Two-fisted promoting: King gets Golota a title fight
It didn't take long for Andrew Golota to get what he was looking for from Don King: resurrection.
Less than two weeks ago, Golota signed a promotional deal with King hoping the bombastic promoter would revitalize him the way he recycled so many other fallen heavyweights. King wasted no time getting that done, as he will announce today in New York that Golota will challenge International Boxing Federation heavyweight champion Chris Byrd April 17 at Madison Square Garden on the same card on which John Ruiz, the World Boxing Association heavyweight champion, will defend against Fres Oquendo.
King's seven world title fights will mark the second-most ever contested on one card. The card will feature the two heavyweight title bouts, a welterweight title fight between Worcester's Jose Rivera and former champion Ricardo Mayorga, a few cruiserweight title bouts including a WBA mandatory between champion Jean-Marc Mormeck and former light heavyweight titleholder Virgil Hill, and a battle between Ezra Sellers and Kelvin Davis for the vacant IBF cruiserweight crown.
Golota, known in boxing circles as the Foul Pole for his habit of fouling his way to defeat even when holding a big lead, last was seen on a major stage Oct. 20, 2000, the night he quit on his stool against Mike Tyson.
Golota twice has been disqualified from bouts in which he held wide leads against Riddick Bowe, he was knocked out by Michael Grant after dropping Grant several times, and he has committed obvious fouls in other matches.
Golota disappeared from the boxing scene for more than two years but has come back to fight three times in recent months against low-level opposition.
"This is a dangerous fight for Byrd but he proved he's a man, accepting this fight and moving on," said King from Puerto Rico, where he was meeting with ex-welterweight and junior middleweight champ Felix Trinidad.
Trinidad will be with King today at the Garden, where a formal announcement of the April 17 card will be made. King promised he will have a second blockbuster announcement involving Trinidad, who is returning to the ring himself after a two-year retirement following his crushing loss to Bernard Hopkins. . . .
The US Olympic team finally has a 152-pound representative after a series of disputes, disqualifications, and restraining orders. An arbitration hearing finally turned the decision back over to four amateur fighters who settled the issue Sunday morning in Cleveland.
In the end, Vanes Martirosyan defeated Austin Trout, 25-17, to win a spot on the team. Martirosyan must go to Tijuana, Mexico, this spring along with nine teammates to try to qualify for the Athens Games in a regional tournament.
