Long-time WBC light heavyweight champion Adonis “Superman” Stevenson 29-1 (24) is confident that he is in for an early night against challenger Badou Jack 22-1-2 (13) when the two meet this Saturday night at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada on a GYM Promotions card broadcast by Showtime in the USA.
“Badou, are you ready?” asked the 40-year-old southpaw at Thursday’s media conference. “You’ve never been hit; that’s the problem. When you get hit, it’s going to be different. I know you have trained very hard and are excited.
“Don’t blink! Because it’s only going to take one punch to knock him out. I am looking for the knockout. It’s 12 rounds and I just need one punch. Only one. That’s all I need. And as soon as it lands, I’m going to knock him out, and he will stay on the floor.
“I may be 40 years old but I’m hungry and just like him I have a family to support. My promoter always tells me, ‘Knock outs sell. Knock outs sell.’ So that’s what I’m going to do. I can go 12 rounds, and I can box. But I want to knockout. That’s what I’m looking for.
The 34-year-old Jack, who was born in Stockholm, Sweden but now resides in Las Vegas, was unfazed by the taunts. Promoted by the imaginatively named Mayweather Promotions, he had his world famous promoter on hand for the media conference.
“When Floyd told me he was going to give me this fight I said, ‘Why not? This is the bigger fight.’ He can start looking for excuses now, because I’m going to knock him out,” said Jack, a former titleholder at both 168- and 175-pounds.
“I know Adonis is one of the hardest hitters in the business. I know he can give it, but can he take it?
“What happened to me (being knocked out by Derek Edwards) was an accident. It just woke me up. I have faced six world champions back-to-back-to-back, and not a lot of people in boxing could say they have done that.
“You’re going to have a new champion. I asked for this fight. He didn’t ask for it. I called him out before I even moved up to light heavyweight. He’s one of the best so I’m all about fighting the best. This is my sixth world champion back to back. I’m all about the big fights and I’m all about the big money.
“He has nothing that scares me. I fear no man. He’s one of the toughest guys in boxing but I’m a tougher guy. I’m going to prove that May 19. There will be a new champion.”
Mayweather praised Stevenson when he took to the microphone, but reminded the crowd that age catches up with everyone – even TBE.
“Adonis Stevenson is a tough competitor. He’s a heavy hitter and one of the faces in the sport of boxing that you don’t always see. He’s behind the scenes, but he always makes a lot of noise,” said Mayweather.
“The matchup is a 50-50. Anything can happen in the sport of boxing. All it takes is one shot. One thing we do know about Badou Jack is he can give it and he can take it. He’s not going to back down from any opponent…
“I was a lot faster, and hit harder when I was younger. As I got older, I wasn’t able to see the things that I was able to when I was younger. It was a totally different game at age 38, 39, 40. It was totally different.”
 is confident that he is in for an early night against challenger Badou Jack 22-1-2 (13) when the two meet this Saturday night at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Canada on a GYM Promotions card broadcast by Showtime in the USA.){kind=link}