TalkingBoxing News
Hola 'Adios' Tour; Chavez Back in Arizona
FRI June 17 - A final bout at the Staples Center on May 28th was to be the last for legend Julio Cesar Chavez on his "Adios" Tour, but could now become the first. Face it, it's a tour and the definition of the word is to visit various places. Chavez could have a few more stops in Illinois and Texas, too in addition to the newly annouced west-coast stop.
Chavez is scheduled to fight on August 13th at the America West Arena in Phoenix, Arizona with no official word on who he would be taking on at this time. The legend took a unanimous decision over Ivan Robinson back in May and will be turning 43-years of age over the summer.
Ticket prices for this showdown will be a reasonable $25-$200.
Wright, De la Hoya in Talks
FRI June 17 - A pair of big wins over Shane Mosley and most recently a total destruction of Felix Trinidad via a wide decision and former undisputed junior middleweight champion Winky Wright finds himself nearing a potential bout with Oscar De la Hoya later this year.
Wright recently spoke with TalkingBoxing, believing that a De la Hoya fight was out of the question, but now the pair is in discussions for making a super-fight and Wright would love to make the money that De la Hoya brings. The weight of the fight could even be settled on at 154-lbs, a "catch-weight" for both Wright and De la Hoya.
"I would love to fight Oscar. I would love to fight Bernard [Hopkins], too, but there is more money in fighting Oscar," Wright told the Tampa Tribune's Anwar Richardon.
Just weeks ago, Wright discussed fighting the middleweight champion Hopkins saying, "I want to fight Bernard, and then if Jermain [Taylor] wins [on July 16th], then I guess it will be Jermain, but it is better for me that I fight Bernard because he is the bigger name, bigger draw."
De la Hoya has offered Wright a contract [reportedly $6 million, just $1 million above what he made for Trinidad] for the fight, but the negotiations are by no means finished and will be rather complicated with the many parties involved. Top Rank, Don King, Gary Shaw and Golden Boy Promotions are all in the tangled web of talks right now.
Former WBA Champ Rivera Moves to 154
FRI June 17 - Former WBA welterweight champion Jose Antonio Rivera (37-4-1, 24 KOs) has
announced that he has decided to move up from the 147-pound welterweight division to 154-pound junior middleweight.
Rivera, of Worcester (MA), recently signed a three-year promotional agreement with Don King Productions and he reportedly will fight on the Rahman-Barrett August 13 card in Chicago as a junior middleweight.
“I walk around at 168-172 pounds and making 147 draws the life out of me,” Rivera explained his decision to move up to junior middleweight. “Losing 25 is becoming impossible. I would have loved to fight (Luis) Collazo in a rematch if we could have done it in July. But our rematch wouldn’t have happened until the fall and I can’t starve myself anymore. There are a lot of great fights for me at 154 and I’m confident that Mr. King will give me the opportunity to fight for a world title again.”
Rivera noted that, in the past as a welterweight, he was supposed to fight two of today’s top 154-pound contenders – Fernando Vargas (1998, Jose ruptured a tendon in his wrist) and Ricardo Mayorga (April, 2004 – Mayorga weighed 6 ˝ pounds overweight). “I’d really love to fight Mayorga for a title in Worcester,” Rivera noted. “It’ll sellout as soon as it’s announced. I’ll fight any of the champions or big names – (Kassim) Ouma, (Daniel) Santos, (Alexandro) Garcia, (Cory) Spinks, (Travis) Simms or (Javier) Castillejo.”
Campas-Vanda PPV Celebrates Duran, June 24th
FRI June 17 - The legendary Roberto Duran, who celebrated his 54th birthday on Thursday, was on a national conference call to promote the June 24th Team Freedom pay-per-view fight headlined by Yory Boy Campas vs. Matt Vanda.
The fight will emanate from the Target Center in Minneapolis, and will also feature a celebration of the 25th anniversary of Duran's memorable victory over Sugar Ray Leonard, the first loss in Leonard's tremendous career, to win the WBC welterweight title.
On why he is now promoting fights for Team Freedom: "I want to be remembered as a great fighter and great person; I want to keep the Roberto Duran name out there so people don't forget."
On how it felt to defeat Leonard: "I was elated after that win. He was the Golden Boy, the idol of the U.S. But I was ready mentally and physically. I felt I had won over the Montreal fans, I was very happy."
Could the fighters of today in his division beat him. "I know all the fighters well. Some of them might be hard fights, but it would be very difficult for any of these fighters to beat me because I am on a different level."
Does he have any regrets about the No Mas rematch against Leonard? "Leonard's people outsmarted my people, they knew I was going to party hard after the win. They outsmarted us by having the rematch so soon after the first fight. I had a difficult time making the weight. I was really upset at the management team."
On how the rematch ended: "I never said no mas, how could (television broadcaster) Howard Cosell hear what I was saying, he was on the other side of the ring."
Here is the release on the Campas vs. Vanda card featuring the Duran tribute.
"BATTLE FOR PRIDE" HEADLINED BY YORY BOY CAMPAS VS. MATT VANDA LIVE ON PPV
It will be the veteran warrior against the young turk fighting in his home town when Team Freedom Promotions, Inc. presents "Battle For Pride," a super welterweight showdown featuring Mexican great Yory Boy Campas, the former world champion, against Matt Vanda, the local hero, live on Pay-Per-View on Friday night, June 24, from the Target Center in Minneapolis.
The PPV featuring four hotly contested fights is priced at $19.95, and is available by contacting your local cable provider.
The evening will also feature a tribute to the career of the legendary Roberto Duran, who celebrates the 25th Anniversary of his memorable victory over Sugar Ray Leonard this year. Duran scored his tremendous triumph over Leonard on June 20, 1980 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, almost 25 years to the date of the coming silver anniversary celebration in Minneapolis.
Vanda, who has appeared on national television on both ESPN and Showtime, is the pride of St. Paul, MN, and has put forth a stellar 33-1 ring record with 21 wins coming by way of knockout. The 26-year-old will be facing his stiffest test in Campas, the standout from Colonia Moderna, Mexico, who has compiled an incredible 86 victories during a remarkable career, suffering only seven setbacks, and scoring 70 knockout victories. Campas now fights out of Phoenix, AZ. Campas defeated Raul Marquez to capture the IBF Light Middleweight crown in Atlantic City on December 6, 1997, a title he ultimately lost to Oscar De La Hoya. Campas began his career at the age of 15 as a young phenom in his native Mexico in 1987.
"If Matt wins this fight, it puts him in a position to take on the likes of De La Hoya, Vargas, Quartey, Mosley, as well as all of the 154-pound champions," said Leon Margules, president of Team Freedom promotions. "Should Campas score, he would again become a player in the division."
