Former unified welterweight champion Keith Thurman is planning to lead by example.
The American hasn’t fought since July 2019 when he got outpointed by Manny Pacquiao in a world title fight. Surgery and the ongoing coronavirus pandemic have since extended yet another unwelcomed ring absence, with the Clearwater native eager to get back in the mix.
“I’m geared up, I’m frustrated and can’t wait to let my hands go,” Thurman told BoxingScene.com. “I’m ready to just go and light the stage on fire.”
Before “Pac-man” beat him, “One Time” was undefeated in his pro boxing career and now the 32-year-old has made a vow to go back to his winning ways.
“The one thing I can do is, as soon as I can get back to work is just execute,” admits Thurman. “I have to execute and show people through my performances—it can’t be through a lot of smack talk, but through my performances—that Keith Thurman is not the one to mess with. I’ve never been one to sleep on and won’t be anytime soon. Not trying to be biassed but I believe that when I get in the ring, you get a better fight.
“The Shawn Porter fight versus EJ, that was a great fight because of what Shawn Porter does. When Errol Spence just fought Danny, we didn’t see that great fight. It was good, I’ll let it be good. But I didn’t see any of that—it wasn’t really good. I do more than what’s good. I’ve done it in the past and I’m looking forward to bringing more of that back to the welterweight division.”
