BBN Exclusive - Gary looking to Rocket to top of the World by Martin Williams Mar 21st 2008

The Rocket Man is over the moon. Gary Lockett can finally fulfil his potential when he boxes undefeated middleweight king Kelly Pavlik at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City on June the 7th. The Cwmbran fighter spoke exclusively to BBN this week about his upcoming battle with the Youngstown power-puncher. “The deal is more or less signed,” says Gary. “My first reaction? I just wanted to pinch myself. If you'd told me a year ago that this would be happening I wouldn't have believed you. “My career had stalled because of various injuries and setbacks and I've not really fulfilled my potential, so this is my big chance.” The 31-year-old admits he has treaded water for several years, beating solid domestic and European opposition without ever really setting the world alight. He must have thought this day would never come? “Yes, to be honest. I'm not a big boxing fan, I'm not in love with the game, and that may sound ridiculous coming from a boxer but it's true,” he says. “This will be my first fight in America and I guess every boxer wants to fight there and appear at Madison Square Garden but it makes no difference to me where it takes place. I'll be on the same money and in with the same opponent - it will be the pinnacle of my career.” Pavlik is more than just a tough proposition. Big and strong, he's been hugely impressive of late, so how will Lockett cope with the 25-year-old? “I wouldn't have taken this fight if I didn't feel I could win,” says Lockett, whose record stands at 30-1, with 21 KOs. “Styles make fights. Pavlik beat Jermain Taylor, and Taylor is a much more talented fighter than he is. “Pavlik is awkward, he's tall, he's in the same mould as Tommy Hearns only not as quick, not as pretty and I don't think he punches as hard. “He is among the best pound-for-pound but he looks beatable, unlike Floyd Mayweather for example. “He's no Superman, he has plenty of flaws and we (Lockett and trainer Enzo Calzaghe) will put together an effective system to beat him. “Enzo has such a brilliant boxing brain, everything that comes out of his mouth makes perfect sense.” So without giving too much away, what will this ‘system' involve? “There's going to be plenty of angles, combinations, and I'll be staying low. For most of my career I've been quite upright. I need to work on staying lower and will look at that with Enzo in the gym. “I've got the power to hurt anyone, but so has Pavlik. I need to stay tight, stick to the right strategy and not be overawed. “If he hits me and I go down I need to get up and stick to my plan. I have to, I can't stray from it.” Lockett was due to fight this coming Saturday, but Pavlik's handlers want the Welshman fit, fresh and injury-free when they meet this summer. They don't want any slip-ups after what happened with original opponent John Duddy, who produced a widely criticised performance against Tunisia's Walid Smichet in February. “I was due to fight this weekend so I'm already very fit,” says Lockett. “I was still happy to go through with the fight because I'm not an overly cautious man and didn't see a problem. “But Pavlik's people didn't want the risk, especially after the Duddy debacle. He boxed a journeyman, looked terrible and was cut. Now I'm in, now it's my chance and I'm going to take it.” No fight this weekend means that come June, it will be six months since he last stepped in the ring. That was the two-round TKO of the unheralded Kai Kauramaki. Will that hamper his preparation? And what about Enzo Calzaghe's busy schedule? With Enzo Macarinelli having just fought and Joe Calzaghe and Gavin Rees facing stern opposition in the coming weeks, won't Lockett be left in the background? “Now I'm not fighting I'll tick over in the gym for four weeks then go at it hammer and tongs,” says Gary. “The way it works is that whoever is fighting next gets preferential treatment. There are no primadonas in our gym. Enzo (Macarinelli) fought most recently and I did some sparring with him, we all help each other out. I think he'll probably be helping me with my sparring as he's tall like Pavlik, but he punches harder so he'll have to go easy! “I fight seven weeks after Joe so I will get seven weeks of preferential treatment. I don't think there'll be any need for sparring partners from elsewhere as we have Enzo and Nathan Cleverly (unbeaten light-heavyweight) to help with this fight.” Boxing fans wish Gary well. Many are surprised he's been given such an opportunity but few begrudge him a shot at the big time. Website forums are divided as to who will win. Most give Lockett a puncher's chance, some believe he has no chance at all. “First of all, I'd like to thank all of the fans on the boxing forums for all of their support,” he says. “And to the knockers. Well, just keep slagging me off, it's fantastic! It spurs me on. “I do wonder why they do it though. There's nothing wrong with constructive criticism, I'm all for it, but some people just go on these sites to slag boxers off. Why bother being so nasty? “I'm a family man, I'm not a big head or arrogant. I'm a working class lad who tries his best so I find a lot of the stick quite strange. You wonder why some people are so mean. It's like they have nothing better to do. “I can promise the fans I will do my very best against Kelly Pavlik. I look at this guy and of course he's good, but he's not invincible. “And I am a good boxer, I've a good amateur pedigree and you don't win medals unless you're well-schooled and have talent. “In terms of the level at which we've fought, he's streets ahead of me, but I'm going to go over there and give it a good go. I'm going to give it my best shot and if I lose I'll have lost to the best - I'll have given it everything I have. “As I've mentioned, I'm not a huge boxing fan, which is unusual, but I like to think I'm an intelligent fighter, and an intelligent guy I hope, as well as being a realist. “I'm not planning on losing to Kelly Pavlik. I'm going there to win and believe I will. But if I was to lose then it wouldn't be over. There is less pressure fighting on this stage than there is fighting domestically. If I was losing at that level then where would I go? “I'm keeping my feet on the ground because this is a longshot, I am the underdog. I've got a good chance against anybody out there, especially with my power, and I plan to do my talking in the ring.”

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