MANHATTAN, NYC - With just about one month away from fight time, Guyana's World Boxing Council (WBC) Cruiserweight Champion Wayne ‘Big Truck’ Braithwaite has switched training camps.
‘The Big Truck’ has moved from the Gleason's Boxing Gym in Brooklyn to the Crunch Fitness Gym in Manhattan, as he continues preparations for his December 13, WBC cruiserweight title defence against Panama's Luis Andres Pineda, which is to be staged in Atlantic City.
With no real knowledge of how good his opponent is, the unbeaten Braithwaite (19-0), 16 of which has ended in knockouts, makes this defence against little known Pineda (17-3) who is rated Number 5 by both the renowned WBC and the World Boxing Association (WBA) governing bodies.
Braithwaite won the vacant WBC cruiserweight title on October 11, 2002 against Vincenzo Cantatore and defended it successfully with a fourth round knockout victory against Ravea Springs in February of this year.
But the Braithwaite camp is not taking the Panamanian lightly and the Guyanese world champion hopes to get a video tape of Pineda by early next week, and according to the title-holder "I will see what he has to bring to the table" and make the adjustments in my training for him.
At present Braithwaite is under the guidance of trainer Colin Morgan and corner-man Maurice ‘Bizzy’ Boyce who arrived here to assist in conditioning the world champion.
Trainer Morgan explained the move behind switching Braithwaite to his new location in Manhattan saying, "I worked out a deal with the management of Crunch Gym so Wayne can train ... so they will start doing some serious boxing here as Braithwaite is the first professional boxer to be training at this prestigious gym."
Recently, Braithwaite was swimming on Monday mornings to loosen his muscles and on Tuesdays he was involved in weight training at the modern fitness gym.
Braithwaite will step up his training with a lot of sparring sessions near to fight time over the next few weeks, going up to twelve rounds and back to four-rounders before climaxing with glove work, Morgan said.
However Morgan added, "I don't think he (Pineda) has ever fought in the United States. I am trying to get a tape of him". But Morgan noted, "I don't train boxers to lose. I am not in the business for losing, my aim is to win."
Braithwaite said he was always at least fifty per cent fit, as he never stops training. He has no injuries and there has never been a problem regarding his weight and the limitations. He looked fit indeed.
He said, " I am putting in a lot. I am putting my best foot forward. I was training all the time." Braithwaite maintained.