I thought I would make so much money and be the next Ray Leonard. Maybe it was farfetched, but I thought I could be a megastar. I could fight, and I had a lot of crossover appeal that was necessary to promote myself. I thought I'd make a ton of money and live off of it the rest of my life.

You get the reality checks during the course of your adult life and your career, and you realize that as good as the money in boxing is, most of the time people most don't make Ray Leonard or Oscar De La Hoya money, even if you make very good money.

I'm not complaining. I've made a very good living from boxing, better than any living I possibly could have done. Having said that, you don't live the rest of your life off the money you make in boxing. You still have to create positive forms of income.

Money can make money if you're intelligent about it and don't waste it the wrong way.

I think I should I have beaten Ricky Hatton. I never thought he was so great, I really think I have the style to beat him. I never thought he was that good, you know.

Ricky Hatton has no sense of anticipation of what's coming his way. You can teach him all you want, but he doesn't have those instincts.

I didn't mentally prepare as well for Ngoudjo as I should have. I was a little lax in the fight.

I do best when guys come at me. Stylistically, the Ricky Hatton fight is the best fight for me.

I haven't got the credit I deserved sometimes, and some of it's my fault.

I'm a competitor in anything I do, especially boxing.

British boxing fans are amazing, and the O2 is one of the best venues in the world.

I know a lot of people want to see me fight in Italy.

I'm a fighter. That's what I do. I am a fighter to the core.

Financially, I don't have to fight again. I've done well for myself.

He's a guy I should beat pretty handily. I shouldn't have a competitive fight with Jose Miguel Cotto, in my eyes.

I'm all about trying to accomplish more in my life as best I can, be it in the ring or outside the ring.

People view you differently when you're a world champion.

Dealing with my first pro loss was the toughest adversity of my career.

I am a competitor, so I only want the best fighters in the world.

I was never tested in my first 21 fights.

I want to be given my credit and want to be given my respect.

I was an angry kid, and boxing kept me out of trouble.

I'm a very competitive person.

I want to win at everything I'm doing. It doesn't matter what it is. I want to beat the person that I'm competing against.

I don't want to be a punching bag.

It takes more than talent to get to the top.

No talking has ever gotten me out of my game. The things that have gotten me out of my game in the past have definitely not been talking.

Hatton don't look much like a guy who thinks about commas. But he is a gentleman. His family are gentlemanly. Real classy people.

I try to keep it sweet, but trash-talking is fun, and people want to see if a brash kid like me can live up to his patter.

My father took my mother, me, and my brother from Sicily to New York. He got us one-way tickets but booked himself a return flight. He dumped us with my mother's parents, who had just arrived from Italy, and abandoned us. That was 1986. I didn't see or speak to him for another 12 years. That's cruel.

Every year, you hope that boxing can provide some of the best fights possible. I think 2018 was one of the better years for boxing. A lot of good matchups were made, and a lot of tickets were sold.

I'm not a complete idiot that just accuses people of something without having my reasons to believe what it is I'm saying.

It's a shame I have to hurt people. I'm a nice guy.

I'm a boxer by nature, so, obviously, the jab is always key - but it is nice to know you've got a right hand behind it.

Hatton leads the wrong lifestyle to be a great fighter, and he does not have what it takes to be one of boxing's best.

You don't have to like me as a person - I understand that I can get on people's nerves with the antics I do in the ring. This is not a popularity contest. I'm trying to do whatever I can to win the fight.

If I know my showboating bothers you, I'll keep doing it. If playing with your mind is part of the arsenal, and I know it works, then I'm going to continue doing it.

I try to do everything I can to make sure I stick in people's minds.

I wasn't exactly born with a silver spoon in my mouth.

When I retire, everyone is going to respect me for fighting the big names.

You can be taught so much, but the sense of anticipation cannot be taught.

They call me the Magic Man because I'm a classy fighter, a master of my craft, a good-looking Italian kid from Brooklyn who came through a dark and gritty life to find something magical.

A lot of people in barber shops all over Brooklyn talk about Paulie Malignaggi v. Zab Judah.

American fight fans are in tune to Joshua because they know what he's done, especially to Klitschko, and there is nothing not to like about him.

My grandfather and my uncle took me to the gym. I was kinda wild; they thought that boxing would teach me a lesson, but I don't think in their wildest dreams they could imagine the success I would have.

I do think Wilder can be a household name in America. He is a good fighter, and he has knockout power and has knockout potential, which is what you need as a heavyweight.

Everyone knows I love my fans. I wouldn't change them for the world. They have been by my side and haven't left me even when times have been tough. I try to chat with all my fans on Twitter.

I've got a really good job commentating and watching great fighters fight ringside.

Jose Miguel Cotto may not have the resume of his brother, but he's a good fighter.

I don't want to lose to an average champion. I want to lose to a great champion.