Thurman eager to ascend to upper echelon
porters this week. He will work ringside as a TV analyst in the prime-time championship bout Saturday (6 p.m. CBS) featuring Thurman (27-0, 27 knockouts) and Danny Garcia (33-0, 19 KOs) at Barclays Center in New York.
Thurman will try to chisel his reputation into something more permanent when he challenges the 27-year-old WBC titleholder from Philadelphia. Bad blood brews between the fighters and camps, and that might prompt an explosive outcome.
Unifying the 147-pound crown “will separate me,’’ said Thurman, who remains about a 2-1 favorite.
“If you really know Keith Thurman, you know I have an ‘0,’ and I’m not afraid to let it go,’’ Thurman said. “If you can beat me, beat me. I am here for the competition. I chose this career path when I was 7. I love boxing. I want to be remembered. That’s the way for me to brand myself and leave my mark in boxing history.’’
Thurman, as trainer Dan Birmingham acknowledges, “is a different kind of cat.’’ An armchair philosopher with varied interests, including playing the piano, the 27-year-old Clearwater, Florida, fighter never finished his formal education. He knew where destiny resided. It was in a boxing gym.
“I dropped out of high school at 16 so I could train with pros,” he said. “By my early 20s, I thought about what I would have studied in school. Philosophy was one (subject). So I studied philosophy on the internet. I said to myself, ‘There’s nothing holding me back from being a self-proclaimed philosopher.’ ’’
“One Time,’’ as he calls himself, is not a big name outside of boxing. He seems OK with a lack of universal acclaim and fame. Name recognition, and associated benefits, will come when he is crowned undisputed king of the welterweights, he believes. As he said, “To me, being a household name is about karma. It’s due to your actions – being that guy who seems to be unstoppable.’’
He could have been describing that invincible fighter of the past two decades — Floyd Mayweather Jr. Thurman called him out multiple times on HBO and Showtime. It never worked because Mayweather, who claims he is retired with a 49-0 record, was not about to rumble with a young lion, a lights-out puncher who also is a good ring technician.
Fighting, and beating, Mayweather or Manny Pacquiao would elevate Thurman’s popularity and crossover appeal. Certainly, Thurman-Garcia is not as significant as Mayweather-Pacquiao, Leonard-Hearns or Oscar De La Hoya-Felix Trinidad, the last time two unbeaten welterweights tangled to unify a portion of the title. (England’s Kell Brook is the IBF 147-pound champ; Pacquiao wears the WBO belt.)
This is an important moment for Thurman, who has yet to fight on payper-view TV, to showcase his abilities and personality.
“You can be outspoken like (MMA star) Conor McGregor — he created a name for himself,’’ Thurman said. “I started out outspoken, but I’m tired of speaking like that. I could care less. I am getting paid what I want to get paid. I have the fight fans who appreciate what I am doing. It’s not that I don’t care, but I won’t force it.
“If that recognition is to be achieved, it will be achieved through the karmic effect of being an elite athlete and being one of the most entertaining fighters in the world. I believe I am.’’ Jon Mark Saraceno can be reached at jsaraceno@ reviewjournal.com. Follow @jonnysaraceno on Twitter.