Next Time We Speak You Can Call Me Champ!

  PRINT   Add to Facebook

July 25, 2011 / BY UBO PRESS OFFICER

By Daxx Kahn  -  www.billycboxing.com

Yan defected with Gamboa and Orlander Solis in 2006 while the Cuban national team was in Venezuela; Rances defected shortly before the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Rances might be similar to his older sibling in terms of seeking their dreams but outside that the two are their own men.
 

Often in boxing a younger sibling follows the coattails of their older brother but if you should speak with Rances and Yan’s name come’s up you will learn while he has admiration for his brother he wants to make his own bones in the sport. Anyone who has seen Rances in a boxing ring can attest he is more than capable of creating those bones and then some.
 

Rances has had a few hardships in terms of public exposure, some failed TV appearances due to time constraints have kept mass audiences viewing him at work, aside from that small hindrance Rances who is co-promoted by Warriors Boxing and Bad Dog Productions is being guided well thus far. The promotion companies have kept him busy, inside a little under two years Rances has fought 12 times, winning all but 2 inside the distance.

July 29th Rances will vie for his first minor title when he faces off against Gerardo Robles at the Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas Nevada. At stake will be the vacant UBO International Super Featherweight title if he wins this could help fast track Rances into mainstream boxing and one step closer to a top 10 major sanctioning body rating.
 

I was able to speak with Rances after a workout Saturday morning along with his Co-Promoter and managing partner of Bad Dog productions Richard Dobal. I was impressed at Rances positive outlook and grounded plans for the future. This is how our conversation went, read it here exclusively on the Billy C Boxing news network.  

Rances how is everything? Congratulations on your upcoming UBO International Super Featherweight Title bout, how are last minute preparations going? 

Thank you I am glad to be speaking with the Billy C Boxing News Network. Everything is well, I am grateful to have this opportunity in challenging for a UBO belt. Preparations have gone great! I have doubled my training efforts for this bout. I am looking to keep my undefeated record and win my first professional title. Hopefully this will open opportunities for me to challenge for other titles down the road.


This will be your 13th professional bout in just under 2 years that is certainly an active schedule, has keeping this busy helped fully transition you from the amateurs into the professional rankings? Often fighters with extended amateur pedigrees take longer than others to adjust, you seem to have made that adjustment well.

I feel it has helped, I had 3 other bouts that were supposed to happen but fell out for one reason or another so if not for that I would be going into my 16th professional fight July 29th instead of my 13th. Keeping this pace along with help from promotional team and trainer Orlando Cuellar has been instrumental.


Richard you guys at  Bad Dog Productions, Leon Margules and Warriors boxing are not easily impressed  and do not sign just any fighter who comes in off the street looking for a bout. How did Rances become part of the promotional banner?

Richard Dobal (Bad Dog Productions Rances co-promoter): It was through one of our other fighters featherweight Luis Franco. We were starting to partner with Warriors boxing who was the exclusive promotion company for events at the Hard Rock in Miami. Franco is friends with Rances and brought him along to the gym one day for a workout. We were blown away by Rances size, speed and power, so we contacted Warriors. They were just as impressed when seeing him in action; Rances did not have a promoter so it was just natural for us invite him to be one of our fighters. 


Rances out of your 12 wins 10 are by stoppage, an impressive KO% ratio for an upcoming fighter. Since turning pro thus far the longest you have been is 4 rounds, your opponent  Gerardo Robles has gone 8 rounds at least 3 times. Should you need to go the full 8 will this work against you or do you feel confident in being able to finish strong?

I don’t know if the knockouts have been a blessing for me or a negative. I never go into a fight looking for the knockout, if my bout is set for 6 rounds I go in with the mindset that I will be fighting for 6 rounds or whatever the distance might be. I make sure I train to go the full duration every time and I just let the knockout happen, if it does great but if not I am ready to finish every round. If you want to be successful you can’t go in expecting to win fights by KO, having that mindset it will hurt your career.


Your older brother Yan winning a Gold Medal at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens must have been a great motivator for you coming up. Since turning professional Yan has had success but he has also had a few minor stumbles, have you been able to use Yan’s success and shortcomings to your advantage?

Absolutely a motivator, when I look at Yan it is like looking in a mirror. I see the positives of his career and it helps me stay positive, I see mistake’s he may have made that caused some of the speed bumps he has experienced as a professional and I know to avoid them. Having an older brother in the same sport is an advantage.


We have had some great fighters over the years from Cuba, Kid Gavilan, Kid Chocolate and Joel Cassamayor to name a few. Currently we have Yuriorkis Gamboa, Guillermo Rigondeaux and Erislandy Lara. How long do you think it will be before we are mentioning Rances Barthelemy alongside those names?

Hopefully this bout is the first step in achieving that goal. Lack of TV exposure has hurt me greatly in that department, I had been on the schedule for swing bouts a few different occasions but I missed being aired due to time constraints. I have no complaints about it, my time will come when I am in a significant bout and when people see me my name will gain recognition. When that happens you will hear me mentioned along with the Gamboa’s, Rigondeaux’s and Lara’s.


If successful July 29th is up next for you or are you waiting to get past this bout before making any future plans?

There is nothing scheduled currently, I am concentrating on Robles only right now and I am not looking past him at all. I would like to be able to see what’s coming next in the future for me but I can’t see into the future so I need to focus on my task ahead and worry about what’s next after.


Rances I know you are busy and have been in the gym working this morning, I want to thank you for speaking with me and wish you luck on the 29th. Next time we speak I hope our conversation begins with my calling you champ. Any last words to those out there who support you?

Thank You for your time I appreciate the interview, I want to say hello to all the boxing fans out there and reassure you the next time we speak you can call me champ. I have been training at 100%; I am ready for this bout so I know I can win.


Good Luck, I look forward to the bout. 

NOTE: If you detect any issues with the legality of this site, problems are always unintentional and will be corrected with notification.