TalkingBoxing News
Reid First for Lacy, Then Wants Calzaghe
WED June 23 -Jeff Lacy Set To Face Robin Reid On Showtime
With a world title unification showdown against WBO 168-pound titleholder Joe Calzaghe all but set for later this year, IBF Super Middleweight Champion Jeff Lacy will first have to defend his crown against former world champion and current IBO super middleweight kingpin, Robin Reid, on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING Saturday, Aug. 6, 2005, at 9 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the west coast)..
Lacy, who has battled opponents in nine different states, as well as England and Wales, will fight in front of his hometown fans for the first time as a pro when he makes his third and toughest title defense to date against Reid at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Fla. Gary Shaw Productions, LLC, will promote the world championship bout.
“Ever since I became professional, I have wanted to fight the best and really prove myself,” said Lacy in an interview with the BBC in early June. “It is my goal to beat Calzaghe and become undisputed champion. But…first I have to get past Reid.”
“When I fight Reid, you are going to be on the edge of your seat,” Lacy told IcWales, the national website of Wales. “I know he comes to fight and he is going to bring it to me. “But, I love that. I am not scared.”
Lacy (19-0, 15 KOs), of St. Petersburg, Fla., will make his 13th SHOWTIME appearance and third defense of the IBF 168-pound belt he won with an impressive eighth-round TKO over Syd Vanderpool Oct. 2, 2004, on SHOWTIME. The first 2000 Olympian to win a world title, Lacy retained his title the first time with a 12-round unanimous decision over Omar Sheika Dec. 2, 2004, on SHOWTIME from Las Vegas.
“I just want to fight often and win,” said Lacy, who outpointed Sheika 117-111 and 115-113 twice. “Reid is coming to take something away from me, and it is my job to keep him from doing it.’’
Lacy was leading a fast-paced, terrific action fight on March 5, 2005, against Rubin Williams by the scores 59-54, 59-55 and 58-57 when it was stopped 47 seconds into the seventh round on SHOWTIME.
"I got stronger and stronger as the rounds went by," Lacy said after his ninth TKO in 19 bouts. "Williams was determined. He was a bad boy. I have to admit he has a great chin, but I can dish it out and I can take it."
One of nine children, Lacy and three of his siblings were raised in St. Petersburg by their father, Hydra. A former boxer, Hydra competed in the 1968 U.S. Olympic Trials and went 13-4-1 in the pros. Two of Lacy’s older brothers spent time in jail.
“Watching my brothers and my father made me want to stay away from trouble,” Lacy said. Lacy steered clear of the law, but could not avoid fighting, especially at school. So, his father sent the then-eight-year-old to a gym.
“They put headgear and the gloves on me,” the younger Lacy recalled. “I thought, ‘This is punishment? This will be fun.’ They put me in with a kid smaller than me. I thought, ‘You cannot beat me. I am bigger than you.’ I started throwing punches and he was moving around. I kept waiting for him to stop, but he did not. When I got tired, he came at me. He beat my butt.’’ Lacy went 209-12 in the amateurs, won numerous competitions and made it to the second round of the 2000 Olympics.
Reid (38-4-1, 27 KOs), of Runcorn, England, captured the World Boxing Council (WBC) super middleweight title by knocking out defending champion Vincenzo Nardiello in the seventh round on Oct. 12, 1996. He successfully defended the championship three times during his one-year reign before losing it to Thulane Malinga via a 12-round decision on Dec. 19, 1997.
Following a non-title victory in 1998, Reid, whose four losses have been by decision, took WBO Super Middleweight Champion Calzaghe to the edge of defeat before dropping a controversial 12-round split decision on Feb. 13, 1999. Two of the judges scored it 116-111 for the champion, while the third had it 116-111 for the challenger.
After capturing the World Boxing Federation (WBF) 168-pound crown and making four successful defenses, Reid again forced a world champion to go the distance before losing a 12-round decision. On Dec. 13, 2003, then-WBA/IBF champion Sven Ottke retained his titles by the scores 115-113 twice and 117-112.
Reid has won 12 out of his last 13 bouts, including a 12-round decision over Brian Magee on June 26, 2004, in Belfast, Ireland, to claim the IBO super middleweight title. Reid sent his opponent to the canvas four times and triumphed by the scores 115-111, 114-111 and 113-112.
In his last outing, Reid pitched a six-round shutout over Ramdan Serdjane on Feb. 13, 2005. The referee scored the fight 60-54.
At the age of 21, Reid slugged his way to a bronze medal at the Barcelona Olympics.
SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING’s Steve Albert and Al Bernstein will call the action from ringside with Jim Gray serving as roving reporter. The executive producer of the SHOWTIME telecast will be Jay Larkin, with David Dinkins Jr. producing and Bob Dunphy directing.
For information on SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING and “ShoBox: The New Generation” telecasts, including complete fighter bios and records, related stories and more, please go the SHOWTIME website at http://www.sho.com/boxing.
Hatton Storms America
WED June 23, CURTIS McCORMICK - Fresh off battering the great Kostya Tszyu in Manchester, England, Ricky "The Hitman" Hatton is in America to sit ringside as two of his biggest rivals, WBC Light Welterweight titlist Arturo Gatti and unbeaten top contender/former two weight world champion Floyd Mayweather, square off on Saturday night at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. The "Whirlwind of Bad Intent" will also be the studio guest analyst on the popular ESPN 2 Friday Night Fights program and will participate in both HBO and Sky TV's broadcast of the greatly anticipated, epic pay per view Gatti - Mayweather fight.
Few outside of Hatton's camp and his huge following of loyal fans in Britain felt that "The Hitman" was on anything but a suicide mission when he climbed through the ropes against the greatly feared light welterweight divisional kingpin and IBF Champion Kostya Tszyu three weeks ago. Powered by an iron will, granite jaw, inexhaustible stamina and vastly underrated skills, Hatton traded with Tszyu on even terms before eventually breaking down the great champion and delivering a frightful beating that prevented the Australian based native Russian from answering the bell in the final round.
In one spectacular performance Hatton punched his way into the boxing world's exclusive pound for pound top class and gained the recognition that was denied to the Mancunian for so long. "Everyone always said that I was overhyped, looked after, that I didn't want to fight the best and that I was avoiding the big challenges," remarked the twenty six year old. "But I put all those things to sleep now. To think of how few people fancied me to win the fight with Kostya, to actually beat him and beat those doubts, that was as important as winning the IBF belt, I suppose in many ways. I feel that I had been putting in good performances and been beating good men but everybody had always put a question mark beside my name, which was disappointing, so it's nice to finally get past that."
Despite near constant allegations in the past that he was afraid to fight outside of his native England, Hatton is thrilled to be in America and would like nothing better than to fight there, particularly Las Vegas or New York's fabled Madison Square Garden. Before the location of his next bout can even be discussed, an opponent has to be sorted out by Hatton and his promoter, London based Frank Warren and his firm Sports Network.
One such potential adversary who has possibly fallen by the wayside is WBO and WBC Lightweight Champion Diego Corrales. Negotiations for a bout between the two to be held in the fall have been reportedly shelved for at least the time being. While nothing is definite right now, a contest with Corrales is something "The Hitman" would have relished. "I don't really know too much of what's happening at the minute about the Corrales fight, but if it has fallen through, it's a disappointment because it would have been a great matchup," said Hatton. "There's not a shortage of good fights out there for me, so it's not like panic stations or anything like that, but I would have loved to have fought Diego Corrales, so it's very disappointing if it has indeed fallen through."
While the circumstances of Hatton's next outing is still to be decided, the newly minted IBF Champion will have a very close look on Saturday at two men that he could very well face in the future. "I'm over in America mainly to watch the Gatti - Mayweather fight and hopefully, either immediately, down the line or in the very near future, get a fight with the winner." he said. "That's why I'm here really and but I'm also interested in being in America to hear feedback on what people thought of my performance against Kostya Tszyu. This is the first time I've been in America for awhile and I know there's a lot of interest after my winning the IBF belt, so it's the first chance I've had to walk around and speak to people over here."
"I'm looking forward to seeing the fight and I'd like Gatti to win but I think that Mayweather might have just a little bit too much for him, a little too much up his sleeve. But, Mayweather isn't the biggest of light welterweights and obviously Arturo can punch a fair bit. It's a good fight and not a foregone conclusion but I'd slightly lean towards Mayweather."
The future is very bright for Ricky Hatton, the Ring Magazine number one light welterweight and proud owner of one of the busiest fighter sites, www.rickyhitmanhatton.com, on the web. With great lightweight fighters such as Diego Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo rumored to be joining the very deep light welterweight class, there should be ample opportunity for the top British fighter since Lennox Lewis to participate in the great contests he's been clamoring for. "I just feel that even though I've achieved my main goal of becoming the number one in the division, this is just the start of a new career for me," exclaimed Hatton. "I've only just gotten to my prime, just reached my peak, and I feel that a new phase is about to start because there's a lot of good champions and big fights out there, and I'm far from the end of my career."
www.rickyhitmanhatton.com
