After pulling out a majority decision win after 15 month's outside the ring, veteran heavyweight wants to jump back in against contenders Gerald Washington or Dominic Breazeale.
Kauffman vs Alexander - Watch Video Highlights | June 10, 2018
Heavyweight contender Travis Kauffman literally wants bigger challenges—specifically former title challengers Gerald Washington (6-foot-6) or Dominic Breazeale (6-foot-7)—following Sunday’s majority decision victory over late replacement Scott Alexander at Pioneer Event Center in Lancaster, California.
The 6-foot-3, 242 ½-pound Kauffman (32-2, 23 KOs) ended a 15-month ring absence and swapped first round knockdowns against the 5-foot-11, 224-pound Alexander (14-3-2, 8 KOs), who replaced left-handed former two-division champion Antonio Tarver on 10 days notice due to Tarver’s boxing licensing issues.
“I want to fight for a title against the best out there, but in order to do that, you’ve got to beat guys like Gerald Washington or Dominic Breazeale. I’d have more time to prepare for each of them, and I’m a lot better against the bigger, taller guys compared to smaller, faster guys,” said Kauffman, 32, who floored Alexander with a right hand before hitting the deck from a left hook.
“Where Breazeale’s 6-foot-7, and Washington is 6-foot-6, the difference would be preparing for the bigger guy and being more prepared for either one of them. Travis would be the underdog, but he’s always been asking for fights like that,” said Kauffman’s father and trainer, Marshall Kauffman.
“Bottom line is Travis wants to fight for a world title, and Gerald Washington and Dominic Breazeale are [the same dimensions as world champions] Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder. So if you can’t beat the Gerald Washingtons or the Dominic Breazeales, how are you going to beat the Anthony Joshuas or the Deontay Wilders?”
Washington (19-2-1, 12 KOs) earned a 10-round unanimous decision over 6-foot-6 John Wesley Nofire (20-2, 16 KOs) of Miami, Florida in the co-main event Sunday. He rebounded from consecutive fifth- and eighth-round stoppage losses to world champion Deontay Wilder and contender Jarrell Miller last year.
Sitting ringside as a commentator was Breazeale, who is the mandatory challenger for Wilder’s title.
“Not a lot of people know this, but I broke my left foot a few weeks ago doing sprints with NFL players and suffering a stress fracture,” said Kauffman. “I ran six miles and that’s when it felt really bad. But I want to make no excuses, get back in the ring, and I’d be much better prepared for a fight against either Gerald Washington or Dominic Breazeale.”
For a closer look at Kauffman vs Alexander, check out our fight page.
