Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion

When Taylor Swift suddenly arrived in Havana, Coach West and his crew also reached Havana. Since it was a short trip from Miami to Havana, they took a ferry across the Florida Straits. The group included more than twenty people, with Reggie, Mario, and other boxers and apprentices from the gym all coming along.

Two familiar faces from the Miami Herald's sports section, Rafael Varane, the editor, and the reporter Simmons, were also part of the group.

Mr. Rafael Varane was a thin, elderly Caucasian man with designer sunglasses and a black pipe, accompanied by a beautiful young girlfriend, much in the style of an early 20th-century French intellectual.

When he talked, he did so with a heavy French accent, occasionally using obscure French words, like when he praised Link's last match as 'impressionnant' instead of 'impressif'.

"Link, your last match gave us a big surprise, we predicted many outcomes, but never thought you would win the match that way, it was spectacular."

Mr. Varane spread his arms wide and spoke with an exaggerated tone.

Link shrugged, "Mr. Varane, if you believe what I say, from now on, there will only be one outcome to my matches, KO!"

"Haha, confident kid, I like you!"

Mr. Varane laughed heartily and patted Link's arm.

"Rafael, allow me to interrupt a bit. Link, regarding your last game, I have a few questions to interview you, is that alright?"

Reporter Simmons interjected from the side.

Days had gone by, and Simmons had swapped to a new hairpiece, changing from front bangs to a few inches of curly brown hair, making him look much younger and more stylish.

Link nodded and said it was fine.

Simmons immediately took out his recorder and started, "Link, in the last match, you injured Pitts' jaw, forcing him to concede. Was this a tactic you had planned beforehand?"

Link denied this, "Before going on stage, my only tactic was to KO him. I hadn't planned on how exactly I would defeat him, as the ring is also a battlefield and situations change in moments, so planning ahead isn't as good as adapting on the spot."

Mr. Varane nodded beside him, took a puff from his pipe and said, "So injuring Pitts' jaw, forcing him to surrender, was also part of your improvisation?"

"Roughly, Pitts' defensive capabilities were incredibly strong, among all the opponents I've faced, he had the strongest defensive ability, feeling barely inferior to professional boxers like Chris Byrd. His capacity to withstand punches was also very high, his body felt like an iron barrel.

During the match, I threw hundreds of heavy punches, but couldn't breach his defense. Later, Coach Ed suggested attacking his weak points, such as his nose, eyes, and chin, and then I succeeded."

Link spread his hands out and laughed.

Mr. Varane clapped, "Well done, Link! Your punch not only shocked the amateur boxing world but also scared the professional boxers. I think when you enter the professional sphere, there will definitely be a lot of cowards who, fearing your heavy punch, will refuse to fight you."

Link chuckled, "That's also what I hope to see. I hope those guys who are all bark no bite would better give up the Golden Belt before I step into professional boxing and leave it to me, and if they can't bear to part with it, they should get ready to be KO'd by me."

Mr. Varane wow'ed and clapped his hands, praising Link for speaking well.

"All bark no bite? Which champion are you referring to?"

Simmons asked, quite excitedly.

"Not any one person, but everyone who dares to question my abilities."

Before the qualifiers, online media had many people doubting his performance in the Golden Gloves Tournament, suspecting that his all-KO record was fabricated by promotional companies and boxing associations creating a boxing star, with Link being the chosen one.

But as the qualifiers moved into the semifinals of the fourth round, Link's consistent KOs against strong opponents elevated his amateur record to 21 wins, 21 matches, 21 KOs, silencing the doubters online instantly.

Instead, Link's fans pursued those naysayers relentlessly, often using his match data and clips on various forums to counter those who had doubted him, allowing his fans to vent significantly.

Proving his strength and dispelling external doubts were among the reasons Link insisted on using the KO tactic in the qualifiers.

Simmons, hearing his tone, mentally praised him, indeed it was very much Link's style—Link's statement, once spread, would surely have many calling him boastful again.

"Link, starting from yesterday, there have been numerous news articles questioning your method of winning matches, believing that you're capable of winning by points but you insist on winning by knocking out your opponents. They think this method is too cruel and harms the opponents, violating the spirit of Olympic sports. What's your take on this issue?"Nôv(el)B\\jnn

"They are talking nonsense."

Mr. Varane, holding his pipe, scolded, "All human sports are about pursuing faster, higher, and stronger achievements. Boxing represents the strongest. What's the point of boxing if you can't hurt your opponent? It's as absurd as saying the rabbit shouldn't run too fast in the Tortoise and the Hare to avoid hurting the turtle's pride."

Link smiled lightly, "Mr. Varane is absolutely right. Boxing is the art of knocking out. If you can't knock out your opponent, that's the boxing of weaklings. I don't believe I'm doing anything wrong; those who think I am are laymen. Why should we listen to the nonsense of laypeople?"

Simmons nodded, recording his words.

After the interview, Varane and Simmons had other interviews scheduled, said their goodbyes early, and encouraged him to keep fighting hard, striving to knock out Aragon. They mentioned it was okay if he couldn't knock him out, just to try and secure the American championship first.

Clearly, just like everyone else, these two gentlemen believed he had a chance to beat Aragon by points, but winning by knocking him out would likely be difficult.

"Link, how do you do it? Those guys in the qualifiers are the toughest from every country. How can you still knock them out to win?"

Reggie finally found an opportunity to speak with him, coming up with an admiring expression of astonishment.

"Probably because I'm better than them."

Link chuckled, swinging his fists.

"Yeah, yeah, you're amazing, too amazing. You're better than anyone else in the whole world."

Mario grinned broadly, his smile not reaching his eyes as he spoke.

Link glanced at him, sensing that his expression was somewhat off, thanked him, and then went to talk to West.

As Link walked away, Reggie bumped Mario, "Why did you talk like that just now?"

Mario's face immediately fell, and he cornered his lips, "You told me when I see Link, to praise him energetically to curry favor with him, so maybe he'd keep me on as his sparring partner. I praised him just now, what's wrong with that?"

"I told you to praise Link sincerely, to mean it, not to be sarcastic or mock him." Reggie said helplessly.

Mario scratched his chubby face and frowned, "But I really can't suck up like that; some things I just can't say, it feels shameful."

Reggie covered his forehead, "That's not sucking up, that's stating facts. Everywhere Link competes, domestically or internationally, if they're his opponent, they get knocked out, every single one of them. Don't you think that's impressive?"

"Not really. He just has natural talent and strength. If I had his talent and strength, I could knock someone out with one punch too." Mario confidently said, clenching his fist, the size of a punching bag.

"But Link isn't just naturally gifted; he's also diligent, hard-working, and smart. Don't you think that deserves your respect?" Reggie said dryly.

"Hard-working, diligent, and smart, aren't those talents too?" Mario asked, blinking.

Reggie slapped his forehead and waved his hand, walking away to drink some water.

Mario shrugged his shoulders and looked at Link who was chatting with West. West was all smiles, patting Link on the shoulder and laughing heartily, happier than if he were seeing his own son or grandson.

Mario couldn't help but clench his fist tighter. It's just great talent, what's so great about that?

But then he thought about how West was recently looking to appoint new sparring partners for Link, reportedly choosing two, and Mario felt a wave of disappointment and irritation. Isn't having a strong sparring partner like himself enough? Why look outside for others?

Thinking about other sparring partners joining the gym, potentially using his punching bag and boxing ring, even replacing him in practice sessions with Link, Mario felt even more displeased.

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No way!

The job as a sparring partner must not be taken by others.

Mario took a deep breath, grinned, and cheekily moved between Link and West.