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Shawn Porter says PBC will be all ‘Showtime’ this Friday

Fighters Network
10
Mar
alt

Shawn Porter (R) tags Devon Alexander with a right hand in December 2013. Photo by Naoki Fukuda.

Just when it appeared that “Showtime” Shawn Porter was ready to take over the welterweight division, his ascent came to an abrupt halt courtesy of Kell Brook last August. His majority-decision loss to Brook was a shock to many who witnessed Porter tear through Paulie Malignaggi and Devon Alexander like a man possessed. He’ll look to get his career back on track when he headlines “Premier Boxing Champions” on Spike TV this Friday against the rugged Roberto Garcia.

While some may see this as a make or break fight for the 27-year-old, Porter (24-1-1, 15 knockouts) isn’t looking at this fight any differently than his previous encounters. And even though Garcia (36-3, 23 KOs) doesn’t carry the same weight as Brook, Malignaggi or Alexander in terms of popularity, Porter is certainly not viewing this as a bounce-back fight against a lesser opponent.

“I’m going to treat this like every other fight,” Porter told RingTV on a recent conference call. “Every fight is a must win for me. I don’t look at Roberto Garcia like he’s any less than any other opponent that I’ve faced. He’s coming here to take something from me and I have to defend it.”

Porter, who was present at the “PBC on NBC” show that saw Adrien Broner and John Molina underwhelm fight fans, is aware that he has to not only win, but also win impressively while entertaining a crowd which may not have ever seen a “Showtime” fight before.



“It’s very important that I win and entertain,” Porter said. “We trained so that I look great for every fight and this fight against Garcia is no different. Not only do I have to win but I have to be exciting as well ÔǪ For me it is easy because I already have an exciting style and do what it takes to win.”

With the Brook loss in his rearview mirror, Porter is prepared to climb the ladder and become a viable threat to everyone in the welterweight division. But don’t think for one second that there’s going to be a different version of “Showtime” when he steps into the ring on Friday night.

“There’s no old or new Shawn Porter because there’s only one,” the former IBF welterweight champion said when asked if anything has changed after the loss to Brook. “I’m versatile and going to win this fight fast, quick and powerful stuff. You are going to get all of ‘Showtime’ Shawn Porter.”

 

Andreas Hale is a self-proclaimed Swiss army knife of journalism who covers everything from music and film to sports and politics. He has covered combat sports for diehard outlets including Yahoo! Sports, Sherdog, FightNews and others while also writing for mainstream outlets such as Jay Z’s Life+Times, MTV, BET, Vibe, The Source and more. You can follow him at twitter.com/AndreasHale and he would welcome any and all conversations about the sweet science.

 

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