By Pedro Fernandez
(THANKFULLY) DE LA HOYA-HOPKINS II NOT ANYTIME SOON!
Oscar De La Hoya and the man who turned him with out with one weak body punch in September, World middleweight king Bernard Hopkins, they will NOT be involved in a rematch anytime soon! Golden Boy Promotions Richard Schaeffer told another writer that, “The fight was agreed to.” But that at the last minute, Hopkins felt like Oscar was trying to make the rematch all about him again, and Bernard balked at anything less than parity!
COTTO VS. TRINIDAD AT 154 IS BORIQUA DREAM BOUT
Currently there are two Puerto Rican fighters that although they are in different weight classes, I feel that we just might see Felix Trinidad meet the new kid on the block Miguel Cotto. And while Tito is already a cinch Hall of Fame member, I think Cotto is already there as well! And before you fall off of your chair, this Cotto kid is the best fistic thing residing on the island since…… Tito Trinidad. But is he better than the man who destroyed Ricardo Mayorga October 2?
COMPARING THE DYNAMIC DUO AFTER 21 OUTINGS!
If I were to access the careers of Trinidad and Cotto through 21 fights and 17 KO’s there are many similarities. At 21-0, Trinidad had 18 whacks and was defending the IBF diadem he had won from Maurice Blocker for the second time versus hard-hitting 19-5 Anthony Stephens. On December 11, Cotto puts up the WBO trinket in his initial offering against a pretty good puncher in Randall Bailey (28-7, 27 KO’s). But don’t let the numbers fool you here fans as Bailey hasn’t a prayer! But then people said that about Stephens, and he knocked Trinidad down!
RICAN IN GOOD SPOT WITH WIZARD PICKING FIGHTS
If you haven’t seen it yet, I interviewed Cotto on Video Monday morning in New York City. Here’s the link as you can watch it and come back or continue http://www.ringtalk.com/video.asp Up to this point Matchmaker Bruce Trampler hasn’t any Stephens-like incidents with Cotto who seems so relaxed in the ring that it’s like the 24-year old is on Valium. He acknowledged such and also talked about his not speaking English on TV when he certainly can. Expect a KO of Bailey inside of eight, as I think betting on Cotto here will be like stealing money……..and without a gun!
TIME WILL TELL AS ISLAND EGOS CERTAIN TO CLASH!
As to a clash between Trinidad and Cotto, it’ll happen. In 18 months to two years Trinidad-Cotto will be the fight that will stop everything but time, deth and taxes on the island of Puerto Rico. No question that right now Trinidad is the King Boriqua, while Cotto wears the crown of a Prince. But as Cotto begins to chomp on an upper echelon of fighters, the calls will be so long and loud that Trinidad and Cotto will meet to see who becomes the Emperor.
FELIX LOOKING TO MAKE OSCAR COME TO THE TABLE!
As Promoter Don King alluded to in his post-fight Video interview taped late Saturday night in NYC, Felix Trinidad is in a Pay Per View league of his own after his drubbing of Ricardo Mayorga. And this is even though he had taken a 27-month ring hiatus. When Felix fought Oscar De La Hoya in 1999, the pair did a record 1.4 million PPV buys. King figures that by having Trinidad bomb out Felix Sturm on March 12, Oscar will have to fight Tito or retire! Sturm is the same guy that beat Oscar and got jobbed out of a Draw by Las Vegas Judges Mike Glienna & Dave Moretti who gave the 12th round, one CLEARLY won by Sturm to De La Hoya.
THIS “PIT BULL” IS NO LONGER ON A FISTIC LEASH!
People will say that the 42-1, (35 KO’s) Trinidad has always been ultra exciting. I think not, remembering lackluster defenses that were impacted by weight woes at 147 lbs. The October 2 win over Ricardo Mayorga was the best Tito Trinidad ever. Forced to fight, Felix did that and more as he destroyed the Nicaraguan inside of eight complete heats. And while the opponent may have had something to do with that, I’ve never seen Trinidad so throttled in a fight. That being said, Oscar will wish he were fighting Bernard Hopkins again as this version of Tito has his dial set on “Destruction!”
E MAILING A “HURTING” MAX WOULD BE SO COOL!
Got a phone call from Fox TV host Max Kellerman Wednesday. He sounded horribly stressed. You could really hear the emotion in his voice when he brought up being philosophical about life and death. Nothing, not even the passing of time will ever end Max’s pain after the violent death of his brother Sam Kellerman a fortnight ago. The killer, professional boxer James Butler is awaiting Trial on Murder charges. Don’t forget the E Mail address that was set up to allow you to pass a few kind words on to Max and the entire Kellerman family. WeFeelForYouMax@Yahoo.com
SO WHAT MAKES SHANE MOSLEY TICK YOU ASK?
When “Sugar Shane” Mosley decided to rematch “Winky” Wright after his losing across the board March 13, some people thought it was a dumb move. Wright, now 47-3, really was a weight class bigger physically than Mosley. Using that size advantage and his southpaw implementations, Wright cleaned up. So why then demand the rematch? Because knock Mosley or love him, Shane has always about being champion. Fan-friendly in an era where that trait is rare, the 39-3 Mosley proudly represented the titles he won at 135, 147, & 154 lbs.
WHAT CAN GET “SUGAR” ACROSS THE FINISH LINE FIRST?
Team Mosley has brought in North Hollywood, CA Trainer Joe Goossen to “Fine Tune” Shane. The reason I put “Fine Tune” in parenthesis is because the boxing house that is Shane Mosley has already been built. Goossen will look to remodel a couple of rooms, but I tend to think that he won’t mess with the foundation. For Shane to prevail he must hurt Wright before he can get into his game plan. Jumping on Wright at every bell is the key. Should Shane not be able to, Wright will most likely beat the smaller man.
HBO WRIGHT-MOSLEY “VIDEO” PREVIEW!
We have put together a Video package that includes telling interviews with World jr. middleweight champion Winky Wright, Promoter Gary Shaw, & Wright’s Trainer Dan Birmingham. Here’s the link to the pristine interviews http://www.ringtalk.com/video.asp
HBO’S ”ROSS THE BOSS” TALKS UP SCHEDULE
Once there, you can check out Video interviews with HBO Sports CEO Ross Greenburg, Miguel Cotto, Danny Williams, Don King (2), Chris Byrd, Andrew Golota, Hasim Rahman, Larry Donald, Gary Shaw, all this in addition to Cliff “24 Karat” Rold’s piece with Lamon Brewster. Again the Video link http://www.ringtalk.com/video.asp
“RING TALK” CREW ON THE GROUND IN VEGAS!
You can expect a “Pre-Fight” Video presentation of Winky Wright-Shane Mosley II late Friday night or early Saturday morning here at www.RingTalk.com The “Post Fight” wrap should be up Sunday AM as well. Remember folks, there are lots of boxing sites and then there is www.RingTalk.com
GUESS WHO I’M HAVING DRINKS/BRUNCH WITH?
I set up a double “Margarita” luncheon Saturday in Las Vegas that should allow me to expand a bit more on the “Operation Matchbox” sting in coming days. This arrangement involves my changing cabs to ensure not being followed. Bottom line is I’ll be talking with somebody on the list of Subpoenas. Being an ex-Cop, I just love this cloak and dagger stuff! As a side note, VP Toad du Beof has taken over the reins at Top Rank as CEO Bob Arum has called it quits after 38 years of promoting fights.
“DUVE DIVA” & ESPN GO AGAIN EARLY DECEMBER
Promoter Kathy Duva, AKA “The Duva Diva” and the folks in Bristol, CT that operate ESPN 2 come up with a great card December 3. 2000 Olympic Silver Medallist Rocky Juarez (21-0, 14 KOs) will meet ex-WBC guy Guty Espadas who is 38-6, with 24 KOs. Juarez, who is currently ranked #1 by the WBC & IBF is the headliner on the show emanating from Bally’s in Atlantic City Friday night December 3 beginning at 9:00 PM ET.
HEAVYWEIGHT HOPEFUL ON TAP TOO!
Dominick Guinn (25-1-0, 18 KOs) will cross swords with unbeaten Serguei Liakhovich (21-1-0, 14 KOs) of Belarus. Serguel’s claim to fame is beating 2000 Olympic Gold Medallist Audley Harrison as an amateur. Speaking of Audley, either he was dressed like the 1960’s soul group “The Temptations,” or a K-Mart clothed Pimp in a blue suit so loud it screamed Saturday night at MSG. This guy is either colorblind or his tailor is! So when is Audley going to have real fight|?
“RING TALK” RADIO GUEST LIST IMPRESSIVE SUNDAY!
Broadcasting live from the Cosmopolitan Hotel in the Tribeca District of New York City this past Sunday, my guests on “Ring Talk” radio included the HBO Godfather himself Larry Merchant, Don King, Lamon Brewster, Chris Byrd, Andrew Golota, Hasim Rahman, Larry Donald, Gary Shaw, all this in addition to Winky Wright. Is there another program that can touch the guest list of the “Insider’s Look Into The World Of Boxing?” Hit it http://www.universaltalknetwork.com/arch_ringtalk.html and listen & enjoy the longest running talk show in boxing history!
SPEAKING OF THE COSMOPOLITAN HOTEL!
With ace reporter “24 Karat” Cliff Rold getting the “Presidential” suite, Camera wizard Favio Flores sharing his suite with two chicks, I too was locked away in the Cosmopolitan Hotel as New York City was colder than any summer in San Francisco. If you have New York in your future, and you don’t want to pay a King’s ransom for a room, and yet you still want to be treated like royalty, give the Cosmopolitan a call at 1-888-895-9400 or visit them online at www.CosmoHotel.com You can thank me for this gem later!
DINNER WITH “RING TALK” CONTEST WINNER QUITE A GAS!
When I asked an on air trivia question in September, I couldn’t believe the number of people that took a shot and missed. The question was: Who was the only boxer to fight in both the San Francisco Cow Palace (Where I stopped Paul Nave with a single body shot) and the then home of the San Francisco Giants, Candlestick Park. Finally Merrill Mazza called in and gave up the correct answer of ex-middleweight king “Gene Fulmer.” His being right meant I was buying Merrill dinner. Doing so Wednesday at an Italian eatery in Noe Valley, I had a great time as Merrill and I talked boxing and ate good food for 90 minutes!
Pedro Fernandez
Note: Mr. Fernandez is NOT your average boxing writer! A four-time San Francisco Golden Gloves champion, and formerly a Cop with the San Francisco Police Dept., few people have the unique combination of having a boxing background in addition to being a schooled Journalist. He can be reached with your comments at Pedro@RingTalk.com