Original Interview Dated February 2004

Ricardo "Rocky" Juarez

When it comes to boxing, Rocky Juarez is the pride of Houston. After winning the Silver Medal in the 2000 Olympics, Juarez has gone undefeated as a pro with 22 wins and 15 knockouts. He is currently the WBC Continental Americas Featherweight Champion. Juarez is preparing to fight former N.A.B.F. Featherweight Champion Juan Carlos Ramirez on March 4th in California, in a bout that will be shown on ESPN-2. I caught up with him after a recent workout at Ray's Gym, just north of downtown Houston.

HBS - You just had a long workout, how do you feel?

RJ - I feel good. My body's to that point where it's been hectic training and the fight's close already so it's just a matter of getting ready for fight time now so I think I'm in the best shape I can be in as far as right now and we're just getting ready for this fight coming up March 4th.

HBS - I understand you don't really have any trouble making weight.

RJ - No I really don't have trouble making weight as long as I do what I'm supposed to do and stay disciplined so as long as I do those things I don't have trouble making weight but the fact that this fight's going to be at 128 (pounds) is even better for me.

HBS - I understand you sparred more than 180 rounds.

RJ - I don't know how many rounds I sparred, I just did the sparring. I don't count but Ray is the one who keeps up with my sparring so we have another pro here that once I got back from my last fight I started sparring from the get-go so it was just staying in the gym, staying in shape, staying sharp and I got him ready for his fight and he's been helping me do the same.

HBS - What first got you interested in boxing to begin with back when you were a kid?

RJ - Back when I was a kid I used to fight all the time and my grandfather was the only other boxer in the family and he's the one who actualy tried teaching all his grandkids how to fight, to defend themselves and I happened to be the only one who actually listened to the point where he was teaching combinations and I threw them and I think it was just, I just knew how to fight from the get-go, I didn't know how to box but I knew how to fight, just instincts. I used to go around the neighborhood and I used to have a pair of boxing gloves and I used to fight. I actually grew up with a lot of kids my age from the neighborhood and we're still friends to this day so we fought each other, fist fights, boxing gloves and we went to the park, Moody Park, and I strapped it on with other kids from the park so I kind of practiced but I actually got started when my grandfather took me to my first gym which was when I was nine. Then I quit and came back into boxing when I was 12 going on 13. I was a baseball fanatic so I was always into baseball at the time and then once I had my first amateur fight I knew boxing was for me. It was just a feeling, I won my first fight but winning that first fight that trophy meant more to me than all the trophies I had received in baseball.

HBS - Tell me a little bit more about your amateur career, what you did.

RJ - What didn't I do, I think from the J.O.'s all the way up to the open division, nationals Olympic elite level. I won the Golden Gloves numerous times. I made the Olympics in 2000. I was the 2000 Olympic silver medalist representing the United States. I won the world championships in 1999. I was two-time national open division champion, boxer of the year. I've had a lot of trophies, fighter of the month, boxer of the year, outstanding boxer. I've won just about every tournament there is.

HBS - Obviously when you're successful at something that's a lot of what keeps you in it but what is it that you love abot the sport of boxing?

RJ - I tell people it's a hard sport, it's a physical sport, but at the same time to know the feeling of victory when you step into that ring. It's kind of barbaric. I look at it as two animals going into the ring. Our coaches are our trainers who have their fighter compete against someone else's fighter and the best man wins. But I feel the fighter is the one that takes most of the glory when know the fact that they beat the other competitor, beat their opponent, one on one sport. So I tell people it's a beautiful sport. It might be, it is dangerous but you have to realize, to step into that ring and just know that feeling of victory when you fight. I mean anybody who's ever been into a fight, boxing-wise or in the streets, know that when they've won a fight, how do they feel after they win. So it's just, imagine that feeling over and over and it's something that you're actually gifted with, a talent.

HBS - What do you know about this guy you're fighting?

RJ - Juan Ramirez is definitely a tough fighter who's going to come to fight and he's not going to lay down. We trained hard for this fight. I didn't take him lightly and I know he's a tough opponent. He was once one of the best featherweights in the division a few years back and he's not old to this day so he's only lost to the best fighters out there. Some of them people might not know but were good fighters. So he comes to fight, he's definitely not going to take a paycheck and walk out. He's going to come to try to beat me and it's my job to not let him.

HBS - Any weaknesses you see that he might have that you're going to try to capitalize on or strengths that you figure you're going to need to neutralize?

RJ - Well we worked on a couple of combinations that we feel is going to help us in this fight. But in reality you know you step into the ring adapting to the style. You know as much as you want to practice on certain combinations against a certain opponent he comes into the ring with a different style so you try not to get your hopes up on just thinking that a certain combination is going to work, but just knowing the fact that you have to just step into that ring and adapt to any style he has to give you so we're going in there just ready for anything, any style, whether he tries to box me or he tries to fight me on the inside.

HBS - Assuming you win this fight I understand there's a pretty good chance, you're the number 1 W.B.C. contender, there's a pretty good chance you'll be fighting the champion, In Jin Chi, sometime later on this year. What are your thoughts on him and how you might approach that fight?

RJ - Well we're trying to not look past this fight against Juan Carlos Ramirez but we know that we're only one step away from a title shot from what we've been told and In Jin Chi, the W.B.C. world champion is definitely a monster in the featherweight division. People know him when he fought Erik Morales, people didn't know too much of him but when he fought Erik Morales they knew he was a tough fighter and for the fact that now he's the W.B.C. champion he's earned his right for that title. We know if we win this fight we have the opportunity to fight for the championship belt. Definitely want to get ready for that fight. We know that it's going to be a tough, hard fight. We're going to prepare ourselves to go the distance, 12 rounds, and may the better man win if that fight were to happen.

HBS - You're pretty much the most popular boxer in Houston. You got swarmed, mobbed at the Golden Gloves by all the kids seeking autographs, it's got to feel pretty good to be just about at the top of your game.

RJ - I feel blessed. I feel real blessed that I've been given the opportunity to do what I'm doing today and take care of my family and take care of myself as well. I have a little boy, a little Rocky Junior, so I just feel blessed that I'm able to do the things that I do and I try to stay humble to the point where I know, I see a lot of these kids here in the gym or in the Golden Gloves for instance and I just try to give them the best advice I can give them as far as my wisdom. I've been there, done that and what it takes to become the best that they can be which is the hardest part about boxing is actually getting to the gym. I think as anything in any work, everyone has trouble getting up to go to work and boxing is the same way. Sometimes you have other things you want to do but this is a job and you have to keep it as a job. To get here to the gym is the hardest thing. Once you're here you have nothing to do but train. The other thing is some fighters go through the rhythm, go through the routine, just hitting the bag
rather than trying to work on perfecting a certain punch or getting better at something they're not very good at so it's a learning thing. It's a learning process every day, you try to learn something every day. When I went to the Golden Gloves and I get approached by a lot of kids and even adults it makes me feel real good for the fact that I have a lot of fans out there. You know I feel if someone were to come up to you and just give you a handshake and say "You're a good fighter" that's a sense of respect and I think that's what it's all about is respect and they know who you are.

HBS - Have you given any thought to what you might do once you hang up the gloves?

RJ - Actually being a professional four years it's hard. I tell people it's hard when money comes in you know when you've never had it it's a very difficult thing to hold onto because you've never had it and you don't know how to say no to family or friends who want to borrow basically. But it's become a lot easier since my first pro fight but one thing I to plan on getting into and I've been investing my money is in property, real estate, just trying to throw my money into places where I can get back, if anything, and get a profit so that's something I'm definitely looking to get into and I know in my heart that if I'm able to accomplish what I've accomplished in boxing I can accomplish anything because I'm a smart guy as far as I listen and I'm very quick to learn on certain things so I'm hoping to get into real estate and basically open up my own business and be successful in that so I'm just trying to invest my money wisely and do the best that I can in boxing and make as much money as I can and come out in good health.

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4-14-06



HBS - Now that you've had time to reflect on it, tell us about the fight with Backlin Medrano.

RJ - We saw a tape of Medrano. We knew he was going to give us all he could and he definitely did. People that were there, they got to see that the guy had a lot of heart and a lot of will and I think fighting that fighter with that much determination gives anybody a tough fight. But I believe I was just too well prepared and experience-wise, I just slowly broke him down from the get-go with the body shots and I believe the body shots were the punches that stopped him.

HBS - Now you're in here just doing strength training today. Tell us a little bit about where you're at in your preparations.

RJ - What my strength conditioning coach tells me, Brian, (Caldwell), he says I'm doing real well. One thing about me is I push myself. You know I push myself to the highest that I can go and sometimes I surprise myself so that just goes to show how much I push myself and he's very happy with me where I'm at today for the fact that this is the first time I've worked with him in my career.

HBS - There seems to be a recurring rumor that you might be splitting with your longtime trainer, Ray Ontiveros.

RJ - The rumors are probably that critics believe I should get a new trainer. At one time, not that I wanted to get a new trainer but I was thinking about having someone join. One thing someone told me which was funny is the fact, my own nephew who's 22, told me some words of wisdom that you'd figure that an older person would tell me. He told me "Never take away what got you where you are today, just add." With Ray, Ray's always been there by my side. He's been there since I began my amateur career, even my professional. You know just for the fact that people blame the coach for any fighter's loss and that's one thing I never claimed. I never claimed it was a part of my trainer or anyone else but myself so it was just a bad night.

HBS - You're talking about your loss last year?

RJ - Yes, to Humberto Soto. It was just a mental thing that, getting ready for a fight with In Jin Chi, and him withdrawing from the fight two weeks before the fight. It's just a mental thing that kind of hits a fighter where you expect to fight for a world championship and it doesn't happen. It's just a mental letdown.

HBS - So you don't have any problems with Ray but you're sort of diversifying your regime?

RJ - Yeah that's what I'm doing, I'm diversifying, ading on and one thing I added was Brian Caldwell as a strength trainer. Come May 20th Ray's going to be my coach for the fight against Barrera and then Caldwell's helpiing me as far as my strength. So doing my morning workout with Brian and afternoon workouts with Ray so Ray's going to be in my corner come May 20th.

HBS - This title shot is something you've been dreaming about for a long, long time. You had one a while back but it fell through and now you have another one so it must feel pretty good.

RJ - It feels real good. Any fighter's dream is to basically get an opportunity to fight for a world title and it's all a question of a fighter's destiny, whether he belongs up there with the champions or whether he belongs up there with the top fighters in the world. So fighting for a world championship and even more, fighting against one of the great legendary fighters, Marco Antonio Barrera, is definitely a great motivation to come in the gym and prepare myself ot the best that I can. There's no doubt in my mind that I can beat him but it's the name that is kind of the motivator. If I beat Barrera I look at it like it's satisfaction for myself as well as it's going to benefit me in my professional career.

HBS - I guess just the psychological factor of facing a guy with so many fights and who like you said is a legend it's got to be kind of daunting.

RJ - Yeah, very much. You know sometimes as a fighter you kind of have to mentally psych yourself out and say "This guy's just like any other fighter...." just somewhat like the Rocky movie when he fought the Russian. He bleeds just like anybody else and if I prepare myself to the best that I can I feel I can beat him. There's no doubt in my mind with my ability and my skill and my will that I can compete and beat Barrera.

HBS - What do you see as his weakness that you need to take advantage of and his strengths that you'll need to neutralize?

RJ - As far as weaknesses Barrera's an all-around type fighter. I think he's proven that in his career. He started his career as a puncher and later in his career he got to show his boxing ability and smarts so I think coming May 20th it's going to be a fight of will and smarts in the ring.

HBS - Anything in particular you're working on aside from maintaining your composure so you can execute your strategy?

RJ - Well we feel that Barrera doesn't like body shots and one thing everybody knows, I'm a very good body puncher and we're hoping to work the body and capitalize and just outwork Barrera. I feel that when I land punches I hurt a fighter and even Barrera being as great as he is I feel if I land a good punch it can end in a knockout.





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7-7-06

Rocky Juarez is looking for vindication. Not in the sense that he necessarily has anything personal against "The Baby Faced Assassin", W.B.A. Super Featherweight Champion Marco Antonio Barrera, but in the sense that he feels he won their last fight on May 20 in Las Vegas. The fight was initially ruled a draw, but in one of those incidents in boxing history that could in some sense be compared to the Janice Jackson "Wardrobe Malfunction" during a Super Bowl halftime show, only far less entertaining, Juarez's draw against the legendary Barrera was minutes later ruled a draw as a result of a judge's scorecard "miscalculation". Juarez now has the chance to reclaim what is rightfully his, when he faces Barrera during a rematch scheduled for September 16th. His training is constant and intense, and he believes he is making the necessary adjustments that will lead to victory, a title, and his place on the pantheon of the boxing's greats. I spoke to him after a recent workout at the Savannah Boxing Club.


HBS - Give us your rundown on how the fight with Barrera went.

RJ - I thought it was a great fight overall. I had to see it a couple of times to actually see it from another person's perspective rather than wathincg int and criticizing what I should have done and could have done. It's something people want to see again which is happening again September 16th but it's going to be I think a better fight next time.

HBS - Give us a more detailed assessment of what occurred, what you did, what he did.

RJ - Well, I think the beginning of the fight he felt my power and began to backpedal and use his jab and try to box but you now I don't believe that he did enough to win the rounds the way he was doing it. I mean he I was landing the more solid shots, I was being the aggressor, but you know I could explain myself all day and say what went wrong and what I could have done but I'm just looking forward to this next fight, looking past this first fight. The facts said, you know, I lost. I got a loss. It was first a draw but it put a loss on my record so you know I have to come back. I'm going to be the challenger once again but I think I'm going to have better odds the next time.

HBS - We'll talk about what happened at the end of the fight in a minute because there's plenty to talk about but you seemed to have hurt him and he was clearly more marked up at the end.

RJ - As the fight went on, I continued to get stronger as he began to get slower and break down but Barrera's a very experienced fighter and everything. He fought a very smart game plan. I think I was a little too cautious at the end. I could have took more risk, or let's just say I should have took more risk from the beginning of the fight and I don't believe the fight would have lasted as long as 12 rounds. I hurt him throughout the fight. I think he really did try to survive rather than try to win the fight. I think he kind of felt in his heart and I think that's why we're having a second fight You know the only person that's making this possible is Barrera. You know De La Hoya doesn't make the calls or anybody else. I think Barrera's the one. He's stepping up as a champion and as a fighter, but more as a man to realize that he felt maybe in his heart that he lost the fight and he has to prove something, not only to himself but to his fans out there that he can beat me so I believe that's the reason that we're having the second fight.

HBS - So at the end of the fight they call it a draw and then suddenly it comes back a split decision for him. It's a sort of bizarre but then again not all that unusual thing to see in boxing. It seems pretty clear what happened but do you think they went back and fixed it to make sure he won?

RJ - Well let's just say this. At the end of the fight I felt I had won the fight but you know going into a fight like that, that caliber, that kind of a champion in his hometown and the hometown of the promoter, I had the doubt that I lost because of the fact that I didn't knock him out. But in my heart I felt that I won and at the same time so when it ended up a draw I was happy with that. I believe that getting a draw in someone's backyard, as a fighter, and fight fans, you know they're going to have to watch the fight to realize that if a fighter goes into someone's backyard and gets a draw then the champion either lost the fight or it was a hell of a fight so overall I thnk I was okay in comfort with it. The way I look at it was my record would have been 25 wins, one loss with one draw, so it wouldn't have put that much of a mark on my record and receiving a draw against a great champion like Barrera, other than a win, you can't get no better than that.

HBS - Do you think that?....It seems pretty clear some pressure was put on the judge to make sure he won.

RJ - It's fairly clear. Let's just say something happened. The fight was called a draw. The fans that were there and the people watching on T.V. saw the fight as a draw just for the fact that it was announced a draw but they would have had to tune in on the internet or the news the following day to realize that Barrera had won by a point because a card was changed, or let's just say they miscalculated the scorecards.

HBS - You mentioned that in the first fight there were some points at which you were too cautious so are you planning to change that the second time out, maybe being a little bit more aggressive and letting your hands go a little more?

RJ - That's the thing. Barrera knows that type of fight I'm going to bring so he knows I'm going to come right back at him and test his will but more of that, just testing more and taking bigger risks. You know this is my second opportunity for a title shot and he knows I'm coming to take it and he had enought trouble the first fight. You know I give him the most respect for the fact that he's giving me, you know everybody's saying that he's jumping right back into the lion's den to fight me again but you know I'm sure he's coming in with a game plan. We have our game plan as well. Yeah, definitely we're going to take more risks and take the fight to him. That's why I know it's going to be a hell of a fight on the rematch.

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3-16-07

Rocky Juarez is coming off a 5th round TKO over Emmanuel Lucero in Tucson in February. He remains the #3 Ranked Super Featherweight by the World Boxing Council. Probably Houston's most popular boxer, the former Olympic Silver Medalist is now planning to take on Hernandez on May 5th, on the undercard of the Mayweather-De La Hoya fight.



HBS - How're you feeling these days? You're obviously in pretty good shape.

RJ - Yeah I'm feeling great. You know I've been training since two weeks after my last fight which was February 9th against Lucero so I've been guaranteed three fights this year from Golden Boy Promotions so I'm trying to stay active in the gym.

HBS - Give us an idea of what your routine is like.

RJ - Well today's a Friday so we just did ten rounds of shadowboxing, kind of an easy rest day but I'll be here tomorrow training. Normally I do five rounds on the pads, five rounds heavy bag, five rounds double-end bag, and three rounds on the moving bag so I get a good workout.

HBS - Then some sparring in there too?

RJ - Well yeah, I've been sparring two times a week but now that we've found out that we're getting a fight we're going to start picking it up, maybe about three sparring sessions a week.

HBS - How many rounds do you spar each day?

RJ - Well right now since we just found out yesterday we'll probably move it up slowly, five rounds, and move on up and then go back down.

HBS - Who have you been sparring with?

RJ - A guy named Lonnie, he's undefeated, and we might have someone else come in to prepare ourselves mentally for this fight. But we'll be ready.

HBS - Let's go back to the fight against Lucero. Tell us how you approached it.

RJ - Well I was very nervous going into that fight. I knew coming off two losses against Barrera that I had to come out and make a performance and make a statement. You know I look at it like this, the way I was thinking was that if I would have lost that fight I would have basically said my career was, not done with, but I would have had to start over from scratch and I don't think so. Actually i was very nervous going into that fight but at the same time confident. You know, working with a new team, I knew I was in shape so I was ready to go.

HBS - So give us a recap of the fight.

RJ - Well he came out, he's the type of fighter who's more dangerous in the beginning of the fight, and he tired out towards the end, and anybody who tires out with me in the later rounds is in trouble. So once I got him into the later rounds I knew it was going to be better for me, but if I had caught him with shots like I did in that fight, I dropped him in the first. I should have had him out of there in the second after the second knockdown, but like I said, I took my time stayed paitent and I got him out of there in the fifth round.

HBS - What punch or combination of punches finally put him away?

RJ - I caught him with an overhand right that rocked him, came back with a left uppercut that dropped him. He got back up and the referee said continue the fight. I went at him with a barrage of punches and the ref just stopped the fight. I think he couldn't defend himself any more.

HBS - Tell us about your next fight.

RJ - I just found out I'm fighting Jose Hernandez. I believe he's from Chicago. He recently came off a win with Jason Litzau, a knockout win on HBO. Good fighter, good amateur background as well. I believe he was a national Golden Gloves Champion at the time I was fighting amateurs. But overall I think he's proved that, beating an undefeated fighter like Jason Litzau, he proved his wits, and a lot of other fights. He showed that he has a lot of heart and determination. Any fighter like that is definitely going to be a good fight.

HBS - What do you know about his style and how you're going to handle him?

RJ - Well he's a Mexican so he's somewhat typical you know, along with his amateur background he's more adaptable. He comes with a variety of styles. If he has to box he'll box, if he has to brawl, he'll brawl. But once again he's Mexican, so he's going to want to fight and I know that's the fight he's going to bring to me.

HBS - You're known for your body attack of course but anything in particular you think is likely to work against this guy?

RJ - We just found out who we're fighting so we're going to get to the drawing board. Ronnie Shields, along with my former trainer, Ray Ontiveros, get on the drawing board and just pick out some stuff and see what we can work on, see what his weaknesses and his strong points are. But like in any fight, once I fight we always have to adapt. So I believe it's all about adapting and working off what works for you.

HBS - How has this new team made a difference for you?

RJ - Well I'm comfortable. I'm still able to work with my old trainer, Ray Ontiveros, who's been there since the beginning of my career, day one, and to be able to work with the trainer who's gotten you where you are today, there's always the benefit of great timing. Ronnie Shields, he's worked with a lot of champions, there's a benefit and at the same time, me and Ronnie we work together. I think that's important as well is to communicate and be comfortable with your trainer.

HBS - Is there anything in particular you're working on?

RJ - There's a lot of things I'm working on as far as defense being an aggressive fighter. Where I used to have an aggressive style in the beginning of my career, then I became more of a counterpuncher-puncher. Just trying to go back to being a punches in bunches and get you out of there type fighter.

HBS - What do you think of Barrera and the champions in your featherweight/super featherweight division?

RJ - Well I can't say anything about Barrera because we know he ain't going to fight me again, regardless of what I say about him. I clearly respect his as a fighter but I can never respect the way he fought me in the second fight. He just didn't show me no heart. Whether people want to critique that, that's just the way I feel.

HBS - Some could say he boxed, or some could say he ran.

RJ - Exactly. I mean those who know what a boxing lesson is, they're going to know that wasn't no boxing lesson. A boxing lesson to me is something where you just make the guy look like a fool, you beat the crap out of him and you hit him with every shot you throw. I believe Barrera retreated on every shot he threw.

HBS - Who are the champions that you think you might be looking to go up against?

RJ - Robert Guerrero is one of the champions. We're hoping to fight for his interim title. My manager's going to try to get a fight as an interim title so I can be fighting for a title shot in the near future if everything goes well. But we want to win a championship at 126 pounds and then move back up to 130 pounds.

HBS - So you think you'd like to fight Guerrero?

RJ - There's Guerrero, there's In Jin Chi, there's Chris John, I think there's Scott Harrison, so there's a few champions out there who have held the belt for some time so not naming any names, whichever one that wants to give me a shot, I'm willing to take it, but we've got this fight in front of us first and I'm definitely not going to look past it.

3-7-08 Rocky Juarez is back in the gym, preparing for his next fight against veteran contender Jorge La Hiena Barrios of Argentina on May 31st in Las Vegas. Juarez has revealed that he recently underwent surgery to one of the bones in his face, which he says has affected his performance in recent contests. HBS - Let's talk about the medical stuff. You just had some surgery. RJ - Yeah I had surgery on the eye, the cut, from my previous fight against Marquez. The physician who sewed me up did a horrible job and I had to get it redone about three times and it was just a headache as far as coming back to the gym and training but I had a surgery done to jmy left orbit, left eye, which I had received (an injury) about two years ago. I remember sparring right before the Barrerra II fight and I was just always afraid to tell anybody for the fact that it could be the end of Rocky Juarez's career because I was seeing double. It wasn't something major, major for me, major for the surgeons to fix basically. HBS - When you talk about your orbit, was there a crack in the bone that needed to be somehow fixed or fused? RJ - I had received a hairline fracture during a sparring session before the Barrerra II fight. The swelling went down before the fight but the doctor told me that my left orbit was bigger than my right and that hairline fracture had some buildup of fat or cartilage or something and I was seeing double in my right side. It was a big factor, it took away from my offensive and put me more on the defensive side. HBS - Tell us about the last fight with Marquez. RJ - Well it was just unfortunate that I received a cut in the first round. I think I never really caught a rhythm. I think that going into that fight I was so relaxed, so pumped up that I was going to win, in a good confidence you know? Not so much cockiness, but going into that fight I said if I can hit him with my jab, I'm going to be able to hit him and the first few seconds in the first round I caught him with my jab and I knew he was hittable, you know? I knew he wasn't the boxer/technician everyone's talked about, that he could get hit and I was doing well I guess you could say until I received the cut and the blood and all, along with the double vision just kind of kept me more on the defensive, kept me from throwing more offensive but I felt personally that the doctor who actually sewed me up after the fight should have stopped it if he knew the cut was that bad in the first four rounds. HBS - So needless to say that had to be a pretty rough 12 rounds for you to have to endure that kind of punishment for the whole fight. RJ - Well I ain't going to lie. Actually my cut man, my previous trainer Ray Ontiveros was saying "This cut is too big, this cut is too big, they need to stop the fight." I never thought about the draw. I wasn't thinking that. I was thinking I can fight, I can fight. This ain't nothing, just clean it up, I know I can beat him. But as the fight progressed, being punched on the gloves, being punched on my gloves and hitting myself I guess you could say and being punched with Marquez's punches it just made the blood come out much more and it did have an effect but as far as punishment, you know Marquez never did hurt me one time in the fight and that's one thing I've told other reporters is that I saw everything coming. But I was just on the defensive side. HBS - So know Jorge Barrios, May 31st, tell us what you know about him. RJ - Barrios is a tough, rugged fighter, man. Anybody who's seen Barrios fight knows he goes into each and every fight with a lot of heart and grits. I know he's going to be a tough, tough opponent. I'm just more confident in myself that I had all this done and leading up to May 31st I'll be prepared. I feel like I've revived myself with this surgery. I see the world a lot different. I see the world a lot better rather than in twos. Let me just say like this. I haven't missed my salt shaker yet. Before the surgery I would miss the salt shaker on the dining table. That's how bad my vision was. HBS - How would you handle Barrios stylistically? RJ - He's going to be in my face. He's not a boxer, that's for sure. So I think I'm going to have to use my smarts, box and brawl. I think I'm going to have to hit him from the outside and when we're on the inside I'm going to have to work on the inside. Barrios is a fighter who just comes straight forward. He's going to be in your face. He's a hard puncher and he basically overwhelms his opponents with brute force punching power. HBS - How do you feel about how significant or pivotal each fight is for you at this stage of your career? RJ - I'll be honest. I know for a fact that fights like these against Barrios, Barrios is a tough opponent for any fighter. He just fought Joan Guzman and gave Guzman a hell of a 12-round fight and I just fought Marquez so they're throwing two opponents you could say into the ring. Really no one can say who's going to come out victorious. I know I need to win this fight if I'm hoping for another title shot and that's the fact but I'm very confident and I feel very good now that I've had this surgery done. I know I keep talking about the surgery but anyone who was in my shoes has noticed how bad it was and how much it's improved they would understand that I feel like a new fighter. HBS - Now you've got a lot of time to get ready so I assume right now you're just working on your stamina? RJ - Just getting in shape. I'll be working with Ronnie Shields and Brian Caldwell my conditioning coach. I've already been in the gym the last two weeks. I feel good already. I'm just going to be building up my stamina. My balance is a lot better and I feel I have two months to prepare myself for a tough fight. .