GL: I spoke with Jeff Lacy recently and he made it clear to me that he's not fighting you on April 12, so who's going to be next for Antonio Tarver? "I'm really sad to know that he's declined the fight. I'm looking at the landscape and his career at this very moment and I don't really think he's in a position to be turning down anything. Especially anything of this caliber. As fighters we fight for money, championships and more money. When you look at a fight with me here in Tampa, Florida against Jeff Lacy, it's all the opportunity in the world. I don't think in looking at his last three or four fights, I don't think he's in a position to turn down such a marquee fight. The IBO championship is at stake and if he beats me he's right back on top of the game."

"He said he needs two or three fights to get the ringrust off. Shit, get your ass in the gym and get the ringrust off and get ready to fight. He thinks that now I see something in him that I want to take advantage of. I've always felt he's been a talented fighter, but at the same time there's a lot of things that I would have exposed much like the way Joe Cazlaghe exposed him. I would be compassionate towards him and beat him for twelve rounds. I'd get him out of there early and he'd have a short drive home to St. Pete's.

"My whole thing is, it's obvious, a couple of December's ago we had a fight on the table for Jeff Lacy, but his demands were ridiculous. For some reason he feels he's a draw, and for some reason he feels he's still a champion, but I don't see what Jeff Lacy has as far as bringing anything marquee to the table. For the type of money that was on the table we were overpaying him anyway. He can't get that type of money anywhere. What's he going to do? Make money on De La Hoya's undercards, but how much money can he make doing that. Who's he going to fight these contenders from ESPN?

GL: If he's not going to fight you who will you be fighting?

Antonio Tarver: "We'll get to that G, but right now I want to finish talking about Jeff Lacy, I'm going to give it to you G. I've got some tricks up my sleeve and they don't stop with Jeff Lacy. There's a whole lot of people who would line up to get knocked out by the champ. Losing to me ain't the worst thing that could happen, but losing to one of these hand picked opponents, could be."

GL: Lacy said he still wants to make the fight for later this year.

AT: "My thing is this, what guarantees does Jeff Lacy have that he'll win his next two fights. Who can he fight that would be such a safe fight that he can guarantee he'd see me at the end of the year?

GL: How about either of your last two opponents?

AT: "Listen, I was the main event on Showtime and they obviously felt I was worthy of that spot. Like I said, everything is a process. I didn't complain about no ring rust when I took a year off. I got in there and listened to all of the critics, I accepted what they had to say. If you let them tell it, I'm washed up, I'm past my prime and I'm ripe for the picking. Anybody who's been in there with the Magic Man knows differently."

GL: With Lacy out, what tricks do you have up your sleeve?

AT: "The show must go on. I contacted my manager Al Haymon and we thought about the landscape of the light heavyweight division and we came up with a solution. This is live first on none other than Boxingtalk.com, Al and I have agreed that it's time. The last time there was an undisputed light heavyweight champion?"

GL: Roy Jones Jr?

AT: "I was the last undisputed champion when I knocked him out. I won them all that night. I vacated and Glen Johnson vacated after that. The plan is three fights, three belts and I'm the undisputed champion of the world. That's what it is. I'm putting out an APB for Clinton Woods and Danny Greene. I want to start a light heavyweight tournament and the first leg of that starts right here in Tampa, Florida on April 12. Clinton Woods has been calling my name.

"Danny Greene, pulled out last time. We're going to see how fast we can get one of these bums in the ring. I'm going to fight Woods or Greene, beat them fight the next guy at the end of the summer and then fight the winner of Chad Dawson and Glen Johnson and then you'll be looking at the no question about it, undisputed light heavyweight champion of the world, Antonio "The Magic Man" Tarver. Chad Dawson gets a pass for now, but he first has to get by the Road Warrior Glen Johnson, so we're going to see what he's got since everybody is ready to crown him the future of the division. If he gets by Glen Johnson he's on my radar with a bullseye on his back.

GL: Where does Hopkins fit into your things to do list?

AT: "He doesn't. It's like this, the winner of that fight has got to come see me. The end road is the champ, that's it."

GL: Your fight with Hopkins was for the world light heavyweight championship, how is it possible...

AT: (cutting in) "Because he didn't defend his title. The guy can't walk around here with no belt. He can have the ring magazine belt, but that's just a magazine belt. I respect the ring and if they want to make Hopkins the champion, so be it."

GL: He's also the linear champion.

AT: "It don't matter he still has to come see me. I'm going to be the undisputed light heavyweight champion of the world before the end of the year."

M

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