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--Tua Quickly Tramples Moorer--
By Steve Gregg
(August 17, 2002) Atlantic City, NJ -(Taj Mahal)--
Faster then it takes to time an egg, the wicked throwing Samoan, David Tua (41-3, 36 KO's) cracked comebacking ex-light heavyweight and two-time heavyweight champion Michael Moorer (43-3-1, 34KO's) with a tremendous straight right that left the former champ scrambled on the canvas in just 30 seconds of the opening round.
--Sunny Side Up--
Friends since 1992 when they trained together at a gym in Houston, the pumped up Tua (243) refused to return the complaisant Moorer's (224) gaze during referee Rudy Battle's instructions but instead, glared menacingly at the floor before the bell.
"He's the greatest guy," stated Tua before the bout. "He's helped me in boxing and as a person. I have a lot of respect for him."
Rumbling forward at the sound of the opening bell, the tank like Tua, 5'9", was all business, firing off three jabs and driving a solid right to the slightly fleshy midsection of Moorer. Repeating the process, Tua planted another hard right to the body and backed the southpaw Moorer, 6'2", into the ropes.
Connecting with a crunching left hook under the heart, the stronger Tua, 29, missed with a looping overhand right but kept the older Moorer, 34, pinned on the ropes. Digging hard downstairs, Tua slammed in a left hook and a right uppercut and caught Moorer with a jarring left hook to the head as he tried to get off the ropes.
Sinking in a left hook to the liver, the rampaging Tua forced Moorer back onto the ropes. Countering, Moorer was shy with a whistling right hook that missed Tua's jaw by a fraction. Measuring with a left jab, the muscular Tua nailed Moorer with a sledge hammer straight right on the point of the chin and that was the end of the brief fight.
The unconscious Moorer's form turned to jelly and as he slid down, Tua followed up and clubbed him with a glancing left hook to the back of the skull that left the former champion d****d over on the bottom rope, starring blankly into space. Referee Rudy Battle waved it off at mid-count so the stricken Moorer could be attended to by his equally stunned handlers.
"I felt good coming into the fight," said Moorer. "He tried to get inside and he did. I got hit with some looping punches I couldn't do anything about."
"I'm a friend of Michael's now and I always will be. But this is a business," reflected the victorious Tua. "The hard work made it look easy. Not bad for a country boy."
Not bad, indeed as the thunderous punching Tua keeps his hopes alive for another world title shot.
By Steve Gregg
(August 17, 2002) Atlantic City, NJ -(Taj Mahal)--
Faster then it takes to time an egg, the wicked throwing Samoan, David Tua (41-3, 36 KO's) cracked comebacking ex-light heavyweight and two-time heavyweight champion Michael Moorer (43-3-1, 34KO's) with a tremendous straight right that left the former champ scrambled on the canvas in just 30 seconds of the opening round.
--Sunny Side Up--
Friends since 1992 when they trained together at a gym in Houston, the pumped up Tua (243) refused to return the complaisant Moorer's (224) gaze during referee Rudy Battle's instructions but instead, glared menacingly at the floor before the bell.
"He's the greatest guy," stated Tua before the bout. "He's helped me in boxing and as a person. I have a lot of respect for him."
Rumbling forward at the sound of the opening bell, the tank like Tua, 5'9", was all business, firing off three jabs and driving a solid right to the slightly fleshy midsection of Moorer. Repeating the process, Tua planted another hard right to the body and backed the southpaw Moorer, 6'2", into the ropes.
Connecting with a crunching left hook under the heart, the stronger Tua, 29, missed with a looping overhand right but kept the older Moorer, 34, pinned on the ropes. Digging hard downstairs, Tua slammed in a left hook and a right uppercut and caught Moorer with a jarring left hook to the head as he tried to get off the ropes.
Sinking in a left hook to the liver, the rampaging Tua forced Moorer back onto the ropes. Countering, Moorer was shy with a whistling right hook that missed Tua's jaw by a fraction. Measuring with a left jab, the muscular Tua nailed Moorer with a sledge hammer straight right on the point of the chin and that was the end of the brief fight.
The unconscious Moorer's form turned to jelly and as he slid down, Tua followed up and clubbed him with a glancing left hook to the back of the skull that left the former champion d****d over on the bottom rope, starring blankly into space. Referee Rudy Battle waved it off at mid-count so the stricken Moorer could be attended to by his equally stunned handlers.
"I felt good coming into the fight," said Moorer. "He tried to get inside and he did. I got hit with some looping punches I couldn't do anything about."
"I'm a friend of Michael's now and I always will be. But this is a business," reflected the victorious Tua. "The hard work made it look easy. Not bad for a country boy."
Not bad, indeed as the thunderous punching Tua keeps his hopes alive for another world title shot.
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