WBHOF Banquet
Paul Dalrymple
Morales: Boxing's night of champions
By Robert Morales
Columnist
YOU can call it a fight fan's dream. A once in a lifetime chance to meet
some of the greatest of all time.
It is the World Boxing Hall of Fame 21st annual Banquet of Champions. It
takes place Oct. 21 at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel in Los Angeles.
Not including the four living champions to be inducted, more than 40 current
and former world champions are scheduled to be on hand.
"We will have 40 world champions in one place at one time; it has never been
done before," said Ken Thompson, president of the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
"To have boxers come from every corner of the world to be in one place to
honor some of the best in the boxing world, there is nothing like it. It
really brings the boxing community together."
Thompson, who said a crowd of about 2,000 is expected, said the banquet is a
refreshing reprieve from the constant turmoil that troubles the maligned
sport.
"The only conversation about boxing is usually negative," Thompson said,
"whereas this is the most positive thing that can ever happen."
Puerto Rico's Wilfredo Gomez, Ireland's Barry McGuigan, Scotland's Ken
Buchanan and New Orleans' Ralph Dupas will be enshrined in the boxer
category.
The late Allan Malamud, former Los Angeles Herald-Examiner and Los Angeles
Times sportswriter, trainer/manager Emanuel Steward, referee Richard Steele
and promoter Russell Peltz will be inducted into the expanded category.
Filmmaker Ron Shelton is scheduled to participate in the induction of
Malamud, along with longtime publicist/promoter/matchmaker Bill Caplan.
The posthumous category will be led by former heavyweight champion Tommy
Burns, the shortest heavyweight champion in history at 5-foot-7. Others
include Eddie Booker, Pete Sanstol and Lou Bogash.
That's not all.
"Sugar" Shane Mosley of Pomona will be honored as Fighter of the Year for
the second time in the past three years. He is the first fighter to be twice
so honored.
Fernando Vargas, scheduled to fight Felix Trinidad Jr. on Dec. 2, will break
from camp to personally hand Mosley his award. In a tearful ceremony, Mosley
handed Vargas his Fighter of the Year award last year.
Mosley's father/trainer/manager, Jack, will be honored as Trainer of the
Year. Trainers Angelo Dundee and Eddie Futch, legends in their own time,
have agreed to appear in person to help honor Jack Mosley.
Some of the current and former world champions scheduled to attend include
Carmen Basilio, Enrique Bolanos, Michael Carbajal, Bobby Chacon, Diego
Corrales, Jimmy Ellis, Genaro Hernandez, Danny "Little Red" Lopez, Ray "Boom
Boom" Mancini, Erik Morales, Ruben Olivares, Carlos Ortiz, Zachary Padilla,
Carlos Palomino, Aaron Pryor, Mando Ramos, Johnny Tapia and Richie Sandoval.
Tickets are still available to the public. The champions will pose for
photos and will give autographs.
For more information, call (714) 978-2002.
The festivities actually will begin Oct. 19. That night, Nick Martinez Jr.
of Bassett will embroil himself in his toughest test yet. Martinez will
fight Alfred Ankamah of Ghana in the 10-round junior middleweight main event
at the Pond in Anaheim.
Martinez is 16-0 with seven knockouts. Ankamah is 20-6 with 17 knockouts.
Most importantly, Ankamah is ranked No. 2 by the World Boxing Council.
In a four-round preliminary, highly touted Sergio Mora (1-0) of Montebello
will take on Benito Tzand of Van Nuys via Holland in the junior middleweight
division.
Several of the World Boxing Hall of Fame inductees and other champions who
will attend the banquet will also attend the fights at the Pond.
Prince Naseem Hamed of Sheffield, England has resigned as featherweight
champion for the World Boxing Organization, The London Times reported
Wednesday.
A letter by Hamed's brother/manager, Riath, was sent to the WBO this week,
saying HBO, which holds the television rights to Hamed, did not approve of a
fight with the WBO top challenger, Istvan Kovacs. HBO, the story said, did
not approve of Kovacs as a viable opponent.
Hamed agreed, and instead of waiting to be stripped, he relinquished his
belt.
"This position stems from my desire to fight the world's top fighters rather
than manufactured contenders," Hamed said.
This apparently has set up a bout for the vacant title between Kovacs and
Marco Anto nio Barrera, who currently holds the WBO junior feather weight
belt. Hamed presumably would fight the winner. Barrera would be a heavy
favorite, and Hamed has wanted to fight Barrera for some time.
The Sanity Cruzer
>
>A letter by Hamed's brother/manager, Riath, was sent to the WBO this week,
>saying HBO, which holds the television rights to Hamed, did not approve of
a
>fight with the WBO top challenger, Istvan Kovacs. HBO, the story said, did
>not approve of Kovacs as a viable opponent.
That, by itself, is such bullshit. It is my understanding, HBO refused to
accept Kovacs as Hamed's opponent and (emphasis on "and") still pay Hamed
his regular fee for fighting on HBO. IIRC, HBO was not going to count the
bout with Kovacs against Hamed's commitment to HBO for "X" number of fights.
Team Hamed wouldn't accept HBO's terms. It's not as if Hamed wouldn't
accept Kovacs as an opponent nor was it as if HBO flat-out refused to show
Hamed-Kovacs on the network. HBO just said they weren't going to pay Hamed
as if he were fighting the best available opponent. IIRC, HBO said it would
pay Hamed 60% of his normal fee. So, if Hamed was to have gotten $3 million
for his usual fee, he'd have 'only' gotten $1.8 million for beating up on
Kovacs, and that's just not enough to get Naseem out of bed, I guess.
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