Edison Miranda: “I intend to hurt Abraham again!”
By Ace Freeman (16-Jun-2008)

FightFan.com caught up with the fearsome Edison Miranda just days out from his eagerly anticipated June 21 rematch against Arthur Abraham. Don't miss was 'Pantera' had to say, only on FightFan.com!

FF: Hello Edison, thanks for taking the time to catch up with the FightFans at FightFan.com. In the first fight against Abraham, your power literally broke his jaw. Do you anticipate the punches you throw in this rematch may cause more physical damage because of how hard you hit?

EM: I have every intention of hurting Abraham badly again. I am not sure if it will be his jaw, ribs, nose or the back of the head when I knock him through the ropes onto the floor below. He is in for a very painful night.

FF: How do you feel about fighting at 166 pounds in the rematch against Abraham? Will it benefit you and do you feel your punches are carrying more damaging power now at this new weight?

EM: I have fought twice at 170 pounds since my fight with Pavlik so this will be the first time I fight at 166 pounds. When I agreed on this weight I knew I had to train and diet perfectly to make the weight and keep my strength. It has been a tough camp for me since I changed my whole diet for this fight and continued to train and spar as hard as ever. Today is only a few days before weigh in and I am very close to weight. I will not have to drain myself at all so I feel very comfortable I will be as strong as ever in the ring.

FF: How do you feel about Abraham personally? This appears to be a heated rivalry…

EM: I have not seen Abraham since they rushed him to the hospital on a stretcher from his locker room in Germany. I think my promoter wants to keep my far away from him until we meet at the press conference this Thursday. There is no love between us, but I will control myself until we meet in the ring.

FF: If you do not catch Abraham early in the fight, are you prepared to go 12 hard rounds and how do you nullify his hand speed?

EM: I beat Abraham last time over twelve rounds. Now I am stronger and in better shape. If he can suffer through 12 rounds of a beating then I am fine with that. As the fight goes I will just get hungrier for the knockout and hurt him worse. The only speed I see from Abraham is how quickly he turns into a turtle.

FF: Can you describe your mental approach to this fight and how badly you want to win?

EM: When my trainer first told me there could be a rematch with Arthur I thought he was kidding around. He knows how badly I wanted this and we have talked about it ever since we left Germany. I will not leave the decision in the hands of the judges and with a referee that has been hired as Arthur’s babysitter I will be able to do what I have trained so hard for. I never thought this rematch would happen and I do respect Arthur for having the courage to meet me again in the ring.

FF: Edison thanks for taking the time. Best of luck and health going into the fight this weekend.

EM: Thanks you, and thanks to all the fans.