Jean Pascal | A “last lap” that could be long

Jean Pascal himself says it: at almost 42 years old, he is on his “last lap”. But like the guys from KISS before him, the farewell tour could be extended.

Everything will depend on the outcome of his fight against Terry Osias (13-0, 6 KOs) in the fall. A duel that was originally scheduled to take place on July 20 at the Casino de Montréal, but which will finally be presented on September 21 at the Colisée de Laval.

The winner of this fight, contested in the light heavyweight (200 lbs), will get his hands on the North American title of the World Boxing Organization (WBO), and will find himself ranked among the top 15 world championship of the federation. A world championship fight could thus be in the cards in the more or less long term.

And that is precisely what Pascal (36-7-1, 20 KOs) dreams of: “making history” and becoming champion again, for the sixth time and in a second weight class as far as he is concerned. That is why he accepted this fight against Osias, which will mark his return to the ring after a year and a half of absence.

A project that is certainly ambitious for the Laval resident. But is it utopian for all that? Quite the contrary, assures Pascal, who takes as a model a former boxing colleague whom he saw achieve this feat from quite close up, let’s say.

“Bernard Hopkins was the oldest world champion when he beat me [en 2011 à l’âge de 46 ans]. So maybe I’ll try to beat his feat and maybe become the oldest world champion at 46 or 47 years old,” he warned during the gala press conference, Tuesday morning in Brossard.

Pascal will soon travel to Paris to act as a “mentor” to Cédric Bélony, the only Haitian boxer to have qualified for the Olympic Games. He believes that a victory against Osias would allow him to fight for a world title “at the end of the year, if not next spring.” However, he refuses to give himself a deadline for reaching this goal.

Osias in attack mode

Pascal has accustomed us to scandals and outbursts on the sidelines of his fights – let us recall the banana bag with Sergey Kovalev, whom he accused of racism. However, this time, he was much more reserved, talking almost more about his new “14 carat and diamond” chain that he had just purchased at his favorite jewelry store on the South Shore than about his future opponent.

The former champion nevertheless took care to announce that the public gathered at the Colisée de Laval would see “the soles of Terry’s boots in the ring”. Understand here that Pascal believes that Osias will end the evening lying down, and not in his bed…

However, it was Osias, who is not known for being a troublemaker, who offered the most acerbic comments. The Longueuil boxer declared, with an impassive face and without any hesitation, that he was “more talented, faster and smarter” than his rival. Remarks that sparked murmurs among the crowd attending the press conference.

Asked later to elaborate, Osias said he was sticking to the facts, describing himself as a “chess player.”

“I strongly believe that I am better than him,” the 37-year-old athlete then added.

You can hardly fault Osias for displaying such confidence, mind you. Since returning to the ring after beating cancer, he has been riding a three-fight winning streak, two of which came by the score. And since winning his fight against the disease, he says, his life has been marked by an urgency to live and a renewed optimism.

“I beat cancer, I’m now in this mentality where I can beat anyone. […] “All the moments I’m living now, they have no tomorrow. On September 21, there will be no tomorrow,” he said.

“It’s my turn,” he added. “I’ve been through so much in my life… I want the whole cake if I have to. I don’t want to leave any room.”

We will see on September 21st whether Pascal will indeed manage to write history. Or whether Osias will force him to cut short his final tour.