Boxing Preview: Samuel Peter vs. Jameel McCline NY Final Press Conference

Click for larger image © Jim Everett / Saddo Boxing

Saturday night at Madison Square Garden , Don King Productions will present Samuel Peter, 28-1 (22), against Jameel McCline, 38-7-3 (23), for the Interim WBC Heavyweight Championship. The night of boxing has been named, “Faith, Hope, and Glory …Ain’t No Stoppin’ Us Now!”

The lengthy title of the event is aptly named due to the long road that this fight card has been through in the past several months. The original fight was announced back in August with WBC Champion Oleg Maskaev scheduled to face Sam Peter after five months of negotiations. Last week Maskaev pulled out of this scheduled match due to a back injury and Peter was named interim champion three days later by the WBC.

Ironically, McCline was scheduled to face Vitali Klitschko on September 22 in Munich, but Klitschko pulled out of their match two weeks before the fight also due to a back injury.

McCline was then added to the undercard of the “Mecca of Boxing” event to face Davarryl Williamson and has now been moved up to the main event to face Peter after the Maskaev injury.

McCline spoke to SaddoBoxing about his opportunity to face the newly crowned Interim Champion, “It’s just surreal, I’m getting ready for a really big fight, I was very excited and up for it then Klitschko falls out, then Davarryl Williamson comes in, and then this comes through and there is nothing better.”

In response to Peter’s predictions of an early knockout, McCline was unphased, “That’s awesome, that’s great because then he spends some gas and that’s just the way it is, listen I’ve been in with the best in the world and I have never been knocked out early.” McCline was happy to add his own prediction for the fight, “I will walk out of there victorious.”

When McCline stepped to the podium, Peter’s trainer Stacy McKinley heckled him telling him he would be knocked out, to which McCline replied, “He knows it’s not easy for anyone to knock me out, I’m a fucking beast! It’s not easy to beat me.”

Peter did not have much to say at the podium, but was quick to respond to McCline’s earlier statement, “If McCline is a beast, then welcome to my jungle. I am home and this belt belongs to me. I am taking over the division, so McCline can just be there for me so that I can bring him down.”

Click for larger image © Jim Everett / Saddo Boxing

The undercard for the event will feature some interesting match ups which include the WBA Super Welterweight Elimination bout between Daniel Santos, 30-3-1 (21), and Jose Rivera, 38-5-1 (24), both former two-time world champions.

“I came here to fight, I feel like I’m in great shape for this match,” said Santos . “I did twelve rounds of mitts yesterday and I feel great, this will be a great fight between me and Jose.”

“This is the fight that will determine where I’m going in my career,” said Rivera “This could turn out to be fight of the year.”

Click for larger image © Jim Everett / Saddo Boxing

Also featured on the undercard in a 12 round heavyweight fight is Andrew Golota, 39-6-1 (32), who will face the last fighter to knock out Mike Tyson, Kevin McBride, 34-5-1 (29).

McBride told SaddoBoxing, “I’m in the best shape I have ever been in before any fight, even better shape then I was before I faced Tyson.”

When asked what the difference was in his conditioning he answered, “I changed teams, a new manager Jerry Quinn and my new trainer Buddy McGirt. Buddy has enhanced everything for me using my attributes to the best of my ability and working on my speed.”

“I am going to win on Saturday,” said McBride who would like to fulfill his third dream after this victory, “I had three dreams in life, one was to box in the Olympics which I did in 1992 in Barcelona. My second dream was to fight my idol Mike Tyson and I did and I beat him and my third dream is to be the first born Irish Heavyweight Champion of the World.”

McBride’s confidence continued when he took his turn to speak at the podium, “Andrew Golota is a big name, beating him is going to get me back in the picture after I retire him like I did Mike Tyson.”

Don King bellowed as he introduced the “soon to be retired, Andrew Golota,” to the podium to speak. “What do I say, it’s very sad that I’m retiring,” laughed Golota as he looked at McBride to say, “He’s going to get his ass beat, see you Saturday.”

Although Golota did not say much on the podium, he took the time to answer a couple of questions with SaddoBoxing regarding how he felt about his opponent. “He’s a huge guy, strong; he beat Tyson and is dangerous with an awkward style of fighting.”

When asked about what a victory over McBride would offer him, Golota laughed, “For me actually nothing, I took a break for a year after my loss to Brewster figuring out what to do. This fight will be practice for me to get back in the heavyweight picture.”

Click for larger image © Jim Everett / Saddo Boxing

McCline’s original opponent, Davarryl Williamson, 24-4 (20), remains on the undercard and will now face Kali Meehan, 32-3 (26).

SaddoBoxing spoke with Meehan about taking the Williamson fight with less than two weeks notice, “It came up suddenly but I have been in training, I have been in the states the last five months sparring with [Lamon] Brewster, Tony Thompson and Ray Austin; my fitness is good I’m just excited to get back in the picture.”

“I know a lot about Williamson, to have a win over him would be good on my resume he’s a good fighter and has a big right hand, he’s definitely someone I can’t under estimate.”

Meehan also spoke about his goals are after a win over Williamson, “I would love to have a rematch with Hasim Rahman, nothing personal just so I’ll know who the better fighter is at the end of the day. I hope to climb the WBA ranks; DaVarryl is number four I believe; I would really like to have a shot at the WBA champion Ruslan Chagaev.”

Click for larger image © Jim Everett / Saddo Boxing