Tony Harrison: “I’m probably one of the most explosive fighters at 154lbs, if not the most explosive. I’m a problem”

During the 231st edition of “On The Ropes” boxing radio, I was joined by rising undefeated junior middleweight contender, Tony Harrison. Harrison speaks on his last fight against Antwone Smith and talks about his time training under the great Emanuel Steward. Harrison also gives his thoughts on the growth of the sport and what he thinks of Al Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions series. Additionally, Harrison gives his thoughts on Mayweather vs. Pacquiao happening and who he is favoring to win that fight. Here is what Tony Harrison had to say in part 1 of his interview.

Jenna J: The last time we saw you in the boxing ring you were facing Antwone Smith and you took care of business in just two rounds. How do you feel about your performance?

Tony Harrison: I feel good. We both walked out healthy through the grace of God and I was able to finally show the world what Detroit has been seeing for plenty of fights. I was able to give the world excitement, explosiveness and a world class fighter out of Detroit. I was able to give that to the world, finally.

Jenna J: You’ve gone from rising prospect to now facing fringe contender guys and getting yourself up to the level of being a ranked contender. What has the transition been like for you?

Tony Harrison: It’s a blessing but it’s something that I already knew I had. I was just able to put myself in the right situation to show the world that, you know what I mean? I train like an animal, I train hard, I got the right team around me and we put the pieces in the right places.

This is what I’ve been doing in Detroit for sixteen or seventeen fights, I’ve been doing it in Detroit, overseas on Klitschko’s under cards, in California. It was just the opportunity to show the world what’s going on with Tony Harrison, and that’s been the hard part.

Jenna J: Detroit’s gotten to see you for a long time and a lot of people know that you used to work with Emanuel Steward, he was your trainer and he was also your manager. What was that like, working with him?

Tony Harrison: It’s going to be an unforgettable time, that’s going to be something I probably never will forget as long as I’m living on this earth. Just having him around, he was just that kind of a guy, he was just that friendly guy.

You tend to soak up the knowledge and wisdom and that’s what I think I got from him. Just being around him, going to the grocery store where he is just giving money or paying groceries for somebody that he doesn’t even know, those kinds of things. Whether it’s overseas tipping the waitress or the person that’s coming up to dry your clothes — he taught you life lessons outside of boxing, he was just that kind of guy.

He only stayed two minutes away from me, so to just be able to go knock on his door at 11 clock at night because something is wrong, he’d let you in. It was deeper than boxing, I lost a friend. He’s going to be missed for the rest of my life as long as I’m living on this earth.

Jenna J: When you were working with him and he saw what we saw in you, what did he expect from you in terms of a fighter and what did he expect from your career?

Tony Harrison: He told me that he did this a long time ago with Tommy Hearns and he felt like this was his last shot to do it again with a hometown fighter from Detroit. To build from the ground up, move me like he moved Tommy and base it just like he did Tommy, no promoters, just get the fans back in Detroit. He told me, “If you could pack this place, the Joe Louis Arena, the TV will come.” That was the plan, to just grind hard and just do it his way, and I trusted it.

I trusted his career, it went right with Tommy Hearns and they didn’t have promoter. He walked into NBC himself and made those deals for Tommy, because Tommy had the crowd. That was the thing, just to fight and get my fan base up and get it through media news and all those different kind of media sites and to put me around the world, travel me around the world and get me to a household name where I can sell out the Joe Louis Arena and any walker knows, broadcaster and those networks and he can have some leverage.

Jenna J: Now that you’re in the position that you’re in now, people have see you on TV and they want to see more and there are some people calling for you to get a title shot. Do you believe at this point that you are ready for that?

Tony Harrison: I’m 110% ready for that but this is boxing, it’s one step at a time. Al (Haymon) is running the show now, so as quickly as I want to dunk the ball, it always starts with a lay up. I’m just going to keep laying the ball up until the dunk comes, but I am ready though. If Al called me tomorrow and said, “You’re fighting “X, Y, Z” I’m ready.

I think I’m probably one of the most explosive fighters at 154lbs, if not the most explosive. I’m a problem, I’m 6’1, I’m fast, I’m strong and I’m coming to get you and that’s what most fighters don’t have, that hunger. I’m probably the most fiery person here in 154lbs, I’m threat. But like I said, Al is running the show and whoever he puts in front of me, I’m going to do what I’m supposed to do.

Jenna J: Al Haymon’s been making news almost every single week buying up television spots for boxing with NBC, CBS, Spike TV, and recently now with ESPN. How great do you think it is for the sport that boxing can be seen by so many more people?

Tony Harrison: It’s perfect for boxing, this is what boxing has been waiting on. It’s a lonely sport and I think it didn’t get the recognition that it deserved. Boxing should be like a basketball sport where it comes on regular television where regular people can watch it.

That’s why Lebron James is Lebron James — not because he’s a great athlete, because there’s plenty of great boxers that are great athletes, it’s just marketing, it’s better than Floyd Mayweather’s marketing because he’s marketed to the world for free.

If you market Floyd Mayweather for free to the world, or Tony Harrison to the world for free or that next exciting fighter to the world for free, I think it broadens the sport and it gets more people interested in the sport and people get more knowledge about the sport and who’s fighting and who’s up and coming and who’s Tony Harrison and who’s Gennady Golovkin, or who’s that next good fighter.

Jenna J: Floyd Mayweather has the big fight that is coming up on May 2nd against Manny Pacquiao and it’s near and around your weight class. I’m curious, what do you think about that fight?

Tony Harrison: I think the sport has been waiting on that fight. I’m glad they got a chance to make the fight happen — not when they were both at their peak time but it’s still the best in the sport thus far.

We’ve been waiting on that fight, it’s still going to make $200 million no matter when they fight. They could be forty years old and if they still were doing what they were doing now, they still would generate $200 million. It may have lost a little bit of buzz but it’s still generating exactly what it’s supposed to generate and that’s dollars.

Jenna J: Who are you picking, who are you favoring to win that fight? People go back and forth, some people say Mayweather, who do you got?

Tony Harrison: I got to go with ‘Money May’ and I can tell that he’s taking this a little more seriously this time because there’s no twitter action, there’s not a lot of Twitter action not a lot of Instagram action. There’s not a lot of flying out, there’s not a lot of women shaking their ass on his phone or him getting washed up by women. It’s him running and him chopping in the wood, him in the gym.

He’s taking it a little more serious and I just think he’s overcame every southpaw he’s ever had — although he had problems with them. He adapted and he overcame each and every one of them. I expect a good fight but I expect ‘Money May’ to outthink him and with a good jab, with ‘Money May’ having such a great jab and being so accurate with it, I think Pacquiao is going to have problems with that.