Merhy eyes unification after tonight’s defense

Mehry
Photo: M. Fannoÿ

Tonight at the Stade Roi Baudouin in Brussels, Belgium, WBA cruiserweight world champion and local favorite Ryad Merhy (29-1, 24 KOs) will make the first defense of his title tonight against WBA #14 rated Zhaoxin Zhang (10-1-1, 6 KOs) of China.

The top of the cruiserweight division is very wide open at the moment with no unified world champions. After successfully defending versus Zhang, Merhy is very much interested in becoming a unified world champion.

What drew you to boxing and when did you start boxing?

I started boxing when I was 14 years old. It was a Japanese cartoon, a manga, that made me want to take up boxing. And then, my mother needed me to calm down too, I was hyperactive! She was looking for a sport for me. She took me to judo, which I didn’t like because we were only falling. I wasn’t sweating enough anyway. I needed to sweat and let off steam. It was the only sport that would put me out of commission after an hour. I could let off steam the way I wanted to. I hit the bag like crazy. I couldn’t even write my name for registration because I was so drained. That’s how I got hooked.

What was the extent of your amateur career with your successes and how many amateur fights did you have?

I did my first tournaments at 16, two years after I started boxing. After that, the machine was on. I don’t remember exactly how many amateur fights I did. 17 I think.

What was your emotion when you were informed that you had gone from interim champion to regular champion?

I was super proud. When we won the interim title, I was very happy with the title but there was something missing, I was waiting to box against the regular titleholder. There was a taste of not finished, of not achieved. So getting the regular title was super important to me.

How did the adjustments go to prepare you for a new opponent?

There were no big changes in my preparation. We had to readjust some technical details because instead of boxing a lefty, I’m boxing a righty. But the transition went quite easily because I already had sparring partners similar to my opponent. So we reworked combinations, defense, counters, and analyzed the reactions of my current opponent.

What do you know about your new opponent?

There is not much on the internet about my opponent. All I know is that he is tall, 195cm, and has a great reach. I’m going to have to play around, try to get inside, box what I can.

How would you describe your fighting style?

(Description by Ryad’s coach Bilal Ben Sidi) “Ryad has a very explosive boxing style. He is a boxer who works on instinct, so it’s complicated to read his boxing. He is very creative in his sequences. He doesn’t have a stereotypical boxing style. He varies the places where he hits. The combinations, etc. He’s a guy who is quick. He moves super fast and has a lot of strength. On top of that, he’s got a hell of a look.”

What mental advantage do you think there is to fighting at home?

Forcibly, I’m at home and at home with my audience. Those are factors that make us psychologically more comfortable.

Is unification your long-term goal?

Obviously. It has to be. That’s the ultimate goal of having these belts.

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The card tonight is promoted by Alain Vanackere of 12 Rounds Promotions with Nicolas Vanackere as the matchmaker.

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  • One of my favorite things about boxing…(all combat sports) is that they are from all other countries, it’s a big part of my fascination and here’s another one…Merry 29-1 24kos, he might be the one to seize all the titles at cruiserweight……thanks Boxing News, for introducing me to another excellent prospect.

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