Immediately following Shawn Porter’s WBC title win over Danny Garcia on Saturday night, Porter took to the podium to discuss the win and what it means for him and his career moving forward. You can catch his full post-fight presser right here, courtesy of our friends at Fight Hub TV, and check out some excerpts below...
Porter on what’s realistically up next for him after winning the WBC title:
“I know how this thing works. So, I know that Errol Spence got in the ring and said that he wanted to fight me in front of the world and I politely accepted that challenge — not only because he stepped in the ring and said it but because that’s what I really want...”
On what was going through his mind right before the scorecards were read:
“It was tough. I was in the building when Keith Thurman won a split decision against Danny Garcia, and no offense to Danny but I didn’t see the fight that way. I thought that the fight was a little bit more lopsided for Keith. Coming back to the corner after rounds my dad gives me the real. There were times I came back and he said ‘we gotta push harder.’ There were times that I came back and he said ‘you won that round.’
“So throughout the fight we knew that we had a hold of the fight but my dad wasn’t 100% sure...When I heard unanimous decision I just wanted my name — I just wanted to hear my name. And the moment I heard my name was just so surreal for me.”
On what means more to him, winning his first world title or winning this one:
“I think it’s this one. I’m not exactly sure why to be honest with you...this time it was more so — it wasn’t that I didn’t know — but it was more so that I just really wanted it. And I think that makes this one just a little bit more sweeter for me.”
On if it was Garcia landing some big shots that caused him to step up his work rate in the fight:
“We knew coming to the ring that the work rate had to be high and we knew that it’s not something that I have to force. You know, we come to the ring ready to work hard and ready to work through an entire round. I didn’t expect to throw 270 more punches than him but I expected my punch output to be higher than his and we expected that to play a part in the scorecards...”
On how he would now rank the top five fighters at welterweight:
“I’m the new champion. Errol [Spence], Shawn Porter, Keith Thurman, Danny Garcia, and Terence Crawford.”
On if he was pleased with his performance in the first three rounds of the fight:
“I was pleased with how I started the fight. I wanted to come in, be patient, and work the game plan that we’ve been working, move around the ring, and use the jab from the outside and box him from the outside — get him to come to me, which we thought would be a really good asset for us. And I think the majority of the punches that he threw coming towards me, I was able to make him miss. That was something that we knew we’d be able to do...I remember being pretty comfortable, for the most part, throughout the fight.”
On talking to Danny throughout the fight:
“I’ve been saying this for a lil’ while, man — I really wanted to say in tune with everything that’s going on with wining this WBC title...so when I got in the ring tonight I wanted to be relaxed...I made him miss some big shots and I wanted him to know that he missed those big shots, that he couldn’t hit me — try to get him out of his game.”