Peter Quillin has described how the death of his uncle last month will inspire him to dethrone WBO middleweight king Andy Lee when they clash in Brooklyn on April 11. With the New Yorker's dad in prison, uncle Eric Munson had been Quillin's father figure until he lost his fight with cancer five weeks ago. Undefeated 'Kid Chocolate' was already a week into his camp in preparation to fight Lee and, on the advice of his family, he did not break ranks in order to attend his uncle's funeral. Former middleweight world champion Peter Quillin action against Lukas Konecny last year . But Quillin says he was inspired by the visit he made to be by his uncle's side just a week before he died and has warned Lee that he is 'highly motivated' for this fight as a result of it. The 31-year-old said: 'He was the most important person to me in my whole life and it's the first time I've ever lost anybody that close to me. 'When I saw him fighting on his deathbed with cancer, I saw him fight through that until he had nothing left in the tank to fight with. 'That showed me the fight is all in your head. There's no cancer here so I have to do what's worth while I'm still here on this earth. 'I couldn't attend his funeral because I was here in camp. When I saw him it was the week before I started camp and the week after he died. My family told me he would've wanted me to stay in camp. I knew he was proud of me.' Quillin is facing Lee for the title the Irishman won by stopping highly-fancied Matt Korobov in Las Vegas last December. Quillin recently lost his uncle after a battle with cancer but did not interrupt his training to attend the funeral . That night, the pair clashed for the vacant title because Quillin vacated instead of facing Korobov, who had been made his mandatory challenger. As such, the American, who is of Cuban descent, did not lose his title in the ring but insists he no longer feels like the champion. He added: 'I'm going to let Andy have the pressure on him to perform like the champion. I had that pressure but now I have pressure of being a challenger.' Lee and Quillin almost crossed swords three years ago when a fight at Madison Square Garden was mooted as part of the bill on which Matthew Macklin faced Sergio Martinez at Madison Square Garden. Now they will finally meet, across New York at the Barclays Center, and Lee recalled why the fight never happened in 2012. He said: 'I remember when it was proposed at the the time, [former trainer] Emanuel [Steward] turned the fight down because he felt it should have been me fighting Martinez instead of Macklin. 'On top of that they put me in the fight with Quillin on the undercard. They wanted me and Peter to have the hard fight. Lee won his middleweight world title by beating Matt Korobov in Las Vegas last December . Lee celebrates winning his world title . 'Now you have two big middleweights, big for the weight, two genuine punchers and two very good boxers. We match well and it will come down to whoever implements their plan better on the night. We have a plan and we're working on it.' In Lee's last two victories – the win over Korobov and the Knockout of the Year contender against John Jackson in June – the 30-year-old from Limerick has been behind on the scorecards but turned the fight on its head with a single shot. But Lee added: 'At no time in those fights did I feel I was going to lose. I knew at some stage we would have to trade. With the power I carry I know we will have to trade in a 12-round fight and I just know if I land at the right time with my power I can knock anybody out. 'It gives you confidence. People got the wrong impression as a blood and guts fighter but I'm a technical boxer.' That technique, as ever, is being honed under the tutelage of Adam Booth in their training base in Beausoleil in the south of France. They operate within walking distance of one of the world's biggest gambling districts in Monte Carlo and Lee recognises that the stakes could not be higher in Brooklyn next month. He said: 'I could've fought in Ireland, chosen the opponent and beaten someone comfortably for my first defence. But if I fight and beat Peter in New York I will be a global star. People will need to acknowledge what I've been doing. It's a great opportunity to fight in America, on national TV and it takes me to the next level.'
Peter Quillin takes on world champion Andy Lee in Brooklyn on April 11 . Quillin's uncle died after battling cancer while he was in training camp . Quillin did not attend the funeral, instead concentrating on his training . Lee won the WBO middleweight title against Matt Korobov last December .