Back in July, ESPN viewers were left wincing at the disfigured face of Pawel Wolak after his gruelling ten round war with Delvin Rodriguez. After making a fast start, the ever aggressive Wolak suffered grotesque swelling around his right eye, leaving the Polish born fighter virtually blind from the sixth round onwards. By the eighth, his eye had grown to the size of a cricket ball. Despite two ringside doctors pleading with him to quit, Wolak battled through the pain, earning a majority draw which left neither him, nor Rodriguez, satisfied.
Now, both fighters prepare to do battle once again, this time at the iconic Madison Square Garden on the Miguel Cotto – Antonio Margarito undercard. ‘I thought I won the fight by 2 rounds, although I could see it being 1 round as there was a round that could have gone either way’ Wolak remembered of their first encounter. ‘He was gassed by the 5th round and was very wobbly on a few occasions. Then my eye swelled and gave him some energy back and a target to go after.’
Wolak felt that the injury also clouded the judges’ perception of the fight. ‘I was concerned that when the swelling started the judges would give rounds to Delvin when I don’t think they should have. Even with one eye, I was coming after him and landing every punch I was throwing in a larger volume. But I knew my appearance could sway some of the judges. That is the nature of the sport so I had to adjust. It was a freak thing.
With his aggressive pressure style, Wolak has adopted the ring name ‘Raging Bull’, a nickname which suits him well. ‘I don’t quit. You have to kill me to beat me and the doctors will have to see me not breathing to get me out of there.’
While Wolak remains fully focused on the task at hand, he believes he is ready to tackle the bigger names in the Light Middleweight division. ‘My style creates a lot of problems for guys. That’s why I have had such a problem getting that big title fight as I won’t be a push over. I won’t come in and be a sparring partner on the big stage. These guys will have to be on their game and be ready for war. Some of these champions are just not willing to fight my style. I was a replacement for Gomez to fight Chavez Jr in Anaheim in December. Chavez than caught the Wolak flu he always catches when he hears my name and dropped out. So instead I fought Pinzon on crazy short notice and still managed to get the TKO in the 7th.’
Wolak, however, understands that a loss to Rodriguez will derail his world title ambitions for the foreseeable future. ‘I am not looking past Delvin. Whatever happens after is out of my hands. If I had any control of my fights I would have been fighting Bundrage, Chavez Jr or Canelo now, and then put the title up against Delvin. But this is sort of plan B and I am ok with that. Whatever happens next is fine with me. But I have to win this fight. I’m fully concentrated on Delvin.’
The likeable prizefighting Pole remains a grounded fighter, and continues to work on a construction site between fights. ‘I am taking 10 weeks off for this fight. I will then probably take a week or 2 off after the fight and then go back to work. I love the job and the people I work with. It would take a lot for me to stop doing it when I am not training for a fight.’
Wolak’s fighting style, combined with his never-say-die attitude, has seen his popularity increase dramatically over the last 18 months, and he is grateful for the fans he has made. ‘My fans are the reason I do this’ he said. ‘They take time out of their lives and pay a lot of money to watch me fight. I owe it to them to entertain. I want to show the people that have never seen me before or the people that are losing faith in this sport why this remains the best sport in the world, and that there are fighters who give 150% to every fight they are in. I am that every day guy who I hope the everyday person can relate to and support.’
Pawel Wolak takes on Delvin Rodriguez on December 3rd. If their first fight is a blueprint on what is to come, expect another candidate for Fight of the Year.
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