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By William Dettloff
The postponement of the Fernando Vargas-Ricardo Mayorga fight is disappointing to many in the business, not the least of which is Showtime, which didn’t run a pay-per-view card all last year and figured they finally had a winner here.
On the surface, one wouldn’t expect the fight to be pay-per-view worthy considering its insignificance relative to other bigger fights that will occur in the coming months. In terms of what the outcome will mean to the winner, it carries less importance even than does the Roy Jones-Felix Trinidad bout, whose victor, should he be interested, will have a lucrative, if brief, future at 175 pounds or thereabouts.
Vargas, who reportedly has been bleeding internally from popping too many aspirins, is in the very final stages of a career passionately fought. He is as aware as anyone that he burned up years ago all the rage that made him one of the more popular fighters of his era. (The big purses helped too.)
Trinidad and Oscar De La Hoya and finally Shane Mosley disabused everyone of the idea that he would be rated alongside the very best of the day, so it is not for his legacy that he will face Mayorga, assuming the bout is rescheduled. It is for the paycheck —not that there’s anything wrong with that—along with the benefits that go along with the unique qualities Mayorga brings to a fight: an unequaled capacity for playing the villain, a serviceable set of whiskers, and not a lot of skill. Not in that order.
For even a guy like Vargas, who has been teetering on the edge of retirement for years, the combination is irresistible (at least to everyone but Vernon Forrest, whom I’m convinced still has nightmares about Mayorga). Vargas fans will tell you that it is El Feroz’ stature and popularity that make this fight big, but it’s a lie; it is Mayorga who makes this match featuring a spent bullet and a pug a pay-per-view event.
In a long career full of masterpieces, the marketing and matching of Mayorga represents arguably Don King’s best work: Mayorga is so perfect as a beatable (but not too beatable) villain that Vince McMahon himself couldn’t have created him any better. As a result, he has made quite a nice career for himself playing ill-mannered punching bag to the stars.
Mayorga made Trinidad and De La Hoya look brilliant in comeback fights and, as important, was sufficiently coarse and disrespectful during the press tours that fans couldn’t pay fast enough to see their hero beat some manners into him. Who wouldn’t pay to see that? And for those who find his boorishness and insults contrived, or by now tedious, there’s his persona as the cigarette-smoking, beer-swilling streetfighter, a visage that carries its own allures. Hemingway would have loved him.
You could argue that Floyd Mayweather is just as adept at donning the black hat in the name of promotion, as is Mayorga—see his fights against Arturo Gatti and De La Hoya, and be sure he’ll assume the role again in the run-up to his match with Ricky Hatton. But where Mayweather is good-looking and American, Mayorga is Nicaraguan, doesn’t speak English, and has a face that is reflective of his reckless style in and out of the ring. And let’s tell the truth: In boxing and other things, “foreigners” make the best villains.
Like everyone else, I hope Vargas lays off the aspirins and heals up, and the fight is rescheduled and is a big success. It’s a good one for Vargas to go out on and it’ll be a nice payday for Mayorga, who I’m sure could use one. Even the best villains don’t last forever.
Some miscellaneous observations from last week:
If not for Mayweather, Ivan Calderon might be the best pure boxer in the business.
David Estrada will be a very good test for Andre Berto on the Jermain Taylor-Kelly Pavlik undercard. Can that show get any better?
Speaking of welterweights, I see Kermit Cintron is feeling strong these days after steamrolling Walter Matthyssee. I like him against Zab Judah and maybe even Shane Mosley (that’s right), but Cintron against Antonio Margarito today ends pretty much the way it did two years ago. Now go get your shinebox!
Never thought I’d be saying this about a guy who wasn’t a huge hitter at heavyweight in his prime, but I give Evander Holyfield at least a puncher's chance against Sultan Ibragimov. Remember how badly Ray Austin hurt Ibragimov. Ray Austin, for cripes’ sake.
If Miguel Cotto beats Mosley in November, Sugar Shane will need a guy to come back against who will make him look good. I know just the guy. What’s his name again, that kid from Nicaragua with the smokes.
The postponement of the Fernando Vargas-Ricardo Mayorga fight is disappointing to many in the business, not the least of which is Showtime, which didn’t run a pay-per-view card all last year and figured they finally had a winner here.
On the surface, one wouldn’t expect the fight to be pay-per-view worthy considering its insignificance relative to other bigger fights that will occur in the coming months. In terms of what the outcome will mean to the winner, it carries less importance even than does the Roy Jones-Felix Trinidad bout, whose victor, should he be interested, will have a lucrative, if brief, future at 175 pounds or thereabouts.
Vargas, who reportedly has been bleeding internally from popping too many aspirins, is in the very final stages of a career passionately fought. He is as aware as anyone that he burned up years ago all the rage that made him one of the more popular fighters of his era. (The big purses helped too.)
Trinidad and Oscar De La Hoya and finally Shane Mosley disabused everyone of the idea that he would be rated alongside the very best of the day, so it is not for his legacy that he will face Mayorga, assuming the bout is rescheduled. It is for the paycheck —not that there’s anything wrong with that—along with the benefits that go along with the unique qualities Mayorga brings to a fight: an unequaled capacity for playing the villain, a serviceable set of whiskers, and not a lot of skill. Not in that order.
For even a guy like Vargas, who has been teetering on the edge of retirement for years, the combination is irresistible (at least to everyone but Vernon Forrest, whom I’m convinced still has nightmares about Mayorga). Vargas fans will tell you that it is El Feroz’ stature and popularity that make this fight big, but it’s a lie; it is Mayorga who makes this match featuring a spent bullet and a pug a pay-per-view event.
In a long career full of masterpieces, the marketing and matching of Mayorga represents arguably Don King’s best work: Mayorga is so perfect as a beatable (but not too beatable) villain that Vince McMahon himself couldn’t have created him any better. As a result, he has made quite a nice career for himself playing ill-mannered punching bag to the stars.
Mayorga made Trinidad and De La Hoya look brilliant in comeback fights and, as important, was sufficiently coarse and disrespectful during the press tours that fans couldn’t pay fast enough to see their hero beat some manners into him. Who wouldn’t pay to see that? And for those who find his boorishness and insults contrived, or by now tedious, there’s his persona as the cigarette-smoking, beer-swilling streetfighter, a visage that carries its own allures. Hemingway would have loved him.
You could argue that Floyd Mayweather is just as adept at donning the black hat in the name of promotion, as is Mayorga—see his fights against Arturo Gatti and De La Hoya, and be sure he’ll assume the role again in the run-up to his match with Ricky Hatton. But where Mayweather is good-looking and American, Mayorga is Nicaraguan, doesn’t speak English, and has a face that is reflective of his reckless style in and out of the ring. And let’s tell the truth: In boxing and other things, “foreigners” make the best villains.
Like everyone else, I hope Vargas lays off the aspirins and heals up, and the fight is rescheduled and is a big success. It’s a good one for Vargas to go out on and it’ll be a nice payday for Mayorga, who I’m sure could use one. Even the best villains don’t last forever.
Some miscellaneous observations from last week:
If not for Mayweather, Ivan Calderon might be the best pure boxer in the business.
David Estrada will be a very good test for Andre Berto on the Jermain Taylor-Kelly Pavlik undercard. Can that show get any better?
Speaking of welterweights, I see Kermit Cintron is feeling strong these days after steamrolling Walter Matthyssee. I like him against Zab Judah and maybe even Shane Mosley (that’s right), but Cintron against Antonio Margarito today ends pretty much the way it did two years ago. Now go get your shinebox!
Never thought I’d be saying this about a guy who wasn’t a huge hitter at heavyweight in his prime, but I give Evander Holyfield at least a puncher's chance against Sultan Ibragimov. Remember how badly Ray Austin hurt Ibragimov. Ray Austin, for cripes’ sake.
If Miguel Cotto beats Mosley in November, Sugar Shane will need a guy to come back against who will make him look good. I know just the guy. What’s his name again, that kid from Nicaragua with the smokes.
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