Did Mikey Duck Easter Jr
Lightweight world champion Robert Easter Jr is set to fight former super featherweight champ Javier Fortuna later this month. It will be on the undercard of the Errol Spence Jr Vs Lamont Peterson card on Showtime, January 20th.
Easter is coming off of a tough bout with Denis Shafikov over the summer in which he won by unanimous decision. Although he’s not underestimating Fortuna, he said he doesn’t think the former 126lber stands much chance here against his size and length.
The Toledo native is glad to be getting back in the ring but Fortuna is not the guy he was looking forward to fighting. Easter had been in negotiations with WBC lightweight champion Mikey Garcia and was under the impression that the fight was going to happen but for some reason Garcia pulled out.
During a recent conference call for the upcoming fight Easter was asked about Garcia’s remarks earlier this week in which Garcia said it made more financial sense to fight Sergey Lipinets.
“That’s just a lame excuse to not fight,” Easter said. “I don’t produce enough fans. What does Lipinets, no disrespect to him, but what … come on now. Everybody knows that is not true. I have fans all over. My fan base is big. Like I said, man, it don’t matter if we fought in a room with nobody. It shouldn’t even matter. If the money’s good and the contract’s good, then we should fight. I wouldn’t care about fighting in front of nobody, because I know what I’m gonna do.”
“If I was that much an easy fight, the fight would’ve been made off the offer they gave Mikey,” Easters said. “It would’ve been made. It just didn’t make sense, all these excuses. I don’t make no excuses. I’m coming to fight and they know that.”
“I wanted the fight,” Easter said. “It was serious on my side. I don’t care where, how much, none of that. I wanted the fight. I heard, you know, at first it was I didn’t produce enough fans or the fight didn’t make sense, which that didn’t make sense, and some other excuses the guy came up with. But like I said, I was ready to fight whenever, whatever or how much. It didn’t even matter.”
Easter still hopes to make the fight later this year but honestly feels Garcia isn’t interested in a fight against him because of his physical advantages.
By: Chris Henderson
