Brian Norman Jr.

Photo - Naoki Fukuda

WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr.  (27-0, 21 KOs) of Conyers, Georgia is set for his title defense against Japanese challenger Jin Sasaki (19-1-1, 17 KOs). Norman takes on Sasaki this Thursday at the at Ota City General Gymnasium in Tokyo live on ESPN+

"This championship belt means everything to me. This opens a whole lot of doors. This is what I dreamed about since I was 7 years old. I'm 24 years old now, so just imagine how long that is. That's 17 years. This is literally what I've been working for my whole life. I'm not giving it up at all. I don't care where I'm at, I don't care what the location is... this will forever be with me."

"I look out here and I see the fanbase that he has. I see all the love he has received, and I respect that he's doing his job. Now it's time for me to do the job that I'm supposed to do as the WBO welterweight world champion."

This will be second defense for Norman as he won the title last May's over Giovani Santillan with a spectacular knockout in Santillan's hometown of San Diego. His opponent, Sasaki won a unanimous decision over Shoki Sakai as he looks to pull the upset at home.

"Confidence is key. With Jin Sasaki saying he's only 80 percent confident, I mean, that's on him. But, also, he says he wants to overcome that. I respect him for being a man and actually saying that out loud and being real with everyone and himself. With me, I come to the ring every time a million percent confident and ready to go. I know the work I put in. I know the time I put in. This is not just this year. This is not just last year. This is year after year, day after day, second after second. This is what I live for. This is what I love to do.”

"Of course, we're here in front of all these cameras, but to be real, it's just the sport of boxing. I don't really care about this. I just like to fight, and I will have fun in the ring come June 19."