Mark Ortega
Today we chatted with IBF #13 heavyweight Cedric “The Boz” Boswell. Boswell [28-1, 22 KOs] is fresh off of his biggest victory to date, a second round TKO of then-undefeated Roman Greenberg for the IBF North American heavyweight title back in August.
Mark Ortega: First of all, thanks for taking the time to let us know how you are doing. What have you been up to since your huge knockout of Greenberg?
Cedric Boswell: Man, I have just been training really hard, waiting for a phone call. We have tried calling out a bunch of guys to fight me, but we haven’t had any luck.
MO: What fighters are you targeting in particular?
CB: Well, I know that Chris Arreola doesn’t have an opponent yet for April 11th. He says he is the best American heavyweight, he can prove it by fighting me. His last fight was against Travis Walker, who is on the same level as Roman Greenberg so it makes sense for us to fight each other. I don’t have a promoter or manager right now so all his people need to do is give me a call. I have called out David Haye and James Toney as well, but they rejected fights with me. I mean, I just want to fight Top 5 or Top 10 guys, whatever gets me closer to a world championship.
MO: Back in ’07, you called out Evander Holyfield and wanted a fight with him. Is that a fight you would still want, especially considering many people thought he got robbed against Valuev in December?
CB: Well, yeah, anytime you get to fight a legend like Holyfield, it’s a big thing. I mean, I would still take that fight, I thought he won against Valuev. We also are both from Atlanta, so we could do it out there on our home-turf and bring in some fans. It is definitely a fight I would consider.
MO: Back in ’03, you were going to fight Vitali Klitschko in a supporting bout on the Lennox Lewis-Kirk Johnson card. Johnson pulled out, and Vitali took his spot in the main event and you were without a fight. Looking back, was it worth it taking whatever money they gave you to give up your spot on the card, or would you have liked to fight Vitali?
CB: Looking back, I would have loved to fight Vitali. But I was in a sort of catch-22 situation. If I didn’t take the money, the fight with Klitschko probably still would not have happened.
MO: How ready were you for that fight against Klitschko?
CB: I was ready, man. I was working with Ronnie Shields and we were training really hard for that fight.
MO: Tell us more about the Greenberg fight. He was 26-0 at the time, and you had only fought six times since a three-year layoff. How did that fight come together and how confident were you coming into it?
CB: My advisor came to me about the fight with Greenberg and I thought it would be a great fight. I knew they were trying to boost him up without having fought a guy who is the caliber fighter such as myself, so I thought it would be a great opportunity for me. I also noticed that we fought a lot of the same guys early on, and I was getting rid of them quicker and easier, so that made me pretty confident. It was a perfect fight to help get me where I needed to be.
MO: Along with the win came your first professional title, the IBF North American heavyweight belt. How did it feel becoming a champion for the first time?
CB: It felt great. I had been fighting for a long time and I never had the opportunity to fight for a title. I mean, it’s just a stepping stone to a world title, I am hoping that now someone in the Top 5 or 10 will fight me. Basically my goal is to get a world title from any of the four major organizations, and winning this belt puts me a step closer.
MO: Your career has been hampered by two long layoffs. One of the layoffs was a nearly three year one due to promotional problems, and you took another three year break following the fight with McCline. Any comments on those situations?
CB: I guess before, I was kind of hard-headed. I wanted a title shot right then and there and I thought they were taking too long. I think that I just thought I was ready for a shot and they thought I needed some more time. I just wasn’t patient enough, and now it’s a bit harder to get that shot, but we will see. The other layoff, in the McCline fight I had actually injured my rotator cuff. I had injured it in training for the Klitschko fight, and when that fell through I got a call about fighting McCline three weeks later and I thought I could beat him so I took that fight. In the fourth round, I re-injured it.
MO: The McCline fight is the only blemish on your professional record. You got stopped in the 10th and final round in a fight that you were well ahead in. It looked as if you were just a bit gassed at the end. What did you learn from that fight?
CB: Well, from the fourth round on I was fighting with one arm. I had no right hand and that is my power hand. I kept faking it like it was okay but I couldn’t throw it. I did learn a lot in that fight, though. I gained some experience, learned to hold a lot more, drop your mouthpiece when you are hurt. He dropped his mouthpiece four or five times without getting warned. It was a dirty fight but my hat is off to him because he did what he had to do to get the win. I would love to get another shot at that fight if he got back into the Top 10, otherwise it would be a step back for me.
MO: You turn 40 later this year. Is it safe to say that your career is in make or break mode? How much longer do you plan on fighting and what is your plan?
CB: I only got two to three years left, if that. Fighting tune-ups won’t get me anywhere, but if that is all that is available then I will fight those fights. But honestly I am just looking for the big fights against the top fighters in the division, whatever gets me to a title shot. I got a late start in the sport. I played football in high school and college and didn’t pick up boxing until I joined the military (Navy).
MO: Is there anything else you would like to add?
CB: Yeah, they say Arreola is the best heavyweight in the States, why don’t we prove it. We should get together a round-robin of all the top young American heavyweights and determine who is the best, and give that guy a shot at a Klitschko or another champion. These promoters keep recycling the same heavyweights that nobody wants to watch, they aren’t giving any of the other heavyweights a chance. If any promoters or managers want to make these fights happen, contact me at bozboxing@aol.com.
Mark Ortega can be reached via e-mail at mark@ultimateboxingresults.com
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