Padraig McCrory confident he can stop Edgar Berlanga: “I see myself knocking him out”
Padraig McCrory believes Edgar Berlanga and his team have made a mistake in picking him to fight this Saturday, February 24, and that he’s one punch away from changing his life when the unbeaten Super-Middleweights clash at Caribe Royale in Orlando, live worldwide on DAZN.
McCrory (18-0 9 KOs) faces-off with American sensation Berlanga (21-0 16 KOs) for the first time today (Tuesday) in Orlando as they close in on their crunch battle at 168lbs.
The Belfast man has acknowledged that this is the biggest fight of his career to date, but with “The Chosen One” eyeing the likes of Jaime Munguia, Diego Pacheco and the biggest fish of all, undisputed king Canelo Alvarez; McCrory knows he’s within touching distance of putting his name into the mix to land those fights for himself.
“I know that I am one punch away from changing my life,” said WBA #3 Padraig McCrory. “If it happens, and I truly believe it is going to, I will go down in Irish boxing history, and on Saturday that’s what is going to happen. I’m so proud of being from Belfast and to go down in history there would mean so much to me.
“Winning this fight changes my life for good, anything that’s happened in the past is irrelevant. My life is great, I’m happily married with three kids, and on Saturday it’s going to get even better.
“This win opens up massive opportunities, the biggest names, like Jaime Munguia, Diego Pacheco or even Canelo Alvarez. He’s the dream fight for everybody, the money fight, and that’s what awaits me after this fight. He’s looking past me talking about those guys, he’s not worried about me but that’s a big mistake, he’s in for a nightmare.
“I’m definitely his hardest fight. I’m a big 168 and he’s never taken anyone’s ‘0’. He sounds confident but I think it’s all show. He’s trying to convince himself and on Saturday you’ll see that I’m his biggest test.
“It’s obvious that he has power, he comes with a big punch. Ask anyone and they’ll say he’s strong and has power. I think he is getting a bit better fundamentally, but he isn’t the finished article and I think he needs more time and that’s why they haven’t taken the Munguia fight or the Ryder fight, or any of these big fights. They are trying to get him ready for those big fights and unfortunately, I’m a step too far.
“You’ve seen footage of him getting dropped in fights, in the amateurs and in sparring, so I am visualizing using those moments and putting myself there. It’s a big part of what I am doing, visualizing the win and the feeling.
“I don’t think the fight goes the distance. I see myself knocking him out, you’ve seen him hurt heavy, and I believe I have the power to do it. People don’t expect me to win, I’m the big underdog, but on Saturday, the world is going to know my name.
“Thank you, Eddie, for the opportunity, but you’ve made the wrong decision in picking me. You have big plans for Edgar but unfortunately, I’m going to stop it all from happening. When Katie Taylor comes back to Dublin, put me on there and I’ll fight anyone.”
Edgar Berlanga and Padraig McCrory clash on a big night of action in Orlando, where the co-feature pits Cuban Lightweight sensation Andy Cruz (2-0 1 KO) against Mexican Brayan Zamarippa (14-2 5 KOs) for the IBF International and WBA Continental Latin-American titles.
Shakhram Giyasov (14-0 9 KOs) and Pablo Cesar Cano (35-8-1 25 KOs) battle it out in an eliminator for the WBA World Welterweight title, while the main card on DAZN sees another World title eliminator as Antonio Vargas (17-1 9 KOs) and Jonathan Rodriguez (17-1-1 7 KOs) aim to take a step closer to the WBA World Bantamweight crown.
Yankiel Rivera (4-0 2 KOs) closes the Before The Bell section of the card with his first title fight as he takes on Andy Dominguez (10-0 5 KOs) for the WBA and WBC Continental Americas Flyweight titles, with Cuban Heavyweight Herich Ruiz (4-0 3 KOs) meets Mitch Williams (16-10-3 11 KOs) over eight rounds and Aaron Aponte (8-1-1 2 KOs) takes on Joseph Fernandez (17-5-3 6 KOs) over eight rounds Super-Lightweight.