Pascal seeking one last shot at glory
Laval boxer set to step into the ring next month to battle undefeated Alvarez
On this day, when it was decreed he’d have an open workout for the media, Jean Pascal conveniently decided to wear a black T-shirt from his days as World Boxing Council light-heavyweight champion.
He said it was merely a coincidence, of course. It just happened to be the one on top of the clothes hamper. But there’s no doubt, at age 34, Pascal’s desperately trying to recapture the glory days, trying to make Father Time temporarily stand still.
“To be world champion again would be fantastic,” he said Wednesday, after working up a sweat at Centre Claude Robillard. “Right now my goal is to beat (Eleider) Alvarez. After, we’ll see.”
Laval’s Pascal is like a phoenix rising from the ashes. His career could have been derailed after he lost his title to Bernard Hopkins in May 2011. Instead, four years later, Pascal positioned himself for a title bout against Sergey Kovalev. Pascal was stopped in the eighth round, and yet, 10 months later, they met in a rematch — Kovalev requiring one less round to produce a similar result.
Pascal’s on the precipice again. One fight removed from his most recent loss to Kovalev, the entertaining crowd-pleaser has a 12-round bout against Alvarez, June 3 at the Bell Centre. The fight, to be televised in the U.S. by Showtime, is on the undercard of the main event between WBC 175-pound champ Adonis Stevenson and Andrzej Fonfara.
Pascal, 31-4-1 with 18 knockouts, said he’s not surprised to have positioned himself so quickly. Alvarez, undefeated in 22 bouts (11 KOs), is the mandatory challenger to Stevenson’s title. Common sense — something not always prevalent in boxing — would be to have the two winners meet this fall.
“Every battle I had was a good one,” Pascal said. “I’m a crowd pleaser. Every fight that I lost, it wasn’t in bad fashion. I think I’m still up there. I’m still a good name, a big name for the up and comer. “For me, my tank’s still full.” Perhaps, but this has to be considered Pascal’s last shot at glory, given his age and the circumstances. Clearly, he’s risking less than Alvarez, who has long been ranked first in the division but has been unable to get the elusive Stevenson into the ring. Alvarez already risked his rating once, last February, when he stopped former super-middleweight champ Lucian Bute in the fifth round at Centre Vidéotron.
Why take this chance again? Clearly it’s a combination of supreme confidence for Alvarez — not to mention he’s being well-paid and requires the money.
“For everybody — and it might be a cliché — the next fight is always the most important,” promoter Yvon Michel said. “It will decide what’s going to be next. Definitely, for both of them, it’s a crossroads fight, again. It has a huge importance for their careers. Alvarez is a professional fighter who wants to be active. They feel it’s a good opportunity to raise his notoriety and have more bargaining power.
“Alvarez has to be considered the favourite because of his ranking and activity. He doesn’t know how to lose. If we consider Pascal the underdog, he’s a very live underdog.”
When the bout was announced and a press conference held, Pascal immediately stated he was the underdog. The two know each other well and have sparred together. Marc Ramsay, Alvarez’s trainer, used to handle Pascal.
Publicly, Pascal can say whatever he wants. Privately, no boxer enters the ring without supremely believing he’ll exit with his hand raised; that would be illogical.
“Pascal has changed his attitude. Instead of being arrogant, very outgoing, he has decided to play the role of the humble contender that will try to do his best,” Michel said, trying to keep a straight face. “He has decided to be low profile and focus on his own task.
“I’m sure inside he believes that he’s the best guy. It’s a possibility he can beat Alvarez because of his experience. He’s a big guy and has a strong chin. He’s an explosive fighter.”
This marks Pascal’s second fight with trainer Stéphan Larouche, who handled him as an amateur. Pascal also has reconnected with strength and conditioning coach Andre Kulesza — moving on from the controversial Angel Heredia, linked to some anti-doping scandals. And one of Pascal’s sparring partners is Isaac Chilemba, who lost a majority decision to Alvarez in November 2015.
“He (Pascal) has tremendous experience, knowledge in the ring. He’s a performer who has been in very big fights. He has a lot of tools that guys who have faced Alvarez didn’t have,” Larouche said. “He’s been there forever and is used to being on the big stage.
“This is Jean Pascal. He’ll never quit. He’ll never surrender. He’s got knowledge. He knows himself very well. He knows what’s good for him and what’s not. If you look at the risk versus the reward, this is good for Jean.”
And yet, Pascal will continue to play coy, like a fox. Pull an upset, and he’ll crow like a canary. Lose, and he’ll say it was expected.
“I have two strikes against me. Alvarez knows me well. Marc knows me by heart,” he said. “There’s no blueprint how to beat Alvarez. I hope I’m going to find it.”
I have two strikes against me. … There’s no blueprint how to beat Alvarez. I hope I’m going to find it.