NEW YORK Moments before the bell rings, Keith Thurman sits in the dressing room, and serenity envelops him. <\/p>\n
He meditates, and visualizes the fight before him: all the hardships he might endure; the cracking fists his opponent is sure to taste. <\/p>\n
The next time he reaches that moment of clarity, it will be Saturday at Brooklyns Barclays Center, minutes before a career-defining fight: a welterweight title unification meeting with fellow undefeated boxer Danny Garcia (9 p.m. ET, CBS). <\/p>\n
Thurman, with his long, brown ponytail and scraggly beard, is a spiritual being, and he exercises his brain in many ways during camp. The 28-year-old currently is reading The Bhagavad Gita, a 700-verse Hindu scripture that details a warrior (Arjuna) readying for battle to establish Dharma. <\/p>\n
Before the battle occurs, he goes through this emotional mood swing of pretty much almost not wanting to enter into this war, Thurman (27-0, 22 KOs) told USA TODAY Sports during a sit-down at the Brooklyn Bridge Marriott on Wednesday, and God just strengthens his heart and says this is what needs to be done right now. <\/p>\n
The Gita is one of those books that lets you know this battle is destined and it needs to happen. <\/p>\n
Thurman says his highly anticipated battle with Garcia, too, must happen, and that he holds no fear of losing the precious 0 at the end of his ledger. After 20-plus years of fighting, One Time says he knows how to handle his emotions both before and during battle. <\/p>\n
The Clearwater, Fla., native also draws inspiration from the many musical instruments he plays, like the Indian flute recorder, guitar and piano well, hes still working on the intricacies of the keys. <\/p>\n
I call myself the worlds best faker, said Thurman. It was hard to get piano lessons, it was hard to dedicate myself into reading the music, but it doesnt stop me from touching the keys. It allows me to play it like Im a kid in the sandbox. <\/p>\n
The recorder, though, is where he really hits his note. Thurman says rather than playing popular tunes, he creates his own melodies and plays for himself. <\/p>\n
Theres also Thurmans travels to the east (he calls the American passport a Willy Wonka golden ticket). He trekked to Japan following a June victory against Shawn Porter, the biggest win of his career. Thurman spent most of his two-week stay in Tokyo, but also visited some of the 260-plus temples and shrines in Kyoto. <\/p>\n
There he met a 101-year-old woman who inspired him to carry on with good health and longevity into the future. <\/p>\n
Right now, though, Thurman is solely focused on the present. Garcia will be a stern challenge as the more experienced fighter, and a fellow boxer who packs power in both hands. <\/p>\n
So moments before his music hits Saturday, Thurman will sit in his red, white and blue trunks, meditate and reflect on what the eight-week training camp was like. Hell visualize the fight at hand, and says hell have a plan in mind for any calamity he might encounter. <\/p>\n
Yes, this guys going to throw punches at you, but when you land those punches, hes going to have to take those punches that you were landing on that heavy bag. And those are big, heavy punches, Thurman said of his visualization plan. <\/p>\n
His first spoken word was ball, and Thurman believes he created very good hand-eye coordination at a young age. The soft-spoken fighter says he was able to shoot pool, play chess and ice skate, all at age 4, three years before his first boxing lesson. <\/p>\n
Thurman says that brought him three important attributes he would use on his way to becoming one of the sports elite fighters decades later: understanding of angles, cognitive thinking and balance. <\/p>\n
Were going to be wearing 8-ounce gloves, he continues with his pre-fight visualization. You are the stronger man. I believe that today I still am the strongest welterweight and I plan on proving that come Saturday night. <\/p>\n
Now, Thurman becomes more animated as the SUV pulls up to Gleasons Gym for his workout. <\/p>\n
He clearly was going through the motions of his upcoming encounter like the time he survived a crushing body shot from Luis Collazo? Thurman credits it to visualization. Hes imagining all the challenges Garcia will present as he delves further into his pre-fight routine. <\/p>\n
Soon, there will be no more reflecting. No brainstroming. It will simply be a step, a right hand, and the thud of leather on skin before 10,000-plus screaming fans and millions more watching on TV. <\/p>\n
Thurman wont have to imagine because hell be in the moment. <\/p>\n
(Photo of Thurman duringa media workout Wednesday by Ed Diller, DiBella Entertainment) <\/p>\n
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Keith Thurman's spirituality lets him visualize how unification bout against Danny Garcia will play out - USA TODAY<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" NEW YORK Moments before the bell rings, Keith Thurman sits in the dressing room, and serenity envelops him. He meditates, and visualizes the fight before him: all the hardships he might endure; the cracking fists his opponent is sure to taste. Continue reading