"Hel-lo-o? Anyone in Riverside in Arreola's corner?"

There was an interesting article in the newspaper today about Chris Arreola. I hope it's ok to post this. By MATT CALKINS The Press-Enterprise RIVERSIDE - Something isn't right. It's kind of like a senior who doesn't realize his prom's a day away. Or a groupie who failed to notice her band was in town. Uh ... hello? People? This is kind of a big deal. Saturday night at Staples Center, Riverside's own Chris Arreola will fight Vitali Klitschko for the heavyweight boxing championship of the world. Not the first-place trophy at the Elks Lodge, not the title of Baddest Man in the Sigma Chi house -- the heavyweight championship of the world. Muhammad Ali held that crown. Jack Dempsey, Joe Louis and Rocky Marciano, too. Yet part of me thinks the fight may get nipped by "America's Most Wanted" in the Riverside Nielsen ratings. I say this because on Monday night, I walked into the Riverside sports bar Events with a piece of paper listing four names: Manny Pacquiao, Oscar De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Chris Arreola. If you lived in Riverside and recognized the first three boxers, you qualified for my survey question: "Have you ever heard of this guy?" I'd ask, pointing to Arreola's name. "No I haven't," Ameen Roby said, shaking his head. "Uh ... no," a perplexed Thor Muntz said. I felt like a molecular physics professor teaching the third grade. None of the first 10 that I surveyed knew Arreola. Finally, 21-year-old Jason Marquez broke the streak before announcing, "I read the newspaper." In other words, it took a rare breed. My luck wasn't much better at the Galleria at Tyler; the final count there reading 20 to 5 in favor of people being oblivious to the 28-year-old's existence. Among the five who knew Arreola was Alex Lopez, who said he is friends with Arreola's brother, and a Foot Action employee who said Arreola frequents the store. "I don't get it," griped R.J. Eberwein, another member of the Galleria five. "How do you live in Riverside, follow boxing and not know who Chris Arreola is?" It's a legitimate question, because the general public's ignorance had little to do with its intelligence. Eloquent, witty and often replete with boxing memories, people generally reacted to the news of Arreola's upcoming fight with shock. Muntz suggested the dearth in attention was indicative of the decline of the heavyweight division, which hasn't produced a true star in a couple of decades. Chris Aiton complained boxing is too crooked and that promoters have robbed the sport of its legitimacy. Quincy Atkinson said candidly: "The next Mike Tyson? He's in UFC right now." All valid points. Most heavyweight fights these days are a cross between Greco-Roman wrestling and a wedding-reception slow dance. So much hugging and holding, you're not sure if it's a boxing match or the final scene from a "Full House" episode. And yes, promoters like Don King can single-handedly ****e Dial and Irish Spring sales. And sure: Why watch hand-to-hand combat like boxing when you can take in some hand-to-hand, foot-to-head, knee-to-chin combat like you see in MMA? But I still feel like Riverside -- if not all of the Inland area -- should be jacked up for Saturday's fight. And not just because Arreola is a middleweight stuck in a heavyweight's body, hurling haymakers and actually showcasing his quickness. And not just because he has a chance to make history by becoming the first fighter of Mexican descent to win the heavyweight title. And not just because the undefeated Arreola has the charisma to, at the very least, send some voltage through his supposed dying sport; captivating crowds less like a Tiger Woods and more like a John Daly with his filter-less mouth and ... energy-conserving training habits. No, it's because this is the heavyweight championship of the world -- and a guy who's frequently spotted at the Yard House, University Village and Tyler Mall has a chance to wear the belt. In "Rocky," all of Philadelphia knew when the Italian Stallion was jogging by. Riverside might not have any famous steps to climb, but the city does need to step it up. After all, Arreola grew up in your streets. It's only right that you're in his corner.