The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

SHERMAN ‘The Tank’ Williams is preparing for his return to the ring on August 28.

Williams, 42, is scheduled to square off with Christian Hammer in the main event at the Patinoar Dunarea in Galati, Romania. It’s the first fight for Williams, who stopped Manuel Banquez in the first round of their scheduled six-round affair.

“I saw some stuff on him in a video and we fought on the same card in a fight in Germany a couple years ago,” said Williams, who will be taking a 37-14-02 win-loss-draw record into the ring against Hammer, who is coming off an eight-round loss to Tyson Fury in London on February 28.

“He trains and fights out of Germany. He’s a typical European fighter who likes to come forward and throw the big punches.”

Going to Hammer’s hometown for the fight, Williams said his objective is simply to walk out of the arena with the victory and head back on the flight to Vero Beach, Florida, where he resides with his wife Kim.

“I know I’m going in his Romania backyard where he will have all of the Romanian judges,” Williams said. “So I have to be very aggressive and as soon as I see an opportunity for the knockout, I will try to take it. That’s the only way that I can assure myself of a victory. I know that I will have to go for the knockout.”

Although it has been about eight months since he last fought, Williams said he’s not concerned about any ring rust.

“I’ve been in the gym because I’ve had about four other fights that I was preparing for, but they didn’t materialise. This is the problem in the heavyweight division. A lot of the heavyweights who are signed up with the big promoters cherry pick and hand pick who they want to fight. I had a fight in February and three others after that, but none of the opponents wanted to commit.

“They don’t want to take the chance and fight me because they know that I have power in both hands. They made me upset, so when I got the call for this fight, I was so happy because now I can take my frustration out on my opponent and look to pull off the victory.”

In preparation for the fight, Williams said he will continue to work out until he leaves for Romania on August 22.

“I’m fortunate to have some good sparring partners, so I know I will be ready for the fight,”

Hammer, who resides in Hamburg, Germany, is 27 with a 17-4 record.