Allan Green Interview: "Tell Andre Ward, no more hurt knees, no more hurt pinkies or whatever; let’s just get it on period!"
By Benny Henderson Jr. (March 25, 2010) Doghouse Boxing  
Super middleweight contender, and participant of Showtime’s “Super Six” Allan Green 29-1 (20) was scheduled to take on the WBA super middleweight champion Andre Ward April 24th for the second stage of the tournament. But after Ward allegedly started suffering problems from a formerly surgically repaired knee, the fight has been postponed to another date, yet to be announced.

But Allan Green, nor his manager Greg Leon or promoter Lou DiBella is buying the claim. In this exclusive interview, Allan Green’s part was conducted by the boys at Big Dog Radio, And his manager Greg Leon via phone, the two speak out on the postponement, enjoy.

Benny Henderson Jr.: You had the fight coming up, then Ward was injured, your thoughts?

Allan Green:
 Like I said, I really do not know what is going on, I am not him I am not in his camp. I just find the situation kind of odd, before he even got an MRI done it was said that he needed to be out for six weeks. I am like how do you know that with your knee just being inflamed. I am not saying it is true or untrue, I just don’t know why the fight has to be postponed for so long.

Greg Leon: Listen, Andre Dirrell hurt his back and he was out for three weeks, we get word that Andre Ward hurts his knee, and he receives a diagnosis four to six weeks rest before an MRI is conducted, I mean I am not a doctor, but I imagine the procedure is to get the MRI then get the diagnosis, not the other way around. As we speak we still haven’t seen the MRI results.

BH: How does this affect you in your training as well as your mind set?

AG:
It doesn’t affect me at all, when it is time to get in the ring it is time to get in the ring. I was in Florida training and I heard about the fight being pushed back so I came back to Oklahoma to rest up a bit. I will stay in shape and when it is time for me to head back to camp I will head back to camp.

They are talking about the fight being in June, so hell I don’t know when I will get back in camp.

BH: So besides the alleged recurring pain from the past surgery, you think there is a lot more to it… (Allan breaks in)

AG:
Oh it is, it is, and we are trying to be as cool as we can about it, but Greg and I know it is more than just a knee injury. To me it is bogus, but whatever, he will have to get in the ring sooner or later and when he does I will take his title and become champion, simple as that regardless of when it is.

Greg Leon: I don’t know why the fight isn’t going on, if the injury is illegitimate, it is for reasons that are between Andre Ward and his team; it has nothing to do with Allan Green. We have a lot of respect for Ward as a fighter, he hasn’t lost since he was a teenager, so I have nothing bad to say about Andre Ward as a fighter. It is unfortunate the fight is getting postponed six weeks because Allan was ready to take care of business on April 24th, it is just suspicious that he got a six week diagnosis before the MRI was even conducted. In most sports if the guy hurts his knee, they give him a couple of days off and then give him an MRI to see what is wrong, then go from there. In this situation there was a story on ESPN, where it was crystal clear that Ward was out for six weeks, but the MRI was going to be done tomorrow, and that is hard for me to understand. Maybe I need to go to med school.

Tim Kudgis: Do you think it could have been more along the lines of he was expecting to fight Jermain Taylor?

AG: 
I heard that from a lot of sources, Ward saying he was supposed to be fighting Jermain Taylor. And I heard him say something that I thought was bullshit, when he found out that he was going to have to fight me, he said that he was looking forward and hoping to fight Jermain Taylor because he wanted to establish a legacy, what kind of legacy can you establish by fighting a guy who has been knocked out two times in a row? When Andre Ward said that, it makes him look suspect.

Greg Leon: Do I think that Ward would have been at his best at April 24th? No. Do I think that he wants to fight Allan Green? No. Why would you want to fight a guy who can knock you out with either hand, after you just beat Kessler, where you became a star in your home town. If Allan Green catches Andre Ward, all that goes down the drain with one punch. They want to make sure that everything is intact, you get a manicure a pedicure, all his little pinkies are feeling well, his joints are lubed up so somebody got out their oil can and his five thousand dollar a month vitamins.

Tim Kudgis: It would have been a lot easier of a fight for Ward to fight Taylor at this stage of his career than to fight you.

AG: 
Of course, I wouldn’t say that I was looking forward to fight Jermain Taylor to establish my legacy; I would have never said anything like that.

Tim Kudgis: Who do you think is going to take the fight between Dirrell and Abraham?

AG: 
I don’t know, I really don’t know that is up in the air. It depends on which Dirrell shows up, if he decides to box and move and play it safe he can win, but I do not know where his head at. I will be at the fight, but I cannot make a pick right now.

Butch Carroll: Where do you see yourself going after the fight with Ward?

AG: 
I see myself being champion and knocking Kessler out in the following fight.

Bob Carroll: You were originally left out of the “Super Six”, being that you are one of the top fighters in that division was there any explanation for that?

AG:
 I never got an explanation, never got anything for it, I guess they felt I did not need an explanation, but I know why I was left it, it was mainly about politics. To reward a guy who had just lost and put him in the tournament, it looks like he was set up to lose. He had just got knocked out, how do you put a guy in there like that? Honestly, who is he going to beat in that tournament? The first thing they did was put him in there with the hardest puncher, so to me that was set up.

Bob Carroll: And basically by putting Taylor in there they put his health at extreme risk.

AG: 
They did, I didn’t think it was cool to leave me out and put him in. To be honest and you people may say I am crazy, but he was put in to leave me out, to make sure I didn’t get in. Some say for Dirrell it is a bit premature, Jermain did not deserve to be in there, but Ward does cause he just beat Miranda. Jermain gets in after a loss and Abraham never fought as a super middleweight, he comes up in weight and gets in the tournament. I couldn’t understand it, I came off a devastating knock out over Carlos De Leon Jr. Jermain came in after getting knocked out, we were on the same card, and I heard about the tournament and I was left out. I really cannot cry over spilt milk, I am in the tournament now, but I was confused and I really didn’t understand it. But me being the tournament changes everything.

Benny Henderson Jr. : In closing is there any message you guys would like to send out to Andre Ward or the entire fight world?

Greg Leon: 
You know I respect the shit out of Andre Ward as a fighter, like I said he hasn’t lost in forever, and he is pretty much the only fighter in this tournament that is on most of every pound for pound list.

AG: It is like this man. To Andre Ward, I respect him, he won the title from Kessler, he is a religiously grounded kid and all of that is good, but however, this is boxing and when you become a champion, you have to fight everybody. You cannot pick and choose to fight whom you want to fight, and I am not saying that is even you, but if it is stop being like that, and if it is not, don’t turn in to that guy. Step in the ring when it is time for you and me to get it on, no games no nothing, no more hurt knees no more hurt pinkies or whatever, let’s just get it on period.

I would like to thank Allan Green and Greg Leon for their time and thoughts, be sure to check out Fightn’ Words Radio Network, which features Fightn’ Words and Big Dog Radio http://www.blogtalkradio.com/fightinwordsradio

Questions or comments email the Big Dog at CrazzedTrucker@aol.com

For more info on Benny Henderson Jr. check out http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/BennyHendersonJr?v=wall&ref=profile

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