Leo Santa Cruz has had a stellar boxing career.
He's 37-1-1 with 19 knockouts, a four-division world champion and has been in fantastic bouts against Abner Mares (twice) and Carl Frampton (twice).
The WBA (super) junior lightweight champion is set for the biggest fight of his career when as he battles three-time world champion and current WBA (regular) lightweight titleholder Gervonta Davis at The Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
Days before Santa Cruz makes the walk, he talks with DAZN News about finally securing the big fight, the edge he has over Davis and having his dad with him in his career.
(Editor's note: This interview has been edited for length and clarity.)
DAZN News: We're getting closer to fight day. How excited are you to finally get this fight squared away?
Leo Santa Cruz: I'm very excited, happy, and nervous. It's a big fight and the biggest one of my career because it's on pay-per-view and in front of fans.
DN: The fight got shifted to Halloween night. Did that bother you at all, or were you like, 'You know what, it's just a week. It's not that big of a deal?'
LSC: It didn't bother me. I'm ready for anything. We have to be ready. An extra week gives me a little bit more preparation. I'm still going to go in with the same intensity and put on a good fight.
DN: Many people are making this a big deal because the fight is in San Antonio and will take place with a limited amount of fans. Were you okay with not fighting in front of fans? Or was it something in the back of your mind that it had to be with some people in the crowd?
LSC: It is my job to fight. I said, 'If I have to fight without fans, I'm not going to like it, but you know, I'm going to do it. I have to do it.' I did my job. It's a big fight. No matter what, I wanted this fight. Now we are able to fight in front of fans. I was really happy and excited that we're going to be able to have them there cheering for us and pushing us because that's going to give us that extra motivation to go out there and perform at our best. To do it without people, you're going to feel weird, and it's not that extra motivating for us.
DN: This fight, to me, draws a lot of comparisons to Teofimo Lopez-Vasiliy Lomachenko because not many people were giving Lopez a shot. He was such a big underdog. I looked at the odds earlier and you're a significant underdog as well. Do you look at that fight at all and use it as a source of motivation to stick it to the people to be like,’You know what? I've done all this and he hasn't done as much. I have a point to prove come October 31'?
LSC: I do. It was nice to see Teofimo go out there and prove them all wrong. He did what he had to do to win. And that's what I have to do, too. I have to go out there and have to fight a perfect fight. I have to go in there and give it everything I got. I think I can shock the world, prove them wrong, go out there and fight the perfect fight.
DN: You talked about the perfect fight. Do you feel it has to be the perfect fight for you to win? Or, do you feel like you have a couple of different ways that you can win?
LSC: I know I have a couple of different styles to win the fight. I know Gervonta Davis can hit. He has the power to knock out anybody. I have to watch out for the big punches that he throws. As long as I do, I think I can win. I throw more punches. I throw more combinations. I'm going to be on top of him, breaking him down as long as he doesn't catch me with a good punch.
DN: I looked at the resumes between you guys. To me, the most significant advantage going into this fight is your experience. You faced Abner Mars and Carl Frampton twice. No disrespect to "Tank" but his resume doesn't match up with yours. Do you feel the experience edge is a more significant key to the fight than many people make it out to be?
LSC: Of course. Experience plays a big role in boxing. When you have that experienced fighter coming up, and you don't have the experience. Once they get there with somebody with experience, they freeze. They don't know what to do. They end up waiting until the last round, and they can't do it. That's what I'm planning to do. Hopefully, my experience plays out. I got great experience with Abner Mares and Carl Frampton and learned how to fight different styles. Hopefully, the same thing happens with "Tank" Davis and I frustrate him. Experience beats power.
DN: You've been in the game, including the amateurs, and now professionals for almost 24 years. Leo Santa Cruz is finally getting that big stage. What does it mean to you to finally get to this big stage under the brightest lights against one of the sport's premier names?
LSC: This means the world to me. My dreams are coming true. This what I worked my whole life for. Ever since I was a little kid, I said, 'Hopefully one day, I'll be in the big fight like this on pay-per-view.' Now is the day, I'm really happy, motivated and I'm going to leave everything in the ring and go out there and showcase my talent. Hopefully, the fans love me, and they want to continue to see my fight.
DN: A big factor heading into this fight is your relationship with your dad. Your dad is a cancer survivor. He also battled COVID. It wasn't looking good for a little while. Now he's doing pretty well, and your dad has been back with you on and off in this camp. What does this mean to you, not even on the fighting aspect, but more of just the father-son relationship, to have your dad with you during a real highlight of your career?
LSC: It's been a big blessing to have my dad in the corner with me because he's been here with me since the beginning when we really didn't have nothing. The thought of my dad not being in this big fight for me was frustrating. It was heartbreaking because we almost lost him. My dad was the one that wanted these big fights. He knows I got what it takes to beat "Tank" Davis. We almost lost him. It was hard. We had to go through many things. But it's a blessing to have him here. God made a miracle. My dad had to be here with me for the fight for me.