GL: Your guys have two pretty big fights coming up we'll start with Jameel McCline who challenges WBA heavyweight champion Nikolai Valuev on January 20. Can you tell us why you believe Jameel will pull the upset? "You know I have to be honest with you, I wouldn't view it as an upset. This guy has very limited experience. Some people will disagree, but Jameel is going to be the first guy he's fought that's his size. In addition Jameel has much better reflexes and skills, compared to this guy he's going to look like Muhammad Ali out there. He's going to box his ass off. I'm a big believer in Jameel McCline and I started working with him right after his loss to Zuri Lawrence. I knew then he would be the heavyweight champion of the world."

GL: Scott, the knock on Jameel is that he lacks the killer instinct. He's had opportunities in more than one fight to put his foot on the gas and finish and he failed to do so. If he manages to hurt Valuev are you confident he will be able to finish?

Scott Hirsch: "Absolutely. And I agree that in his fights with Brock and Byrd he could have put them both away, but that was then and this is now. He's got a whole different team with him and he's got a whole different approach. I think he really understands that this his last shot and he has to take advantage of it."

GL: Boxingtalk recently broke the news that Shannon Briggs will be defending his title against Sultan Ibragimov. What are your thoughts on that fight taking place at the Garden?

SH: "Heading to the Garden makes it exciting. Madison Square Garden is the Mecca of boxing. I've never had one of my guys fight in the Garden...

GL: (cutting in) I imagine you would have loved to have Shannon fight there on November 11.

SH: "Yes we would have. He would have become the IBF champ that night and now he's defending as the WBO champion. I think it's an outstanding venue for the fight because Shannon is from Brownsville and the Russian kid has a good following within the Russian community in New York. From that perspective you couldn't ask for a better place to have it take place that Madison Square Garden. Ibragimov is a very tough guy and I really admired how he came back in the last two rounds against Ray Austin, who I believe was winning up to that point. He's got decent power and decent skills, but I think there's a world of difference between him and Shannon. Shannon is bigger, he's faster, he's stronger and he's far more experienced. This guy is good for someone with twenty fights, but he's no George Foreman, he's no Ray Mercer and he's no Sergei Liakhovich for that matter. I'm sure he's going to give it his best, but it's not going to be enough."

GL: Do you see the Briggs-Ibagimov fight going the distance?

SH: "This fight will not go five rounds. There's no two ways about it, it will not go five rounds."

GL: Since Shannon's title winning came in an uneventful fight how important do you think it is for this fight with Ibragimov to be an impressive crowd pleasing performance?

SH: "Well I know Shannon always finishes his fights in exciting fashion. Although his fight with Liakhovich was not the best we've ever seen him look the knockout with two seconds to go in the fight was one of the most memorable knockouts I've seen. Shannon had a lot going against him heading into that fight, he couldn't run for the final three weeks because of his knee. Shannon doesn't mention it because he's not one for excuses. He really had problems breathing in that fight. As much success as he had in the first round he felt he couldn't breathe and he had to go to a plan B that a lot of people, including me, didn't know he had. Once Liakhovich felt that power in the first round he held back and didn't want to do much too, but Shannon's performance in the last two rounds was overwhelming."

GL: Is there anything you'd like to say in closing?

SH: "I think people are going to look at Shannon's career years from now and be viewed differently than he is now. He's already defeated three champions and he was one punch away from beating Lennox Lewis. Shannon is going to continue to surprise a lot of people in 2007 and Jameel McCline is going to shock the world on January 20.

M

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