AIR DATE:
EPISODE: Episode 9
Name: Travon Lawson. Pro Boxing Record: 5-0-0 (Win-Loss-Draw) Nickname: Gutta. Current Streak: N/A. Age: 31 | Date of Birth: 1989.10.19.
Transcribed:
Hello boxing fans around the world welcome once again to another special episode of knuckle up featuring mike orr at four here on talk and fight and as promised, because we are men of our greatest integrity, we’re going to keep another promise.
We have a special guest lined up and when i say lined up, is he in the green room? Oh he’s there he’s up he’s there ready to go awesome, that’s fantastic news! So i’ll turn it over to you and i want to introduce our special guest to boxing nation.
All right knuckle up fans around the world.
Thanks for tuning in, like i told you, the time has come.
We are now getting to talk to mr trayvon boston.
5-0.
Three knockouts: you may remember this man from one of the most wonderful knockouts of last year, uh december 26, to be exact, so you know a late christmas present, but a good one uh his knockout of uh angel baronitis, uh yeah, put it put this man on The map um totally it made me uh, look out and try and search out for this guy to find him uh, wonderful, wonderful, guy, very uh, very down to earth great boxer, great fighter.
You know just just all around good guy, and we got him here for an interview today – can’t wait.
Graham, unfortunately, we’re gon na have to knock you out of the room here and uh and and bring in travon that you know don’t want to keep on waiting too long.
Trayvon welcome man welcome.
Thank you for having me yeah man for sure, thanks for taking another busy time, you know, i know you’re a busy man work, professional boxer, you know i know you’re doing this in your car today.
Just to you know, get on the show.
It’S great.
Thank you very much for taking the time out man much appreciated, um.
You know what, let’s, let’s get right into it man.
I want my fans to really know who you are um.
You know what let’s get right into it.
How did you? How did you begin boxing and what age did you start boxing out? Well, i started boxing it 26 years old.
Well, that’s that’s a little late into the game.
Right yeah! It was something like i was just graduating college um with a master’s and i needed something to like you know.
Take the take the stress off.
You know i was always a workout junkie and i was always like an athlete, so i stepped into the uh mma gym and where they do mma jiu jitsu um boxing uh muay thai and i just picked up the gloves and it was like this is home.
It just felt like home, natural, just natural natural talent, natural ability.
You just got that feeling.
Let me guess you fought a lot as a kid just like.
I did of course, of course, always fighting always fighting right on right.
Now, where did you grow up? Uh? We’Re like, where did you start your life off? Where did you grow up um? I was born in new york, but i was raised in tuscaloosa alabama um.
I moved to tuscaloosa when i was three with my mom and my grandmother so this and i was back and forth between um birmingham, alabama and tuscaloosa.
What’S what’s the boxing scene uh down like, what’s it like down there in the in alabama? Is it a big boxing scene? Is there or is it? Is it? Is it hard to find gyms in in alabama that uh, you know competing? The south is not really known as the boxing it’s boxing territory, uh boston was.
It has just taken off since uh deontay, wilder, tuscaloosa, uh and uh became heavyweight champion right.
Since you know honestly, since then, i’ve noticed that there are a lot of.
There are a lot of fighters that are coming out of the south there and you guys got you know you got a pretty thick talent, pool and um.
You know, like honestly, i’ve stumbled onto you.
I’Ve stumbled onto a couple of other guys and honestly man.
The talent pool, is thick there um.
Why did you get into boxing so late? Just well? It was just um, you know going through things in life being troubled uh.
I know, as certain people say, dealing with demons right, um, it’s just something where i can escape from the real world and just you know be myself i feel like.
I can express myself through boxing.
I can have my attitude through boxing, so so so a way for you to kind of just let all the stress out and you know, get and leave it in there.
You know take take all that stress away from you of the everyday life and just a way for you to vent it out and be yourself.
You know a lot of people out there do it.
I do it sometimes uh.
So so you started late in boxing: um did um, who motivated you to really get in the ring and actually start doing it like start competing as an amateur.
Well, i have friends from college that i play football with since i used to always fight on the football field.
They always told me, hey man, you should you should join boxing man, but i think you’ll be pretty good at it.
So that’s how it all started.
Maybe i should maybe i should do you remember.
Do you remember getting in the ring for your first uh amateur boat for my first amateur belt, dude uh? Yes, yes, yeah! You want to describe the experience.
What was it like? The first time you got in the ring, knowing that you had to stand across from this guy and bang him out.
Well, there was a lot of nerves involved um.
I think i had a huge adrenaline dump and um.
I think i won and the other the coach was like man, you, you you, you boss before something.
I said.
No, i’m not.
This is my first time but like this is my first match you’re like man, no man, this can’t be your first match man.
No! No, that’s how it all started.
That’S awesome.
I love it.
I love it um.
So how many? How many actual amateur boxing matches did you have um? I had 16, i was 12 and four 12 and four and then now you’ve been you’ve, been uh active as a pro since 2018.
Correct, yes, uh 2018.
I turned pro into may um 2019.
I don’t think i had a fight, not one fight.
I had five fights turned down in 2019 wow.
What uh, what what team? What team are you uh? Are you fighting for like what gym are you fighting out of and who is your coaching staff right now, my coaches uh jason jones.
I just fight out of uh game bread, boxing club in fort merchant alabama, okay, yeah, i’ve heard of them.
Actually, i’ve heard it yeah, um, brandon, glenn, awesome, so um for uh to go pro uh when you first went pro um who, who kind of pushed you into uh becoming a professional boxer? Well, it was always it was always in the back of my mind because of my age, like i used to um feel some type of way when i used to have like the amateur matches and they show your age and i’m like man.
All these guys are 20, 21, 22 and i’m up here 26.
.
I feel some type of way about that.
You know, but my coach man don’t feel don’t be down on yourself.
You know some of these people been boxing, since they were six seven years old.
You know they have a lot of experience under their belt and you just started so you should be.
You know grateful that you’re.
Definitely definitely you can’t teach natural talent which obviously you have, as you started later on in your career man and honestly, you’ve made you made strides and and a lot of leaps and bounds.
Since your first match i’ve watched to the match that you know you fought.
Last, i believe it was february um what um? What do you think your greatest match so far out of your five wins, which, which one do you find the best my greatest match, will probably be the one in l.
a against uh, andrew okay, so like it showed that i can fight through adversity.
You know i’m tough and i’m asking, and i have skill – definitely definitely you’re you’re.
One of these.
No nonsense like get them down.
You know head forward just drive and press the press to press the fight the whole time um when you’re, when you’re, when you’re training for a fight like that and you’re in your fight camp uh.
How long do you usually? How long does your fight cancel? Usually, last uh, six to eight weeks, we want that’s what we want.
That’S that would be uh what we want, but usually it’s like four weeks four weeks.
Sometimes we get four weeks notice.
You know, if we’re good, we might get a six week notice, but you’re just you’re, just hungry you’re, ready to take it on a week’s notice at this point.
So if you, if you were to get if you were to get a phone call today to step in the ring, how fast could you be ready to step in the ring if it’s a six round fight, you can give me three three to four weeks, but If it’s an eight round fight, you have to be a little bit longer: okay, um what uh, what what does a day of training? Look like um when you’re in fight camp like uh, you know start to finish: what time are you up? What time do you go to bed? What does a routine kind of look like okay? So i try to get up around 4 30 5 o’clock in the morning.
You know i do on my rental days.
I get a run in you know on other days.
I do some uh calisthenics push-ups uh, sit-ups um, and i get ready for work and i get off work.
I go straight to the gym and it’s like an hour away, so i usually don’t get home until about nine o’clock at night and i need it about six o’clock in the morning.
So it’s a very long day, so you’re tired at the end of the day, man, you’re, hustling and bustling for damn sure staying busy um.
What do you think separates you from everybody else in your weight class as an athlete um? My ambition, you know, uh my ambition and i think my work work ethic.
Definitely do you have a strong worth at work ethic.
Obviously you know juggling a full-time job and juggling a pro pro boxing career.
It must be tough um it you do you find it hard to handle that juggling both at the same time.
Yes, it is difficult, sometimes some days i have those moments where, like man, i need to quit my job, but you know i mean it’s been done before, so i’m not the only one who has done it is other people.
Who’Ve become champions world champions than this.
So you know i have no excuse if it’s been done before i can do it too, um.
Okay, when you’re done when you’re done with boxing and you’re ready to hang it all up.
What do you want to be remembered for? I just want to be remembered for someone who has never given up and show others that this role is possible, don’t give up on your dreams.
I want people to know that if this is your dream, go and get it.
Okay, yo! That’S that’s a great strong message.
Actually, man and you know what there’s a lot of people out there that are probably in the same boat that you are that that you know now that they’re gon na get to know you see who you’re about men honestly you’re you’re gon na probably become role Models for these people, because you’re working so hard hard man, that’s for sure, uh.
What do you have any short term goals like in the next uh? You know six months to a year.
Where do you see yourself doing what? What do you want to accomplish? Um? I just wanted to.
I just want to be the best person i can be.
You know every day i try to pray every day.
You know um and just try to be a better version of myself for real.
It’S like it’s my main goal to be better than i was yesterday: okay, um! So, do you look up to do you have any like um, idols or role models that you’ve looked up to that that that are professional boxers today that maybe one day you’d want to meet or maybe even get in the ring with and and and have a Couple of matches with um a lot of people, don’t like him because of the way you know he flats but like i don’t look at that because you know sweet, you have to sell yourself somehow, of course, i just look at his work ethic like hard work.
Dedication, like that’s all he’s about you know so and lomachenko i like lomachenko.
His word, i think he’s off the charts too, and what he has done in the sport of boxing is unrealistic.
Yeah yeah, he, yes, you’re you’re you’re 100.
Right with that man, uh loganchek, has done tons for this word of boxing and um yeah.
His work ethic is is very, very, very strong.
That’S for sure um.
Do you uh what has been your greatest challenge so far you faced in uh in boxing oh shoot.
We lost sound um hold on a sec, guys, sorry that you’re watching out there, we just lost sound technical difficulty, uh, unfortunately we’re gon na get that fixed, or we will get that fixed.
Fortunately, um.
We got our producers working on it right now, guys i’ll just continue rambling on, like i always do, because i’m pretty good at that um.
Hopefully we can uh get trayvon back in here with some sound uh guys.
Definitely you want to check this guy out.
Trayvon lawson uh go back check out his december fight december 26th.
It’S an excellent fight.
Man and you know when he talks about his perseverance and his work ethic.
Definitely you, you will definitely get to see that in this match man, he comes late into the late into the fight into the later rounds of that match and uh.
You know he comes up with a wonderful, wonderful knockout and a stoppage of uh angel baronetis uh.
What a great event that was, man and you know like he he’s he’s straight up like his name and pure gutta.
He got in there and you know he worked.
He grinded and you know he persevered.
Yes, we got him back.
I was just.
I was just mentioning to everybody about um how you, how you persevered and your work ethic really showed in your fight with uh british back in december um.
So so what do you believe has been the greatest challenge that you faced in boxing today? The greatest challenge that i faced in boxing um, probably always being overlooked like being overlooked, but i feel like that could be a good thing to curse because being overlooked, i’m always the underdog.
So i have to put in more effort.
You know i have to work harder than a lot of other people who wear things or just hand it to them.
So i feel like that is my biggest thing right.
Um.
Do you remember, do you remember your first pro debut like your pro debut fight? Do you remember that fight? I do remember.
Yes, um describe the feeling, after after completing that that that event, and and you know coming through with that victory and what uh, what kind of like relief or pressure did you have on yourself and how you felt at the end of it all.
Well, i know going into the fight.
The guy was pretty good um.
He was one to know um and he was probably 27 and old as an amateur from what i was told um, but we took the fight and we won, and it was just a big relief because you know i always do things for one moment: rest in Peace because, like that’s my biggest motivation, um being able to being able to you, know, make her happy um just her looking down on me and saying: i’m i’m glad that you are my son, because you’ve never given up at anything that you’ve done you’ve.
Never given up so your mother’s, your greatest influence right.
That’S that’s! That’S excellent man! I you know what my heart goes out to you, man, that’s awesome! It’S it’s a wicked thing! Man! You know my mom’s, a big influence in my life as well and um.
You know, we’ve got, we got to love our moms man, yes, and they definitely.
They definitely know how to push us to strive to be the best we can um in in boxing.
Do you want to be feared, or do you want to be loved? What do you want to be known for it doesn’t matter it’s going to be people who are going to fear you and it’s going to be people who are going to love you you know, fear is nothing, but i feel, like fear, is nothing, but someone being Afraid of you for real, you know so i mean i’d rather be loved, but at the end of the day, love can turn into hate.
So, okay um.
What do you believe um? Some of your weaknesses are: what are you doing to work on them when i’m working on my job, but i don’t feel like there’s a weakness, so i’m working on my uh jabs and my ankles? Okay? Okay, what’s what’s your favorite punch? What do you like to? What do you like to unleash? What’S: what’s, what’s the money maker right hand, left foot right hand left hook, i love it.
I love it.
It’S a good combo man.
You can never go wrong.
No, no! That’S def! That’S definitely the go to sleep combo.
If i’ve ever heard one of her shirt yeah, oh man, describe describe the feeling you get when you when you knock somebody out man, it’s like.
Do you get a sense of accomplishment when you’ve trained so hard? Yes, it’s a big relief.
It’S like a lot of electricity flows through your body and it’s like you can’t even like describe it for real, like it’s unexplainable for real.
How that feeling is like it’s unmatched, because all the hard work that you put in and boom do you do you find it? Do you think um the feeling would be different if, if, like you knocked him out too quick, and you worked really really hard for that fight like if you went through a serious camp and then you know you get in the ring and then you know the Bell rings and a minute later the fight’s over.
Would you would you be disappointed in how hard you worked, or would you just be happy that you knocked this guy out and we can move on to the next guy you don’t get paid for? No, you don’t get paid for overtime.
True true, oh [, __ ].
We froze guys, i’m sorry we’re having technical difficulties right now.
You know what it was a great answer.
It made it freeze, unfortunately, we’re going to get them back.
We’Ll do this again, we’ll continue! This wonderful interview with draymond lawson uh, we’ll just see what’s going on we’re gon na, have the producers working on it right now.
Stay stay tuned, guys stay with me.
We’Re gon na continue this great great interview.
It’S uh, it’s turning out to be wonderful.
I thoroughly enjoy it great answers, um producer, let us know, what’s going on i’ll, just keep rambling on perfect, so uh yeah guys my core four knuckle up.
I brought you what i said: trayvon lawson man.
Hopefully we can get him back, so we can finish off a couple questions that i want to ask before.
You know we end for the day and uh.
You know don’t forget to want to tune in for female fridays.
We’Ll have a doozy for you uh.
Next week we have uh, you know brian norman jr, coming in uh.
We also have miamo 2 coming up for an interview, uh we’re still trying to get a hold of patty donovan to bring him in for an interview and uh guys.
You know make sure you stay tuned to mikegore4.
It’S your boy always bringing you the young, the hungry, the undefeated.
You know what i like ben, bring me out.
Those bring me those comments.
Man, let’s talk about it, if you guys have any fighters, you want to see or want me to profile, make sure you drop some comments, man.
I always answer, i’m always reaching out to you guys.
I i enjoy.
I enjoy the camaraderie and the, and you know the back and forth man so guys make sure comments leave them.
You know jab that, like click subscribe, knock out those comments, man, that’s what i want, but unfortunately we’re still we’re still having the technical difficulties here.
So you guys get to look at my ugly mug for a few more minutes.
While we fix that and uh we’ll see, what’s uh we’ll see what’s happening here, uh, hopefully we can get him back.
Definitely he’s uh he’s got some fights in the works coming up.
I can’t wait to see what’s gon na be going on there uh.
I can’t wait to see this guy get in the ring.
Man, like i said, he’s got a lot of power in his hands.
Man he’s got great knockout combos.
You know his ability.
His ability in the ring is, is that of a true veteran right.
Now he uh.
He knows how to work hard.
He knows how to work through.
You know the pain and uh.
You know he’s a grinder man trayvon likes to grind it out and uh.
You know bang toe to toe and unfortunately we can’t talk to him right now because we’re having technical difficulties it sucks.
So you guys just get to look at this pretty ugly mug.
Well, i guess ugly, mug and uh.
You know, listen to me ramble on about tons and tons of stuff uh.
What else can we talk about uh yeah? Let’S talk about uh, the aj, fury and tyson sorry anthony joshua, tyson, fury, fight coming up, i’m looking forward to that thing.
Uh there has been the deal reached, uh stay tuned, oh, we got him back.
No did we get him back? Yes sounds like we got some sound going on here, guys thanks for staying tuned in while we work on this on this uh, wonderful, wonderful, uh, technical difficulty, that’s happened twice now! No! No! It’S not you! It’S not you! It’S! Okay! Don’T worry man i can.
I can ramble for days.
Don’T worry, we’re just gon na get it all fixed up plus i like hearing myself talk anyway and i’m pretty sure the fans out there who watch me daily love talking to hear me talk anyway, but yes guys, as you can see, we got sound, we’re just Working on our picture, we’ll get it going soon enough.
Well, as we work on the picture, guys um, i’m back guys.
Thank you for staying tuned.
Honestly, if you have any questions or comments, man, just you know, chat them out.
Let’S, let’s let’s hear them, i’m all game we’ll see what’s going on, apparently we got ta restart the browser difficulties here.
In the background, we will uh we’ll discuss uh, who knows what to discuss at this moment.
Um.
Let’S talk about the fight’s coming up this weekend.
Oh we’re coming back.
Are we back, i think we’re back well, unfortunately, we’re still having technical difficulties.
Guys thanks for staying tuned love, the support.
It’S your boy, michael rodford, i’ll knuckle up.
There we go.
We got him back, we got picture, i don’t know about sound, we’ll see producer how’s that working on uh on on your end.
There is everything uh.
Is everything going good or we’re having a sound, sound issue? Aren’T we if we uh, if we keep if we keep uh having these difficulties, i think we’ll have to invite trayvon back for another interview, definitely because i feel that he got cut short and he’s overlooked and we don’t want that to happen.
Man, the guy’s, a very talented youth man, he’s a great great great boxer, great fighter, strong heart.
You know, he’s he’s straight gunna, just like his name.
You know the guy’s got the work ethic of you know most most in this sport.
Really you got more work.
Ethic than me or you, because you know what we’re not doing, what he’s doing we’re sitting on the couch talking about him but he’s out there busting his butt.
Yes, we got him back.
Yes, trayvon.
We got you back brother excellent.
Can you hear me yeah? I can awesome awesome.
We got it back guys thanks for staying there, i rambled on enough.
I just rambled about you, i rambled about your work ethic and your and your perseverance and how it pays off and i’m just telling people you know they got to watch you.
They got to stick behind you, man, this guy trust me you’re, going to want to see him in the future.
Man he’s very exciting to watch honestly um.
Where do we go from here? Let’S see so you got a fight coming up soon.
You said you got things in the works um.
If you can fight anybody tomorrow, anybody living or dead legend who, who would it be? Who would i um, probably johnny, tapia wow wow? That’S a first! That’S a first.
Do you uh? Do you uh reasoning, reasoning? Let’S hear the reasoning behind this, his attitude when he’s in the ring, like he’s, he’s, excited to watch and like that would be a great experience and then he he’s no slouch he’s no slouch either.
No definitely not definitely not, and he is exciting.
Yeah, it’s exciting is that is that kind of, like the style that you that you project, like is? Is that how you want to kind of like be you want to be that exciting? Not no slouch in the ring just very exciting to watch that crowd.
Draw still hungry always hungry.
That’S it part of me out of the debates.
Poker.
Okay, okay, oh love, it love it.
I love that gear.
It looks nice.
I like that hat i’m a hat man myself.
We got tons uh so hobby, so these are hobbies outside of uh boxing yeah.
I have uh.
Well, that’s just a couple of my sponsors who who’ve been looking out for me this far, so shout out to them and mg ring promotions productions is my management team.
Okay, okay, uh! So how long have you been with these guys now um for a year now, a year now treating you? Well, that’s good! It’S always good to hear that man um, so any any plans on um on so you you’re still down in the south right now.
Are you down in tuscaloosa? Well, i’m in auburn right now, you’re on auburn right now, um plans are your plans to stay down there and fight out of there or are you planning on moving out of the south and back up into the northern territory at all? I don’t know if i’m ever moving up to the north, but we don’t know we will see what the future brings right right.
Well, yeah, true, we we only know what the future holds right.
Nobody knows it all comes it all just comes and we just deal with it um, so your work ethic is strong.
You’Ve got you’ve got this.
You know this this, this great ring presence and um honestly.
Do you? What do you see? Where do you see yourself in the next five years in in professional boxing, i see myself as a world champion world champ undisputed? Yes, [ Laughter, ].
Definitely, definitely that’s! That’S great man.
It’S it’s! You know what you do have the ability to do it.
That’S for sure man and you know what, with with your work ethic and, and you know your never give up attitude and you’re staying, you know, he’s still hungry and staying hungry.
You know it’s only a matter of time before you get that opportunity and you’re able to come through um.
You know i keep telling my fight fans.
Man to you, know, look out, for you definitely uh.
You know you got.
You got the ability, man and you’re exactly what we like on knuckle out.
Man, you’re, exciting.
You knock people out, you don’t leave it in the refs hands and you know that’s that’s the way right, like you, don’t get paid for overtime.
Like you said before, you got cut off there um what the best perform um your best performance.
So far, what do you think it was? My best performance was probably my last fight uh back in february.
Yes, sir, you won by unanimous decision.
That was that was uh.
That was a hard battle, though, did you did you find going into the ring that um that he was more than you expected or did? Well really? We didn’t.
We didn’t know anything about him for real right.
We didn’t know anything about him.
We went basically in the ring blind um, so it was just trying to um make adjustments on the fly.
That’S good! Well, you know what you need.
You need a really good coaching staff and trainers to be able to do that.
So obviously, because he’s looking after you really good um, so you said you fight out of uh.
What’S the name of the gym again, it was gambling boxing club game, brave boxing club and and and who so, how long have they been around? Are they for about? Seven, eight years, seven or eight years and they’re bitten, they’re based out of where you’re at right like down in alabama there, so yeah, no i’ve i’ve heard of them.
Um i’ve heard more of them ever.
You know, since learning your name and stumbling on to watching you and your fights honestly, it’s it’s great man, uh honestly, i don’t want to keep you too much longer.
I know that you’re a very busy man uh.
You know thank you for coming on today.
Man, taking up the time uh you got to, let me know when your next fight’s coming out man, because i definitely want to make.
I want to make sure that all the fight fans around the world that you know watch his show definitely get behind you and support you, 100 man, because you know, i believe that you’re gon na climb these ranks – and you know what you will be a world Champion soon enough, you do have the ability, man, you have the heart, you have the drive honestly and you know you’re you’re very humble, then uh, we’ve, we’ve talked a few times now.
I do appreciate talking to you.
I do appreciate you taking your time out of your really busy schedule, like you know, from work and being able to come on here and, and you know, give the fans exactly what they wanted and i told the fight fans if we get you on and you’re Here and you did it you’re a man of your word.
I really appreciate that man uh so guys make sure you check out trayvon lawson, trayvon, gutta lawson check him out, make sure man.
This guy is a beast in the ring man.
He can show up with knockout punches out of every angle whenever he wants guys he’s very exciting to watch.
Thank you again, trayvon for coming on man, guys if you like it, share it.
It’S your boy mike or at four i’ll knuckle up.
You know what we do there.
It is baby trayvon.
Thank you again, man we’re definitely gon na we’ll definitely keep in touch.
I definitely want to have you back on it, maybe after your next fight or the week leading up to your next fight.
So we can push you and promote you the way that i believe that you should be pushed and promoted, because you know what you’re underrated people need to see.
You people need to know the name.
People need to know that you’re the real deal man and uh again, thank you for coming on fight fans, sorry that we had a little bit of technical difficulties next time.
Don’T worry he’s on we’ll we’ll we’ll have it better and uh.
You know we’ll even dive deeper man we’ll have lots more to ask him for sure yeah man again.
Thank you.
Trayvon.
It’S been.
It’S been a slice man uh great interview.
Man.
Thank you.
Thank you.
Yeah man, we’ll keep in touch for sure guys.
It’S your boy, michael r4, if you would like it share it, you know what it
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