MMA Nation Senior Editor Luke Thomas, who has been a friend of our site for years, had the chance to talk to Seth Mitchell, Lamont Peterson and Barry Hunter recently ahead of the December 10 Khan vs Peterson card. Check out the Mitchell interview here. Below is the interview with the man who will challenge for Khan's WBA and IBF junior welterweight titles with home field advantage, Lamont Peterson.
Peterson on the buzz of fighting at home in Washington, D.C.:
"I'm already amped for this fight. I'm gonna go out, and I really wanna do well on December 10th. ... I'll deal with (the crowd). I try to prepare myself every day, every night before I go to sleep. Just putting myself in that situation, that atmosphere... Thinking about what's gonna go on on December 10th, the crowd chanting for me. Maybe some boos from Khan fans. Just things like that. Trying to prepare myself to fight in that atmosphere."
Peterson on Juan Manuel Marquez and Pacquiao vs Mayweather:
"(Pacquiao vs Marquez III) was a really, really close fight. ... I had Marquez winning by two points. It was close. If you're a Pacquiao fan, you're gonna say Pacquiao won. If you're a Marquez fan, you're gonna say Marquez won. ... On whether this proves Mayweather beats Pacquiao: No. Even though I think so. But styles make fights, and just because one fighter beat one easier than the other doesn't mean that. ... (Marquez) punches in combinations. Floyd is only one, two, three at the most. Marquez throws four, five, sometimes six-punch combinations. That's the only difference I see, but Floyd is much stronger, bigger, faster. ... (Marquez) reminds me of me a lot. He's a technical fighter, but he doesn't mind mixing it up when he needs to. Warrior, all the way through. He's intelligent. There's a lot of things about him that -- there's a lot of things I try to take from him, and learn from him. Overall, I love his fight style. Exciting fighter, throws a lot of combinations. He's willing to mix it up with anyone."
Peterson on Amir Khan's volume punching swaying the judges:
"It depends on what the judges are looking at. I understand that sometimes judges strictly go on volume punching, who's punching the most. But at the same time, I'll be working, too. I won't let him out-punch me. I think I'll land the cleaner shots. But I'll still try to keep up with his punch-count, too.
Peterson on his fight with Timothy Bradley:
"In that fight I tried something new. My first championship fight. I put on some more weight, and it was hard to get off at the last minute. ... Only weights we're lifting are with the legs. I built a lot of muscle in the upper body, and it was hard to get off for the Tim Bradley fight."
Peterson on Amir Khan's chin:
"Anybody can get hit on the chin good and go out, any night. I won't say it's vulnerable as far as he has a weak chin, I just think he lays his chin on the line a lot. So you will get opportunities to knock him out, and to hit his chin and test. He lays his chin on the line a lot, and Prescott was one of the ones who actually caught him. ... On whether he's more durable than Khan: Yes. End of the day, overall, I think as far as chin and body, I think I'm more durable than he is."
Peterson on differences between this camp and Ortiz/Bradley camps:
"Each time you go out on the big stage, as this one is, you get more comfortable, just sure of yourself. You learn things. The things that I learned from the Timothy Bradley fight and the Victor Ortiz fight, they're gonna help me on December 10th. So I'm just trying to take the things that I learned from those fights and bring them toward this fight. I feel much more comfortable. I feel at ease right now. I'm happy. I just know that it'll be my night."
Peterson on boxing in D.C. being helped by a win:
"Oh yeah, it would make boxing big in D.C. again. we have a lot of good fighters coming up. It would open doors for them also. I just think it'll uplift the whole D.C. area. Like you said, the Redskins aren't doing too good, the lockout thing's going on, and the other sport, you know, hockey... With a win, I think everybody will be uplifted... everyone loves a winner."
Peterson on living his dream:
"Some days it shocks me. Before I go to sleep I sit and think. My dream is really coming true. As a young kid, you always say what you wanna do, and what you wanna be in life. Mine was always to be a professional boxer, a world champion, fighting on TV, things like that. I'm actually living my dream. It shocks me sometimes. Sometimes I sit back and just try not to let it overwhelm me, and just understand that I'm blessed, and I'm just happy that my dream is coming true."