WBO welterweight title challenger Paul “The Punisher” Williams will step into the ring on July 14, 2007 for a title shot against Antonio Margarito.  Boxingtalk recently sat down with Paul and got his thoughts on what is no doubt the biggest fight of his career.

BT – You have a huge title fight coming up against Antonio Margarito, what are your thoughts on this fight?

PW – Oh man this fight is going to be a real good and exciting fight.  I know I will come out victorious, I have worked very hard for this fight.  I am not taking Margarito lightly, but I know I am coming out as the winner.

BT – Put it into your own words how important it is to you to become the WBO champion.

PW – Man, it's very important.  I have been working for 8 years to get this opportunity.  I will g down in the record books as a world champion.  I will go down as a champion, not just a contender.  I became the number 1 contender out of thousands of Welterweights, now I want to become a champion out of those 12 thousand Welterweights.

BT – Once you get that title, it will go down forever in the books.

PW – Yes sir, that's printed in solid cement.  I can tell my grandchildren, and they can tell their children that I became the world champion.

BT – How do you see this match-up between yourself and Margarito?

PW – There is no match-up, for one he's too slow, he doesn't move his head.  I am more elusive than he is.  Margarito isn't going to be able to take the beating that I am going to give him for 12 rounds.

BT – Joshua Clottey in my opinion was beating Margarito soundly up until the point where he broke his hand.  Do you take a page out of Clottey's plan book going into this fight?

PW – I thought Clottey after he broke his hand, still edged the fight out.  To beat the champion though, you have to really beat him, and that's what I am going to do to him.

BT – What was your big breakout fight in your career?

PW – It was Walter Dario Matthysse, nobody wanted to fight him, he was the most feared.  Everybody was saying that he was going to be the guy to put Paul Williams to sleep, he wasn't nothing, I made him look simple.  I am going to make Margarito look simple too, it's going to be a cake-walk.  My trainer Mr Peterson has a game-plan for me, and I am going to take to him.  I have been in there with him, so I know what he take... he's going to look like a little kid in there.

BT – Margarito denies that you cut him, and knocked him down.

PW – Well like I told them lies will always change, and the truth will always stay the same.  I never said that I knocked him down, but I did say that I cut his eye, he had a nick under his right eye.  I then went to his body, and I hurt him to the body, and that's the God's honest truth.  If you go back to the interviews about that sparring session, my statements stay the same, and his always change.

BT – Talk about your team.

PW – With me and the Peterson brothers were are like family.  We are together 24/7, and we had a great camp for this fight.  To me I call training camp prison, I don't go nowhere, I am on lockdown.  I don't worry about nothing until I make parole and that will be July 14th when I bust the warden up in Margarito.

BT – They might have an APB out for you in Mexico after that (laughs).

PW – They will love me, I am going to take his fans from him. There isn't anything that this man can do to me that I haven't seen already.  He hasn't changed, to me it looks like he's a worse fighter now.  I don't like talking bad about people but he's lying about me, and he got me fired up.  He knows he's going to get punished, he knows that.

BT – Are you going to knock Margarito out?

PW – I am going for a knockout, I am fighting him in California in his town, and the way the judges can be with crazy scored I am not giving it to the judges.  If by chance I don't get the knockout, I am going to beat him so bad it will be obvious who is the winner.

BT – Before I let you go, what are your thoughts on the passing of Diego “Chico” Corrales.

PW – It's sad to hear that he passed that way.  God has another plan for him, and as a man he was a great fighter.  Diego accomplished a lot of things that other did not do, he became a world champion.  His kids can be proud, and always say that their father was a world champion.

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

PW – My fans know what to expect when they see Paul Williams fight.  My fans know that when I get out there, they know not to move out of their seats.  I am going to give Margarito a real beat-down, and I am going to steal his fans, watch what I tell you.

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