Yesterday Sullivan Barrera (21-1, 14 KOs) met with members of the media in Miami to discuss his upcoming mandatory challenge fight against WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol (12-0, 10 KOs) at The Theater at Madison Square Garden Saturday, March 3. The bout will be the co-main event on the Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev vs. Igor Mikhalkin HBO World Championship Boxing telecast which airs at 10:05 p.m. ET/PT.
Sullivan Barrera:
On fighting in a title bout:
“This would be a very important victory obviously because I want to look to the future after this. It would be a dream come true to win the title. And we would see what happens after that. There are a lot of big names out there.”
His plan fighting Bivol:
“Bivol is a good fighter and it is known that he has speed but we have a plan to adjust to the speed and take it away. We are going to impose ourselves and use our abilities.”
His thoughts on Bivol:
“Bivol is the champ and he has to be respected as such but I have fought big names before and that’s going to give me an edge. I have been there before, fighting in big fights.”
Regarding adversity and coming back from knockdowns:
“Things happen in a fight but you can see every time that it has happened the switch has gone on and activated me and I become a lot more dangerous. Obviously, that’s not the plan that it happens in any fight and we hope it doesn’t happen in this fight either. I know the crowd likes the drama and the excitement of it and it’s worked in our favor every time.”
What’s next?
“After March 3rd, when I get the belt, I’m ready, I’m ready right now for everyone, open for everyone. I’m a fighter and open to fight everybody. I’m a throwback fighter. I’m not thinking about sitting down. Of course, things need to be done right financial-wise but I am willing to fight anybody.”
His strategy for Bivol:
“Obviously, we can’t reveal our strategy and our plan, but I can tell you we are going to go out there 100% and leave it all out there in the ring to get the victory.”
About March 3: The Saturday, March 3 main event between Sergey “Krusher” Kovalev and Igor Mikhalkin is a 12-round match-up for the WBO Light Heavyweight World Title at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City. The co-main event features WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol versus Sullivan Barrera in a 12-round title fight. Tickets range from $50 to $300 and are available online at TicketMaster.com and at the Madison Square Garden box office. The event is promoted by Main Events, Krusher Promotions and World of Boxing in association with EC Box Promotions, is sponsored by Medoff Vodka and Leon.ru and will be televised live on HBO World Championship Boxing® beginning at 10:05 p.m. ET/PT.
 met with members of the media in Miami to discuss his upcoming mandatory challenge fight against WBA Light Heavyweight World Champion Dmitry Bivol (12-0, 10 KOs) at The Theater at Madison Square Garden){kind=link}