On Lee Selby
"I really respect Lee Selby, I think he’s a hell of a fighter. I always have. (If we fight), we should do it in Belfast, because I believe I’m a bigger draw than him, and we’d sell more tickets. We could sell 20,000 in Belfast."
On Barry and Shane McGuigan
"I’ve just been listening to Barry since I turned professional. I’ve been like a sponge, soaking up all the information. I listen. Obviously, he’s got so much knowledge. He’s been in the game such a long time, I just need to take it all in. And his son Shane, as well, who’s younger than me, which is a strange sort of combination, for the coach to be younger than the fighter, but he’s an amazing trainer. To be getting the information from both guys, it’s been great."
On being dropped twice by Alejandro Gonzalez Jr
"Any fighter with small gloves on can be dangerous. That’s what happened in the first round. But I got up and rallied, and I believe after the first round, if you take the first round out of the equation, I won the fight quite comfortably. That was me at 70 percent. There’s much more to come. I believe I’m going to put in a better performance against Santa Cruz. It’ll have to be a better performance, because he’s a better fighter, but I’m ready for that."
On preparing for Leo Santa Cruz
"I’m a short guy for 126. I’m used to fighting guys taller than me. I bring big guys in, sparring partners who are similar in stature to Santa Cruz, and I believe fight like Santa Cruz, as well. We’re doing everything we can to replicate him as much as possible. I feel like I’m performing in the gym. Hopefully, I can bring that to fight night."
On moving up in weight
"It’s not easy for me to make 122, but I said I wouldn’t move to 126 unless it was a big fight, and there’s no bigger fight than Santa Cruz. I wanted to fight him. I thought I was going to get a chance to fight him at 122. The fight didn’t materialize for whatever reason, but it’s here now. It’s right on the doorstep. I’m ready to get going. I’m excited about it."
On going from Quigg to Santa Cruz
"I want to be in big fights. I kind of went through the apprenticeship stage of my career. From here on in, until the end of my career, it’s going to be big. This is a chance for me to make a bit of history."