Jean Pascal’s win on Friday over Meng Fanlong was certainly more than welcome for the Quebecer after being sidelined for nearly three years.
The 39-year-old boxer was back in action for the first time since his clash with Badou Jack on December 28, 2019. A positive result in an anti-doping test then thwarted the Quebecer’s plans.
It was therefore an opportunity for him on Friday evening in Florida to prove to the professional boxing world and to amateurs that he was back, hoping that this episode would be behind him.
“I can never convince people who are ‘haters’, but it proves that I don’t need extras or anything to win a fight. I have always been a clean athlete, I tested negative both in victory and in defeat,” he told our colleague Jean-Luc Legendre after the fight.
“This time around I tested negative so it’s black and white proof that I’m a clean athlete,” he added.
Although he admits to having been somewhat rusty after his absence, Pascal was able to impose himself the more the fight progressed against a rival who was undefeated in 17 professional fights before this clash.
“I didn’t use my experience enough for my taste. I could have dominated him even more, but after three years of absence from the arena, I take the victory well, “said the man who has a record of 36-6-1, 20 KOs.
The judges finally gave cards of 115-112, 114-113 and 116-111 in favor of whoever becomes the first contender for the IBF light heavyweight crown, which could put him on the road to champion Artur Beterbiev. However, Pascal did not yet have any concrete plans for the rest of his career.
“I want the supporters of Quebec to come back to the Bell Center, to Place Bell to encourage a boxer from Quebec,” he expressed as a wish to close the interview.
