Thursday night’s fight card at New York City's Roseland Ballroom in Manhattan Ballroom is aptly titled "The Russians are Coming," as the main event consists of a title defense by IBF junior bantamweight champion Dimitri Kirilov and the star of the 10-round co-feature is undefeated Brooklyn-based junior welterweight Dmitriy Salita.  However, Jorge "The Truth" Teron, a two-time Golden Gloves champion, plans to add some Puerto Rican spice to the night’s festivities. The lanky undefeated lightweight took some time out of his training schedule earlier this week to talk about his upcoming bout as well as his progression as a fighter since he entered the paid ranks nearly three years ago.
 
Boxingtalk: Jorge, you're fighting at the Roseland Ballroom on Thursday. Do you know who your opponent is yet? If not, are you the type of fighter that prefers to study tapes of your adversaries or do you and your team not bother studying film to see what you can pick up on to exploit?
 
Teron: I'm fighting Sandro Marcos from Mexico. I don't know much about him other than he's fought a lot of good fighters and he's and experienced guy. I hope to get a tape on him before the fight but if don't I'm confident that my trainer Mark Breland and I can adjust during the fight.

BT: You're 19-0 with 12 knockouts. How does it feel to go from a high school student in the Bronx a few years ago to a boxing prospect that everyone is starting to recognize and follow? Describe that evolution if you can.
 
JT: It feels great having people recognize my efforts in the ring as a fighter. I think I've come a long way from fighting in the Golden Gloves for the first time as a 16-year-old to where I am now. As a pro I think I still have a lot to learn but I'm getting better with every fight and it feels good that the boxing public is noticing.

BT: Jorge, a lot of fighters love to pick up minor belts on the way to winning a world title. Your fighting for a regional lightweight championship on Thursday. Does this fight have more meaning to you because there is some sort of belt on the line or does this bout just have more meaning to you because it's another step closer to getting where you'd like to be?
 
JT: The most meaningful fight for me is always the next one and the fact that the next one this time gets me ranked amongst the world's best is exciting. I'd like to thank the WBO as well as my manager Steven Heid and promoter Hirsch Borao Promotions for giving me this opportunity.

BT: What can we expect to see from you in the ring? Is there anything new you've been working on or anything you and your trainers have been making significant improvement on, whether it be power, combinations, etc. ?
 
JT: You can expect to see a more polished fighter as I keep learning and getting better. I've knocked out 3 out of my last 4 opponents. I think this is a result of the chemistry that my trainer and I have and I expect another good performance on Thursday.

BT: Who did you spar with in preparation for this fight? Any names that people might know?
 
JT: I sparred a lot of tough guys to get ready for this fight. A name that people might recognize is Yuri Foreman who is a top ranked junior middleweight and always keeps me thinking when we spar.

BT: You're fighting on the undercard of a world title fight. What other cards, if any, did you fight under where the main event was a world title fight? Can you remember what they were?
 
JT: I think this is second or third time I've fought on the undercard of a world title fight. I remember fighting on a Juan Urango undercard in Florida that was for the IBF title.

BT: You're a tall guy for your weight division, just like Diego Corrales and Thomas Hearns were when they started out in their first divisions. And you're only 22 years old. How many more divisions can you see yourself competing in? In what division can you still see your power being effective?
 
JT:NI think I'll eventually end up as a welterweight and I don't think there will be any difference in my power at that weight.

BT: Does Jorge "The Truth" Teron have a motto that he lives by?
JT: "The Truth Hurts"

BY KIRK LANG

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