Jose Valenzuela is confident in victory ahead of his title defense against Gary Antuanne Russell at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on March 1. The Mexican-born champion puts the WBA super lightweight belt on the line that he claimed against Isaac “Pitbull” Cruz last August. The contest serves as the co-feature to Gervonta Davis vs Lamont Roach Jr.
Renton, Washington-based Valenzuela (14-2, 9 KOs) stated that winning the title motivated him to be “stronger, faster, and smarter.” Facing off against Russell, the 25-year-old southpaw looks to “steal the show.”
“It’s a beautiful feeling to be here in New York with these beautiful fans,” Jose Valenzuela said during a media workout at Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn on Wednesday. “I’m ready to defend my title on March 1.”
“I have a big task ahead of me on Saturday night. I can’t overlook him, and I give him my respect. We are both coming to fight.”
“I have a lot of things that he doesn’t in his arsenal, like body shots. Winning this belt has only motivated me to become stronger, faster and smarter at 140 pounds.”
“My trainer has given me great confidence, and it just clicks. It shows with how I performed with my last few fights.”
“We are two great fighters that are ready to put on a great fight and steal the show on Saturday night.”
‘If we execute the game plan, we win’
Russell (17-1, 17 KOs) challenged Alberto Puello for the interim WBC 140-pound title last June, but dropped a split decision. Looking to rebound from his first career defeat, the 28-year-old southpaw from Capitol Heights, Maryland makes his first attempt to land one of the four major straps.
“I can’t give y’all the juice, but I know what I’m capable of, and I’m ready to take the shine off of the main event. Stay tuned,” Gary Antuanne Russell said.
“Every opponent is different, and he forces you to use different tools. The main lesson I took from my last fight was that listening is important because you must be flexible and versatile. Lesson learned.”
“There is nothing new that we haven’t seen. If we execute the game plan, we win.”
“I feel like Valenzuela is only trying to pump himself up. I don’t care what he says. Keep that same energy.”
In the main event, Baltimore’s three-division champion Gervonta Davis (30-0, 28 KOs) defends his WBA lightweight title against current WBA super featherweight champion Lamont Roach Jr. of Washington, D.C. Davis makes his sixth defense of his belt, while Roach looks to get on top in his second weight class.
Also on the card, Alberto Puello (23-0, 10 KOs) of the Dominican Republic defends his WBC super lightweight title against Sandor Martin (42-3, 15 KOs) from Spain. In addition, Yoenis Tellez (9-0, 7 KOs) from Cuba and former unified super welterweight champion Julian Williams (29-4-1, 17 KOs) from Philadelphia battle it out for the interim WBA 154-pound belt.