On Friday, June 8, Kelly Pavlik returns to mainstream television to fight Scott Sigmon on ESPN’s Friday Night Fights.  Pavlik (38-2, 33 KO’s) and Sigmon (22-3, 12 KO’s) both recently expressed to me how good victory will taste by winning, problem is, only one of them can be victorious.

“I’m not sure why everyone thinks I am talking trash about Pavlik”, said Sigmon in a recent phone conversation.  “I made the alcoholics anonymous comment, but other than that I haven’t said much out of line.”

“He’s an idiot”, said Pavlik.  “He has some kind of a reality show and I watched some of it.  It was horrible and he is really out there, I mean way out there.”

Sigmon claims this fight is his stepping stone.  “I don’t care how, I just want to win.  I’m probably not going to be the first guy to knock him out, but I think my conditioning and my toughness can give me a win.”

“He made this personal.  I am going into the weigh-in and I don’t want to say much.  To sum it up, he has me really pissed right now and I can’t wait for the fight.  I’m not sure whether I want to beat the hell out of this guy for five or six rounds or hit him hard early-on for a quick finish”, said Pavlik.

Pavlik has something at stake in the nationally televised main event, the chance to get back on a pay-per-view, possibly in mid-November, possibly with Carl Froch.

“I feel really good and sparred 18 rounds in the last two days, which is quite a bit for me”, claimed Pavlik.  “I am about three-and-a-half pounds from making weight and it will not be an issue.  I am working hard and want to make a statement in this fight.  People say I’m overlooking him [Sigmon], but the reality is that I wanted this fight really bad because of his ignorant and disrespectful comments.”

On the downside, Pavlik stated that he wanted to extend his best get-well wishes to Paul Williams.  Williams was involved in an accident that has left him paralyzed from the waist-down.

“You never want to see something like that.  I was shocked when I heard about it”, said Pavlik.  “He is a fighter and I want to go on the record and let Paul Williams know that he is in my prayers and that I know he is a fighter and he can beat it and walk again.  I want to try to make contact with him after this fight, maybe send something or shoot a text to let him know that my heart is with him during something I can’t imagine going through.”