Undefeated Prospect Danny Garcia Hoping to Rise to Top 10 in 2009

Congrats on your recent win on the Marquez/Diaz undercard. How'd it feel to be out there?

DG: It was a good experience, and I came out with the victory. He was an experienced opponent, so I learned a lot from the fight.

Is there anything you wish you had done better or did it go according to plan?

DG: Yea I wish I did better, I could have done a lot better. But he's a veteran, he's a smart fighter and he knows how to survive. So I'm just training hard for my next fight.

What was it like to be fighting on a card with fighters of that caliber, on what turned out to be a great night of boxing with lots of good fights?

DG: It was a great experience, and it was the most fans I've fought in front of. The next two fights (after his ended), the Rocky Juarez (vs. Chris John) and Juan Diaz (vs. Juan Manuel Marquez) fights were real exciting fights. I have to step my game up and train harder so I can be on that level.

What would you call the strongest aspect of your game-obviously you go by the nickname "Swift", so is it your speed or your style or what do you think it is?

DG: I think I'm versatile, it depends who is in front of me. If somebody in front of me is strong, tough and coming forward I just gotta use my boxing skills and break him down. If he's a boxer then I gotta be aggressive and chop 'em down. So I think I'm a versatile fighter, strong, fast and smart.

Your last 3 fights have gone the distance after you stopped 7 of your first 8 opponents... are you happier to get those rounds and get that experience or are you more upset for not getting the stoppages?

DG: I know you can't stop everybody and when you fight somebody from Mexico, those guys are fighting the best. They'll be 10 and 5, but everybody they lost to was 16 or 17-0 or something (in reference to two of those decision wins against the now 14-6 Adan Hernandez who before fighting Garcia lost a 12 round decision to hot undefeated prospect Anthony Peterson, and the now 10-7-1 Jose Alfredo Lugo, who has faced five unbeaten prospects in a row, going 0-4-1).

If you look at it that way, you can't go in there and knock these guys out in eight rounds. It takes more rounds to stop somebody like that, going to the body and breaking them down. So I'm just happy to be getting the experience. If I go in there and always just knock somebody out, I won't know in a championship fight how it will feel to go those rounds, how my body will feel. I'm taking this as a learning experience and taking it back to the gym and going back to the drawing board and working hard.

You're a Philly guy, and you're with Golden Boy who has Bernard Hopkins among others at the helm. Has he given you any advice - either in the ring or out of the ring - that really sticks out to you?

DG: Bernard always gives me advice, that's Bernard Hopkins. Every time I see him he's always talking good about me and he always tells me to stay focused and stay strong, don't let anything get in your way like parties or women or stuff like that. So, Bernard is a great role model and I look up to him.

Was he one of the guys you watched a lot when you were younger or which guys really stood out to you as fighters you enjoyed watching or fighters you wanted to be like?

DG: Actually growing up I watched Chavez a lot and then getting older it was Oscar and Trinidad. I wasn't really a big Bernard Hopkins fan but when he destroyed Trinidad and then when I started to get to know Bernard and know him more as a person after meeting him, I started to look up to him. People look at Bernard in a different way if you really don't know him. So I look up to Bernard a lot now.

You fought 8 times last year; are you looking to keep up that kind of schedule or how often would you ideally like to fight?

DG: I would like to keep going on that schedule, I want to keep getting experience and keep moving on. But whatever my manager and promoter have in store for me I'm just gonna stay ready.

Is there anything lined up right now or when is the next fight going to be?

DG: Well right now I'm training for April 11^th, in Las Vegas, the Paul Williams and Winky Wright fight. I'm going to be on there.

Do you have an opponent lined up yet?

DG: Usually they don't give me my opponent until two or three weeks out, so I'll probably find out on Monday (March 23).

Junior welterweight is suddenly starting to heat up, with lots of young guys on their way up the ranks. There's Victor Ortiz, as well as fellow Philly fighter Rock Allen, both of which are also promoted by Golden Boy. Are you friendly with those guys, have you sparred with them or what that's like?

DG: I know Victor Ortiz, I know Rock, we're all friends. But I've never sparred with them before.

Do you see yourself being in there with either of those guys in a future showdown of junior welterweight stars?

DG: Yea, I mean whoever they put in front me. I have great confidence, I know I'm a great fighter... I'm fast, I'm strong. So whoever they put in front of me I'll fight.

It's December 31, 2009, tell me where Danny Garcia stands in the junior welterweight division.

DG: Hopefully, hopefully in the top 15, something like 17-0. I'm just staying focused right now and taking it one fight at a time. Hopefully I can be in the top 10 or top 15.

So looking at the beginning or middle of 2010 for your first title shot if everything goes to plan?

DG: Yea, that would be perfect right there (laughs).

Thanks for taking a few minutes.

DG: Thanks, I appreciate it.