Joshua Franco & Andrew Moloney go head-to-head ahead of this Saturday

Joshua Franco vs. Andrew Moloney 3

Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA 14/8/21

Joshua Franco and Andrew Moloney once again got acquainted with each other as they squared off at their press conference ahead of their world title showdown this weekend.

The Top Rank event takes place at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Saturday, and will be broadcast live on ESPN+.

Franco (17-1-2, 8 KOs) defends his WBA super-flyweight title against Moloney (21-1, 14 KOs), with the duo meeting for the third time, after Franco came out on top in the first meeting, while the second fight ended in a no decision after there was ruled to be an accidental headbutt.

Elsewhere on the card, unbeaten Arnold Barboza (25-0, 10 KOs) meets Antonio Moran (26-4-1, 19 KOs), and all four fighters exchanged words as they met at the final press conference on Thursday.

Franco said: “I feel like I need to prove something. I came here to make a statement and I plan on doing that on Saturday. He’s a crybaby. We only went two rounds last time, and that doesn’t show much, but the fight was going the same way as the first fight.

“In this fight we’ll take care of business. Defending this title means everything to me. I’ve prepared myself the best way in the gym, and winning this fight and making the statement I want to make opens up bigger doors for me. My camp went very well, and I’m ready to go.”

Moloney said: “They took that title away from me last time, and it has made me so determined. It gives me motivation for this fight. I’ve had that last result going over and over in my head for the last nine months. It’s pushed me to train harder and get more out of myself.

“I’ve improved a lot as a fighter and gone to a whole new level. That loss is the only loss on my record, and it lit a fire inside of me. Both of our fights have motivated me even more, and now I’m at my very best and ready to put on a great performance on Saturday.”

Barboza said: “He’s a tough fighter and has fought good opposition. The experience from the Saucedo fight was great. I could have boxed him the whole fight, but I wanted to prove that if someone wants to stand and bang that I can bang.

“If someone wants to box I can do that too. I respect my opponent, and I never look past them. I’ve had a great camp, and I’m really looking forward to Saturday.”

Moran said: “I have learnt more from my defeats than my victories. It helps me going forward and I am ready for this challenge.

“I feel stronger at this weight. I think at 135lbs I was struggling too much. Arnold is a great fighter, but we’ve been working on speed and counter punching and it will be a good night on Saturday.”

(Kristian von Sponneck)

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