Mayweather Jr.’s example motivates Jack

If Badou Jack was looking for a role model in the gym, he found it in Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Jack, an unbeaten super middleweight from Sweden, has been training at Mayweather's Las Vegas gym in preparation for his fight against unbeaten Alexander Brand on Friday at Texas Station.

Jack, 10-0 with eight knockouts, is working under trainer Eddie Mustafa Muhammad for the bout, which will air on Showtime (Cox 240) on tape delay at 11 p.m. Friday.

"To see how Floyd trains motivates me to work even harder," Jack said. "I like to mix it up, box and pressure my opponent. I'm learning so much from Eddie."

Brand (17-0, 15 KOs) is fighting outside his native Colombia for the second time in defense of his WBC Latino title. His first fight outside Colombia was at Texas Station on Nov. 20, a six-round unanimous decision over Terrance Woods.

"(Brand) seems like a wild puncher who doesn't have the best defense," Jack said. "I'm gonna beat him up and have fun. I like guys like this that throw wild shots."

The Jack-Brand fight is on the undercard of the 10-round main event between Cuban junior middleweight Yudel Jhonson (12-0, eight KOs) and Willie Nelson (17-1-1, 11 KOs) of Cleveland. The first bell is at 7 p.m.

■ HUNTER'S FINAL STEP - Las Vegas heavyweight Michael Hunter is in Brazil, trying to fight his way into the London Olympics with a strong performance at the Americas Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Rio de Janeiro.

Hunter, 23, needs to finish in the top three at 201 pounds to gain an Olympic berth. He advanced in the single-elimination event in his first bout Saturday, defeating Ryan Charles of St. Lucia, 14-5.

Also trying to qualify for London is Reno junior flyweight Santos Vasquez, who needs a top-three finish at 108. Vasquez fights today, facing Jantomy Ortiz of Puerto Rico in his first bout.

Seven Americans are in the competition, which runs through May 12.

■ SHUMENOV AT HARD ROCK - WBA light heavyweight champion Beibut Shumenov defends his belt for the fourth time, facing Enrique Ornelas to headline a June 2 card at the Hard Rock Hotel.

Shumenov, who is from Kazakhstan but lives and trains in Las Vegas, won the title by beating Gabriel Campillo at the Hard Rock Hotel in 2010.

Tickets, priced from $25 to $100, are on sale at the Hard Rock Hotel box office and through Ticketmaster.

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913. Follow him on Twitter: @stevecarprj.