Pascal, 33, was halted in eight rounds by Kovalev back in March, but a lack of big name opponents for the Russian has given the ex-super middleweight world title holder a further chance, which he aims to take with new trainer Freddie Roach on board.
“I know what I have to do to win this fight. Freddie Roach taught me what I needed to learn. The 30th I am going to apply everything that Freddie taught me. The last fight everyone was saying I need a rematch because it was Kovalev’s closest fight ever. It is going to be a good fight. The main thing for me is to stay focused,” said Pascal.
“This is all about continuing to improve myself with a new trainer, new technique and new approach. This will allow me to demonstrate a new Jean Pascal in the ring on January 30.
“I am not looking to make any excuses for the first couple rounds of the first fight. I am making those changes with Freddie Roach now and I do not anticipate being in the same mindset in this fight.
“I am not starting from scratch. I have many years of boxing. We are just tweaking some small mistakes to deliver big changes,” he added.
Kovalev is a big favorite to repeat his first victory, maybe even in quicker fashion, as Pascal continues to rile up the WBA, WBO and IBF belt holder with his vocal taunts in the build-up.
