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Well I told him that he was one of
the judges that scored the fight
against me. And then he went to the
commissioner that was present and
explained the situation and the
commissioner couldn't overturn the
verdict and make it against Elisara
Sii Uta. The commissioner thought
that would be just wrong, so he
declared the fight a no contest thus
robbing me of a victory."
FNN: So much has been made of
your abysmal conditioning. Why be a
professional fighter and walk around
so overweight?
Welliver: "Well I am in
shape. I'm just fat. I run and train
and lift weights, but I've always
been heavy. You have said many times
that I need to move down in weight,
but when I weighed 238lbs, I
thought, crap I need to lose weight,
so I ran and worked out, and then I
weighed 245lbs. I have always been
fat. When I was 12 years old I
weighed 325lbs, so being fat is a
part of my identity. It's not like
it's affecting me in the ring, and I
still am the one banging the ring
girls after the fight, so what's the
problem?"
FNN: How about you look at it
for what's its worth. Chauncy,
you're not paid to be a boxer. You
and all the other boxers use boxing
as a form of entertainment. So
Chauncy your really an entertainer,
and the product you are selling is
yourself. People don't want to see a
fat guy with lose skin fighting in
the ring. They want to see two
gladiators who look to be at their
physical peak and having them go at
it and to see who is the best
combatant. I believe you're healthy,
but its all about image and that is
what sells and makes you your money.
Welliver: "Well I haven't
looked at it that way. I try to lose
weight. I mean since I've been here
in L.A. I have noticed that I am
toning up more, but I still find it
hard to lose the fat. I am a
vegetarian and I run and I stay away
from processed foods. I just can't
lose the weight, and it doesn't
affect my ability to get women, but
I completely understand your point
of me being the product I am
selling."
FNN: I have seen many
keyboard warriors blast you on
websites, and scribes like me blow
you off. How do you handle punks
like us who criticize you?
Welliver: "Man your not as
bad as you say you are. I just know
you have the power of the press
behind you. As for the other guys,
man I fight and they can think what
they want, but in reality I'm the
one risking it all in the ring, and
like I said before, it is me taking
the ring girls out back and banging
them after the fight. I know I don't
have the electric power, but I
overwhelm my opponents with punches
from different angles. I don't have
the chiseled physique, but I have
stamina and I can take a shot. Fans
and fighters underestimate me all
the time, I have no problem if the
fighters underestimate me, but it's
the fans I wish knew what I was
like. The criticism doesn't bother
me as much as the politics of the
sport does."
FNN: Okay, enough with the
negative aspects of your career, how
about something positive. Let's talk
about how you are approaching your
upcoming fight with Kali Meehan?
Welliver: "Well this fight is
everything career-wise. If I lose,
then I'll probably retire. Like I
said, it took me two years to
recover from the Bostice loss, and
that was so much work. I am young
and I can still become a cop and
have a full career. I feel that this
fight in winnable, very winnable. I
might just come out and jump on
Meehan like Rahman did. Keep the
pace fast and he'll tire out and I
can take a points victory. So this
fight is do or die for me."
FNN: That was a little
somber; it seems you were ready to
announce your retirement. So what
will a victory here do for your
career?
Welliver: "Well of course it
would put it into a level that I
knew I could achieve with the right
management and career plan. I have
an offer for three years of stable
pay, but I don't want to screw the
guy out of any money. So if I beat
Meehan, then I am worth the money he
is willing to pay me and I'll be
happy to take it. It would also get
me ranked and get me more
high-profile fights. Beating a
former world title challenger in his
backyard would do a lot for my
career."
FNN: Even though you
basically covered it, what would a
loss do for your career, and is a
move to cruiserweight a part of
that?
Welliver: "Like I said, it
would basically be over. I mean
something really good would have to
be on the horizon to keep me going.
As for the move down to
cruiserweight, I know you would love
to see that, but I just physically
can't do it. I'm 6'2" and have
naturally been big my entire career.
So I need to be affective in the
heavyweight division, or there is no
boxing for me."
FNN: Chauncy your 23, why
talk of retirement now? Why not slow
down, train a little harder and
develop some more defensive skills
and power?
Welliver: "That is what I am
working on all the time, and am
hoping that Thell Torrence is able
to accomplish that for me. I have 37
fights Troy, I know that is a lot
for someone that is my age, but I
don't think I should slow down until
I am in the top ten. I'm also not
going to fool myself, I know I have
some shortcomings, but I have balls.
All of us Northwestern fighters have
balls. You saw what Steve Forbes and
Walter Wright did on "The
Contender", man all of us love to
fight. Even though I have balls,
that doesn't cover up some of my
weaknesses like I throw as many
punches as a flyweight, but
unfortunately I hit like one too. So
if I don't get some big wins soon,
I'll move one. I'm young and I have
all my faculties and I can start a
new career."
FNN: On some websites, much
has been made of you and J.D.
Chapman fighting. What is the reason
of your rivalry?
Welliver: "Well I have never
met J.D. You know we would probably
be friends if we knew each other,
but I have known Shannon Briggs for
a while and Stacy Goodson for about
as long. Shannon trains with J.D.
and Stacy discovered him. I have
always wanted to fight J.D., but I
haven't been given a real
opportunity."
FNN: (interrupting like I do)
Didn't you pull out of a fight
recently with Chapman, what kind of
opportunity would you call that?
Welliver: "I know I pulled
out of a fight, but it was too close
to another date I was supposed to
fight. We had a set date, and then
J.D.'s people moved it back thus
interfering with my other fight, and
the other fight was paying me more,
so I bailed on the J.D. fight. Sad
thing is neither fight happened, but
I am fighting Kali Meehan now, and
that is a much bigger fight for my
career than J.D. is. I would like to
be the first to beat Chapman, but it
isn't going to happen right away."
FNN: Okay it's time for more
typical interview talk. Why should
fans get excited about Chauncy
Welliver?
Welliver: "Well Troy I am the
everyday guy who punches people for
a living. When they see me in the
ring, they can replace the thought
of me with themselves and they root
for the underdog. I always start the
action and have no problem trading
blows. Like I said, I have balls."
FNN: Very good, anything else
you would like to say in closing to
your fans or anyone reading?
Welliver: "Yes, of course
expect a great performance from me
against Meehan and look for the
"Dorky Fat Guy" to stir things up in
the division. I would like to thank
everyone who continues to support
me, and thank you FightNightNews for
talking to me and God bless."
Chauncy indeed has a tough
bout in front of him. Meehan would
like to get back into the world
spotlight, and Welliver would help
him along that journey. For
everything we can say about the kid,
he is ready and willing to fight and
that is a rare trait in modern
heavyweights. Welliver might be a
long-shot, but his success is
possible and it all depends on his
approach and conditioning to his
bouts. Welliver isn't strong enough
physically to keep true heavyweights
at bay, but he is strong enough
mentally to keep critics silent.
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