Errol Spence Jr. feels good.
That was the main theme of the news conference on Wednesday to kick off his pay-per-view welterweight title-unification fight against Yordenis Ugas on April 16 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
And after what Spence has been through, the news on his health is a big deal.
The IBF and WBC titleholder was lucky to survive a horrific one-car accident in October 2019, which left him facial cuts but no broken bones. Then, when he was training to fight Manny Pacquiao last August, he suffered a detached retina and had to pull out of the fight.
As a result of all that, his unanimous decision over Danny Garcia in December 2020 is his only fight in the past 2½ years.
“My eye has been good,” said Spence, who is from the Dallas area. “Sparring has been great, and I’ve been looking good. I’ve taken some hits and my eye feels great. I haven’t been in the ring in a year and a half, but I’ve been focused and in the gym training every day.
“I feel sharp right now. My last couple of fights I was really only able to train for about two months. But I’ve been in the gym for the last six months getting ready for this.”
Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) also welcomed a nutritionist to his training camp.
“I’ve been feeling strong,” he said. “My nutritionist that I added for this camp has been the missing ingredient. I was struggling to make weight, and I think that’s the reason that I haven’t gotten a stoppage in my last few fights.
“This is the first camp in a while that I haven’t put the sauna suit on. It’s been a breath of fresh air. I’m really having fun in this training camp.”
And he’s grateful.
Either the accident or the eye injury could’ve ended his career. As it is now, he has the opportunity to collect three of the four major welterweight belts. His goal is to become undisputed champion.
“It feels good to be back,” he said. “It’s a blessing to be in this position. Most people take life for granted until they’re given a second chance, and I’ve been given a second chance in life and a third chance in boxing.”
Ugas (27-4, 12 KOs) is just as excited.
The Cuban benefited from Spence’s misfortune, as he stepped in on late notice to fight Pacquiao and convincingly outpointed the future Hall of Famer to win the WBA belt.
Spence is expected to be a bigger challenge for him.
“I not only accepted this fight, I pushed for this fight,” he said. “Because I want to fight the best. Here we are, two of the best welterweights in the world. I want the biggest challenges. I’m here and I’m ready to prove that everything I’ve done so far wasn’t a fluke at all.”