The countdown has already begun. The battle with the sign “FINAL COUNTDOWN” in Sofia remains exactly in 18 days. On April 28 (Friday) in Arena Armeec, Kubrat Pulev will defend his WBA Intercontinental Belt against Kevin Johnson. The match against the American for Kubrat is a match before the match, because by the end of the year he is going to battle for the world title against the winner of the battle Anthony Joshua – Vladimir Klitschko.

– 18 days left to the boxing gala in Sofia, how does the training go?
– Super. I do a lot of sparrings. I run. Sometimes 10 km. I train very hard. The most important is that I am healthy and I have no injuries. For now I’m succeeding. (Laughing)

– Do you think these 18 days are enough to finish with all the preparation?
– They are little! I only know that the days fly. But they are exactly as much as I need to be in optimal shape for April 28th. I have been working hard for two months.

– Kevin Johnson has already allowed some very negative comments. Like the one he will come to Sofia to knock you out in front of the Bulgarians. Would you answer him?
– Usually, I have the same answer to this kind of verbal attacks: it is nice to talk and warn, but to be able to do it and really to do it are fundamentally different things. With Uli Wegner, we continue to work hard on the defense. We’ve done a lot of things and I think it’s going to be extremely difficult for Johnson to reach me. About his words that he will knock me out… What can I say except that it will remain an unspoken dream. But he can try (laughing again).

– Do you feel more emotional due to the fact you will participate in the same gala evening with your brother?
– Bulgaria always makes me feel more comfortable. For me it is always better to know that when I go out and everyone in the arena will support me, more emotionally, as anywhere in the world. On the other hand, a game in Bulgaria is obligatory, the victory is even more important because of the Bulgarians. But this does not worry me, because the last time the atmosphere was amazing. Such an audience gives me wings, energy and strength. To me, Bulgarian support has always helped me a lot in the ring.

– Tervel achieved a lightning, second victory for the pros. How do you see his performance so far?
– Tervel is very organized and precized. He trained very strictly. Stricter than myself. He is simply wonderful athlete. It seems that he still has a lack of experience in the professional boxing, but the experience comes with time and accumulated meetings and victories. In Berlin, however, he showed that he was not accidentally a bronze medalist in the Olympic Games. He is very fast, very technical, at all, a super boxer.

– Except for April 28th, do you ever think about the 29th (29th, in London are boxing Anthony Joshua and Vladimir Klitschko). Do you have any predictions about what will happen in London?
– I think Joshua will win. And that means if everything goes according to plan, by the end of the year I will face him.

– On your previous match in Bulgaria, you simply burned the stands with your traditiona Bulgarian outfit and under the sounds of the song “Prituri se planinata” of the great Valya Balkanska. Are you now preparing such surprises?
– I have always kept on the Bulgarian, so that the Bulgarian spirit will rise. Second comes the show. There will be emotions for Ramstein fans. The frontman of the band, Till Lindemann, will bring to Sofia his girlfriend, who is also a well-known person.

– The first gala at Arena Armeec had 16,000 spectators. Do you expect such an interest on April 28?
-Every temperamental and thirsty-for-like audience like the Bulgarian one is nowhere! Even the Germans were delighted. But now for weeks, I was debating with them to reduce the ticket prices, make them more accessible for the pocket of absolutely anyone who wants to watch live. You pay more if you want to go to the cinema.

Online Countdown Ticket for Arena Armeec Boxing Gala “Final Countdown”: eventim.bg