to Seth Mitchell, because I think he’s a hell of a fighter. My personal opinion about him I think he’s a hell of a fighter. And like I say, no, it doesn’t give me an advantage at all. All the opponents that he fought and all the opponents that I fought that was good at those particular times. Seth Mitchell brings a whole different energy to the ring than most opponents and I feel I bring a different rhythm to the ring than most opponents, so I think that’s what’s going to make this fight a hell of a fight. So to answer that first question, no, working with those guys doesn’t give me an advantage.
And could you please repeat the second one?
Q
Second one was more or less being a trainer, having a trainer’s mind and a trainer’s acumen, does that give you any upside to assessing your opponents from a trainer’s mental standpoint?
Banks
I’m not going to say an advantage, but it definitely equips you with another piece of equipment besides being prepared for different things. Looking at it from a trainer standpoint, usually a trainer will say, a trainer obviously his job is to speak and give directions; that’s pretty much it. So I try not to look at it from a trainer’s point, because I can’t speak to nobody and give them directions, except myself.
But it gives me a different outlook about boxing, which is really good, and it’s a part of it that gives me the outlook that really keeps me motivated, got me really excited about fighting all the time, just because that particular different outlook I have as far as the trainer. But I don’t see it as no type of advantage.
Q
Okay. And the last question for you is that your last loss was as a cruiserweight to Tomasz Adamek, and since you’ve been a heavyweight you’re undefeated in nine fights. Was there a reason you moved to heavyweight after that fight, number one, and then number two, to what do you attribute your success as a heavyweight?
Banks
I’m going to answer the first question, but I’m going to ask you to repeat the second question when I finish answering the first one. The loss was to Adamek, but the move was to heavyweight simply because I was killing myself too much to make the 200 pounds. And I could make the weight, but I couldn’t perform at the weight; that was my problem. I could make the weight, but I couldn’t perform at the weight. I was too weak trying to get down to 200, and it just took its toll on me, it took a toll on me in a big way. Not taking nothing against Adamek, he did what he was supposed to do. But I mean I really had nothing left to fight cruiserweight.
Q
And then my second question was I’m assuming that because you moved to heavyweight its easier. To what do you attribute your success in the heavyweight?
Banks
Just my willingness to work hard; that’s really what it was. Same with cruiserweight, I’m just trying to work as hard as I can and to fight to the best of my ability. That’s really that’s what it’s all about.
Q
Hey, Seth. Good seeing you last week. You talked about more or less his craftiness and you talked about a lot of things; you obviously have done a lot of homework on him. How does he rank in some of the categories that you mentioned with your opponents? How does he rank in terms of those categories with your opponents?
Mitchell
I think with the Chazz Witherspoon and Timur, as I said before, I think my team is doing a great job in moving me. He brings something different than my last two fights, though. I think Chazz was more busy a fighter, but he wasn’t as slick. Johnathon he’s a slick fighter; he has little subtle things that he does when he steps to the side and come over with the right hand and things of that nature. He’s a boxer that he doesn’t run, I mean he doesn’t use his legs a lot to move around the ring and run and make it a boring fight, but he definitely knows his way around the ring and taking small steps, economizing his movements to get the punches that he wants. Those are some of the things that we noticed and those are some of the things that we definitely worked on to try to alleviate some of the things that he wants to do.
But I’d say this is a solid test for me, it’s a different style of opponent that I’m facing thus far in my career, and I’m excited about it and I’m ready.
Q
Last question for you, do you think that this is a fight, a reference was made to the fact that you’ve been knocking everybody out and I know you box your way into position to score those knockouts, but is this one that you could see going the distance and maybe testing you in ways in terms of your boxing IQ and your ability to make adjustments and actually settle into a boxing match? You think that is a possibility more than say in your last 10 fights?
Mitchell
Definitely, I mean but I felt that way in my last two fights. I didn’t think that I was going to stop Timur in the second round or Chazz; I felt both of those fights was going to go about six or seven rounds. And I’m going to say you’ve seen me train before, you know I prepare for the distance; I go out there, I’m definitely in shape when I get in the ring. I know a lot of people that are waiting to take me into deep woods, because I haven’t been past eight since 2010. But conditioning is the last thing that’s on my mind when I step into the ring and I’ll be ready. I don’t expect this fight to be a short fight. Mentally I’m prepared to go twelve rounds, and that’s what I think this fight’s going to go. Whatever happens happens, but I’ll be ready mentally and physically.
Q
I wonder if you could share with us a little bit about your training regimen over the last couple of months and what that looks like and what you actually had to do to prepare yourself in the event this fight goes into the deeper rounds?
Mitchell
Well I don’t want to give away too much of my secrets, but just know that I trained very hard. I take my craft very seriously, and when it’s about two months away from the fight I cut back on a lot of things, I eat extremely healthy and I’m working twice a day, I’m working six days a week and twice a day five of those days. But we’re prepared all right. We do certain things in the gym as far as my sparring, punch count, things of that nature, high reps, we just we prepare well. But I know I’m not giving you too much, and that’s definitely intentional; I don’t give away my secrets. But we train extremely hard and we’re very prepared when we get into the ring, when we step into the ring.
Q
Okay. And my next question is in the past you have talked about coming into the ring not necessarily looking to knock the opponent out, but you’re coming to fight, you’re prepared whatever comes your way. I’m just wondering what are you expecting from Johnathon Banks; are you expecting a boxing match, are you expecting to have to go toe-to-toe, are you expecting to go the distance? What’s your expectation going into the fight?
Mitchell
Whatever it takes. One of the reasons why I personally don’t watch tape that much of my opponent because each fight is different. If I’m thinking that Johnathon’s going to come in and try to box my head off and that’s my mind set and then he comes out like a raging bull all up in my grill during the fight I think that could just throw me all off track and get me discombobulated, and mentally you have to be sharp.
So I don’t really know what he’s going to do. I would expect him to probably try to box me and take me into the deeper rounds, but we’re prepared. Like I said earlier, we have about three or four game plans that we’re really ready to go with depending on how Johnathon comes out to fight. But I can’t answer that question. I just know, and I expect, Johnathon Banks to be at 100% ready to fight come the 17th. He knows I’ll be–he knows I’ll be ready, and I hope and I expect that he’s ready to fight and be 100% on the 17th.
Q
Johnathon, I’m just wondering, given the fact that Seth hasn’t gone deep into many of his fights, is it one of your primary objectives coming into the fight to get him into the later rounds? And secondly, do you think that getting him into the later rounds will increase your chance of winning the fight?
Banks
I think what increases my chance of winning the fight is me getting in shape before the fight. But with him not being in the later rounds I think that has nothing to do with the fight at all, because as anybody knows he’s a big puncher. A big puncher has a chance from bell one to bell twelve; I don’t care if he’s dog-tired, he has a chance to win the fight because he’s a big puncher. So I think the longer the fight goes it’s not like it’s getting safe for me. No, it’s getting more and more dangerous. You know what I’m saying? So I don’t see it being an advantage at all. I don’t look at the rounds he’s been, or no, he hasn’t been this amount of rounds. I don’t get off into that, because it really doesn’t matter. You know what I’m saying, it doesn’t matter, because you don’t have to go twelve rounds every fight to be able to go through a round for one fight. You know what I’m saying? And like I say, he knows that I know that he’s coming and to be in good shape. He’s always in good shape and ready to go, so that’s what, in my mind, so you know that he’s in good shape. And once again, like I say, no, I don’t think there’s going to be an advantage if the fight goes past six or past eight or past nine rounds.
Q
Have you felt overlooked in terms of what you’ve been doing in the ring as a heavyweight?
I was wondering if you felt overlooked as a fighter because you’ve been getting a lot of attention as Wladimir’s trainer or as the Klitschko sparring partner for so many years? Have you felt overlooked in terms of what you’ve been doing in the ring?
Banks
A little bit. Sort of a little bit. It’s no bearing on me; it’s not like it’s a burden on my mind at all–I’ve been overlooked all the time and now they want to give me some attention. It’s nothing like that. I feel like a little bit I’ve been overlooked, but that’s how it is sometimes. I don’t worry about it. I’m sort of in the spotlight now, happy to be in the spotlight, and I’m going to work my butt off so I can stay in the spotlight really.
Q
Do you think it’s helped you given that, and obviously this is a big advantage on HBO, but you’ve been fighting in Europe in front of 40,000 people, do you think that helps you in terms of handling the pressure that comes with a big fight like this?
Banks
I think so. You have arenas that seat 62,000 people and it’s actually sold out for 62,000 people, you have another 2,000 people outside the arena trying to grab your clothes as you enter the arena. So you know what I’m saying. It definitely was a help as far as a pressure builder, you know what I’m saying, fighting in front of a lot of people. So in that aspect, in that sense fighting in front of a lot of people I’m totally comfortable with it.
Q
And finally, Johnathon, it’s been a little while since there has been a Detroit born and bred heavyweight from the Kronk that has gone on to really be in the big stage in the heavyweight division. Can you talk about that? And who were some of the guys that you looked up to growing up in Detroit, Detroit fighters that maybe you looked up to?
Banks
Actually, of course, the guys I looked up to in Detroit as far as Detroit fighters, Joe Louis, he was from Detroit; Sugar Ray Robinson was from Detroit; and of course there was Thomas Hearns; the Milt McCoys; the Jimmy Farr’s; a lot of these guys; Hilmer Kenty was one of the first park champions ever, and of course Emanuel Steward. I have to say I looked up to all these guys, and I was able to talk to a majority of these guys. I was able to talk to a lot of different trainers that trained Joe Louis, a lot of different trainers that worked right next to Sugar Ray Robinson. So I was able to talk to a lot of these guys, just get a little techniques or stuff like that, learning different things from a lot of old-school people.
Q
Seth, with Eddie Chambers apparently moving down to cruiserweight you look poised to take on the role of the best American heavyweight out there. I was wondering if you could tell me how important is that to you and how important is bringing the heavyweight championship of the world back to the U.S.A., how important is that to you?
Mitchell
It’s very important. As I say all the time, I never proclaim myself to be the great American hope, the great American heavyweight. Honestly now I just try to work hard, to stay humble, stay focused, and try to reach my goals. I believe in myself and I believe that I have the ability to become heavyweight champion of the world. And Johnathon Banks, he’s standing in my way to achieve that goal, and I’m not taking it lightly. I’m ready to go. But it definitely would mean a lot to me to become heavyweight champion of the world, just to be the best. Whenever I get into something I want to become the best at it, and becoming the heavyweight champion of the world would definitely solidify that.
So I’m anxious, I’m excited, I truly believe the future is bright for me, and it’s exciting for me right now. When I lay down at night and I just think about the future, and it’s just bright. And the next step, again, is the 17th, I know I keep saying it and it sounds redundant, but it’s the truth. Where I’m trying to go Johnathon Banks is in my way, and on the 17th there’s going to be a fight, and again I definitely plan on being victorious. But to wear that strap, to claim those belts back from the Klitschkos; they’re champions right now, they’ve been champs for the last six, seven, eight years, and rightfully so, they deserve all the credit that they’re getting. They’re consummate professionals inside the ring as well as outside. But the heavyweight division needs some more excitement, and I do believe that I possess those tools to bring it back.
Q
Seth, is there a current or a past fighter that you admire and/or model your style after?
Mitchell
Not really. Like I say, I literally just got involved in boxing six years ago. There’s nobody that I really looked up to as a fighter, and you probably ask Johnathon this question and he probably could say well I used to look up to so and so in the boxing, but that wasn’t my thing. I wanted to be a football player. I really looked up and admired and wanted to play like Ray Lewis, middle linebacker for the Baltimore Ravens. But as a boxer I like a lot of people. I watch tape on fights just to pick up different things to add to my boxing craft. My favorite fighter right now is Miguel Cotto.
Q
Did you happen to see the Wladimir Klitschko vs. Mariusz Wach fight, Seth?
Mitchell
Yes I did.
Q
What did you think about Wach’s chin and do you think that you could have held up like that against Wladimir?
Mitchell
Well, man, hopefully I wouldn’t have got hit too many times flush like that. I thought he had a hell of a chin. I thought Johnathon did a hell of a job in the corner in the fifth round when Klitschko got touched and it looked a little-he wasn’t hurt at all, but it flustered him a little bit, and I thought Johnathon did a great job. I thought Wach had a hell of a chin, but he was standing there taking a lot of shots. If I were to take those shots hopefully I could stand up to them, but hopefully I will have better defense when my opportunity comes.
Q
And for you looking forward professionally over the next few years does your future in boxing more as a trainer or more as a fighter? So I guess what I’m asking you is what is the number one priority right now?
Banks
The number one priority right now is just boxing, but whether it’s training or whether it’s actually fighting it’s all inside of boxing, so I don’t have to take a break on doing anything. The transition that you take to fight and to train is just the mental defense; okay I train this guy, okay I have to fight this guy. So it’s no problem. The whole ideal of it is boxing, so that’s the number one goal is just boxing right now.
Q
If boxing is the number one goal, but being the trainer of the heavyweight championship of the world, it would seem that your path to the heavyweight title is blocked. Would you ever fight Wladimir Klitschko?
Banks
To the naked eye it does seem like that, doesn’t it? I mean I don’t know, honestly. I’m not the type of guy, I never really said too much too soon about the future, you know what I’m saying. That’s one of those bridges that you have to wait to cross when you get to it. So the focus right now is to just keep training and keep fighting, so we’ll see what happens when we get to it.
Q
I know we kind of whipped a dead horse today with asking you about your training duties between Klitschko and your personal training. In the event that you’re not victorious in your fight this weekend, will you continue to battle on or would you want to shift more into the direction of training?
Banks
Once again, that’s really a difficult question to answer, because as once again it’s one of them bridges that you have to cross when you get there. As of right now my plan is to continue to train Wladimir as he needs me, because he asked me to be there so my plan is to be there for him. And also my plan is to be there for Johnathon, which is to fight. Johnathon is a fighter; I’m a fighter, I love to fight, so that’s my job as of right now.
Q
Okay. And then I have a quick question for Seth. We’ve also touched upon the point that your right hand is ready and ready to battle with Johnathon this weekend. Do you feel any type of uncomfortableness mentally about using your right hand? Even though it’s medically healed do you feel uncomfortable launching any power shots when you get into the ring this weekend?
Mitchell
As of right now my hand is 100 percent. The doctor said it takes six to eight weeks to rest, and by the fight getting pushed back and postponed I actually rested it for eleven to twelve weeks, so about three months. And for the last three months I’ve been hitting the heavy bag, I’ve been sparring, and not holding back at all, and so it’s ready to go, it’s 100 percent. Now who’s to say I could go in there and throw the first punch and my hand starts hurting, but as of right now my hand is 100 percent. I have no ill effect from previous fights and I’m ready to go, and you won’t see me holding back any punches come the 17th.
Swanson
Okay. Great. That calls it. And, you guys, we look forward to seeing Saturday night compete in the ring together, because you sure competed on the phone today. Thanks, everybody, for joining us. See you Saturday in Atlantic City.