GL: That was a rather interesting press conference Fernando, can you share with us some thoughts on it? "Bascially I was ready for anything, I was standing one of two feet away and I knew how this guy is so I positioned myself right. Boxing is a mental game and I made sure that I pulled out my shirt a little bit and leaned back. He tried to hit me with a backhand and then everybody gets me and everybody gets him, so I stay with shot and he's the one mentally that got me because he would have slapped me and I wouldn't have been able to do anything until the fight. Now I got him mentally because of the fact that I pulled out my chair just in case this cat was going to try to pull a move like that. When he was talking crazy I was hitting him back in Spanish and he couldn't take it. So when he tried to backhand me, he made a mistake by trying to do that, because I hit him with two overhand rights. Then he tried to pull my coat over my head and you know Greg, I've been in more than one or two street fights, so I let him slip my coat off me instead of allowing him to pull it over my head like an old school street fight so he could let loose on me. I was like yeah right you're not going to run that one on me. So I let him pull it off, I let him pull off my jacket from my suit. Then I ripped him with two left uppercuts and the result is what you guys saw. Personally he could say whatever he wants to say, but when he tried to take a swing at me he made the wrong mistake.

"There's always cats that like to mess with people, my boys know me since I've been a kid, my best friend Smurf, he knows that I never picked on nobody. But people always wanted to fight with us and they wanted to pick on me, so that's how I built up a reputation as a kid who could fight a little bit."

GL: After so much excitement at a press conference how could you want to leave boxing?

Fernando Vargas: "Hey, I'll tell you this much right now, when is it going to be enough? Everyone is saying that if I knock him out I'm going to want to fight again and I'm not. There's only one reason I'm taking this fight and that's pride. If it wasn't for pride what would it be? For what?"

GL: If you look sensational against Mayorga, isn't it possible that pride will have you want to test your skills against elite fighters in bigger fights for bigger paydays?

FV: "Nah, I made a lot of money already Greg. I'm very thankful to God for what he's blessed me with. We'll be amongst boxing; me, Shelly Finkel and my business manager Joe Pecora. My boxing fans will see me wherever I go all over the world."

GL: Do you expect your last fight to end by knockout?

FV: "I know it's going to end by knockout. Mayorga is a stupid fighter, he's not an intelligent fighter. He's a fighter that if you use your mind and use your intelligence you're going to get him out of there. I'm going to come out patient, let him make his mistakes and then get him out of there."

GL: Basically you plan on using superior skills and smarts to neutralize his wildness, correct?

FV: "That's what's going to happen come September 8. I'm going to be motivated for this fight and Mayorga is a great fighter for someone who has superior skills and can fight smart to shine against. And it's going to be a great fight at the Staples Center. It's just a skip and a hop from the 805, Oxnard and Cama Camarillo where I live. For all of my fans and for myself to leave on a positive note and on my terms it's going to be great."

GL: Eduardo Garcia is back as the head trainer for your final fight. What lead to that decision?

FV: If anybody knows me it's him. When I called him and asked him to train me he said Fernando you still want to fight? I said yeah because I wasn't comfortable with the way I left, I can't leave like that. He goes, Fernando do you know why you want to fight? I said you tell me since you know me when I started out at ten years old and first went to La Colonia to become a fighter. He said Fernando your fucking pride won't let you leave like that. I go, you're right Garcia, I'm not comfortable and I'm billing this fight on Pride. He said he would train me, but for this one last time because he's tired too. He said his arms, elbows and shoulders are hurting from so many years of training me, his son and other fighters. He told me that they're never going to want it to be enough and they're going to want me to keep on fighting and keep on fighting, till they want me to retire, so if you leave on your own terms it would be a great thing and that's exactly what I'm going to do. He's been training me since January so when Mayorga says he's been training for two and half months I laugh at that because I've been training for six months already."

GL: I hate to play devils advocate, but I always try my best to get information out of fighters that nobody else can. Pride is the reason you're taking this one last fight. I imagine when you became a professional there's certain goals you set for youself that you've yet to accomplish. For instance, beating Oscar De La Hoya. I know that was a goal of yours, hypothetically speaking if you look great against Mayorga and Oscar decides that he wants the rematch, wouldn't pride lead you to want to have that victory before you retire?

FV: "I promised my mom, my wife and myself because I want to leave on my own terms and those are my own terms. I've publicly said that this will be my last fight for Pride. And that's what it's for, For Pride."

GL: Is there any possibilty that a change of heart from your wife and mother could lead to you fighting on?

FV: "They begged me not to do this one. I told my wife you married a fighter, that's what you married...

GL: (cutting in) Your wife and your mother are likely the two people who have the most unconditional love for you, it's only natural that they didn't want you to fight and they begged you not to take this fight following the two fights with Mosley. I imagine there's a chance their feelings can change if you look like Vintage Vargas on September 8.

FV: "Hey, I know I already promised them....(pause) I know they don't want to me to fight no more regardless. It's not going to happen, you can have the hypothetical questions, but they don't think any other way."

GL: Allow me to ask you a question that isn't hypothetical. If you defeat Mayorga on September 8, would you look back on your career as something where you acheived everything you set out to accomplish?

FV: "Absolutely. I became three time junior middleweight champion. I say three times because Don King had the WBC strip Castillejo. I beat Castillejo and he was the champion but they stripped him so Mayorga and Piccirillo could fight for the vacant title. I would have been three time world champion and those were my three goals. The top belt for me was the WBC belt because it was held by my idol, Julio Cesar Chavez. If I would have won it, I would walked away then and I considered myself the champion after that fight. Then the opportunity came to fight Mosley and the first time around I felt good and I was on him. I think the corner not managing my eye. In the second fight that wasn't me, I had nothing. All of those years of making 154 caught up to me."

M

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