ALEJANDRO GONZALEZ will challenge IBF super-bantamweight king Carl Frampton on July 18th and the Mexican known as “Cobrita” is fully expecting a very hard fight. The son of a former world ruler at featherweight, Gonzalez Jnr is just 22-years-old and he currently holds a 25-1-2 (15) record. Yet despite not having a vast amount of experience – as he himself acknowledges – Gonzalez Jr. is ready to go to war to take Frampton’s belt in El Paso, Texas.
Here he speaks exclusively with Boxing News:
Q: The fight with Carl Frampton has just been announced. When did you get offered the fight?
Alejandro Gonzalez Jr: “I was first offered the fight a week ago (June 1). It’s a hard fight, he’s a great champion. It’s a great opportunity and I’m thankful for it. But when we were first offered the fight, we had to think about it, as I haven’t boxed since December. I was supposed to box on the Canelo Alvarez card in May but I hurt my hand. One of the things I had to think seriously about was me not having a fight since December and going straight into this big, big fight. But I thought about it and I said okay, let’s do it.”
Q: How impressed are you with Frampton?
A.G: “Like I said, he’s a great champion. He gets stronger in each fight. He’s like a tiger, in the way he wants to kill the other guy. He comes different [style-wise] in every fight. He’s already a superstar over there in the U.K of course and that’s why I want to fight him. I always want to fight the best and he’s definitely one of the best at 122-pounds. I have been impressed by every one of his fights. I don’t think you can ever do enough studying of a fighter; they can come differently in each fight. You can never get tired of studying an opponent.”
Q: What was you amateur career and do you feel you are experienced enough for Frampton?
A.G: “I only had 43 amateur fights, but that’s largely because I turned pro at just 16. My first five pro fights I was only 16. So I don’t have all that much experience as far as an amateur career, but I have learnt so much from my dad who was a great fighter (Alejandro Gonzalez Senior, former WBC featherweight champ). He has passed so much on to me. He is my trainer along with Javier Capetillo (of Antonio Margarito hand-wrap fame/notoriety). My fighting style is like that of my father. I can go in and fight hard and I can also box. It depends on who I’m fighting; whether they are strong on the inside or if they are weak.”
Q: Fans are expecting a great fight between you and Frampton. Do you see an action fight?
A.G: “Of course. As soon as the fight was signed, I told my father, this will not be a fight, it will be a war. He’s a great champion but I want that title. I know he’s not going to give it to me, this is going to be a pure war. I have been in the gym since December pretty much. I have been sparring. I don’t have to worry about being on weight – that’s another reason I signed for the fight even though I will not have boxed since last December – and all I need now is to get stronger and to pick up more experience in the gym.”
Q: You have just one loss on your pro record, a TD loss. Do you consider that loss to be a real loss, a blemish?
A.G: “You know what, that loss helped me become the man and the boxer I am. I’m grateful for that loss. Of course no-one wants to lose, but the experience that fight gave me, you cannot get that from a one or two-round fight. But my toughest fight, I’d say that was my very first pro fight, against Oswaldo Novoa, who just recently lost the WBC title (at minimumweight). That was a (four-round) draw, a very hard fight, he was so strong. But I was only 16, so I think that had a lot to do with it. But all these fights I’ve had, they have given me good experience. Now I’m really looking forward and I’m grateful for the fight for the world title. He [Frampton] never backs down in a fight and I know this will be a war.”
