What are they fighting for?
Stakes unclear in Tua-Rahman proposal
A week after it seemed David Tua was a man without an opponent, it now appears he could soon be fighting for the World Boxing Association heavyweight title. Or maybe not. That is the essence of life in the most confused division in boxing.
Roy Jones's reign as World Boxing Association heavyweight champion may be one of the shortest in boxing history if he goes through with a Nov. 8 fight against World Boxing Council light heavyweight champion Antonio Tarver, whom he chose not to face last March so he could move up and take on then-WBA heavyweight champion John Ruiz. WBC heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis, meanwhile, seems unsure whether he wants to fight again after his difficult night with Vitali Klitschko. He has already said he will not box again this year and may yet retire, meaning the WBC title is on hold for at least the next five months.
Tua was unsure whether he would get a shot at the WBA title if Jones vacated it or whether he would end up in some sort of an elimination fight for the vacant No. 1 contender's slot against Hasim Rahman. Tua was negotiating with Rahman for such a fight for two months before Rahman suddenly announced he was unavailable. Thus began a quest by Tua's manager to find a rated contender willing to face the No. 2-ranked Tua. He found no takers and could get no information from the WBA about whether it would force Jones to defend the title against the highest-rated contender, as per WBA rules.
Then, after months of silence, the WBA sent out a letter dated Aug. 25 to all "bona fide" promoters, whatever that means, announcing a Sept. 5 purse bid for a "world title fight" between Tua and Rahman. At the moment, Jones is still the WBA heavyweight champion, but don't let that get in the way of whatever the WBA is planning.
Jones's representative, Brad Jacobs, said last week that the WBA has never informed Jones who his mandatory challenger is and has not indicated it would strip him if he fights Tarver.
After Jones won the title, he had 180 days under WBA rules to make a mandatory defense against the highest available contender, which would have been Tua, but that fight was never even talked about, so Tua tried unsuccessfully to get Rahman to agree to a third fight between them for the mandatory spot. But when the WBA purse bid letter arrived for a world title fight, Rahman suddenly became available again. So it goes.
What is most interesting about the WBA's letter is that the minimum bid is $1 million. Bobby Goodman, longtime boxing promoter and Don King associate, said he was not sure whether the fight would be viewed as an eliminator for the No. 1 spot, a fight for an interim title, or something else. But he did concede, "It's a pretty high minimum bid. That's a championship minimum. I think that is very significant."
The WBA has to be careful because the last time Jones ignored a mandatory title defense, it was with light heavyweight Michael Nunn in 1997. That led to the WBC vacating the title and having Nunn and Gianfranco Rocchigiani fight for it. Rocchigiani won, only to be told that his time as "interim" champion had come and gone because Jones decided he still wanted the title.
Rocchigiani sued and won a judgment against the WBC that forced it into bankruptcy. So the WBA must be careful what it does between now and whenever. So the precedent has been set for consequences if one of these organizations takes a sanction fee, holds a high-stakes purse bid for a world title fight, and then takes the title away after the fact.
"I think maybe they're preparing in the eventuality Jones goes with another fight and ignores his obligation," Goodman said. "If he doesn't fulfill it, then they could declare the winner heavyweight champion after the fight even if it's billed as an eliminator for mandatory contender. But if you read between the lines, it looks like more than an eliminator. If Roy goes and fights Tarver, then I would think the WBA would have no choice. They have to enforce their own rules."
Well, not necessarily.
"No one holds these people accountable," said Tua's manager, Kevin Barry, from Las Vegas. "They don't follow their own rules. This is not an association that's very good at communication."
Short jabs
Ruiz informed the WBA that he is not yet ready to fight after recently finishing up a painful divorce. Barry had sought him out as a possible opponent for Tua before the purse bid was ordered but later conceded the hard-punching Tua is not the ideal opponent for Ruiz to come back against. "David is the most feared puncher in the heavyweight division but because of the way they let Jones do what he wants, everyone else is penalized," said Barry. "If Jones wants to go down in weight, fine, but why is he allowed to damage the rights of the other heavyweights? We send letters every second or third day to the WBA asking if Jones has asked for an exemption [to fight Tarver] and we hear nothing. If he's going to fight Tarver, the WBA should vacate the heavyweight title and let David fight for it against the highest-rated available contender. Jones only wants a couple of carefully picked pigeons." . . . Despite winning only two of his last seven fights, Evander Holyfield believes come Oct. 4 he will not only defeat cruiserweight champion James Toney but will look like his old self in doing it. Speaking from Houston, where he is in training, Holyfield said his problems against Ruiz, Lewis, and Chris Byrd were not signs of age but merely stylistic difficulties that can't be avoided if one's quest is to become undisputed heavyweight champion again. "If I fought Tyson 10 more times, I'd look great 10 more times," Holyfield said. "A lot of how you look is how the other guy fights you. It's about styles. If you can pick only the guys you want to fight, you'd always look good. Toney has the right style for me. Toney likes to fight inside. He says he's going to stand in front of me and fight me. I look forward to seeing him do that. I will go through him and have a good time doing it, too. There has never been a fighter that has stood in front of me for very long. He may stand there, but it won't be for long. He can't beat me inside. If he stays in there too long, it'll be a short night." . . . Oscar De La Hoya said he injured his left hand in training for his Sept. 13 rematch with Shane Mosley but that the injury would not keep him out of the ring. "It will be 100 percent for the fight," De La Hoya said recently from Big Bear, Calif., his training center. Sure it will. De La Hoya conceded that when he first felt the pain, he thought of postponement but "my mentality changed right away. I have trained too hard to postpone the fight."
Around and around
Interesting that Toney-Holyfield is set for Oct. 4 and so is Erik Morales vs. Guty Espadas, on competing cable networks. Thought HBO and Showtime were going to avoid this kind of thing. Once again, boxing fans lose out . . . Espadas and Morales will train in the same area of Mexico for the fight and will celebrate their birthdays one day apart (Morales tomorrow and Espadas Tuesday) . . . When a "Night of the Young Heavyweights" involves a 35-year-old contender, it says a lot about the division, but DaVarryl Williamson believes that when he faces Joe Mesi on HBO Sept. 27, it will be his long-awaited breakthrough moment in the sport. The winner will be in position for a big payday if he can just find somebody to fight. Maybe the winner should call Tua . . . Rumors are circulating that Tyson will return vs. Oleg Maskaev Dec. 6 on Showtime but Tyson just signed with K-1, the Ultimate Fighting outfit, so who knows what he has planned? . . . ESPN2 has come to an agreement to televise three fights of Olympic gold medalist Audley Harrison. Harrison recently decided to come to the United States to train after spending the first stage of his career in his native England. Harrison is in the same giant mold as Lewis but is even taller at nearly 6 feet 8 inches. The question is whether he can fight. He'll make his ESPN2 debut Sept. 9 from the Miami Beach nightclub Level. It's not likely he'll be in with anyone who can level him . . . Here's all old Corrie Sanders got out of knocking Wladimir Klitschko silly to win the World Boxing Organization heavyweight title: He fights Lamon Brewster Oct. 18 in Germany or South Africa. Bet that the bout ends up as the second half of WBO light heavyweight champion Dariusz Michalczewski's next title defense in Hamburg on the same night. Michalczewski is now 48-0 and has defended the WBO title 24 times. He remains in pursuit of Jones, but he's no closer to getting in the ring with him than Tua is.
Local bleatings
One possible comeback fight for Ruiz could have a local flavor if he and Rich Cappiello's heavyweight, Kevin McBride, come to an agreement. The only way a fight like that would happen is if King agreed to put it on one of his undercards, but why not? There would be little money in it but it would be an opportunity for the Irish heavyweight now fighting out of Boston and good work for Ruiz, who would be wise to ease back until things sort themselves out . . . Keep Sept. 20 open because Mohegan Sun will host an interesting International Boxing Federation heavyweight title fight between Byrd and challenger Fres Oquendo, the Puerto Rican heavyweight who could soon become an opponent for Ruiz . . . Dana Rosenblatt makes his retirement official Sept. 19 when a tribute will be held for him at Anthony's restaurant in Malden, with proceeds going to benefit Malden High and Malden Catholic athletics. Tickets are available at Valenti Ticket Agency, by calling either Malden High or Malden Catholic's main number or at the Dockside restaurant in Malden . . . The International Boxing Hall of Fame will host a Night of Champions fund-raiser at Lantana's in Randolph Oct. 9. Among those attending will be Leon Spinks, Tommy Morrison, Earnie Shavers, Tony DeMarco, and Micky Ward. For ticket information call 508-580-2445 or the Hall of Fame at 315-697-7095 . . . Congratulations are due Providence super heavyweight Jason Estrada, who was the first non-Cuban to win a gold medal in boxing in the recent Pan-Am Games. The US now has automatic Olympic berths at featherweight, welterweight, and super heavyweight in next year's Olympics in Athens.
Material from personal interviews, wire services, and other beat writers was used in this report.
