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Godfrey
training in Philly for Cora
April 6 main event on ESPN2 FNF from Mohegan Sun
PROVIDENCE (March 12, 2007) - World cruiserweight contender Matt "Too
Smooth" Godfrey loves cheese steaks but that's not why he's training in
Philadelphia for his April 6 main event fight on ESPN2 Friday Night
Fights against his 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials teammate, Felix "Bad News"
Cora, Jr., at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Godfrey will defend his NABA title against Cora, as well as fight for
the vacant NABF belt, in the 12-round headliner on "Collision Course,"
promoted by Jimmy Burchfield's Classic Entertainment & Sports, Inc.,
that has serious world title shot implications.
Providence-native Godfrey (14-0, 8 KOs) is rated No. 6 by the WBC, as
well as No. 10 by the WBA and IBF, while the WBC ranks Cora (18-1-2, 9
KOs) at No. 16.
Godfrey has been training in Philadelphia with his new head trainer,
Naazim Richardson, one of five candidates for 2006 Trainer of the Year
(Boxing Writers Association of America. They've known each other since
Matt's early days in the amateurs, where "Too Smooth" posted a 194-23
record, including six national championships -- four open tournaments
including the 2004 Everlast U.S. Championships, plus two in the Junior
Olympics.
Godfrey was a Bronze medal winner at the 2001 Pan-American Games, Silver
medallist in all four of the 2004 national major tournaments - National
Golden Gloves, PAL (Police Athletic League), U.S. Championships and U.S.
Challenge -- and six-time New England Golden Gloves champion.
"One of the main reasons I took this fight against Cora is there's an
80-90 percent chance that a win will possibly put me at No. 1 as the
mandatory contender in the WBC," Godfrey explained. "It didn't matter
who my opponent was for this fight. It's all about jockeying for
position to get a title shot. Cora is a unique fighter. For a guy his
size he's in such incredible shape that he's like a machine, sitting in
the pocket and throwing punches from beginning to end. You usually see
that style from much smaller guys than a cruiserweight. I haven't been
in against anybody like him and it's going to be a good test. I will
adapt to him, though, starting by being in the best physical shape of my
life. You know, I love cheese steaks - my big weakness - and eat them
all of the time back home. Now I'm training in the city with the best
cheese steaks in the world and I can't eat 'em. One day I did reward
myself for losing some weight by eating one, just that one, until after
this fight. I plan on fighting my fight against Cora, but I'm going to
be prepared, condition-wise, to go the distance hard with him.
"I'll be training here six weeks when we're done and (chuckle) I wanted
to leave after two days. Naazim is militant. He's banging at my door
every morning at 5:30 to run. And then I don't know the exact time I'm
going to the gym until he tells me. What he does is make me get
uncomfortable because every time I'm in the ring things aren't going to
always be comfortable. Sometimes it's a love-hate affair for me. He
rushes you and makes me train like I'm 130 pounds. When I first got here
I was complaining, 'I can't do it (working out).' Brother Naazim has now
eliminated 'I can't do it' from my vocabulary. It's good to have him op
top of me 24/7. Training in Philly has given me regular sparring, what a
world-class fighter needs, and more opportunities than back in Rhode
Island."
Richardson moved into Godfrey's corner because his trainer since turning
pro, Peter Manfredo, Sr., has been busy helping to prepare his son,
Peter Manfredo, Jr., for his WBO super middleweight title fight on April
7 against Joe Calzaghe in Wales.
"Peter and Roland (assistant trainer Roland Estrada) produced a solid
fighter in Matt," Richardson said. "I'm not responsible for that. I'm
just teaching him to master some of the little things and he's been very
responsive. We're trying to find a mesh and get him in great shape. It's
been a pleasure because we are working together on all cylinders. He has
the skills and I've watched him grow from a pup going back to the Junior
Olympics. I believe he has the size and athleticism to beat Cora. Not
just beat him, but to win impressively."
Godfrey, 26, has always shown poise and ring wisdom beyond his years.
Working with Richardson in Philly has been like going to boxing graduate
school for Matt.
"Naazim loves playing mind games," Godfrey concludes. "I never know when
I'm working out; he has me on pins and needles. But there have been no
distractions and I'm getting in the best shape of my life. This is a
tough fight. Naazim's a really good strategist. He's watched a lot of
Cora's fights and we've been working on our plan. Not only do I need to
win, I need to win looking good because boxing is a business and I want
all of the networks to want me fighting on their shows." |
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