Tha Boxing Voice got the chance to catch up with IBF Light Heavyweight Champion Tavoris Cloud this week. Cloud was on hand at Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn, NY for the media workouts leading up to his fight this weekend against 48-year old living legend Bernard Hopkins which will be televised on HBO live from Brooklyn’s Barclays Center on Saturday.
Cloud believes that this fight was made after his controversial win over Gabriel Campillo in which he was awarded a split decision victory many boxing fans considered a gift. “That fight showed them I was human…it made me look vulnerable,” he said. But with a new trainer in well-known Abel Sanchez, whom he has been working with for the past nine weeks, and some sparring in Big Bear California with Middleweight phenom Gennady Golovkin, Cloud feels confident. “We didn’t try to change my style at all. We just tweaked it…Training in Big Bear is doing something a lot of fighters can’t do, I had to get used to it.” As far as sparring went it was reported that Cloud and Golovkin engaged in light sparring, but as Cloud tells us Golovkin is the real deal (something few of us questioned after his latest performance in January) “He hits like a light heavyweight.”
Cloud also took some time to address rumors that circled about a possible fight with Andre Ward. “There was no truth to that rumor,” says Cloud, he continued, “Ever since I went to his last fight they all started saying that I was going to fight him…we have the same manager and I never saw that we were headed in that direction.” Since Ward is injured and not expected to return to the ring in the near future the question arose of a possible fight with Chad Dawson. Cloud made it clear he was not looking past Hopkins but a victory might open the door to a fight with fellow light heavyweight Dawson. “I hope so, he’s been ducking long enough,” said Cloud.
As far as Saturday night goes Cloud is confident. “The fight can only go one way, Bernard Hopkins is going to lose and lose bad.” Considering how quiet Cloud was at previous press events promoting this fight his newfound outspoken confidence seems encouraging, even to the most diehard Bernard Hopkins fans. Cloud said he is, “Prepared to go out there and look good and win every round.”