Joel Casamayor: “If I beat the s#!t out of Corrales like I’m gonna beat the s#!t out of him, the judges CAN’T rob me”
 Interview by Coyote Duran (Oct 5, 2006) Photo © Tom Casino/SHOWTIME
What can you say about Joel Casamayor that hasn’t been said? Is he arrogance personified or just a down-and-dirty fighter who never lets an opportunity to be bigger and better pass him by?
Casamayor, 33-3-1 (21), is a little bit of both and then some. Hell, he’ll even tell you he’s arrogant. But in the midst of his haughty self-proclamation, there lies a crafty stylist who craves a vicious battle, if nothing but to prove a point: That even ten years after his professional debut, the Cuban expatriate exists only to become and remain the best in the lightweight division.
Fortunately, the cable/satellite-addicted masses who just haven’t quite got the need and/or funds to sustain a hunger for premium cable (for the love of Mike, at least score Showtime for Dexter featuring Michael C. Hall, Sundays at 10 PM/ 9 central!) get a treat this Saturday night, October 7th, in the midst of a free preview weekend, when ‘El Cepillo’ meets World Lightweight Champion Diego ‘Chico’ Corrales, 40-3 (33), for the third time (live at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada) in what has become a grudge-packed series that sees each man at one win apiece.
Still harboring a burning desire to undo a split decision loss to Corrales in March of 2004, Casamayor recently took some time out to vent to The Doghouse and vent he did. Not one to ever mince a word much less waffle on an opinion, the 1992 Olympic gold medal winner and former WBA super featherweight titleholder (aided by manager/super nice guy Luis De Cubas Jr. in the language gap department) gave us his views on what to expect this coming Saturday night when he
faces what I would deem to be a pretty pissed-off Diego Corrales in a potential ‘Fight Of The Year’ candidate. Casamayor also let loose on who he’d ultimately like to face in the very near future, his former trainer Joe Goossen and what he would’ve done if he had the option to face an overweight Jose Luis Castillo.
Arrogance personified? Yep. But opportunity is knocking and Joel Casamayor’s there to answer the door. Reads on, Good Howlers!!
Coyote Duran: Joel, was it fate or frustration that brought you back for the rubbermatch against Diego Corrales?
Joel Casamayor: Definitely frustration. I had to bring him on national TV in front of 90 million homes to even get the fight. So, I’ve gotta thank ESPN. Without ESPN’s help, I don’t think I would’ve ever gotten the fight. I mean, I basically showed everyone the type of punk he was on national television.
Coyote Duran: In a recent Doghouse Boxing interview with Rob Scott, Corrales says that he “bugs the heck out of you” but that you’re also “disrespectful to him”. In your opinion, where exactly does the grudge come from?
Joel Casamayor: (Laughs) The grudge comes from October 4th (Casamayor’s first meeting with Corrales in 2003) when I put the mouthpiece through his mouth! I think that’s where it comes from! I’m a very respectful fighter. Everybody that’s fought me before knows that I’m a little arrogant but, you know, my talent speak for itself. But like I said, I don’t know. If he’s speaking bad about me as a person and this-and-that… see, he’s never had a conversation with me and I’m being disrespected.
Coyote Duran: You share a common opponent with Corrales in Jose Luis Castillo. Castillo has always portrayed the typical ‘balls-out’ Mexican fighter and Corrales has met him twice. Do you believe Corrales can adjust to your boxing style after two brutal bouts with Castillo and a year away from the ring?
Joel Casamayor: (Laughs) He couldn’t adapt during the other two fights. What makes you think he can adapt now? Those wars damaged him. There’s no way they could’ve helped him. If you wanna come down to it, we can still look at the two Castillo fights. Like you said, we (Casamayor and Corrales) have an opponent that’s very alike (Castillo). I dominated Castillo the first eight, nine rounds. I clearly won. He (Corrales) got smashed the first time and smashed the second time (against Castillo). The mouthpiece incident is what saved him from getting knocked out in the first fight.
Coyote Duran: Obviously, Corrales shot down the third fight with Castillo due to the ever-controversial lack of attempting to make weight on Castillo’s part. Grudges aside, do you agree with Corrales’ refusal to participate in this last fight? In some ways, it did lead to your opportunity against Diego.
Joel Casamayor: Well, it’s the best thing that ever happened for me ‘cause it lets me on the island by myself… just me and him. Time to fight, nowhere to run. Everyone knows who the number one contender was and I just feel that if he fought Castillo (the third time), you never know… Castillo could’ve knocked him out cold again. To be honest, I would’ve fought. Money speaks louder than words, you know? There’s no doubt. There’s no doubt.
Coyote Duran: Since your last fight against Jose Luis Castillo, you’ve kept busy with a variety of lightweight challenges. Are you still comfortable making the 135-pound weight limit?
Joel Casamayor: No problem! I feel stronger than ever at 135 pounds. This is the weight for me. We probably won’t go any higher than a catchweight of 142, unless (Floyd) Mayweather comes around. ’35’s the weight! That’s the weight for us. We feel strong here. We’ve cleaned up the division at ’30, had everybody running and now we’re moving up to ’35. We wanna try the best fighters in the world. I’d like to fight (Marco Antonio) Barrera, to be honest.
Coyote Duran: Really?
Joel Casamayor: That’s the fight that keeps coming up.
Coyote Duran: How do you feel about Barrera’s last performance in his rematch against Rocky Juarez?
Joel Casamayor: He boxed beautiful! He’s a classy fighter and he boxed beautiful. He did what he had to do. He went in there and played with him for 12 rounds and then went home. I’m not gonna tell this guy to get in a war, you know? Styles make fights and he did exactly what he had to do to win the fight. I praise him on that.
Coyote Duran: Have you approached Golden Boy Promotions with the proposal to fight?
Joel Casamayor: We’ve said it to every writer that’s called us in the last month-and-a-half. Probably 25 of them, 30 of them. I just don’t think the fight will be made to happen. I just don’t think no one really wants to fight me. But I would love it.
Coyote Duran: After watching two knockdown-drag outs between Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo, have any new weaknesses in Diego Corrales emerged that you can exploit, Joel?
Joel Casamayor: (Facetiously) He’s got a helluva chin. (Both laugh) There’s a lot we’re working on with (trainer) Roger Bloodworth and (manager) Luis De Cubas. To me, I feel like I’m a better fighter than him, period. Pound-for-pound, I don’t care. I hit harder than him. I’ve heard fighters that sparred with him like Jose Santa Cruz, the number one or two contender, said I’ve got heavier hands than Corrales, except for the left hook. Besides the left hook, he’s a one-dimensional fighter that comes with one punch. He comes forward.
Coyote Duran: I know you’d be more than pleased to end this fight with a knockout, but a wiser Diego Corrales will enter the ring on October 7. Do you perceive a knockout win or is it more realistic to assume you’ll attempt to box your way to a win?
Joel Casamayor: I’ll fight him at any distance he wants to fight at. To me, he doesn’t wanna get into a fight with me, to be honest. He ran the last six rounds of the second fight. I can knock him out or beat him by decision. I mean, all that talk about robberies and stuff, I mean those are past-tense. I mean, if I beat the shit out of this guy like I’m gonna beat the shit out of this guy, they (the judges) CAN’T rob me. It’s impossible. Like I said, if the knockout comes, it comes, but we’re gonna win. That’s the most important part.
Coyote Duran: In the three years since you’ve been apart from your former trainer, Joe Goossen, is there anything you believe Corrales can benefit from by having Goossen in his corner for this long or do you think you’ve evolved past what Goossen knows about you?
Joel Casamayor: Nothing. Goossen’s got nothing. I feel like I’ve got the best trainer in the world in Roger Bloodworth and when it comes to brains, he (Bloodworth) blows him (Goossen) out of the water. I know things about Goossen… Let’s put it that way. We know things about Goossen. There’s a former person in their camp who’s working with us now. Basically, there’s nothing he (Goossen) can tell him (Corrales)! What is he gonna tell him, to get out of the way of the left hand? With Goossen, we separated. He brought me where he brought me and he helped me but remember: When I came to America, I was a gold medal winner (as a bantamweight in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona) with over 400 (amateur) fights. I wasn’t some guy that he (Goossen) brought up from the ground. I was already made.
Coyote Duran: Joel, the junior lightweight division has really been heating up with the likes of Marco Antonio Barrera, a gentleman you’ve mentioned that you’d like to face, Manny Pacquiao, Erik Morales and Joan Guzman leading the pack. Would you consider returning to 130 for any future big fights besides Barrera?
Joel Casamayor: Ummm…’30, maybe. ’32 catchweight, possibly, yes. If Barrera doesn’t want to, I mean, it’s possible that he wouldn’t. It wouldn’t be a smart fight for him. Nobody really is with me. Pacquiao, Morales…doesn’t…I think I need a bigger name than that, to be honest. No disrespect to them. We need a bigger name. (Acelino) Freitas? The winner of Freitas-Julio Diaz (for the WBO lightweight and IBF ‘interim’ lightweight titles), if he wants to make things happen, we can do that. (Coyote’s Note: Since this interview was conducted, Acelino Freitas has seemingly retired.)
Coyote Duran: Has Freitas been reached on this?
Joel Casamayor: Nah. We would love to but he’s been running for the past five years and I doubt he’ll stop running. He disappeared after our fight that I got completely robbed on and I haven’t seen him ever since. We offered to go to Brazil to fight him and he denied it. Brazil! What makes you think he’ll fight me in America?!
Coyote Duran: The great Roberto Duran, one of the partners in DRL Promotions, once acted as a corner support for you. Does Duran still offer you advice on how to handle opponents?
Joel Casamayor: Well, Duran was a great boxer, everyone knows. He’s been here in on this promotion and been here with my trainer Roger Bloodworth and my brother/manager Luis De Cubas Jr. Those are the two guys I get my advice from, to be honest. Duran’s a great boxing mind. I respect him when he speaks but he hasn’t been here too much. Roger Bloodworth and Luis De Cubas Jr. have been basically running the show. I just take advice from my head trainer.
Coyote Duran: Should you beat Corrales, will we see a fourth bout for the World Lightweight Championship and if not, where does Joel Casamayor go from there?
Joel Casamayor: First of all, losing is not an option. On October 7th, I’m gonna lift the WBC (lightweight) title and The Ring Magazine title and then we’ll go from there. Like I said, big name fights. The best Cuban fighter of this era and the best Mexican fighter (Barrera) of this era is the beat possible fight. I mean, Marco Antonio Barrera vs. Joel Casamayor! Without a doubt, I’m the only fighter ever in Cuban history to win a gold medal and win the world championship (the WBA super featherweight title) in the pros. Ever. It’s never been done before. Marco Antonio Barrera’s record and credentials speak for itself. That’s the biggest fight possible.
Coyote Duran: Anything else to lay down for your fans and the great readers of Doghouse Boxing.com?
Joel Casamayor: I’d love to thank the Doghouse. You guys have a great website! I wanna thank all the Latin fans and all the fans, period, across the world and throughout the nation and I hope everyone rooting on October 7th. I’m gonna knock this guy out and from here on out, it’s victory. This one’s for me and the world, right here.
Coyote Duran: Thank you very much for your time, Joel!
Joel Casamayor: No, I appreciate it! Anytime!
Doghouse Boxing and I would love to thank the incomparable and entertaining Joel Casamayor for his time prior to this Saturday night's showdown against World Lightweight Champion Diego Corrales. Huge thanks also to DRL Promotions and Luis De Cubas Jr. for his assistance in arranging the interview and his valuable help with translating our conversation.
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