Exciting Canadian slugger David Lemieux's first fight outside of his home country will be a big one when he sets for his United States invasion.
Lemieux (32-2, 30 KOs), once a bright middleweight prospect, has successfully rebuilt himself from a pair of shocking 2011 defeats with seven straight victories. He'll enter likely his toughest test to date Saturday when he headlines the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, against Gabriel Rosado (HBO, 10 p.m. ET/PT).
Known for his power and aggressive style, Lemieux appears headed toward big things should he get past the savvy and tough Rosado (21-8, 13 KOs). Despite a record of 0-3 with one no contest in his last four fights, Rosado has looked tough against the likes of Gennady Golovkin, J'Leon Love and Peter Quillin.
Lemieux, 25, caught up with ESPN.com last week to talk about Rosado, the middleweight division and much more.
How have you been able to build such a strong following and connection with your fans in Montreal?
I always bring my maximum to the city and put on a great show. They love power punchers, and they love knockouts. I hold the Canadian record for most consecutive knockouts. Slowly they started to like my style of fighting, and now it's catching on worldwide. Hopefully on [Saturday] the Americans will find the same feeling about me as my fans in Montreal have for me.
Were there any fighters coming up that you emulated your style after?
Not really. I was never really a big boxing fan or ever really watched a lot of fights. But I really like the old-school fighters like Sugar Ray Robinson and Joe Louis and those throwback kinds of fighters. But I never really had somebody where I could say I followed their style. The way I fight is the way I have fought since the beginning. I was always an aggressive fighter coming forward and a heavy hitter who likes to get the job done.
You've mentioned in the past about the turmoil within your camp leading up to your 2011 loss to Marco Antonio Rubio. Can you expand on that?
I don't want to go too much into detail. It might embarrass a few people. But there was a lot of mixing up and changes being done for the Rubio camp. I was with my old trainer Russ Anber. But back then I was always training with Cuban [assistant] trainer Pedro Diaz down in Miami and getting all kinds of sparring done with Cuban fighters. But before the Rubio fight, Russ wanted me to get the camp done with him in Montreal, so we just changed everything and all of the tactics. And that was it. There was a whole bunch of changes, and we didn't really prepare for a 12-round fight against Rubio. It was more like a lot of everybody depending upon my power punching to get Rubio out of there inside of four rounds. There was a lot of controversial things, but all of that is in the past. We have changed everything since, and my whole team, my nutrition, my trainers and my preparation. There's no more space for mistakes. The Rubio fight kind of breaks a fighter or gets him to a different level, and for me, it has taken me to a different level. Like a champion, I got off my ass and went on to greatness, and here I am headlining on HBO.
Rosado has proven to be a tough opponent for many top middleweights, yet he hasn't been able to score a big victory. What do you believe has held him back?
I'm not in Rosado's shoes, and I don't like to judge because I know how it is behind the scenes. Whatever Rosado had against these fighters, I respect him because he's tough, but I don't have anything to say about him. That's his problem and his thing. When he fights me, it's going to be a whole new day and a new kind of difficulties. I'm nobody to judge him because we all have our past and a different approach.
Most people assume there will be fireworks in this bout considering your fighting styles. But do you think there's potential for this to turn into a tactical fight?
Oh no, I'm going to force action, and I'm going to force a battle. The fans are going to get what they want, what they're hoping for and what they deserve -- an action-packed fight. I'm going to make sure of it. I don't come to be a boxer, I come to show that it's life or death in there. I'm an all or nothing guy, and I'm going in there for war. It's going to be a great fight. Nobody is going to be disappointed.
How important is this fight toward the possibility of you becoming a crossover star in America?
I guess you'll see on [Saturday] after the fight. I always say talk is cheap. You guys will see and judge for yourself whether you like it or don't like it. But I'm pretty sure I will give a positive outcome because of what I bring to the table. It's going to be a great fight, and I'm extremely confident. I'm more ready than I've ever been, and I hope the people in the U.S. are going to love my style of fighting. I'm sure they will. They love power punchers and aggressive guys who come to fight. There's no bulls--- and no garbage talk. It's straight to business.
What are your thoughts on the middleweight division as a whole?
It's a very busy division, and I'm very happy to be part of it. I always want to be part of the most action-packed and toughest division. I never make an easy route, so we have a lot of great fighters in this division, and I'm excited to start mingling in and fighting the fighters like Canelo [Alvarez], [Miguel] Cotto and all those guys. But first I have to get past Rosado, and then we'll look to the future.
If Cotto defends his middleweight title against Alvarez this spring, who would you favor to win?
I think a well-prepared Canelo could overcome Cotto, who is a strong fighter, but I believe Canelo is the younger and hungrier fighter. If I have to put my money, I would go for Canelo.
Do you believe Gennady Golovkin is worthy of all the hype surrounding him?
I believe he deserves some hype, yes. He's a very good fighter, he's strong, he has a great amateur background -- but everyone can be beaten. There's always someone better than you and worse than you. I'm not afraid of nobody. If I have to fight Golovkin or whoever, I'm going to prepare to fight them and beat them. But he is a good fighter, and I give him his credit.
Do you still make middleweight comfortably?
[He laughs.] I haven't made middleweight comfortably since I was a middleweight. Making weight has always been a difficult part, but the easier you start with your diet -- and now I have a nutritionist who prepares my meals in advance -- it's much easier now. But it's never easy to make weight. I always say making weight is the hardest part of boxing.
Is it more important for you to gain the critical respect by winning titles and climbing the rankings or to become a star?
There's no difference for me. The only difference is overcoming each challenge and getting that belt and putting all the right moves in the right direction: Becoming a world champion, fighting the best fighters and winning against those fighters. But titles don't mean much to me. I just want to beat the best so I can be the best.