By Keith Idec, photo by Ralph Notaro

Shannon Briggs kept his shirt on and his mouth shut for as long as he could Tuesday.

When he heard former heavyweight champion and friend Chris Byrd praising him during a press conference, Briggs sprung out of his seat, took off his shirt and launched into a tirade directed at Fres Oquendo. Briggs will oppose Oquendo for the vacant WBA world heavyweight title June 3 at Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida.

“They’ve never seen anything like this,” Briggs screamed. “They’ve never seen anything like this in boxing. They’re gonna see June 3rd. June 3rd, you’re gonna see. I’m telling y’all. June 3rd, you in trouble. I’m telling you. This is the wrong place. This is the wrong time. You ain’t winning the title. You ain’t coming up over here. This ain’t a come-up for you. All right? You ain’t coming this way, champ. I’m telling you. That’s right. I see in your eyes you’re scared, too. I see it in your eyes. I see it in your eyes. Let’s go, champ! Let’s go, champ!”

The 45-year-old Briggs (60-6-1, 53 KOs, 1 NC) is 9-0, including eight knockouts, since launching his comeback three years ago. The Brooklyn native is the WBA’s No. 4 heavyweight contender, but hasn’t beaten a ranked contender during his comeback.

The 44-year-old Oquendo (37-8, 24 KOs), ranked No. 5 by the WBA, hasn’t fought since he lost a 12-round majority decision to Uzbekistan’s Ruslan Chagaev (34-3-1, 21 KOs) in their July 2014 title fight in Grozny, Russia. The Chicago native doesn’t have any noteworthy wins on his recent record, either, but sued Chagaev to execute a rematch clause in their contracts and is owed a WBA title shot.

Chagaev lost the WBA title to Australia’s Lucas Browne (24-0, 21 KOs), who stopped Chagaev in the 10th round 14 months ago in Grozny. Browne was stripped after failing a PED test and the title was returned to Chagaev, who was stripped for failing to pay a sanctioning fee.

Browne was supposed to battle Briggs for the vacant championship December 31, but Browne failed another drug test and the fight was canceled. That led to the WBA ordering a Briggs-Oquendo fight for the vacant championship.

“He’s a very good, good fighter I’m fighting in Fres Oquendo,” Briggs said. “He’s fought great guys like Holyfield, Chris Byrd, James Toney. He’s a seasoned guy. But he’s out of his league in a sense whereas this ain’t his time. This ain’t his come-up. They say, you know, this is three times a charm for him. But this ain’t his come-up. You’re not coming up today. You’re not coming up June 3rd. You know what I’m saying? You’re gonna have to get another shot at somebody else, and hopefully win a title. Because you’re not gonna win it now, champ. I’ve heard things he’s said about me leading to the fight, when he got the fight. ‘Oh this is a good one. This is an easy one.’ This is gonna be the hardest fight of your life, champ. I promise you. I kid you not.

“You have no idea how focused and motivated I am for this fight. I just can’t wait for the bell to ring. I just want the bell to ring, so the people around the world can look up and say, ‘You know what, champ? Thank you.’ Because that’s what they want me to do. They want me to smash him out. They want me to smash him out in the first round and I’m gonna give it to him. I’m coming out first round and you know that, because you been talking. You know that. You know first round, I’m coming for you. I’m gunning for you first round. As soon as the bell ring, I’m coming to take your head off. I don’t get you in the first round, I’m gonna get you in the second. If I don’t get you in the second, I’m gonna get you in the third. And going all the way till the 12th. … Listen, I got Liahkovich in the 12th round, with 2:59 [expired in] the last round. You might have to go that way, too. But you going, champ. You’re going. Regardless of what, you’re going. I want you to know that. And I want you to go back home and train hard and do whatever you can do. Do what you can do. You know what I’m saying? Do what you can do, because I’m telling you, when that bell rings I’m coming at you like a bullet. Like a bullet for your face, I’m coming straight for you, champ. For real, for real.”

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.