Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price put their world titles on the line when they box on Friday night at the Royal Albert Hall, live on Sky Sports. Here’s what the fighters had to say…
Natasha Jonas
(Unified WBC and IBF welterweight world champion, former unified IBF, WBC and WBO super-welterweight world champion, London 2012 Olympian)
Everyone’s saying that I can’t. And all I have to do is prove that I’m right. That I can. I can step up when I need to. I can win when I need to. I’m not scared of big fights and big nights. Age is nothing. I’m proving all that to myself.
I’m her big fight so that’s why she was chasing me. For her, I’m a good name to have. She finally thinks if she beats me she’ll be respected. Because I’m respected. I get why she’s chasing me. But you’re not that for me.
Lauren Price
(WBA welterweight world champion, Olympic gold medallist, World championships gold medallist, European Games gold medallist, Commonwealth Games gold medallist, MBE)
I’ve wanted this fight for a long time. She didn’t want it. She’s been made to fight me. She goes on about ‘I was never on her radar’. But surely she knew after I beat Jessica McCaskill, I’m here now so I want to be involved in those big fights. It was only a matter of time where I was coming knocking on her door.
For me it’s not about Mikaela Mayer, Sandy Ryan. Yeah, I would have fought them but for me I thought this was an easy fight to make.
Joe Gallagher furiously insisted the scales for the Jonas v Price weigh-in were too light and contested the calibration certificate when it was produced
Jonas:
I was chasing other fights. I believe a Katie Taylor fight or a Mikaela Mayer fight were just a big fight so that’s what I was chasing. If you’re chasing bigger fights then you could have fought Sandy.
She fought a very poor McCaskill that hadn’t boxed well in about two years.
She was gifted the McCaskill fight, because that was my fight. Sandy was there to be taken and you weren’t shouting out Sandy at that time and you went and fought Bexcy Mateus.
There’s other people she could have been chasing and she pops up with Mateus.
I think Lauren’s spent a lot of her professional career comfortable and a fight with me is not going to be comfortable.
Speaking on Pitch to Pod, Nikita Parris discusses her sister Natasha Jonas’ upcoming welterweight world title fight against Price
Price:
I believe it’s my toughest test. It’s just another stepping stone. I do believe I am too good and I’m too quick.
She talks about the age thing but I think we’ve see in her fights, she boxes in bursts or when she goes through the gears and can’t get them out she takes a backward step or she goes back to the ropes. And that’s not because she’s hurt anything, she’s taking a breather.
I believe I play into that being who I am, how fit I am, how good I am, how quick I am. I’m going to be a nightmare.
Jonas:
It just makes me laugh. It’s very prepped. I believe that she tells herself things to prep herself. All that, you’re old, you’re this, you’re that is her telling herself: ‘She’s too old, you’re better.’
I think she has to tell herself that to make herself believe it.
You’re trying to convince yourself.
I just think you’re geeing yourself up. You’re telling yourself, ‘you’ve got this, I can do this’. That’s what I believe she’s doing. I’m not buying it. Not sold.
Jonas and Price engaged in an intense face-off at the conclusion of the final press conference
Price:
I think this fight with Tasha, it does put me on that pedestal and make me bigger. But me as a person and my team behind me, we already know how good I am. Without sounding big headed, I know and I believe that I’m the best at 147lbs.
I think I was avoided from my debut if I’m honest. It’s been hard to match me.
No one wants to fight. Ivana Habazin didn’t want to fight me, Jonas didn’t want to fight me. I’ve put it out there. I’ve said anyone at 147lbs I will box and that is it and I stick by that.
Jonas:
She hasn’t experienced enough, I don’t believe, as a professional to say those things. What happens when you lose a round, what happens when you get knocked down, what happens when you’ve got cut? None of those things she’s experienced and you’ll never know how you’ll react until you’re in them.
I’ve got a boxing IQ that’s not just about how I apply myself but also what happens when things go wrong.
One of the things I’ve always had is good timing and accuracy. And I think that beats speed all day.
Despite going in as underdog, Jonas is confident she can upset the odds when she takes on Price in their much-anticipated welterweight title clash
Price:
With speed comes power.
If she boxed McCaskill she probably would have struggled with her. They would have stood there toe to toe, she would have made hard work of it. Whereas when you look at me against her, I enjoyed myself in there. I started fast but I get better as I go on.
She’s got something I want. It’s a great fight, a great British fight as well.
Jonas:
I’m in it to fight the best anyway. But someone’s coming for my belts and I don’t want to give them up because I believe there’s other bigger things on the horizon. We win against Lauren and the doors are still open to whichever way you want to go. Whether that’s chase a Katie Taylor rematch, that’s an undisputed fight, whether it’s chase Mikaela Mayer, that’s an undisputed fight. Either which way, that’s an undisputed fight.
Price is in a buoyant mood ahead of her unified welterweight title fight with Jonas on Friday
Price:
I respect her and that but it’s a fight I believe I come out on top and that’s it. It doesn’t matter how I win, whether I stop her or win on points, LP gets the win.
I’m excited for the future and I’m really excited for this fight.
Jonas:
Be careful what you wish for. It’s here and you can’t get out of it.
Watch Natasha Jonas fight Lauren Price at the Royal Albert Hall live on Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports+ or Sky Showcase from 7pm on Friday
