"Martinez should fight a real middlweight, like me"
Russia's WBO middle king talks to Danny Flexen
Boxing News
WBO middleweight champion Dmitriy Pirog has slammed WBC counterpart Sergio Martinez for considering a showdown with far smaller Filipino Manny Pacquiao and told the Argentine he should meet him in a unification clash instead.
“It’s definitely not a really fair fight,” Pirog said regarding Martinez-Pacquiao. “Manny Pacquiao fought Antonio Margarito and it was a good fight but when one guy is a lot bigger, it’s not very professional. A great fight for Martinez would be against someone in his own weight category, like me. Boxing was not created for catchweight contests, Pacquiao can’t make middleweight ever. A better fight for him would be against Juan Manuel Marquez.”
Pirog came to prominence for many in the western world when he upset touted Golden Boy prospect Danny Jacobs to win the vacant WBO crown in July. The man from Gelendzhik, who is building a gym in his hometown, highlights two key factors behind that fifth-round victory: his humble background and both the promoter and media neglecting him in the fight’s build-up.
“I grew up with working class parents,” Pirog revealed. “My dad worked in a factory like most people at that time. My upbringing was definitely a factor – I was not starving or anything but I always wanted to be better off and that made me more determined.
“The attention being on Jacobs didn’t really affect me except it made me a little angrier than normal and I wanted to prove myself. That I was also sure I have fought much better and more experienced opponents, that was a big advantage too.”
Pirog controlled the fight in July before a big right hand ended Jacobs’ chances. Dmitriy admitted he did not expect his triumph to be quite so easy although his preparation had gone superbly.
“The only thing that I was a little worried about was whether I would acclimate completely,” the 30-year-old explained. “But we planned everything as it should be; it was just another fight for me. There was no special nervousness.
“I didn’t think it would be this easy. I thought Jacobs would run a lot and that would cause me problems. He did that a little bit but he did come forward too and I got more opportunities than I’d thought. That made it a better fight for the fans.
“My finishing punch was not something special. If you look at the stats I have around the same amount of knockouts with my left as my right. That fight I happened to reach him with my right but it was not necessarily the hardest punch of my career.”
Pirog is suddenly, if not hot property, then certainly warming up. He is looking only for big fights now, although the immedfiate target is building that gym.
“Progress is good, but it’s not finished yet,” Pirog related. “I want the gym to be free to all kids, especially the kids with no ability to pay so I need investors and administrators to help with that.
“As for the ring, I want the right fights, I want to continue to fight people who have reached my level. I don’t want to take just any fights. I’m not looking at financially interesting fights, more difficult opponents; I’m ready for anyone now.”
