Goodman focused on hitting hard, not protecting eye

The Advertiser

13-05-2025

Australian boxer Sam Goodman isn't shy about playing mind games, claiming his Mexican opponent is distracted before their upcoming fight.
The battle between Goodman and Cesar Vaca at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney on Wednesday is billed as a world title eliminator, the winner to earn a shot at a belt, possibly against Japanese superstar Naoya Inoue.
Both fighters made the catchweight, 0.9kg over the super bantamweight limit, after Vaca's team were granted an increase before Tuesday's weigh-in.
A cut above Goodman's eye delayed his return to the ring, but the Australian dismissed his opponent's suggestion that Vaca will target that area as showing fear in what the Australian can do.
"He's worried about opening up a cut on my eye, I'm worried about putting my fist through his head," Goodman said after the weigh-in.
"That's where my head's at, doing what I've got to do, and I'm not worried about what he's looking at.
"He's worried about me, that's all I'm getting from that."
The man from Albion Park in NSW says his undefeated record (19-0, eight KOs) is proof that he's able to overcome any injuries he might sustain in the ring on Wednesday.
"I've been cut many times and places before, and what's happened, I won," Goodman said.
"So if I get cut tomorrow night, I still win.
"If it's going to open and you can't see, it's something I'll have to adapt and deal with if it does happen, but it's not on my mind."
Goodman knows the importance of beating Vaca for his world title ambitions, clear that a win would be the ultimate vindication of his world No.1 ranking in the IBF super bantamweight class.
"I'm already ranked No.1, so it can't go any higher until you're a world champion," Goodman said.
The co-main event on Wednesday features the return of Olympic bronze medallist Harry Garside to professional boxing, against relatively unknown Queenslander Charlie Bell.
Both men also made weight on Tuesday, with Garside saying the lead-in was one of the easiest in his career.
"I slept really good last night,'' he said on Tuesday.
"The night before you weigh in sometimes it's a really, really bad sleep, but it's good to know I slept well last night.
"I woke up this morning with about a kilo to go, which is, in boxing terms, quite manageable for most people."
Garside's heartbreaking first-round exit from the Paris Olympics prompted a lot of soul-searching, but he says the excitement of fight build-up is what brought him back to the professional ring.
"I think you feel the full spectrum of what it means to be a human in fight week, which I absolutely love," Garside said.
"I can't wait for the next 24-plus hours just to feel the roller-coaster of emotions that will go through my body.
"The weight cut's done, almost the hard part done, now I get to enjoy the process."
Australian boxer Sam Goodman isn't shy about playing mind games, claiming his Mexican opponent is distracted before their upcoming fight.
The battle between Goodman and Cesar Vaca at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney on Wednesday is billed as a world title eliminator, the winner to earn a shot at a belt, possibly against Japanese superstar Naoya Inoue.
Both fighters made the catchweight, 0.9kg over the super bantamweight limit, after Vaca's team were granted an increase before Tuesday's weigh-in.
A cut above Goodman's eye delayed his return to the ring, but the Australian dismissed his opponent's suggestion that Vaca will target that area as showing fear in what the Australian can do.
"He's worried about opening up a cut on my eye, I'm worried about putting my fist through his head," Goodman said after the weigh-in.
"That's where my head's at, doing what I've got to do, and I'm not worried about what he's looking at.
"He's worried about me, that's all I'm getting from that."
The man from Albion Park in NSW says his undefeated record (19-0, eight KOs) is proof that he's able to overcome any injuries he might sustain in the ring on Wednesday.
"I've been cut many times and places before, and what's happened, I won," Goodman said.
"So if I get cut tomorrow night, I still win.
"If it's going to open and you can't see, it's something I'll have to adapt and deal with if it does happen, but it's not on my mind."
Goodman knows the importance of beating Vaca for his world title ambitions, clear that a win would be the ultimate vindication of his world No.1 ranking in the IBF super bantamweight class.
"I'm already ranked No.1, so it can't go any higher until you're a world champion," Goodman said.
The co-main event on Wednesday features the return of Olympic bronze medallist Harry Garside to professional boxing, against relatively unknown Queenslander Charlie Bell.
Both men also made weight on Tuesday, with Garside saying the lead-in was one of the easiest in his career.
"I slept really good last night,'' he said on Tuesday.
"The night before you weigh in sometimes it's a really, really bad sleep, but it's good to know I slept well last night.
"I woke up this morning with about a kilo to go, which is, in boxing terms, quite manageable for most people."
Garside's heartbreaking first-round exit from the Paris Olympics prompted a lot of soul-searching, but he says the excitement of fight build-up is what brought him back to the professional ring.
"I think you feel the full spectrum of what it means to be a human in fight week, which I absolutely love," Garside said.
"I can't wait for the next 24-plus hours just to feel the roller-coaster of emotions that will go through my body.
"The weight cut's done, almost the hard part done, now I get to enjoy the process."
Australian boxer Sam Goodman isn't shy about playing mind games, claiming his Mexican opponent is distracted before their upcoming fight.
The battle between Goodman and Cesar Vaca at the Hordern Pavilion in Sydney on Wednesday is billed as a world title eliminator, the winner to earn a shot at a belt, possibly against Japanese superstar Naoya Inoue.
Both fighters made the catchweight, 0.9kg over the super bantamweight limit, after Vaca's team were granted an increase before Tuesday's weigh-in.
A cut above Goodman's eye delayed his return to the ring, but the Australian dismissed his opponent's suggestion that Vaca will target that area as showing fear in what the Australian can do.
"He's worried about opening up a cut on my eye, I'm worried about putting my fist through his head," Goodman said after the weigh-in.
"That's where my head's at, doing what I've got to do, and I'm not worried about what he's looking at.
"He's worried about me, that's all I'm getting from that."
The man from Albion Park in NSW says his undefeated record (19-0, eight KOs) is proof that he's able to overcome any injuries he might sustain in the ring on Wednesday.
"I've been cut many times and places before, and what's happened, I won," Goodman said.
"So if I get cut tomorrow night, I still win.
"If it's going to open and you can't see, it's something I'll have to adapt and deal with if it does happen, but it's not on my mind."
Goodman knows the importance of beating Vaca for his world title ambitions, clear that a win would be the ultimate vindication of his world No.1 ranking in the IBF super bantamweight class.
"I'm already ranked No.1, so it can't go any higher until you're a world champion," Goodman said.
The co-main event on Wednesday features the return of Olympic bronze medallist Harry Garside to professional boxing, against relatively unknown Queenslander Charlie Bell.
Both men also made weight on Tuesday, with Garside saying the lead-in was one of the easiest in his career.
"I slept really good last night,'' he said on Tuesday.
"The night before you weigh in sometimes it's a really, really bad sleep, but it's good to know I slept well last night.
"I woke up this morning with about a kilo to go, which is, in boxing terms, quite manageable for most people."
Garside's heartbreaking first-round exit from the Paris Olympics prompted a lot of soul-searching, but he says the excitement of fight build-up is what brought him back to the professional ring.
"I think you feel the full spectrum of what it means to be a human in fight week, which I absolutely love," Garside said.
"I can't wait for the next 24-plus hours just to feel the roller-coaster of emotions that will go through my body.
"The weight cut's done, almost the hard part done, now I get to enjoy the process."