Flyweight Rayonta Whitfield sat down with Boxingtalk and discussed with us his bright future in boxing.  This young man out of Augusta, Georgia is rapidly climbing the rankings, and will soon move from prospect, to contention status.  With an impressive undefeated record of 18-0 with 9 KOs and a regional title on his resume, Whitfield is closing in on world title consideration.

BT – What's the latest Ray?

RW – What's up? I'm just here at the gym staying in shape getting ready for my next fight.

BT – You recently knocked out Jair Jiminez in the second round, talk about your performance.

RW – I was coming off of a hard fight with [ex-Olympian] Carlos Tamara, I won the NABO title with that win. Going into the fight with Jiminez, I had a lot of confidence because I just went 12 rounds, and I was in front of my hometown fans, on national television.  I was ready to go, so I just wanted to be impressive that night.

BT – I have seen you fight quite a few times, I think the fight against Tamara was your toughest thus far, would you agree?

RW – Well going into that fight I was looking at a pretty decent fighter.  It was a tough fight, I didn't think that I had any more in me after the 9th and 10th rounds, but it just shows what's inside of me, and they type of fighter I am to pull that off.

BT – I am guessing that it helps your confidence, knowing that you had to dig down and pull through to get the win in the end.

RW – Yes that takes me to another level.  A fighter doesn't know what he can do until he gets into a situation where he has to dig down.  I had to dig down, and bring it all out, and I did it.  I know I have it inside me now, if I have to dig down and get it, I know it's there.

BT – You're beginning to make some noise on a national level now.  When do you think you will be ready for a title shot?

RW – I will be defending my NABO title in October, and pretty much after that I am ready. I will let Prize Fight Promotions my promoter do their thing.

BT – Prize Fight has brought you along nicely over the last few years, talk about that.

RW – I have a real good relationship with Prize Fight, they have been moving my career strongly.  I didn't think that I would be in the position that I am in, in just three years.  They have everything going smoothly.  Prize Fight has my back, and I am relying on them to put me into the right fight, at the right time.

BT – What was the biggest challenge for you making the transition from amateur to pros?

RW – The biggest thing was to learn to relax.  As an amateur you're moving really fast trying to get as many points as you can, in the pro's you have to relax and sit down on your punches.  Early on in my career I wasn't knocking people out because I was throwing a lot of punches, but I wasn't sitting down on my punches. 

BT – What advice do you have for someone in the amateurs that is about to go pro?

RW – Well the one thing that I would tell them is to keep their eyes open, and make smart decisions.  Be ready for anything because in the pros there are a lot of things that go on behind the scenes.

BT – For those who have not seen you fight, describe the style of fighter that you are.

RW – At my weight of 112, I am a big guy, I am 5ft 7 and a half, and I have a strong right hand, and I am slick with it.  I am tall, long arms, I am sharp, and I can move.

BT – Do you have any closing thoughts for your fans?

RW – To all my fans that have been behind me, I want to thank them.  I train hard, I am in the gym every day, and I will be the champion of the world soon.


 

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