Amir Khan, Unified Super Lightweight World Champion
“We never get two nice guys in a fight. We’ve got two nice guys fighting here, but I’m sure once we put the gloves on for the fight, it will be a different story.
“18 years since HBO has had a fight here. That’s a long time.
“Hopefully we’ll bring boxing back to Washington, and maybe this will be the first of many fights here.
“It’s going to be a big fight. It’s going to be an explosive fight. I hope we see you guys there and hope you can get some tickets before they all sell out.”
Lamont Peterson, #1 Rated IBF Contender
“It’s a dream come true for me. I’ve dreamt about this day many, many times. Just attending the big fights, I would go home and go back to the gym and just wish that one day I would get my opportunity. Well, this is my chance right here to win two world titles here in my hometown.
“I’m sure Khan will be training hard to defend his titles, but I’ll be training even harder to protect my home turf.
“It’s a dream come true. Come December 10, I just have to go in there and take care of business.
“I’m here to win. At the end of the day, none of that [Khan’s past achievements] matters to me. When we get in the ring, what he’s done in the past does not matter. It matters what he’s going do when we get in there for 12 rounds. I believe he’s going lose.
“I don’t think he chose to fight in DC because he’s overlooking me or anything like that. I know that a lot of his people will be here, because I’ve fought on his cards in Vegas, and they come all the way to Vegas. So I know they have no problem taking a little quick plane ride over here.
“Hopefully, we buy the tickets before they [Khan fans] come over and buy them, and they can be all my people and none of his. So the crowd can be loud, live and hyping me up and hopefully getting on his nerves.
Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions
“This is the perfect city for this fight. We are happy and very excited to bring such a significant world championship bout to the District.
“We want Washington to come out in big numbers and support this great fight card so we don’t have to wait another 18 years for HBO to come back here for another boxing match.
“We have great hopes in Seth Mitchell and it’s very fitting for him to make his HBO debut here in Washington.
“There will not be an aisle at the fight, so the politicians will have to sit together [at the fight], so hopefully they can resolve some issues by then.
“We are very proud to have Amir Khan as part of our promotional stable.
“Let there be no doubt that Lamont Peterson is going in there to dethrone the champion. He is going to have hometown advantage.
“Lamont will have the opportunity to make all of his dreams come true with a win over Khan.
“Watch and see, this young man [Khan] will become, pound for pound, the best fighter in the world, no question about it. I really have zero question about that because he has the skills, tremendous power in his punch. He has the heart of a lion, and in the Maidana fight, he showed that he might have the best chin in the sport of boxing. He really is an all-round athlete and a first-class human being.”
Asif Vali, Khan Promotions
“It’s an international competition. We all know professional boxing is all over the world.
“Thank you to HBO for giving us the opportunity to fight in America once again.
“Golden Boy Promotions has an unbelievable team; they have been instrumental in helping us get the fights we need to get.
“We estimate about four to five thousand U.K. fans will make the trip to DC, and with the support of worldwide fans and local boxing fans, I think Richard [Schaefer] will be very happy.
“I want to acknowledge two people that play a big part in the Khan team, Freddie [Roach] and Alex [Ariza] who we will meet when we start our training this weekend in Los Angeles.”
Barry Hunter, Lamont Peterson’s Trainer and Manager
“It’s been a journey that wasn’t always easy. We made it through. That makes this event special to me.
“He’s [Khan’s] a very classy young man. He’s got the heart of a lion and he fights like one.
“All the stuff we went through—through the highs and the lows, the good, the bad and the ugly—we stuck together, and they [the Peterson brothers] stuck with me. I give them all the praise and credit in the world.
“DC ain’t going to be so nice to Khan as other places he has fought. We don’t give up that easy. So definitely it’s going to be a tremendous fight.”
Seth Mitchell, Undefeated Heavyweight Contender
“I’m extremely happy for the opportunity. I’m focused. Come December 10, I definitely will be ready. We want everybody to come out, and the fighters will do their part. We’re going to put on a good show.
“I realize that the opportunity doesn’t come around that often to be televised on HBO, and come December 10, I won’t disappoint. You have Seth Mitchell now, and December 10, you will get Mayhem.”
Sharif Salim, Seth Mitchell’s Manager
“We’re very excited about this December 10 card and we do hope that we can get as many people in there as we possibly can.
“We know that the U.K. has had several recent heavyweight champions, but we need an American champion, and certainly I hope it will be that Seth Mitchell is that person that can bring it about.
“I can assure that the main event is going to be action-packed, and believe me, Seth Mitchell will also deliver.”
Greg O’Dell, President and CEO of Events DC
“We’re so happy to have the fight at the Convention Center, which we think is the right place. We want everyone in the community to come and enjoy this fight.”
Rick Kay, Partner at Monumental Sports and Entertainment
“We look forward to supporting the Convention Center and opening up opportunities together where we can use our amazing marketing and sales force to create a sellout. Everybody is looking forward to a new opportunity. Boxing is a big deal here in DC, and we’re going to do everything we can to make it the biggest deal that’s ever happened in boxing in DC.”
Scottie Irving, Chairman of the District of Columbia Boxing and Wrestling Commission
“To come back and have a major title fight that includes local DC fighters—it’s outstanding for us.
“We expect to see all you guys there. We look forward to this. This is major for us. This is an outstanding event for us, and we’ve been chasing this event for years.”
Philip Barton, Deputy British Ambassador to the United States
“Amir’s had an incredible career already. He’s a born boxer with a calm, measured aggression that marked him out from a very early age for greatness.
“I also wanted to pay tribute to your opponent, to Lamont Peterson, who’s a true son of DC.
“He [Peterson] should know this, there’s a lot of us Brits here in Washington, and we’ve had some noticeable victories over the years. In fact, we even managed to burn down the White House in 1814. So rest assured, come December 10, part of the noble support is going to be for you [Khan], and we’ll all be cheering for another great British victory. “