On a balmy day in late July, I entered Jack Loew‘s Southside Boxing Club to speak with Loew and Kelly Pavlik about the future and how serious a contender Pavlik can be going forward.  Having been pretty on-the-spot with Loew lately, I can sense a twinkle in his eyes when he talks about his most reputable fighter that has not been there for about three years.  When I talk to Kelly Pavlik, I sense a hunger that has not been there for three years.  This is vintage Kelly Pavlik, the hungry kid, not the tabloid poster child of Youngstown.

Pavlik returns to the ring to face Darryl  Cunningham on August 6, in Youngstown, at the Covelli Centre.  If Pavlik wins the fight against the savvy veteran, a trip to Montreal to face Lucian Bute looks like a reality.  Pavlik knows that winning a decision in Canada will not be easy, not in Bute’s backyard.

Here are some of the quotes Pavlik gave me during our exclusive conversation:

“Top Rank chose Cunningham because he is a lefty.  I think going forward we want to get a good look with a southpaw.  I have fared well against southpaws dating back to my amateur days.  Sergio Martinez was a different story and even if he fought right-handed he would have been hard to beat.”

“I feel like I am approaching my peak level again, like where I was for the Jermaine Taylor fights.  My timing is definitely back and my snap is back on my punches.  Everything is coming along pretty good for this fight and I am very excited to make a strong comeback.”

“I will find out if all the rust is gone on fight night.  I hate to call this a tuneup fight because you really can’t look past anyone.  Our game plan right now is to take care of business on August 6 and then we will have 12 weeks to worry about Bute.”

” I have been sparring with Darnell Boone.  He has been going southpaw against me and he is very fast.  I am not going to see that kind of speed come fight night.  Not taking anything away from Darryl Cunningham, but he is not as fast as Darnell Boone.  The sparring has been very good for what we need.”

”  I am training different.  The last fight I was more worried about bending and flexibility.  I have gone back to what got me here.  Take nothing away from the stretch bands, I still stretch out and do some work with them, but I am mixing in some of the natural stuff now too.”

Pavlik wants to make a statement when he fights Cunningham on August 6.  So go ahead and get your tablet out.  Write Pavlik off again – that worked well against Taylor (twice).  This 29-year old is rededicated and focused again and that’s bad news for the 168 field.  The Ghost is on the rise, again, and this time he knows what he has to do to be successful.