‘I MIGHT GO CRAZY AGAIN - WHO KNOWS?’

Ohara Davies is in fighting form ahead of Josh Taylor. He speaks to John Dennen

LLONDON’S Ohara Davies travels to Glasgow to challenge Josh Taylor for the Commonwealth super-lightweight title at the Braehead Arena on Saturday (July 8), broadcast live on Channel 5 How tough an opponent will Josh Taylor be?

It’s going to be my hardest fight yet. But I’m in the best shape of my life so far. I don’t really see how I can lose.

When I’m in the shape that I am now, sparring over 12 rounds with more than two different people and I’m doing good. I’m fit, I’ve been beating all my times on the track, I’ve been running a lot longer outside. I’m more experienced. I’m fitter. If I was level five in my last fight, I’d be level 10 now. I personally don’t see how I’m going to get beat. I’m wondering what kind of human being it takes to put me down.

You’ve been fighting on Matchroom shows on Sky, now you’re going to his Scotland on his show, on Channel 5, tell us about that decision.

I don’t think there’s such a thing as home advantage. I just think honestly a boxing ring’s a boxing ring. The same thing I can do in York Hall I can do up in Scotland, Glasgow, I can do in MGM Grand in Las Vegas. I don’t think it really matters where it is. A boxing ring’s a boxing ring and I can get the job done anywhere. He wants home advantage. I just want the money.

Was the press conference in Scotland hostile?

It wasn’t hostile at all. That’s what I expected to happen. He was a bit agitated. We all saw a different Taylor to what we’ve seen previously, where he’s quite humble and outgoing.

For this press conference he was a complete hothead. I don’t think that’s a Taylor that people have seen. I don’t think that’s a Taylor that people like.

Did you have a run in at the airport?

It was more his coach Shane [Mcguigan]… That stuff doesn’t affect me, the same things Derry Mathews was saying. The same things that all his fans were saying so it’s nothing new to me. I’ve been there before. I’ve gone into the O2 and I’ve been booed in my own hometown. So what issues will I have going into his hometown and getting booed?

After the Andrea Scarpa fight [ w pts 12] were you frustrated with your performance?

I wasn’t frustrated with my performance. I was frustrated with what people were saying. Before the fight everyone was saying I took the fight too early. Scarpa was too good, because he knocked out John Wayne Hibbert, because he’s already done the 12 rounds many times and I hadn’t been past round six. I won every single round on every single scorecard. Just because I didn’t knock him out people weren’t used to seeing me go the full 12 rounds.

How pleased were you with the Derry Mathews fight?

Very pleased. It’s a fight I thought would be a lot harder than what it was. I trained hard for that fight. I damaged myself in the gym. I trained so much. I trained so hard. These camps are not easy, these camps are tough.

The build up to the Derry fight was quite confrontational, why was that?

We had an argument over Twitter. It was ongoing for month. I think it was just how I felt at that time. For that camp I thought, ‘I don’t like this guy.’ I’m going to voice my opinions, be vocal. That’s how I felt I wanted to act. In the Taylor fight, I’m a lot more calm now. I’m more calm as a person now. So I’ve done all the hype stuff, I’ve done it before. It’s not something I feel I need to do again.

Was that an act ahead of Derry Mathews?

It wasn’t an act, it was me at that time. Who knows? That might be me at my next fight. It might be me next week. We never know. We could have a press conference before this next fight and I might go wild again… I might start being angry again but at this minute, that’s not me. When [ Josh Taylor] tried to take off my sunglasses he expected me to push him maybe or have a little scuffle. I’m just calm. The only thing that matters to me is July 8 when I fight. That’s the only thing on my mind. All that other stuff doesn’t mean anything to me right now.

So would you say this is the real Ohara Davies?

This is the real Ohara Davies. At this time. That was the real Ohara Davies at that time.

I might wake up tomorrow and I might change again. I might start going crazy again. Who knows? I’m allowed to be crazy and still do what I do. How I act doesn’t affect me in the ring? That’s the good thing about being a pro boxer. I can act how I want to act and I’m not going to get fired.

WIND-UP MERCHANT: Mathews [right] struggles to contain himself prior to losing to Davies in March

‘I DAMAGED MYSELF IN THE GYM PRIOR TO MATHEWS FIGHT’