By Rick Reeno

When a fighter comes along with a blueprint of boxing skills, heart and power, it makes for a deadly combination. Such is the case for rising heavyweight Calvin Brock. The fighter known as the “Boxing Banker” is quickly getting recognition as one of best heavyweights in the division. As an amateur, Calvin Brock compiled a record of 147-38. Brock was a member of the 2000 U.S. Olympic Team, but was defeated in the opening round by Paolo Vidoz. Vidoz would go on to defeat heavyweight contender Samuel Peter in the next round.

As a professional, Brock has put together an undefeated record of 26-0 with 21 of those wins coming by knockout. On April 23, Brock faced the toughest test of his career as he met the always-dangerous Jameel McCline before a live pay per view audience. McCline outweighed Brock by 47 pounds, but that did not discourage Brock from taking the fight to McCline. In the eight round, Brock showed his heart and will by surviving his first ever knockdown as a professional by attacked McCline with power punches from every angle imaginable. Brock’s assault was so strong after the knockdown that most observers saw him steal what would have been a 10-8 round from McCline. Brock went on to win a ten round unanimous decision.

Brock was the leading candidate to face WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko in November, at one point the media was reporting the fight was a done deal. The WBC’s board of governors ruled that Klitschko would be stripped if he faced Brock and that he had to face Hasim Rahman next.

BoxingScene sat down with Calvin Brock to discuss his career, his take on some upcoming heavyweight fights and his future ambitions in the heavyweight division.

BoxingScene.com: You are coming off a big unanimous decision win over Jameel McCline, when would you like to come back to the ring?

Calvin Brock: Hopefully at the end of October in my hometown. It will off television. The thing is, ESPN boxing programs go off in September for the rest of the year and HBO is not really doing any new dates until March of next year. We are looking to land on another pay per view, then get on HBO. I want to get on television at least four more times and then go into a title shot. I want to be built towards a title. I want people to know that I'm the heavyweight champ of the world.

I don’t want to own a title without getting my name out there, without have the drawing power or without having the negotiating power. It makes no sense to have a title and all you have is the title. You then have to sit back and take whatever money people throw at you without having any say. I want to be in the same position as Riddick Bowe, Lennox Lewis, (Evander) Holyfield and (Mike) Tyson. I want to be in their position making the kind of money where the world championship means something.

BoxingScene.com: You came in unusually light for your bout with Jameel McCline, was that because you wanted to box more?

Calvin Brock: No, my weight just dropped at the last minute like that. I thought I was too light. I think 222 is my best weight, 218 is bit too light. It was a long, hard extensive training camp and I think my weight just dropped down like that.

BoxingScene.com: How close were you to getting the fight with Vitali Klitschko?

Calvin Brock: It was so close that it came into Don King's hands. The WBC board of governors voted on whether or not the bout should take place and they put it in Don King's hands. It came down to whether or not Don King would allow it. Regardless, the winner would of had to fight Hasim Rahman with 55-45 split.

If he didn’t let the bout take place, the split would have been what it is now, 65-35. I don’t know why King didn’t let it happen, it wouldn’t have hurt him. Maybe he didn’t want Vitali to take a fight before Rahman. I don’t know why the WBC would let the final decision get made by Don King because that's who it got left to.

BoxingScene.com: What do think will happen in the Vitali Klitschko-Hasim Rahman bout?

Calvin Brock: I think Vitali Klitschko will knock out Rahman in the first two or three rounds. Look at that fight with Monte Barrett. I don’t like to say anything bad about anybody, but Hasim Rahman to me is a class E heavyweight. Maybe you could throw him in class B, but he is definitely no class A. I say he is a class B minus heavyweight. I don’t see him lasting past two or three rounds with Klitschko. I think he is going to be eating up right hands and uppercuts that Klitschko is going to use and Vitali will knock him out.

BoxingScene.com: Another important fight in the division is coming up in a few weeks between Samuel Peter and Wladimir Klitschko. Some call it the most significant heavyweight fight since Lennox Lewis retired.

Calvin Brock: I think this is more of a make or break fight for Wladamir Klitschko than Samuel Peter. Peter is only 24 years old. If Wladimir wins, everyone will say that he is back and that he was always good. Klitschko is a very dangerous puncher, he has fast hands, good skills, but he doesn’t have a great chin. He can be broken down, he can be taken out of his game so there are a lot of questions surrounding him. As well, the same can be said about Samuel. He is coming up, very young, coming up almost like Tyson did. He's a good friend of mine, I think Samuel can improve on his defense and he can't afford to take the heavy punches that Wladimir can throw either. I think someone is going to get knocked out. I hope that it's Wladimir and not Samuel. I would really like to see Samuel win this boxing match. I think Samuel will knock out Wladimir and probably early.

I cannot see this boxing match going the distance. Wladimir can knock you out late as well as early. Samuel normally knocks people out early, within the first five rounds. What made Samuel such a great attraction in the division is the quick knockouts. He has been knocking these guys out early and people are waiting to see what he can do at the end, if he can do it in the late rounds. Samuel is young and still developing so there is a lot to see about him. There is no question that Samuel Peter will knock you out if he hits you. I don't think anyone can get in the ring and take his punches and not get knocked out. He punches hard enough to knock out any man, the same thing can be said about Wladimir and his brother Vitali. They can knock out any man in the world.

Some heavyweights can hit you with a lucky punch that you don't see and knock you out. Other heavyweights can hit you and knock you out even when you see the punch coming. Peter and the Klitschko brothers his hard enough that you can get really hurt even if you see the punches coming. When you get in the ring with guys like that, you have to roll with the punches so they slide off your face, get out of the way and have excellent defense. You need excellent defense like Pernell Whitaker, Roy Jones and Floyd Mayweather in order to fight guys like this.

BoxingScene.com: The main question surrounding Peter is his chin. A heavy hitter has never tested the chin of Peter and Peter has yet to face any fighter who comes close to Wladimir Klitschko in punching power.

Calvin Brock: You know something, your right. That's something that I don’t even think Samuel Peter will be able to answer unless he gets himself in a situation. I don’t know that side of him as far as knowing what kind of guts, what kind of heart or chin he does have.

I know that Samuel will become a world champion and I will become a world champion.

BoxingScene.com: You said that you and Samuel Peter are good friends. How well do you know the guy?

Calvin Brock: I've known Samuel since he was right across the street from the Olympic Village. He used to be right near the same street as me during the 2000 Olympics. We both lost to Paolo Vidoz. He became my friend, I wished him well in his match with Paolo Vidoz. He said he would do his best, but he lost. He came back and started talking to me and gave me his telephone number and a card over in Africa to help him come to the United States and turn pro. I lost his number, but then I ended up training with Pops Anderson. I ran into Samuel Peter over at a gym in Las Vegas. Ivailo (Gotzev) was there picking Samuel up. I remembered Ivailo from the 2000 Olympics, he was there with Vassily Jirov, and the two of them were scouting.

I spoke with Samuel, he said I had very good spirit because I'm a Christian too. We ended up becoming good friends and training together. He ended up leaving Kenny Adams. Kenny was heading over to Germany and Russia to help out guys like Ruslan Chagaev and Mohammad Abdullaev. He asked me if he could train with Pops because he needed a trainer. Pops was like a father figure to me and was there for me all the time. I invited him to come over and train with Pops. We left the gym we were at and went over to Nevada Partners gym, they no longer exist.

He started training under Pops and we became very good friends. We went to church together, we would go to eat together and go out together. I was a means for transportation, he didn’t even have a car at the time. I had a car down in Las Vegas because I was staying out there. He used to call me up everyday to go to the gym and I would pick him up and take him out. I was the only person that would hang out with him. Most of the guys at the gym would just go about their lives. I was there alone, he was there alone and we became good friends and ended up doing a lot together.

I ended up leaving when I signed with Main Events and I started training with Tommy Yankello. We always kept in touch and I kept in touch with Pops Anderson. Pops Anderson, his trainer who was my trainer first, was like second father figure to me. So much of a father figure that Pops was at my wedding.

People always ask me about fighting Samuel Peter, but the two of us have agreed not to fight each other. It's just too personal, especially with the Pops Anderson situation. Going into the ring against Pops Anderson and Samuel is too personal for me. It’s like Floyd Mayweather Sr. leading a fighter to the ring to fight his son.

Samuel used to tell me," It may not happen for us now, but it will happen for us and we will both make a lot of money. We will both be the champ." I used to say "your right Sam, we are both going to make it". He is a real strong faith, God fearing person. I know that from experience myself. He got here the same way I got here, faith and hard work.

He talks about glorifying God and what God has done for him. God has really blessed that guy. He came over from Africa by himself with no car or anything. He just had an apartment, I used to come over his house and he used to be outside so bored that he was making circles in the dirt. God used me to bless him and we blessed each other. He ended up getting married to a Nigerian from his own hometown, so God has really blessed his life and turned his life around. He doesn’t say all of that God stuff to sound good, he really believes in that.

BoxingScene.com: Peter is one of the most feared punchers in the division. You two have obviously sparred, how hard does he hit?

Calvin Brock: You know, we only sparred two times. Once in April or May of 2000 and once around late 2002, possibly in August of 2002. I was in the ring with him twice and it was a pretty even sparring match both times. The first I sparred with him I didn’t think he was that hard of a puncher, at the time was like 4-0, with 4 knockouts. That’s when he was weighing 230 pounds. He was light on his feet, sticking and moving.

The second time I sparred with him, he was around 240-243. I was only a few days away from a boxing match so we were sparring light. That's when I knew that this dude had some serious power because we were sparring light and he had still had a lot of power. I told him "Samuel you sure are using a lot of power and hitting strong". He was like "Calvin this is nothing, I'm going light". I had a boxing match a few days later and realized that he had some serious power. As soon as he added those ten pounds of muscle, once he got up to 240 plus, he developed some serious power. And he’s heavier than that now, now he weighs like 243-249.

BoxingScene.com: From your experience, do most casual boxing fans have a hard time figuring out who exactly is the heavyweight champion?
 
Calvin Brock: People always come up to me and ask me who the heavyweight champ of the world is. I tell them that Vitali Klitschko is considered the champ, but only has one belt. Even Vitali, some people never heard of him, don't know anything about him, saw him once or only remember him from the Lennox Lewis fight.

BoxingScene.com: And most casual boxing fans can’t tell one brother from the other.

Calvin Brock: Your right. Wladimir was a much bigger draw than Vitali. Vitali only came on the scene when he got in the ring with Lennox Lewis and that was because it was Lennox Lewis. Most people never saw Vitali's fight with Corrie Sanders, Danny Williams or Kirk Johnson. People didn’t see those fights and most of them have no idea who Kirk Johnson, Danny Williams or Corrie Sanders are. Everyone knew Lennox Lewis. Some people still ask me if Lennox Lewis is still champ or did he retire. When I mention Lamon Brewster or Chris Byrd, they never even heard of Brewster or Byrd. Some of them have heard of John Ruiz, only because he fought Evander Holyfield three times and the fight with Roy Jones Jr.

BoxingScene.com: A big part of the problem is the last time he was in action against Danny Williams, almost a year ago, it was on pay per view. The next we will see him in ring against Hasim Rahman in November, will also be on pay per view. Vitali has not come close to the amount of exposure that his brother Wladmir has had on television. Wladimir was built up.

Calvin Brock: Your right and that's how I want to be built up. I want to get on television and win a few more boxing fights so people know who I am when I go for the championship.

BoxingScene.com: A lot of the established stars are getting knocked off so there is a lot of urgency within the boxing community for new stars. Fighters like Felix Trinidad, Mike Tyson, Oscar De La Hoya, Kostya Tszyu and Evander Holyfield are pretty much done for the most part. If Roy Jones loses in October and Bernard Hopkins loses in December, you can count them in as well.

Calvin Brock: I thought Hopkins won that boxing match against Taylor. I scored the fight for Hopkins and everyone that I talked to thought Hopkins won the boxing match. Jermain was hanging on at the end of the fight. I scored it for Hopkins by two rounds. Jermain thought he lost that boxing match. Every fighter knows when he lost a match. Jermain could feel himself getting hit, Bernard didn’t really get much in the entire fight. Bernard countered Jermain a lot, a lot of lefthooks, right hands and jabs. Not often, but a lot of them through the entire boxing match. Bernard wasn’t getting hit.

BoxingScene.com: Most feel that Taylor will do better the second time around.

Calvin Brock: He probably will, he will come more prepared, stronger. Hopkins is getting older, but at the same time, he might not. The second match will be even more interesting because Bernard knows that he has to come out faster because he knows that he cant let the early rounds get away. Unless Bernard just gets old. Everyone gets old and has to go one day.

BoxingScene.com: Taylor was quoted in the press, as saying that he took the best Hopkins had to offer for twelve rounds.

Calvin Brock: Hopkins took the best Taylor had to offer for the whole entire boxing match. Taylor didn’t even get any of Hopkins in the first four rounds. Hopkins didn’t even really start bringing anything on until the fifth round. Hopkins starting bringing it on more and more in the boxing match and Taylor couldn’t handle it, he was holding on at the end of the fight. Let's see if Taylor can handle what Bernard has to bring from the first round of the boxing match until the end of the fight. Let's see if Taylor can take what Bernard brings sooner than when he started in the first fight. I don’t think Taylor is going to come out with anything different. Hopkins knows what to expect sooner and will get started sooner. That can make all the difference in the world.

Don’t get me wrong. Taylor is my Olympic teammate, I love him a lot. I'm glad his dream came true and I always feel like justice should prevail because everybody works hard. But I feel that when two men get in the ring, they should be judged be their performance and I thought Bernard performed where he should of been the winner. It went Jermain's way and I congratulate him and I’m happy for him.

BoxingScene.com: Who would you like to fight, as far an established name in the division?

Calvin Brock: I'm going to fight in my hometown, then get a television date. Whoever God has for me, I will take it. I called out Hasim Rahman when I fought in May of last year on NBC. I offered to fight him on NBC, it wasn’t enough money for him to fight on NBC. He thinks he's an HBO six to seven figure fighter. I'll fight John Ruiz. I was going to fight Vitali and beat him. I'll fight anybody in the world.

BoxingScene.com: Do you think that most of the heavyweights look at you as too much risk with too little reward? They feel that you don’t have the dollars to bring to the table in order get them to put themselves at risk.

Calvin Brock: If they have any business sense they would think that. Some boxers have no business sense, they don’t think about things in the way you just said. That’s the way I think. That's the truth as it stands right now, I'm way too much risk than what I would give to them in reward because I haven’t been showcased on television a lot.

I'm able to walk around everywhere I go and be unknown. The only place I go where people know who I am is when I go to a boxing match, but those are boxing fans and they are supposed to know. Outside of the boxing arena, people don’t know who I am.

BoxingScene.com: I wouldn’t feel too bad. Outside of the boxing arena, most people wouldn’t recognize the fighters who hold some of the heavyweight titles.

Calvin Brock: You’re right. Like Chris Byrd or Lamon Brewster. That's the truth. I’m more risk than reward, but I'm trying to change that. I'm trying change the reward factor and I have to take the risk in order to get that.

BoxingScene.com: In closing, what would you like to say to the people reading this interview.

Calvin Brock: Calvin Brock is the real heavyweight champion of the world. Just keep looking out for me. Watch me fight and you will see for yourself that I'm the real heavyweight champion.