BT:  BoxingTalk.com here with Promoter Artie Pelullo, President of Banner Productions.  We're here at the Friar's Club for the anticipated match between Acelino Freitas, your fighter, and Juan Diaz.  Can you give us your thoughts? " As I've been telling everybody, I happen to think that this is a turning point for both fighters.  They're both at different stages of their careers.  Juan, who's 23, is 30-0.  This is the biggest fight of his life.  A WBA champion.  He's never fought a fighter of this caliber.  If he wins this fight, he is at a different level in his career.  Popo's 30-1, he's a four time world champion.  He needs to see what he has to put the fire in his belly.  To see if he has it.  In order to win a fight like this against a very good, very young, come right at you kind of fighter.  That's the intriguing part of the fight.  One guy's 23, he wants Frietas.  The other guy, Freitas, is 31 he's got to figure out how to build up the desire to want Juan Diaz.

BT:  You mentioned desire.  I personally kind of quesioned Popo's desire, because he had retired.  Do you think that it's make it or break it with him in this fight?

AP:  Make or break for him, in the sense of does he stay in boxing or not, absolutley.  I mean, he's got to win the fight.  I'll let you know on April 28th, at around 11 o'clock, what kind of desire he has.  Clearly only he knows that.  Only he knows what's in his heart, what's in his gut.

BT:  Foxwoods, why the venue at Foxwoods?

AP:  They love him.  They love Popo.  Tom Cantone went out of his way to bring the fight there.  He does great with the Brazillian Market.  Boston has little Brazil, which is two hours away.  They sell out every fight.  They bring a great enthusiastic crowd.  They know that Juan Diaz is the toughest fight that Freitas has fought since Corrales.  They want to have that fight there for their 100th fight.  This is their 100th professional match, and they would like to do it with Popo.

BT:  How many times has Popo fought in Foxwoods?

AP:  This will be his fourth.  His fourth fight at Foxwoods.

BT:  Besides Popo, what other fighters do you have?

AP:  You know we've got Ricky Hatton fighting in the 23rd against Castillo, which is a mega-fight for both of them.  Castillo had some disasters in his personal life and in the ring, not making weight.  With Hatton, he needs to beat a Castillo to move on to bigger fights.  Then we've got like sixty fighters who are all working.  I've got Alonzo Butler a young heavyweights who, I think if he ever matures, can come into being something.  I'm just working, and when I got off of this interview with you, I'll be back on the phone making fights. 

BT:   Recently in an interview with Giovanni Lorenzo middleweight, I made a mention about Verno Phillips.  Berno, I believe, is number three in the IBF.  Can you give us an update about Verno?

AP:  Right now he's number three in the world.  He will be fighting sometime in May or June.  I would take that fight if there's some fight we can make.  Then there's the financial, we have to pay both the fighters.

BT:  Is there anything you'd like to say in closing to the BoxingTalk audience?

AP:  Watch the fight on the 28th it's going to be a great fight.  It's a good contrast of fighters.  Not a good contrast of style, because they're both come right at you kind of fighters, but a good fight.  Somebody, I think, is getting knocked out.   

BT:  Thank you very much.

M

Send questions and comments to: spjr21@yahoo.com