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Jermall Charlo.
- Jermall Charlo defends his WBC middleweight world title in Brooklyn on Saturday.
- Before the bout, he told Business Insider that the changing landscape of one of boxing's most storied weight classes is because of him, making middleweight American again.
- For years, the division had been in the public eye because of the Mexican champion Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, the Kazakhstan puncher Gennady Golovkin, and the British slickster Billy Joe Saunders.
- But Charlo sees now as his time to shine, and says he wants every challenger to come to America if they want to try and make it as a middleweight.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Jermall Charlo has got a big family, a big house, and he's headlining world title fights.
Charlo recently celebrated the birth of a daughter, who, for him, is child number five. "I love it," he told Business Insider, adding his house is "a palace with a lot of crazy things."
It's like he's got it all but, at 29, they remain the foundations for what he hopes to come - even bigger things.
It starts, of course, with Saturday's showdown where he defends his WBC middleweight championship against Dennis Hogan at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
It is a fight he is all too happy to tell you that he will win, in style, as he continues to help make the middleweight division, one of boxing's storied weight classes, American again.
For years, it has been ruled by Saul "Canelo" Alvarez of Mexico, Gennady Golovkin of Kazakhstan, and British contenders like Billy Joe Saunders.
Now, in 2019, it's got a distinctive American flavor with the Texan technician Charlo, the Brooklyn boxer Danny Jacobs, and the Providence southpaw Demetrius Andrade all ranked in the boxing record keeper Boxrec's top five middleweights in the world.
"I brought the middleweight division back to America," Charlo said.
The fighter told us he's "in a great place, comfortable, and focused. My body is strong, and my mind is in tact," he said.
Charlo says he's ready for his weekend opponent, Hogan. "He's coming in, trying to win but that's what I'm coming in trying to do. It's part of the game plan. Whatever he has, I'll shut it down.
"He jumps in, head down, he doesn't really jab a lot. I will definitely dictate the fight. I'll make things happen. Add this one to the highlight-reel."
Another fighter Charlo wants to add to his highlight-reel is the British super middleweight Chris Eubank Jr., who takes on Matvey Korobov on the same night, in the same venue, this weekend.
It may well be a bout that materializes in 2020. But Charlo has a clear message. The middleweight division "is going to stay in America.
"Everybody has to come to America to find out about the middleweight division."
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