Ryota Murata is not a bluffer, so he does not lie about how he feels.
Two days before his first title defense at Yokohama Arena against Emanuele Blandamura, the WBA middleweight champion said at a Tokyo news conference on Friday that he could not comment on how he would feel in the ring until Sunday.
“I’ve been able to tune up for the fight well,” said Murata, who captured the title in a rematch against Hassan N’Dam in Tokyo last October. “But as far as my mentality, I don’t know how it will be until the day after tomorrow. But I feel calm for now.”