Junior welterweight contender, John Molina is known in the boxing circles for his rugged fighting style, action fights and for the determination that he has shown in the ring. On June 11th he faces another tough challenge as he fights former light welterweight champion, Ruslan Provodnikov. In my interview with John Molina, we discuss his upcoming fight, what he thinks of Provodnikov as a fighter and his prediction for the fight. Molina also shares his views on the upcoming Amir Khan vs. Canelo Alvarez fight and who he is picking to win it. Here is what John Molina had to say.
Robert Brown: You have a fight coming up against Ruslan Provodnikov, what do you think of the fight?
John Molina: I think it’s gonna be a great fight. He’s definitely a very game opponent and I think we’re gonna give the fans a hell of a treat come June 11th.
Robert Brown: This fight is expected to be a war. How do you expect this fight to play out? Do you see a knockout in this fight?
John Molina: I expect that you’re not gonna need the judges for this fight because it’s gonna be nothing but a slugfest. These are the fights that I feel I excel in, someone who I don’t have to go find, he’ll be right there for me. It’s gonna be a great night of boxing.
Robert Brown: With Ruslan being an attacking fighter, do you think this fight plays right into your hands?
John Molina: Absolutely, it’s tailor made for someone with my style — for both of us actually. It’s going to be an entertaining fight, it’s a can’t miss fight. You have a guy who is very strong, comes forward and is very offensive minded in Ruslan Provodnikov and the same in myself. I think it’s going to make for a great night of boxing and I anticipate that I’m going to get the best Ruslan Provodnikov and he better anticipate in getting the best John Molina Jr, because that’s what’s going to happen on June 11th.
Robert Brown: Could you explain some of the areas in which you think you have an advantage in for this fight?
John Molina: It’s not so much the advantage, I think it’s going to be may the best man win that night. I feel the best man is going to be me and I’m preparing myself 110% to be ready to go twelve rounds, or twenty four rounds if we had to.
We’re preparing ourselves to be ready to go all out against an all out offensive fighter in Ruslan. I don’t want to say that I excel or that he excels in one area or the other, but the one thing I can guarantee is that it’s going to be a hell of a fight.
Robert Brown: Are you worried about ring rust in this fight?
John Molina: No, not at all. As a matter of fact, I just fought on November 28th of 2015, it was enough to shake off the rust and get to where I need to be. We’re ready to go at it with Ruslan Provodnikov.
Robert Brown: What do you think about Amir Khan moving up to fight Canelo Alvarez?
John Molina: I think Amir Khan is a hell of a fighter, I think he’s definitely a talent for what he’s accomplished in the ring, it shows what kind of heart he has to go out there and step up to the plate against a guy as strong as Canelo Alvarez. I think that fight is very intriguing, you have Amir Khan who is extremely fast, extremely gifted in the sweet science. We all know what Khan’s Achilles heel is, his chin, so it’s kind of like a catch 22 going up in weight and fighting a guy that’s significantly stronger than guys that you’re used to fighting.
Obviously Amir Khan believes in his abilities, he believes in his boxing technique and he thinks that’s going to be able to see him through to a victory. If I’m a betting man with my hard earned money, I’d bet on Canelo Alvarez via stoppage, but at the same time this is boxing and anything can happen. We’ve seen a lot happen in the ring, and that’s the beauty of our sport that in one given night anything could happen.
Robert Brown: In a situation like this, how much speed could Khan lose by moving up in weight like this?
John Molina: You got to remember that all fighters don’t walk around at our fighting weight, we all walk around a bit heavier than what we come in and fight at. I think it could be an advantage for Amir Khan, I think he can actually keep his speed.
I think Amir’s going to be able to adapt to his weight really well, but the only telltale sign is going to be whether he can absorb the impact and power that’s going to come his way, that’s the only enigma that needs to be seen in the ring. A lot of us fighter fight at a weight that we’re not naturally at, we come down in weight to fight.
The only questionable area is whether he’s going to be able to absorb the punches from a bigger man. You don’t compare boxing to MMA but a similar comparison could be like McGregor coming up in weight to fight someone at 170lbs and obviously the guys at 170lbs can take the punches a lot better than they were at the weight he was used to fighting at. That could be a telltale sign of what could happen, but at the same time I think Amir Khan knows what he’s doing. I give him credit for taking this fight and I think it’s going to be an intriguing fight. I will definitely tune in for that fight.
I can’t wait to see him fight Ruslan. That fight is going to be a war.