Daniel Jacobs wants to demolishGabriel Rosado on Friday so he can tee up big super middleweight matches with the best in the division.- Jacobs played down the threat Rosado poses when, speaking to Insider this week, he said the Philadelphian is a mere stepping stone to better things.
- The only reason they're fighting appears to be because of a chance encounter in Las Vegas two years ago.
- It led to a confrontation at the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casino, has led to further trash-talk down the line, and so now we're here — with Jacobs wanting to knock Rosado down and seemingly out before 168-pound fights with Jermall Charlo or Caleb Plant.
- Jacobs told us he also wants to do what he can to score a rematch with Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez, whom beat him by decision in 2019.
Gabriel Rosado is a mere stepping stone before big time matches against Jermall Charlo and Caleb Plant, his Friday opponent Daniel Jacobs told Insider this week.
A former WBA world middleweight champion, Jacobs is currently campaigning in the super middleweight divsion, where he intends to reclaim championship status.
His 168-pound match with Rosado tops the five-bout Matchroom USA-promoted card inside the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, Florida, which airs on
"I want all of those fights," he said.
The 33-year-old has beaten Caleb Truax, Peter Quillin, and Sergiy Derevyanchenko, coming unstuck only to top tier fighters Dmitriy Pirog, Gennadiy Golovkin, and Saul Alvarez.
It is clear Jacobs, a bone cancer survivor, does not shy away from challenges.
But there is a significant talent gap between himself and Rosado, who is a +1500 (15/1) underdog heading into the bout.
It seems the reason they're fighting is to settle a grudge which seemingly began in the lobby of the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casino during a Las Vegas fight week.
Jacobs told us that Rosado has had a lot of negative things to say about him over the years, and even said he'd "smack" him should they ever meet face-to-face.
So as he saw Rosado travel down an escalator at the casino, and he wanted to test if he really would try and smack him in the streets, away from the ring.
"If you're a boxer, your hands are in gloves … so you can't smack a fighter in the ring," he told us.
"I automatically knew that meant you want to smack me when you see me. We encountered each other in Las Vegas. I was going about my business, and he was coming down an escalator, and I waited for him to come down to press him exactly what he meant by wanting to smack me — here's an opportunity to smack me.
"For the most part, what I got was he was just saying all these things just to get a fight. I respect that. I respect a fighter who can admit that the only reason they're saying these negative things is to get under a fighter's skin … so from that point on I went about my business.
"But there's just been more, and more, and more of Gabe Rosado's comments," Jacobs said.
"So how, as fighters, do we settle our differences? We're in the same promotional company, same weight class now. Coming out of this pandemic, it's the perfect fight, to make him eat his words for all the things he's said about me, my career, and my life."
Jacobs learned Rosado is more bark than fight, he said
If fighters haven't met before a bout, they might only see each other for the first time at a pre-match event at the earliest, or, at the weigh-in ceremony at the latest.
It is at these moments they may get a greater understanding of who they are coming up against — they could be given an eye test for height, reach, or bulk advantages. Fighters are also generally curious if their opponent looks like they've struggled with the weight-cut. Perhaps other mental advantages could be ascertained.
So did Jacobs learn anything from that chance encounter at the Cosmopolitan?
"I learned that his energy did not match the words that came out of his mouth," Jacobs laughed. "He did not truly want to smack me, or do that harm, as he had an opportunity to do that.
"I'm not going to put myself in a position where I'm going to fight in the streets — that's not my character, but at the same time it's almost inevitable to press a situation where a man is talking about you in such a negative way.
"As two men, two fighters, especially coming from the mean streets of Brooklyn and him coming from Philadelphia, we handle it a certain way. And I just think that it's the best way for us to do it now.
"Not doing it outside the ring causing chaos and commotion. That's not what I'm about, but at the same time … I'm happy I have a chance to prove it now."
Jacobs wants to win, in style, and then call-out the champions in his new division
The New Yorker is desperate to batter Rosado so mercilessly it puts him on a collision course with the greatest super middleweights in
Jacobs is loathe to say it's a regional battle between his hometown Brooklyn and Rosado's Philadelphia roots, even if he lauded Philly heart. Regardless, "there's a large gap in skill," he told us.
"I'm glad there's somebody who feels they can stand in there with me. He has heart, Philly grit, determination, doesn't quit. Whether he's cut, gets knocked down, he always gets up and puts on a good show.
"That, for me, is what it's all about," Jacobs said, determined to be the one putting him down Friday.
"After this fight, with me being victorious, I'm going to call out the world champions in the division.
"The Charlo fight, Canelo rematch … all these different fights serve as a good opportunity for me being in a more comfortable weight class.
"I can fully feel strong, hydrated, focused … there's no issues concerning my weight. I'm 100% at ease and can go out there and give it my all without restrictions.
"It served me well in my last fight with [Julio Cesar] Chavez Jr. and, I look forward to continuing that same campaign."
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