Champion Genaro Hernandez
LONG INTERVIEW WITH GENARO TELLS IT LIKE IT IS!
San Francisco, CA– Genaro Hernandez is an ex-world champion who ran from nobody as a boxer. His battle with Bone Cancer has been detailed here at RingTalk.com for some time now. To say that Genaro is the nicest, most approachable world champ to fans I ever met, that would indeed be an understatement. No disrespect to anyone else, but Genaro and HBO’s judge Harold Lederman, these are the two best boxing ambassadors the sport has. That being said, this interview, part of the “Ring Talk Worldwide” radio and TV show was done by host Pedro Fernandez and transcribed by Edwin “Ace” Ayala.
GENARO PRAISES DONAIRE, KNOCKS SAUL ALVAREZ
Ring Talk (RT) – Genaro, how are you man?
Genaro Hernandez (GH) – I’m doing good Pedro, I’d like to say hi to all your listeners.
RT– How’s life treating you?
GH– Not bad waking up to a good day outside, always good to wake up.
RT– So how is the Cancer thing going, what’s going on with that?
GH – I just got back from Texas Wednesday night with good news for the first time after three trips, looks like the cancer has been stalled, I believe I had about 12 cells. But when I got back home, my Doctor told me I had only two or three floating around in there.
RT– That’s great news. You’re one of the greatest guys in the entire world, and I’m not the only one that thinks like that. Everybody who has met you, I mean everybody thinks that you’re an ambassador of good will and a class act. If you have some enemies, I’m looking for them.
GH – I appreciate all the support the people have given me, especially the press, Top Rank, my ex-promoter Mr. Honda from Japan, they have been very supportive, you as well have been on the scene trying to figure out what’s going on with me. With people like you being my friends who needs enemies, I need friends. With all due respect, I respect you and everyone. I’m the type of guy who likes to be friendly to everyone.
RT– Genaro Hernandez our guest here folks, you are looking at highlights of some of Genaro’s great fights on Justin.tv/ringtalkworldwide. You mentioned promoter in Japan, Mr. Honda, did you enjoy going over there? I’ve been to Japan twice and had a great time.
GH– You know I’ve always enjoyed going to other countries and Japan has been one. Very respectful, you can leave your purse twenty or thirty feet away and nobody will touch it and they treat you very well.
RT– That one punch knockout with a left to the body, I don’t know who Genaro just beat on Justin.tv/ringtalkworldwide, who was that, I mean BOOM!
GH– It was Raul Perez, a two time world champion at the time I think.
RT– Man was that a punch. Speaking of punches heard around the world, Nonito Donaire knocking out Fernando Montiel last week, talk to me about that.
GH– Nonito’s my boy, I love the guy. He’s very humble and treats you with respect when he talks to you. He doesn’t get big headed, very humble guy and I was very proud and happy he won that fight.
RT– You know he’s gotta be considered one of the better fighters on the ‘pound for pound’ list today, he’s been doing this a long time. He got beat in his third or fourth fight; people don’t realize this but the great Henry Armstrong, one of the greatest fighters of all time, lost three of his first four professional fights so there is no sin in that. Nonito lost to an opponent who outweighed him by eight pounds on a couple of days notice, so straight up right now it’s kind of tough to pick too many fighters above him on the mythical ‘pound for pound’ list, Genaro.
GH– You know Pedro I’ve always told him and anyone else, with all due respect, I’ve always believed that Nonito Donaire has a better fighting style than Manny Pacquiao, you know Manny’s the greatest fighter right now, the best ‘pound for pound’ supposedly in some people minds, but I think Nonito is better technically wise, he’s very smart, has good power, he’s quick as well. He just doesn’t go up in weight to fight other champs, but he doesn’t need to do that, just continue doing what he’s doing. I consider him one of the best in boxing.
RT– What he wants to do is clean up 118 lbs. In other words he said Manny Pacquiao has done a lot of things in moving from 107 to 147, but Pacman, he’s never been undisputed champ at any weight class. There’s always been some other champ, some he’s sidestepped politically, promoter wise, or whatever the reason may be, but he was never undisputed champ of any division. Nonito Donaire, and I know he’s listening with his lovely wife in San Leandro, California across the bay from our studio. They think that they’re on top of things and want to become undisputed world bantamweight champion. I think that’s a great goal to go and wipe out the entire 118 pound weight class.
GH– Just by what he has done and becoming world champion in three divisions, he’s already the best in my point of view. The way he carries himself Nonito’s a champ in and out the ring. I’m happy to hear he’s willing to fight every champion in that weight division and then move up. Like you said Manny fights one champion and moves up. You know what, it’s how everybody is being promoted right now, and yet I think Nonito is being promoted in a correct way.
RT– What do you think of Mexican sensation Saul Alvarez?
GH– Saul Alvarez, with all due respect, I think he’s a decent fighter. I’m not going to say he will be one of the greatest or the next great Mexican world champion out there. I saw when he fought Jose Cotto and was out on his feet against Jose Cotto, and Cotto didn’t use his intelligence and get him out of there.
RT– We’re talking with Genaro Hernandez folks, “El Chicanito” who is recovering from cancer as we speak. He had great news from Houston, TX as far as his cancer is concerned from medical experts and we are ecstatic about that. Genaro what’s your day like, what do you do during the day? What’s on tap for today?
GH– Unfortunately for me, I don’t have a life because of this. I loved to play soccer two or three times a week but due to the cancer I don’t produce saliva so I can’t play sports. It’s frustrating when in a minute or two in my body is gasping for air and I have no energy. But I can sit and watch a soccer game or take my boys to the movies on Saturday’s and spend my time with my wife and kids during the day.
RT– Let’s go back to Saul Alvarez for a while, our guest is Genaro “El Chicanito” Hernandez, a former two-time champion and the class act that he is, I’m honored as always to have him on “Ring Talk Worldwide.” Saul Alvarez faces Matthew Hatton, Ricky Hatton’s brother. Now Matthew isn’t that good of a fighter. That being said, is this a setup fight to make Alvarez look good or what?
GH– Whenever you fight a champion from another country and fighting styles are a little more I don’t want to say dirty, but they like hit behind the head a lot in Europe and grab and push and all that, we don’t have that problem here in the states, especially here in California. Hatton will give Alvarez somer trouble, but like you said I think it’s a fight that they made because they want to make Saul a champion.
RT– Saul Alvarez taking on Matthew Hatton on March 5 on HBO. On the March 12, Sergio Martinez takes on the unbeaten Ukranian Serhiy Dzinziruk, do you think Paul Williams has woken up from the knockout to Sergio Martinez yet, or is the referee still counting.
GH– I think in the back of his mind he’s still counting and having flashbacks, with all due respect he did get caught by a good shot, I mean it was lights out. It was one of those surprising shots, I mean it surprised me. I sat down thinking I was going to see another great fight like the first one, but it never happened. It was over in two rounds and I was like, what the hell happened.
RT– Talking about Sergio Martinez knocking out Paul Williams. Do you think Paul can recover from such a devastating knockout like that? I mean I haven’t seen a fighter comeback from a KO like that, have you?
GH– It depends on how tough he is mentally wise, if you are honest with yourself you can come back. When I lost to Oscar De La Hoya, that was a very disappointing loss for me and I had to prove to myself the only reason he beat me was because I went into the fight injured (broken nose). But you gotta get in there and prove to the people that you are a world champion, you are what you are. Not giving up is what happened to me, I had to get myself that high if I wanted to be world champion again.
RT– Genaro Hernandez our guest folks, you mentioned Oscar De La Hoya, is he good for boxing as a promoter. He said he was going to change the landscape of boxing in a better way, has he?
GH– Have you seen that, cause I haven’t.
RT– I haven’t either.
GH– With all due respect, when Marco Antonio Barrera fought Rocky Juarez at the Staples Center, I thought that Rocky Juarez had the win by a very slim margin. I thought he had won but they gave him a draw instead I think. Then they came back after with some point they supposedly missed or didn’t add and gave the win to Marco Antonio Barrera. OK, then if Oscar said he was going to change the sport of boxing, how come he didn’t get in the ring that night and tell the people “You know what with all due respect my fighter Marco Antonio Barrera whom I promote, he lost the fight. From my point of view, I think Rocky Juarez won the fight or it was a draw.” How come he didn’t do that? You know people respect Oscar, they cheer for him, write everything about him, but they don’t see what’s going on. He became a promoter and promotes these fights, people don’t want to see an undefeated fighter who’s 20-0 fight a guy with thirteen wins and twenty something losses. That ain’t good for the sport of boxing.
RT– You got a good point there. Talking to Genaro Hernandez folks, recovering from cancer as we speak. I’m so happy to hear that he got good news from his doctors in Houston. But we want you to come back recovered fully. I really want you to knock this stuff out, I know it’s tough. I know it’s the most dangerous opponent you’ve had to face, but if anyone can beat it Genaro, you can!
GH– Thank you Pedro, you know like everything sports you can train for anything that’s gonna be coming up. If you’re fighting you can train in the gym, if in school you can study. But when it comes to fighting some type of illness we just got no way to protect ourselves or defend ourselves. They tell you to eat right to eat your vegetables and stuff like that, but it doesn’t matter what you eat if something is gonna hit you it’s gonna hit you no matter what. If that’s how it’s written and unfortunately that’s how it was written for me, I gotta deal with it but like I said with the support of the people in the sport and guys like you keeping people updated on me, there’s no more support or corner that I need to beat this thing!
RT– The great Genaro Hernandez folks, we’ll talk to you real soon champ.
GH– Well you know I’d like to thank you but most of all I want to thank God for giving me another day of life and God bless you guys.
RT– All right, say hello to your lovely wife
This interview is taken from the latest edition of “Ring Talk Worldwide,” heard & seen Thursday and Saturday’s on the Sports Byline USA Broadcast Network, you can see our previous shows and this one with Genaro at www.Justin.tv/RingTalkWorldwide