Richardson Hitchins is set to defend his International Boxing Federation (IBF) super lightweight title against Oscar Duarte Jurado in the co-main event of a pay-per-view card on Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, NV.
The 28-year-old Hitchins is undefeated in 20 fights and looking to win his 21st professional bout, which will come before Ryan Garcia and Mario Barrios headline the event on DAZN PPV.
“I’m ready to get in the ring. You can feel all types of emotions, but once you get in the ring, that’s when the real s—t happens,” Hitchins told amNewYork. “When I get in front of somebody, it feels different. My skills just take over. I’m ready to box.”
The last time he stepped into the ring was against George Kambosos Jr., whom he defeated in the eighth round. Six months have passed, and his training regime hasn’t changed much, with “not getting hit” keeping him focused. He reflects on his bout with Liam Pero, whom he fought in his first world title fight.
“It was my first time fighting a world champion and my first highly anticipated fight. He was in his prime. We’re both undefeated, and he is a world champion,” Hitchins explained. “When I took his belt, it was like ‘I am way better than this guy.”
He remains confident in his abilities going into his next bout against Jurado, who is 30-2-1 and on a four-fight win streak.
“He’s a strong puncher, but it’s easy to knock out guys that we don’t know,” Hitchins said of his opponent, who won 23 fights via knockout. “I’m pretty sure if I fought a lot of his opponents, I would’ve knocked them out too.”
As Hitchins makes his way down to the ring for every one of his bouts, he represents his hometown of Brooklyn in doing so.
“It’s great. Brooklyn has had a lot of talent in the past, but we haven’t had a world championship or an Olympian. I was one of the first guys to be an Olympian in New York since Sadam Ali,” he added. “It feels great to represent a city like New York and be from Brooklyn. When you think about New York, you think Brooklyn.”
His love for the Big Apple coincides with the lessons he’s learned from Floyd Mayweather, who never lost a fight across his legendary career. He remembers “watching boxing at [Mayweather’s] house together and breaking down fights.”
“When he first saw me box, he said I’ve been doing this my whole life, and you’re one of the best I’ve seen. You can have all the things your friends and peers have when it comes to money, cars, and jewelry. You can box,” Hitchins concluded.
As he inches closer towards his nine-year anniversary since debuting in 2017, Hitchins will look to add another victory to his resume when he defends the super lightweight title against Jurado on Saturday night.
