Jono Carroll: I have nothing to lose against Tevin Farmer

Jono Carroll talking a big game is nothing new. The Dublin native is a fine speaker and knows how to hype up a fight, as we saw before his last fight. He talked up a storm about IBF super featherweight titleholder Tevin Farmer before taking the ring against Guillaume Frenois on Dec. 8, with a win over Frenois sure to lead to a fight with the champ.

Instead, Carroll (16-0-1, 3 KO) went to a draw with Frenois, which wasn’t exactly ideal. Fortunately for Carroll, boxing matchmaking is still the wild west more than it is a meritocracy, and he’s getting his crack at Farmer (28-4-1, 6 KO) on March 15 in Farmer’s hometown of Philadelphia. And that means he’s back on the mics and selling his story.

Carroll, 26, says he doesn’t care about fighting Farmer in Philly, feeling that all the pressure is on his opponent, the defending titleholder:

“A man who has a lot, has a lot to lose. I’ve nothing to lose and everything to gain so mentally, this is an easy night for me. This is just another day in the office for me.”

Carroll also reiterated that he doesn’t believe Farmer’s confidence is genuine:

“Tevin didn’t know what to do when I put it on him and started stuttering and repeating himself. I don’t think he’s truly confident. I think it’s all just a front.”

Carroll may well be the better talker, but Farmer, who started his career by losing his first pro bout and going on to a pedestrian record of 7-4-1 in his first 12, has emerged as one of the top 130-pound fighters in the world. He’s someone who learned on the job and got better and better.

Last August, Farmer went to Australia and routed veteran Billy Dib to win the vacant IBF belt, and has already defended two times, beating James Tennyson in October and Francisco Fonseca in December. He’s vowed to stay “old school” busy as champion, taking all comers while hoping to land a big fight with Gervonta Davis.