TRINIDAD TESTS MAYORGA, ONLY MEGA FIGHTS

For his avid admirers, Felix “Tito” Trinidad has been away much, much too long but that two year drought is behind him now, having signed with promoter Don King to resume his spectacular career Oct.2 at Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.

The 31-year-old Puerto Rican icon hasn’t been in competition since May1l, 2002 when he stopped France’s Hascine Cherifi in the fourth round of an HBO-TV presentation in San Juan.

Trinidad told King he would have no truck with tune-up bouts from the outset. The controversial entrepreneur with the electrified hair quickly obliged, inking Ricardo “El Matador” Mayorga from Managua, Nicaragua for the 10-round pay-per-view action.

“I know Mayorga is wild and he’s a warrior, but I’ll knock him out early, no doubt about that,” Trinidad sounded super confident. “However, whatever they say about Mayorga, he has been the only one that has been brave enough to say, ‘I can fight him.’

King was quick to charge the hype on the return of the popular former three-time world champion from Cupey Alto, P.R., with a dazzling 41-1, 36 K0s resume.

“Tito can revive his greatness, and fight buffs haven’t forgotten he is the first fighter to beat Oscar De La Hoya. Trinidad has always brought a touch of ultra class to the sport. He can talk the talk and walk the walk. He is only interested in big fights and that’s why he didn’t want any warm-up fights,” King emphasized.

Originally, Trinidad was hopeful his first major bout would have been with Shane Mosley, but that projection went down the tubes when Winky Wright upset Mosley to take his WBA/WBC junior middleweight crown Mar.10 at the Mandalay Bay.

Mayorga, 30, is one of the game’s most eccentric characters, having driven several trainers to the brink of rage with that penchant for smoking cigarettes and drinking beer.

The pride of Managua was almost unknown when he TKO’d Andrew “Six Heads” Lewis in five rounds in Reading, Pa., Mar.30, 2002 to take the WBA welterweight crown.

Stunning fight fans last year, Mayorga won the WBC 147-pound title with a second round kayo of then undefeated Vernon Forrest Jan.25, 2003.The heavy-handed puncher repeated the victory seven months later but needed a decision over Forrest in defending both belts in Las Vegas.

Mayorga was bidding for the undisputed welter laurels when he challenged Cory Spinks, the IBF147-pound ruler, last Dec.13 in Atlantic City. The “El Matador” boasted he would score an early kayo but the counter-punching son of former world heavyweight king Leon Spinks was too slick in adding two more titles on a 12-round majority decision.

Working via an interpreter, Mayorga wasn’t short
on showmanship for a fight where the weight limit is 160 pounds.

“I’m going to demonstrate I’m the guy who wears the pants on Oct.2. I would like to basically extend to ‘Tito’ a $1 million dollar bet that I will knock him out before eight rounds.’Tito’ is going to remember he made the biggest mistake of his life in taking this fight,” said the comebacking ex-champion whose last victory was in April with a decision over Eric Mitchell.

After 42 bouts as a pro, Trinidad’s only loss came Sept.29, 2001 in Madison Square Garden when he faced Bernard Hopkins of Philadelphia for the undisputed world middleweight crown. It was a bruising war with Hopkins wearing down the valiant Trinidad into a 12th round TKO victim.

In recent months, ‘Tito’ had huddled with King on the possibility of meeting WBC light-heavyweight champ Roy Jones, Jr., at 175 if he repeated an earlier decision over Antonio Tarver. It was a historic spectacular but it wasn’t the legend delivering. Tarver chilled Jones with an overhand left to the jaw at 1:41 into the second round. Roy never saw the lethal shot. Don’t be surprised if future conversations find Tarver and Trinidad on the same page

FLOYD KEEPS ARUM, ADDS 2 BUSINESS ADVISORS

When Floyd Mayweather, Jr., steps into the ring Saturday night in Atlantic City, he will be picking up more than a new weight class.

Top Rank’s Bob Arum will continue to promote the undefeated WBC lightweight champion but new to
the regime will be Neal Menaged and Lewis Hendler,
Philadelphia sports entrepreneurs, who will manage the fighters’ boxing and business affairs.

Arum signed the 27-year-old Mayweather since he came out of the 1996 Atlanta Olympics as a bronze medalist but there have been junctures when the multi-talented star complained “Top Rank wasn’t moving me enough.” This bout, televised by HBO, is the last with Arum managing.

Mayweather will debut at140-pounds when he faces DeMarcus Corley of Washington, D.C. in a 12-round WBC elimination bout with the winner projected to fight Arturo Gatti (37-6, 28s), Jersey City, N.J., later in the summer.

The Grand Rapids, Mi., native, fighting out of Las Vegas, NV., with a 31-0, 21 KOs ledger, has never been short on energy but he is exuberant moving to a heavier division.

“This change gives me a new peace of mind when it comes to worrying about weight. In past fights I was really worrying about my weight and I couldn’t focus on the fight. I do not have to starve myself any more. It’s a big difference,” Mayweather reflected.

Corley, carrying 28-2-1,16 KOs record, may not match Mayweather’s speed of hand and foot. However, this counter-puncher from the nation’s capital gave a good account of himself July 12, 2003 when he took Zab Judah’s best in losing his WBO junior welterweight crown on a majority decision.

“I don’t care what Corley says about diet. I can eat as much as I want and I feel very strong. I’ve got a granite chin, so there is no way this guy can beat me.”

Mayweather is pleased with his new business agents and vice-versa.

Menaged and Hendler, with their new sports venture, are excited about their new franchise called “NRxGEtm”

“We are incredibly excited about managing Floyd. Pound for pound, he’s the best boxer in the game today, ” said Menaged. “And as a person, Floyd has the personality to be a real celebrity. I cannot think if a better way, or a better sports figure to start our enterprise with”.***

CHAVEZ IN ‘FAREWELL TV FIGHT’ WITH RANDALL

It probably won’t be on American TV live but
Julio Cesar Chavez will put the cap on his magnificent
boxing career Saturday in Mexico City.

The 42-year-old Latino icon from Culiacan, Mx., finally decided to make his final appearance in the ring at the 45,000 seat Plaza Mexico. Win, lost or draw, the charismatic former triple world champion will walk away with a final on his resume which now reads 105-5-2, 85 KOs.

“I think 113 fights is really enough and I‘m not coming back. That’s why I want Frankie Randall to end it.

It was Randall, a former world champion out of Memphis, TN., who shocked boxing Jan.29,1994 at the MGM Grand Garden, knocking down Chavez in the 11th round en route to a unanimous decision. J.C. Super Star had never been knocked down before and was never stopped in his 20-plus year career.

Chavez created the largest crown in boxing history when 130,000 turned out Feb.20,1993 in Mexico City’s Azteca Stadium to see their hero finish off Seattle’s Greg Haugen in five rounds.

For this “Farewell Fight” with Randall, Chavez has
been training in Zinacantepec, Mx., which is more than 12,000 feet above sea level.

The legendary multi-champion’s 18-year-old son with the same name as his father will fight on the undercard.

“I have trained with my sons, but it is difficult to watch them fight,” Chavez admitte..”I have to support them, but it is very hard.”

(Jack Welsh is a syndicated columnist headquartered in Las Vegas.)