KP:  I was in here in Tennesee, and I had to check to make sure I was still here in Tennesee.  I checked the papers, USA today.  Nobody had me in this fight.  Everything was Miranda, and the winner is going to fight [Jermain] Taylor or [Cory] Spinks.  Hey, I pulled it off, I shut some of the critics up.  As for some of the other media guys out there that made Miranda the monster that he is, I took care of that mouth and that's all that matters. 

Q:  You knocked him down twice in the 6th, did you think you had him?

KP:  You know what, I wanted the referee to stop the fight in the 5th, but he spit the mouthpiece out.  I think the referee did a great job, he did everything that he's supposed to do.  He took care of the fight, and in the 6th round, he knew that Miranda had had enough.  He did a great job of stopping us.

Q:  Edison made a big deal about how great of a puncher he was.  Tonight you showed him, with the slow reversal, that you were the bigger puncher.

KP:  We were the top two hardest punchers in boxing right now.  I showed at the end that I was the better puncher, and that I had him by the chin.  It took some trys, longer than it had to take, but he has some wild punches that are quick.  He was firing away when he was ready.  When you're watching, you think how the hell did he get hit by that, but it's different when you're in the ring.  They are hard to get away from?

Q:  What did he tell you afterward?

KP:  He just told me good fight.

Q:  You did well from the get-go I don't think he was ready for that.  When you saw you were successful from the start, did you think this could possibly happen?

KP:  We stuck to our game plan, that was the main thing.  We did not want to give him a chance to set up with those big right hands.  We wanted to set the tempo.  We wanted to go near with a lot of punches like we do, and keep him going backwards.  I wasn't just throwing a lot of punches, I was hitting him and throwing him off balance.  

Q:  How does it feel to be a star?

KP:  I wouldn't know yet.  I won't know until I step into it.  I'll find out.  Like I said before, you're only as good as your last fight.  Just because I beat Miranda doesn't mean that we let the ball go.  I have many more goals to accomplish, tomorrow is a new day. 

Q:  Who's next, Taylor?

KP:  He is the champion, but I don't know.

BT:  BoxingTalk.com here with the new #1 contender in the world, Kelly Pavlik.  You just knocked out Edison Miranda, tell us about it?

KP:  Great fight, he's a great fighter.  He's got a big mouth, a very, very big mouth.  I think that I shut that up for him.  Other than that, he's a tough fighter, a hard hitter.  I'm happy with my performance tonight.  We went in there and stuck to our game plan, and we showed the world that we are the best middleweight.  We showed that I belong with the top guys.

BT:  What do you say to your critics?  There's a lot of people talking.  Miranda was under the microscope, getting a lot of attention.  You came in and spoiled that party.

KP:  They've been doing that to me my whole career.  They said this guy, that guy.  They might want to find a new sport to write about.  It motivated me to fight harder. 

BT:  Did Miranda do anything in the ring that surprised you?  Was there anything you weren't prepared for?

KP:  He was very slick at some times.  There's not a lot of experienced moves.  I think in the third round he was throwing baby punches, I felt like he was tiring.  Then boom, he threw some hard punches that caught me off gaurd.  Other than that, Iknew it was just a matter of time before I started wearing him down.

BT:  The big question now is Jermain Taylor.  Will the sanction come through and give you your shot at Jermain?  How do you see that match up?

KP:  I'm hoping.  Everybody wants to see a matchup between me and Jermain.  It's supposed to happen.  I want it, but if not, I'll fight the next guy in line.  We'll see what happens.

BT:  How proud of yourself are you.  A lot of people re watching from your hometown in Ohio.  Talk about that a little.

KP:  We had a lot of fans that came down from Youngstown, Ohio too.  It was huge.  It helps so much knowing that your people have your back.  All the news stations from Youngstown came down, which is awesome.  I feel great, but like I said, you're only as good as your last fight in this sport.  We'll live it up for a day or two, but by the end of this week it will be time to move on and take care of business.

BT:  Any closing thoughts for the BoxingTalk fans?

KP:  Thanks for your support, for those that supported and believed.  For those that didn't believe, I hope you do now.