Anthony Pettis will likely be bigger than ever when he steps inside the ring to fight boxing great Roy Jones Jr. at Gamebred Boxing 4 on April 1, but the bulking process wasn’t as extreme as fans may think.
During his time in the international spotlight, Pettis has competed at lightweight and welterweight. But when he got the call that informed him of the potential opportunity, Pettis said he was weighing closer to an MMA light heavyweight, at approximately 205 pounds. The bout will be eight rounds in the cruiserweight boxing weight class of 200 pounds.
“After the last season of PFL, I knew I wasn’t going down to 155,” Pettis told reporters including MMA Junkie at a virtual pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “I started bulking up, getting ready to go at 170. I was not sure exactly what other opportunities there were in the mixed martial arts world. So when this fight came about, I was already 205 pounds, in shape. So I’m ready to go. I’m ready for whatever, pretty much.”
As soon as agreements were in place, Pettis made moves he thinks will put him in the best position to beat a former boxing champion at his own game. Pettis packed up his things and moved to Las Vegas to train with legitimate boxing sparring partners, guys who could emulate the style and strength of Jones. The upcoming match will be his professional boxing debut, compared to Jones’ 76th.
“I’m sparring bigger guys to feel that pressure he’s going to bring,” Pettis said. “That’s why it’s the fight game. I’m going to go in there and use my smarts. I’m going to use my skills that I’ve accumulated over these last couple years and go out there and try to put it on him.”
“… It’s just straight boxing now. Like Roy Jones said, I’m finding the best boxers I can spar with. I’m living in Vegas. I’ve got access to great, great sparring partners here. There’s one sparring right now in front of me. I’m living this lifestyle. I went and got motivated to box. How can you not, fighting one of the goats? Y’all must’ve forgot. That’s one of the things I’ve known since I was a kid man. I’m taking it serious. I come to win fights and this is a whole different world than I’ve been in at this level. The sparring I’m getting is preparing me for it. I’m ready.”
