LAS VEGAS – A lot was promised. Return to Glory, the ads said. The glory will have to wait. But there was a return of sorts. An American-born fighter has regained a version of the heavyweight title.

Deontay Wilder did it Saturday night with a unanimous decision, taking the World Boxing Council’s belt from a plodding Bermane Stiverne Saturday night at the MGM Grand.

“I’m so happy to bring the belt back to America, officially,’’ said Wilder, the first American-born champ since Shannon Briggs won a belt in the bout’s final second of a 2006 walk-off knockout of Sergey Liakhovich in a ring above the pitcher’s mound at the Arizona Diamondbacks home field in downtown Phoenix.

Briggs victory didn’t exactly re-conquer an old American possession. Then, the flag went up and came down in Banana Republic time. It’s hard to know whether Wilder’s victory will result in any real permanence. For now, however, it’s a foothold by a young heavyweight still learning his trade

“I want to be around for a long, long time,’’ Wilder (33-0, 32 KOs) said over the Haitian-born Stiverne 24-2-1, 21 KOs).

Translation: He wants to make history. He talked about history after the one- sided scorecards – 120-107, 118-109 and 119-108 – were announced.

Wilder dedicated his victory to Muhammad Ali, who turned 73 Saturday. He talked about civil rights leader Martin
Luther King, whose national holiday will be celebrated Monday.

“Martin Luther King, he shocked the world,’’ Wilder said. “I shook it.’’

Truth is, he only shook only Stivrne a few times, once in the fifth round and again in the seventh. It was in the seventh that it looked as if Wilder would keep his unbeaten record perfect. But another stoppage eluded him.

Wilder threw s a straight right, a deadly fastball, which knocked Stiverne on to his heels and backpedaling across the canvas. Only the ropes kept the Haitian’s 239 pounds from crushing a customer or two in the ringside seats. Those same ropes also might have kept him upright. He was dazed. But not done.

Stiverne, blood dripping from a cut above one eye, kept moving forward, yet never throwing, much less landing, more than a punch or two at a time.

“I just wasn’t ready,’’Stiverne said. “I didn’t cut off the ring the way I wanted to.’’

The biggest surprise was Wilder’s ability to go 12 rounds. He had never been beyond four. His elusiveness throughout the bout helped explain why he was a skinny 219 pounds at the weigh-in Friday. Wilder, 6-foot- 6 ½, trained to be quick. He was able to say away from Stiverne.

“Who can’t box, who can’t box?’’ Wilder yelled at press row after the final bell.

Maybe, Wilder can. But the jury is still out on that one.

In the 10th, there were scattered boos from the crowd of 8,453. If Wladimir Klitschko was watching the Showtime telecast from his home n Germany, he probably didn’t lose any sleep at what he saw.

The pace had slowed to a deadly crawl. In the end, however, Wilder had the smarts and conditioning to reach the finish line. He won a significant fight and got a belt for his efforts. But the real test, that test of time, is just a beginning.

WBC Super Bantamweight World Champion Leo Santa Cruz defended his crown for the fourth time with an eighth-round TKO of Jesus Ruiz and afterword called out fellow champions Abner Mares and Guillermo Rigondeaux in the co-feature of SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING.

The early rounds were close and competitive and Ruiz, a heavy underdog, seemed to be a tougher test than he looked on paper. But it was clear that Santa Cruz was landing the cleaner shaper punches. The former bantamweight world champion landed some meaningful shots and had Ruiz in trouble in the seventh and, for the first time, it appeared that he could finish Ruiz.

Santa Cruz (29-0-1, 17 KOs) came out blazing in the eighth, landed a big right cross to kick off the round and continued to tee-off on the challenger. In trouble against the ropes and not fighting back, referee Kenny Bayless jumped in and stopped the bout with Ruiz (32-6-5, 21 KOs) still on his feet at :29 of the eighth round. The champion landed 43 percent of his total punches and nearly 50 percent of his power punches, while landing an impressive 73 power shots to the body.

“Like I expected, it was a war,” Santa Cruz said. “He came prepared. We hurt him and we didn’t let the chance go away. We kept going after him and we stopped him. I hurt him with the right hand. I knew he was hurt so I went after him. I knew Kenny Bayless would stop it because he wasn’t throwing punches.

“I want the best and I want to please the fans. I want (Abner) Mares, I want (Guillermo) Rigondeaux. Hopefully our next fight is against one of the best.”

Ruiz, who only landed 22 percent of his total punches, disagreed with the stoppage.

“I want a rematch,” Ruiz said. “I don’t feel they should have stopped the fight, but I have to accept it. But I’m fine. Look at me – I’m not cut. He didn’t even drop me.”

In the opening bout of the SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast, undefeated super lightweight Amir Imam floored Fidel Maldonado Jr. four times and scored a fifth-round TKO in a brawl that featured five total knockdowns.

Maldonado was the busier fighter, but Imam floored the Albuquerque resident for the fourth time in his career with a short right just a moment before the bell rang to end the second. Then, in an early candidate for Round of the Year that featured three knockdowns, Maldonado responded by knocking down Imam for the first time in his career 30 seconds into the third with a solid straight left. Imam bounced back and sent Maldonado to the canvas with a huge right with 20 seconds left in the third and then again with a straight right as part of a vicious attack with less than 10 seconds left in the round.

The action continued and Imam (16-0, 14 KOs) floored Maldonado for the fourth time in the fight with a short right followed by a left hook just seconds before the bell to close the fifth. Maldonado (19-3, 16 KOs) got up but was wobbling and referee Robert Byrd halted the contest at 2:59. Imam’s power was the difference, landing 50 percent of his power shots.

“It was a tough knockdown, but champions get up and finish the fight hard and that’s what I did,” Imam said. “I just had to stay composed and do what I had to do. “I started timing him. When I hit him with that good shot he was out. I could see it. That was the rope-a-dope. I was swinging for the fences and that was it, baby.

“I’m ready for the title shot right now. I just want to fight for the title.”

Four of the five knockdowns occurred with less than 30 seconds left in each round. After the fight, Maldonado admitted that he simply failed to protect himself when the rounds were winding down.

“I just got caught with a couple of punches,” Maldonado said. “He kept his composure and he came out with the W. I just got caught. I got lazy in there and he capitalized. He was the better man tonight. I got kind of bored at the end of the rounds and I paid for it.”

In the main event of SHOWTIME BOXING on SHO EXTREME, undefeated light heavyweight prospect Vyacheslav Shabranskyy (12-0, 10 KOs) kept his perfect record intact with a thoroughly convincing TKO victory of Garrett Wilson (13-9-1, 7 KOs).

Shabranskyy kept his distance and was very effective; landing 48 percent of his power shot and threw more than 60 punches in each round. The Ukrainian prospect scored a knockdown with a right in the closing seconds of the second and another with a clean right in the final 10 seconds of the eighth, sending Wilson face first to the canvas. Wilson beat the count but was saved by the bell as Shabranskyy unloaded more than a dozen consecutive punches.

The durable Wilson took a tremendous beating in the ninth and seemingly didn’t land a punch, forcing referee Jay Nady to stop the bout after the ninth upon suggestion of the ringside physician.

In the opening bout of the SHO EXTREME telecast, heavyweight Eric Molina (23-2, 17 KOs) defeated Raphael Zumbano (32-9-1, 25 KOs) via eighth round TKO in a one-sided affair.

Molina, who landed 76 percent of his power shots and more than 50 percent of his total punches, was connecting at will when referee Russell Mora halted the contest at 1:28 of the eighth.

In a non-televised swing bout, Cesar Quinonez (1-0, 1 KO), a Las Vegas native and the first fighter to go professional from Fernando Vargas’ gym Feroz Fight Factory, made his professional debut and scored a knockout win over Chula Vista’s Joan Valenzuela (1-2) in the second round at 2:13.

By Norm Frauenheim–

LAS VEGAS – Canelo Alvarez still plans to fight on May 2, but it looks as if he won’t be fighting Miguel Cotto.

In a story first reported by www.boxingscene.com, Canelo promoter Oscar De La Hoya said Saturday that he is looking for alternate opponents after Cotto did not accept an offer Friday night.

“The deadline has passed,’’ De La Hoya told reporters at the MGM Grand after he and David Lemieux talked about the Montreal middleweight’s new multi-year deal with Golden Boy Promotions.

Timothy Bradley is rumored to be a Canelo option. James Kirkland is another.

Negotiations broke down over money, according to De La Hoya. Cotto, the reigning middleweight champion, didn’t get as much as he wanted.

A bout between Canelo, a popular Mexican, and Cotto, a Puerto Rican, would have been another chapter in the rich Mexican-Puerto Rican rivalry. It also was seen as a good way to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, a Mexican holiday and a traditional time for big fights.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. has said he wants to fight Manny Pacquiao on May 2. Pacquiao representatives have said the Filipino has agreed to terms. However, there’s been no response from Mayweather and — as of Saturday – still no agreement.

Cotto-Mayweather has been speculated if Pacquiao-Mayweather breaks down. There’s also a financial motivation for a Mayweather-Canelo rematch. Mayweather’s decision over Canelo in 2013 set revenue records.

By Norm Frauenheim

LAS VEGAS – The heavyweights undergo more study than a species near extinction. That means everybody has a theory or maybe an autopsy.

They’re either vanishing faster than Arctic ice, or they’ve moved to Germany, or they’re NFL linebackers, or they’ve been eliminated and forgotten by Wladimir Klitschko’s consummate skill.

Take your pick.

None-of-the-above is the hope held by promoters and Showtime for the Deontay Wilder-Bermane Stiverne bout Saturday night at the MGM Grand. Picking the fight’s winner is a tough call, which is also a damning reflection of a division that has fallen from prominence.

Stiverne is said to have more experience at a higher level, but it’s really not enough to proclaim him a clear-cut favorite over Wilder, a former Klitschko sparring partner who has a record of proven power yet doubts about his opposition and chin.

It’s safe to say that neither Stiverne nor Wilder strikes much fear in the Klitschko empire. Wladimir will be happy to fight, either. In a business still consumed by talk about whether welterweights Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr will ever fight, however, there’s unmistakable hope that Stiverne and Wilder will deliver the kind of drama that gets people talking.

The heavyweights have been here before. Too many times. Promoters are calling Stiverne-Wilder a Return To Glory. From Michael Grant through Shannon Briggs, however, it’s been a deadly succession of reasons to forget the heavyweights. More like a requiem than a return.

On Muhammad Ali’s 73rd birthday, however, maybe Stiverne and Wilder can stage the beginnings of a resurrection. The records are there. Stiverne, who holds the WBC belt, is 24-1-1 with 21 KOs, including a solid stoppage last May in a rematch with Chris Arreola, pronounced Orreo-la by promoter Don King. Wilder is 32-0, all by stoppage within four rounds.

Then there’s some edgy talk. Both have played their roles, uttering insults and often in a tone that says they mean it. Just listen to Stiverne. Before Wilder, he was as quotable as a doorknob. Now he has plenty to say.

The words continued after the weigh-in Friday when he looked a little soft at 239 pounds, a half-pound lighter than he was for Arreola. Wilder was 20 pounds lighter at 219.

At Thursday’s news conference, Wilder said a prayer he had written. To Stiverne’s ears, however, it sounded blasphemous.

“An insult to God,’’ Stiverne said. “That prayer was disrespectful.’’

Perhaps that was Stiverne’s way of saying Wilder has no prayer at taking the WBC’s green strap.

“This green belt is staying right here in this green hotel,’’ Stiverne said of the shade that gives the MGM Grand its distinctive look.

Stiverne also said that he detected something less than confidence in Wilder eyes during another nose-to-nose pose for the cameras. After a few seconds, Wilder broke it off, turned and walked to the back of the stage.

“One thing you got to know,’’ Stiverne said. “Eyes don’t lie. I could see it all in his eyes. He ain’t ready for this thing.’’

Then again, Stiverne has to look up to look into Wilder’s eyes. At 6-feet 6 ½, Wilder is four-and-a-half inches taller than the 6-2 Stiverne. Wilder’s advantage in height, according to some analysts, represents a stylistic problem for Stiverne.

If Wilder employs his long jab, Stiverne will have to work his way inside. But that’s when he could run into the huge right hand that Wilder has used to stop 32 straight opponents. But Stiverne has promised he knows a way to win, a way that he says will make everybody forget about Wilder.

“We’ll have to see,’’ Wilder said. “But I’m sure the People’s Champ, soon to be the world’s champ, will be around for a long time.’’

Maybe the heavyweights will be too.

NOTES: Wilder will collect $1 million, $90,000 more than Stiverne’s $910,000 minimum, according to contracts filed with the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

Junior featherweight champion Leo Santa Cruz (28-0-1, 16 KOs) was at 122 pounds at Friday weigh-in. His unknown challenger, Mexican Jesus Ruiz (32-5-5, 21 KOs), was at 121.5. Santa Cruz is guaranteed $750,000. Ruiz will collect $50,000.

Emerging welterweights Amir Imam (15-0, 13 KOs) of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Fidel Maldonado Jr. (19-2, 16 KOs) of Albuquerque meet in 10 rounder in Showtime’s first bout. Imam was 140 pounds at Friday’s weigh-in. Maldonado was at 139.

Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions has already begun to re-build a roster that lost several prominent fighters in the settlement with his former CEO, Richard Schaefer. Golden Boy announced Friday that it has signed middleweight David Lemieux, who was impressive on HBO in December with a stoppage of Gabe Rosado. De La Hoya and Lemieux are scheduled to meet with media Saturday.

By Norm Frauenheim

LAS VEGAS — At times, it was bizarre. At times, downright goofy. It was also long-winded, sometimes dull. Yet, it was also unpredictable, often entertaining and controversial enough to keep everybody interested.

Welcome to a boxing news conference that has begun to vanish, especially the heavyweight variety. But it was back Thursday, which is another of way saying the bully pulpit witnessed the return of Don King, malaprops and all. He’s an octogenarian, but there’s still a boom in those 83-year-old vocal chords.

For King, talking is like breathing. He exhales strange references, twisted metaphors and unexpected references the way the rest of the world exhales oxygen. Pretty much all of the time. It lasted for at least two hours at the MGM Grand.

Deontay Wilder and Bermane Stiverne were supposed to be the featured performers. After all, they fight for the WBC’s version of the heavyweight title Saturday night in a Showtime-televised bout. Wilder, of Alabama, and Stiverne, a Haitian, played their roles in what was a performance art.

“I’m gonna put the Haitian on vacation,’’ said Wilder, who is as good at the rhyming game as King.

But most of the rest of the show belonged to King, who wore a familiar denim jacket covered in flags, sequins and who-knows-what-all. He talked about former Army General and CIA director David Patreaus, who has been accused of telling classified secrets to a woman in an alleged affair

“Send a national, American hero to jail for a mistake so many people make?’’ King said. “That don’t send out a good message. Pray for Prateaus.’’

Pray, too, King said, for Nevada Senator Harry Reid, who hurt himself on a treadmill.

“Falling off treadmills and things, that’s really disasterly,’’ said King, who also found time to wish Golden Boy Promotions vice president Bernard Hopkins a happy 50th birthday. “Pray for Harry Reid.’’

Pray, too, for those of us who were trying to figure out what King would address next. Global warming? Islamic terrorism? Obama care? At some point, however, the immediate task at hand had to move front and center. Trying to sell a heavyweight fight these days isn’t easy, especially amid talk and only talk about whether welterweights Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr will fight on May 2.

But King hasn’t lost his voice, or his salesmanship, or his ability to counter trash talk with a quip of his own. King promotes Stiverne.

During Wilder’s turn at the podium, he turned to King and said:

“I heard, Don, that if there’s a chance of your guy winning, they’re going to get rid of you,’’ said Wilder, who went on to suggest that Stiverne would sign with Mayweather Promotions.

Wilder’s source? Connect the dots: Wilder’s advisor is power broker Al Haymon, whose No. 1 client is Mayweather.

“Don’t feel bad when you lose,’’ King said to Wilder when he returned to the podium and began a long-winded intro of Stiverne. “I know you think it’s your time, but there’s going to be an interruption for refreshments.’’

The interruption, King promised, would be Stiverne. The guess is that Stiverne will also be the refreshment. We tried to ask King about that, but he was already off and running with some speech about George W. Bush. Or was that Jeb Bush? Maybe both. But you get the idea.

The unflappable Stiverne did his best to answer the rumor posed by Wilder.

Stiverne stood at the podium, turned to King, shook his hand and called him ”my promoter, who I’m staying with. Now, you’ve heard it.’’

We heard a few other things, too.

Wilder’s 32-0 record includes an astonishing 32 stoppages, all within four rounds.

“I’m going to keep your record clean, cause you ain’t getting past four rounds,’’ Stiverne (24-1-1, 21 KOs) said to Wilder. “And that’s a ridiculous suit you’re wearing.’’

The rhetoric intensified. Wilder called Stiverne “a tourist with a belt.” Stiverne promised Wilder that he’s “gonna get hurt, hurt bad.’’

After the talking was done, they posed in a news-conference ritual. They stood there, eye-to-unblinking eye, for several minutes. The stare-down ended only when both were pushed away in opposite directions. Then, the talking resumed.

“Heh-heh-heh,’’ King chuckled.

A man, who has seen it all, was happy to see it all over again.

By Norm Frauenheim–

Gennady Golovkin’s stop in Los Angeles Wednesday at the end of an international tour for his Feb. 21 bout with Martin Murray in Monaco was an anti-dote, timely relief from speculation about what’s happening or not happening in negotiations for Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Canelo Alvarez-Miguel Cotto.

Boxing is stuck in never-never land these days, but at least there’s Golovkin, who brings a clear sense of purpose and direction to what he’s doing.

Some of the best-known names continue to avoid him with a litany of tired excuses. The latest, Peter Quillin, said Golovkin just isn’t a draw. Huh? Didn’t he just sell out the Stub Hub Center in Carson, Calif., for his quick stoppage of Marco Antonio Rubio? Quillin wishes he could draw crowds like GGG.

But with that unflappable, what-me-worry grin, Golovkin moves forward, telling a news conference that he plans to fight four times in 2015. The Murray bout is intriguing and perhaps Golovkin’s toughest to date.

Murray knocked down Sergio Martinez and lost a 12-round decision to the then middleweight champ in Buenos Aires. The durable Murray promises to test GGG. But the guess here is that Golovkin wins in the late rounds for a 19th successive stoppage.

Then what? Some familiar names were mentioned Wednesday. Golovkin trainer Abel Sanchez continues to talk about Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Chavez, he says, has a style that would produce a dynamically dramatic bout with Golovkin. But Chavez’ contract problems with Top Rank could put him on the legal shelf for a while.

Here’s another idea: Go straight to Canelo Alvarez, the popular Mexican who is moving up weight for a shot at Cotto’s 160-pound title. Canelo has said he’s willing to fight Golovkin. Representatives for Canelo and Cotto are reportedly close to a deal for a May 2 bout, another potential classic in the great Mexican-Puerto Rican rivalry.

There was talk that the agreement would be announced Tuesday. Tuesday came and went with no news. As of Thursday, there was still nothing. A snag? Breakdown? Maybe not. But you never know.

If talks stall, Golovkin should let Golden Boy Promotions know that he’s willing and available for the May 2 date that Canelo wants, no matter happens with Mayweather-Pacquiao and Mayyweather’s attempt to take ownership of the Cinco de Mayo celebration. Mayweather, who calls the prized date Cinco de Mayweather, showed up at a Pacer-Lakers game on Jan. 5 at Staples Center in Los Angeles decked out in Mexican colors.

It was his way of courting Mexican fans. But it could backfire. Mayweather in the green, white and red might be seen as trespassing on Mexico’s historical turf. Meanwhile, Mexican fans already have begun to embrace Golovkin. Before GGG’s victory over Rubio in October, some of those same fans arrived at the Stub Hub Center wearing T-shirts that said: “Mexicans for Golovkin.’’

If Canelo-Golovkin gets done and Canelo wins, then a Golovkin bout could be negotiated for the September date that celebrates Mexican Independence. Mayweather wants to own that date, too. Golovkin could help Canelo in his fight to re-claim it.

By Norm Frauenheim-

The New Year gets a quick start, which is another way of saying there’s an early chance to forget about an old – a very old – year summed up by declining pay-per-view numbers.

The message in the PPV trend is unmistakable. The customers want to see something different or they’ll pay to see something else altogether.

Attention on 2015 begins on Jan. 17 at an end of the scale that has been forgotten in the United States. Remember the heavyweights? Deontay Wilder and Bermane Stiverne at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand might re-inject some interest in the Klitschko Division.

For while, at least, Wilder-Stiverne might quiet the ceaseless noise about a welterweight fight that never seems to happen.

More on that later on a 2015 scorecard, a checklist, that includes a few other wishes:

ü Waldimir Klitschko against the Wilder-Stiverne winner in a bout that would get some media attention in the U.S. It also would be a chance for Klitschko to gain some respect and perhaps enhance his place in heavyweight history.

ü No more talk from or about Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. Just fight, please. There are better bouts out there, but a dysfunctional game needs this one just to prove to an eroding fan base that it can still do business.

ü Pacquiao versus Terence Crawford at 140 pounds. If Pacquiao-Mayweather continues to produce only rhetoric and no fight, Crawford could end the talk. Crawford, a leading contender for Fighter of Year, is in his prime and as capable of beating Pacquiao as an aging Mayweather is.

ü A quote from Al Haymon

ü A real fight, instead of a one-sided blowout, between fighters represented by Haymon, who didn’t do anything for his matchmaking/promotional reputation with the Danny Garcia-Rod Salka schlock in August.

ü After an idle 2014, Andre Ward back in the ring, in a fight against somebody, anybody.

ü Gennady Golovkin versus Andy Lee, whose dramatic stoppage of Matt Korobov for the WBO’s middleweight belt transformed him into an intriguing GGG possibility. Maybe one who won’t avoid him, too.

ü A bout in the U.S. for breakout star Roman Gonzalez, the unbeaten Nicaraguan flyweight and pound-for-pound contender who hasn’t appeared in the American market since November, 2012.

ü Roman Gonzalez versus Naoya Inoue, who made a late run at Fighter of the Year with his stunning second-round KO of Omar Narvaez for a 115-pound belt. Inoue, a former 108-pound champion and two-time titlist with only eight pro bouts, skipped 112 altogether, perhaps because that weight class belongs to Gonzalez.

ü No more references to a Mayweather sweepstakes for opponents who are at the short end of a winner-take-all business model, boxing’s wealth gap. For two fights, Marcos Maidana got about $6 million. Mayweather’s minimum for both added up to $64 million. Maidana got less than 10 percent of the total. That’s a lousy tip.

ü A re-appearance of master tactician Mikey Garcia, unbeaten and an ex-junior-lightweight champ who hasn’t fought in almost a year. It’ll be 12 months since we saw him in the ring on Jan 25 in a victory over Juan Carlos Burgos in New York.

ü An end without a bout to the sad story of former undisputed middleweight champion Jermain Taylor, who suffered a brain bleed in 2009 and now faces a trial in Arkansas on charges of shooting a cousin. Every time Taylor answers another opening bell, it’s scary.

By Norm Frauenheim

It’s a year that will be remembered for what didn’t happen. There was still no Manny Pacquaio-Floyd Mayweather Jr., despite the resumption of tired talk. Andre Ward, in his prime and perhaps the sport’s greatest pure talent, didn’t fight at all.

Take 2014, put it in a hefty bag and bury it where nobody can ever find it. Please. It’s been a forgettable year.

“Fans are fed up,’’ Oscar De La Hoya said during a media round-table before Amir Khan’s victory over Devon Alexander on Dec. 13.

Declining pay-per-view numbers are proof of what De La Hoya said. Fans, who made Mayweather the highest earning athlete in the world, are headed for the exits. They’ve already forgotten 2014. The question is whether they’ve forgotten the sport, too. We’ll find out in 2015.

It was a lousy year, but it did produce resiliency that has always been there. Comebacks define boxing. Terence Crawford, Sergey Kovalev, Gennady Golovkin, Roman Gonzalez and Nicholas Walters are the leading names in what might be the beginning of another one. They displayed poise, power, skill and charisma throughout a year that ends with Pacquaio-Mayweather talk still dominating blogs and twitter.

It’s impossible to know whether Pacquiao-Mayweather will ever happen. It’s also reasonable to wonder why anybody should even care anymore. The good news is this: There’s a lengthening line of fighters who look as if they could beat either. Behind Crawford and Golovkin, there was a resurrected Khan and an emerging Keith Thurman.

A year from now, maybe we’ll wonder why we continued to even mention Mayweather-Pacquiao. Maybe, the troubled business can move beyond futile speculation that is more a symbol of what’s wrong than right.

If it happens, a look back at 2014 will include the seeds of the rebirth. Here’s a quick look back at what was right and what might make 2015 memorable:

Man of the Year: Bernard Hopkins. A fighter nearly 50-years-old did what a younger Mayweather and a younger Pacquiao have not. He took a huge risk, a chance against the feared Kovalev. He took a beating, too, in what stands as a tough lesson from a wise elder in how to do business.

Fighter of the Year: The collective (no pun intended) face of the fighter from the former Soviet Union. Without Kovalev, Golovkin, Wladimir Klitschko, Vasyl Lomachenko, Ruslan Provodnikov and others, the future would look a lot more uncertain than it does already.

Comeback of the Year: De La Hoya. He re-opened doors and renewed hopes for again doing business across promotional lines when the Golden Boy Promotions chief approached Bob Arum in a peace offering. It’s still not exactly clear how it will all shake out, especially when it comes to messy questions about who has legal contracts with which fighters. Golden Boy or Al Haymon? But De La Hoya’s initiative is a potential beginning.

Promoter of the Year: Kathy Duva. She had the courage to stand up to Haymon and then the Main Events chief staged Kovalev’s one-sided victory over Bernard Hopkins in a bout that represents a game changer, a model for a New Year and a way out of a very old one.

An old year ends Saturday night at Celebrity Theatre with prospects thinking about next year and a heavyweight champion hoping to restore lost promise on a UniMas-televised card staged jointly by Top Rank and Iron Boy Promotions.

Andy Ruiz Jr. (23-0, 17 KOs) looks to extend his unbeaten record and nine-knockout streak against Sergei Liakhovich with a victory a performance that might propel him into the ranks of heavyweight contenders next year.

Liakhovich (26-6, 16 KOs), a Scottsdale heavyweight and a onetime holder of the WBO title, is looking for a second straight victory after three successive losses, including a scary knockout at the hands of Deontay Wilder. Five of Liakhovich’s losses have been by stoppage.

The card (6 p.m. MST) also includes featherweight prospect Oscar Valdez, unbeaten light-heavyweight Trevor McCumby and the American debut of David Benavidez, the young brother of Phoenix junior-welterweight Jose Benavidez Jr., who won the WBA’s interim title last Saturday over Mauricio Herrera in Las Vegas.

Valdez (14-0, 12 KOs), a former Mexican Olympian who went to school in Tucson, faces Jean Sotelo (19-13-2, 10 KOs).

Valdez manager Frank Espinoza, who is known for his work with some of the biggest names in the featherweight division, foresees 2015 as a year in which Valdez gets more media exposure as he moves into position for a shot at a title in 2016.

McCumby (17-0, 13 KOs), of Phoenix, faces Milton Nunez (28-11-1, 25 KOs), also of Colombia.

Meanwhile, David Benavidez fights in the U.S. for the first time. He wasn’t eligible for a license until his birthday Wednesday when he turned 18. He has been fighting professionally in Mexico for the last couple of years. His official record is 6-0, all by KO.

He’s bigger than his brother. He’ll be fighting as a light-heavyweight Saturday against Azamat Umarzoda (1-6-2) of Las Vegas.

“Me and my brother, we kind of have different styles,’’ said David Benavidez, who says he often spars with his brother. “Everytime we spar, I try to knock him out. In sparring, I’m about 180 pounds and he’s 150. He takes my punches real well. I’ll hit him with clean shots and he walks right through.

“He’s more of a boxer-puncher. I can be a puncher-brawler. But I can box, too. Depends on who I’m fighting.’’

By Norm Frauenheim

Controversial decisions and interim titles are little bit like scars. If you haven’t got at least one of them, it’s time for a different line of work. It’s a mixed bag, but it’s a sure a way to measure progress in a chaotic game.

Jose Benavidez Jr. returned to Phoenix from his Dec. 13 victory over Mauricio Herrera in Las Vegas with two of them – a controversial unanimous decision and the World Boxing Association’s interim version of the junior-welterweight title. There were no scars. Not yet anyway. But it’s safe to say that they’ll be there in bigger fights for the unmarked and unbeaten 22-year-old.

His career was launched in one night.

There’s been plenty of reasonable debate about the cards. It continued on web sites and in social media for a couple of days after the 116-112, 117-111, 116-112 scores were announced and then booed. Subsequent attention on Benavidez might not have been there had he stopped Herrera.

In this era of short-attention spans, an extra day or two of tweets and blogs add up to potential marketability. Above all, there’s interest in a rematch. Herrera, who argued his work-rate and body- punching were ignored by the judges, said he wants one.

“If he wants a rematch, sure,’’ Benavidez told 15 Rounds while standing in a ballroom outside of The Cosmopolitan’s arena with the interim belt hanging off his right forearm like a charm bracelet. “He’d be easier to fight.’’

Benavidez said it coolly.

Confidently.

That cool, confident persona was there before opening bell and throughout 12 rounds. Despite doubts about his experience and his ability to go the distance, there was never a word, tone or gesture that said Benavidez ever had a doubt about what would happen or how it would happen.

Even in negotiations for the fight, Benavidez raised some eyebrows when he said no to an offer to fight at a catch-weight – 142 or 143 pounds – in a 10-rounder with no title at stake.

But Benavidez didn’t want an interim step.

He wanted an interim title, the first major belt won by an Arizona fighter since Hall of Fame junior-flyweight Michael Carbajal, who held the WBC and IBF titles before retiring as the WBO champ after a victory over Jorge Arce in 1999.

The day before opening bell, there was another surprise. The 6-foot Benavidez stepped on to the scale at 138.5 pounds, lighter than the shorter Herrera. He looked drawn, refugee hungry. It looked as if he couldn’t last eight rounds, much less 12. Maybe, that’s what he wanted Herrera to think.

Then came the biggest surprise of all. In the opening round, his back was on the ropes and his hands were up in a defensive posture. It was a tactic he used throughout the fight. His father and trainer, Jose Benavidez Sr., kept urging him to get off the ropes and into the center of the ring.

“My dad didn’t want me there, didn’t want me on those ropes,’’ said the junior Benavidez, whose 18-year-old brother, super-middleweight David Benavidez, makes his American debut Saturday night in Phoenix at Celebrity Theatre on a UniMas-televised card (6 p.m. MST) that includes Top Rank prospect Oscar Valdez and heavyweight Andy Ruiz against former champion Sergei Liakhovich. “But I wanted to go 12 rounds. That was important to me. Nobody thought I could do it.’’

He conserved his energy, which allowed him to fight in furious bursts with eye-catching punches, including a jab that is as long and lethal as any. The judges noticed, prompting an argument about whether they were watching at all.

Yes, the punch stats say Herrera outworked Benavidez by a wide margin. He threw 870 punches; Benavidez threw 647. Arguments en behalf of Herrera, however, often exclude accuracy. Benavidez landed 39 percent; Herrera 33 percent.

Stoppages are the result of a punch that lands. Not one that misses. But there are judges whose scoring philosophy favors defense over aggressiveness and vice-versa. It’s not clear-cut and never should be. If Benavidez is as successful as many now expect, he one day will feel as fleeced as Herrera did. Like interim titles, controversy, scars, death and taxes, that’s inevitable.

Against Herrera, however, he displayed an instinctive feel for what, how and when to act. Frustration at the scoring includes complaints that he stole rounds. No doubt bout it. His quick bursts of energy and accuracy won rounds that otherwise might have been even or scored for Herrera. But stealing rounds is a time-honored skill, as fundamental as a jab. Floyd Mayweather Jr. does it. Bernard Hopkins does it.

So does Benavidez, despite his youth and inexperience. Go ahead and argue that Herrera got robbed. Fair enough. But don’t compound the theft by robbing Benavidez of credit for a surprising performance that says this interim champion might be champ for a long time.

LAS VEGAS – A draw?

Timothy Bradley didn’t see it, not from a left eye that was nearly swollen shut and not from an undamaged right eye.

But the judges saw their own way, or three ways to be exact. Put their cards together and the result was a controversial draw with Diego Chaves in an HBO-televised bout at The Cosmopolitan.

“I thought I won the fight clearly,’’ said Bradley (31-2-1, 12 KOs), whose eye was left badly swollen from a couple of head butts in the second. “But the judges saw it different.’’

Only judge Burt Clements agreed with Bradley. He scored it 115-113 for the welterweight from Palm Springs, Calif. Craig Metcalfe had it 114-114. Meanwhile, Julie Lederman had it 116-112 for Chaves (23-2-1, 19 KOs).

The Lederman card angered Bradley promoter Bob Arum, who proceeded to rip the daughter of HBO’s Harold Lederman

Arum would have been okay with a two-point edge for Chaves. He would have argued with a 114-114 score. But, he said, reasonable people can disagree. Lederman’s card, he said was beyond reason.

“The disparity of some of these cards makes all of us look insane,’’ Arum said.

Arum argued that there was incompetency among the judges, because there weren’t enough good ones available because of a busy night when the Nevada Commission had to regulate two major cards, the Top Rank show at The Cosmopolitan and the rival one promoted by Golden Boy at the MGM Grand.

“It shouldn’t have been allowed,’’ said Arum, who also said the Nevada Commission does anything the MGM Grand asks it to.

Arum and the MGM Grand began feuding last April before Bradley lost to Manny Pacquiao. That was a rematch of Bradley’s hugely controversial decision over Pacquiao.

When asked to compare the scorecards from Bradley-Pacquiao I to Bradley -Chaves, Arum said:

“Just as bad.”

But, he also said, that it could be done again.

“Maybe there could be rematch,’’ he said.

But it’s safe to assume it would be without Julie Lederman at a ringside that would be just about anywhere but the MGM Grand.

Before the Bradley-Chaves controversy, Matt Korobov’s own skillset got short-circuited by a sudden surge of power from Andy Lee.

Korobov (24-1, 13 KOs) appeared to be on his way ta o solid decision and the WBO’s vacant middleweight title. Going into the sixth round, the Russian led on all three scorecards. On two, he was pitching a shutout.

What could go wrong? Plenty. Aft a bout a minute in the sixth round had passed, Lee (34-2, 24 KOs) unloaded. First, a left. Then, a right. Boom, double-boom

Korobov hit the canvas and those scorecards landed at the bottom of a nearby trashcan. Referee Kenny Bayless ended it at 1:10 of the round.

“Tough to describe,’’ said Lee, an Irishman from Limerick who once had the late Emanuel Steward as his trainer. “When i thought about this moment, i had a speech in mind. I would like to say thank you to my manager who has done so much for me over the last couple of years.

“But it’s also for the man who made me, Emanuel Steward. We spent seven, eight years together and he said I would win a world title.

“His wife Marie came here today, flew all the way from Detroit.’’

Some of her late husband’s power must have flown with her. For Lee, it landed just in time.

Jose Benavidez Jr. went a distance he had never traveled and to a place he had he had never been. It was trip he had envisioned while growing up in Phoenix. It was a kid’s dream.

But it’s not kid’s stuff anymore.

He’s grown up and the dream is reality.

Benavidez (22-0, 15 KOs) has a world title. It’s interim. But aren’t they all? More significant, the 22-year-old stamped himself as world class.

He did it in a stunner and amid controversy, upsetting Mauricio Herrera (21-5, 7 KOs) for a version of the World Boxing Association’ junior-welterweight title Saturday night in an HBO-televised fight at The Cosmopolitan.

Benavidez’ victory was something of a surprise to everyone but him. He won a unanimous decision that was booed by many in the crowd and condemned by Herrera, who believed he had outworked a young fighter that Top Rank signed when he was a 17-year-old prodigy.

Judges Max De Luca and Eric Cheek both scored it 116-112. Dave Moretti had it 117-111. All for Benavidez.

“Everything I threw – jabs, uppercuts, body shots, — was landing,’’ Benavidez said after going 12 rounds for the first time in his career. “He was aggressive, but I was catching him with everything I threw as he came in at me.’’

Herrara, a Golden Boy Promotions fighter, took the attack to Benavidez from the beginning. In the opening round, Herrera rocked Benavidez with a combination.

But Benavidez, who had never gone beyond eight rounds before Saturday night, appeared to make some subtle adjustments. He was content to sit on the ropes throughout the first three rounds. But he began to circle into the center of the ring in the middle rounds. That’s where he was the most effective, especially with his long photogenic jab.

“I outworked him,’’ said a frustrated Herrera, who had a nasty bruise beneath his left eye. “I did all of the work.’’

Herrera threw more punches, 870 to Benavidez’ 647, according to the punch stats. He landed five more punches, 255-to-250. But Benavidez was more accurate, landing 39 percent to Herrera’s 33 percent.

“I want a rematch,’’ Herrera said. “Of course, I want a rematch.’’

Controversy over the scorecards might lead to one. But that too would be a professional first for Benavidez, a prospect no more.

On the undercard

Egidijus Kavaliauskas, an accomplished amateur in Lithuania now being trained by Robert Gracia in Oxnard, Calif., pushed his pro record as a junior-welterweight to 9-0 with his eighth knockout, a second round stoppage of Jaime Herrera (12-3, 7 KOs) of Frnaklin Park, Ill.

New York light-heavyweight Sean Monaghan, a former bricklayer, continued to build his record, victory-by-victory to an unbeaten 23-0 with is 15th knockout, a second-round KO of Hungarian Daniel Regi (20-12, 9 KOs).

It was a majority draw. It was mostly dull, too. Canadian welterweight Mikael Zewski (26-0-1, 20 KOs) stayed unbeaten, but not untied against Jeremy Bryan (17-4, 7 KOs) of Patterson, NJ.

Junior-welterweight Jose Ramirez (13-0, 10 KOs), a 2012 Olympian, continued his promising apprenticeship, scoring a sixth-round TKO of Anthony Arellano (7-3-1, 3 KOs) of San Ysidro, Calif.

Russian lightweight Denis Shafikov (35-1-1, 18 KOs), now of Los Angeles, kept himself in position for a mandatory shot at the IBF tilte held by Mickey Bey with a unanimous decision over Miguel Angel Mendoza (21-5-2, 21 KOs) of Mexico.

LAS VEGAS — Victor Ortiz is man with many resumes. Movie roles are on one. Floyd Mayweather Jr. is on the other.

Ortiz left the studio and went back to work Saturday on the resume that includes his wild loss to Mayweather

It went off almost as if it had been rehearsed.

Ortiz (30-5-2, 23 KOs) was back at the MGM Grand with a predictable victory, without a head butt and with an impressive third-round stoppage of Manuel Perez (21-11-1, 4 KOs), with whom he knocked heads during Friday’s weigh-in.

But no head games were necessary in the ring. Perez, of Denver, never had much of a chance. Ortiz’ hand speed began to find its mark in the opening round and finished Perez with a succession of blows at 51 seconds of the third.

“If you ain’t first, you’re last,’’ said Ortiz, sounding a lot like the Ricky Bobby character in the film Talladega Nights.

Yeah, Ortiz can act. Maybe, he can still fight, too.

Tokyo junior-middleweight Yoshihiro Kamegai (25-2-1, 22 KOs) walked through Oscar Godoy (13-4, 6 KOs) of San Jose, Calif, Saturday in an early bout on the Showtime-televised card featuring Amir Khan-versus-Devon Alexander at the MGM Grand.

Actually, Kamegai could have walked over him, too. Godoy offered no opposition, hitting the canvas three times, twice in the second round. At 1:58 of the fourth, Godoy was finished, unable to get to his feet before referee Jay Nady reached the count of 10.

Kazakhstan cruiserweight Beibut Shumenov (15-2, 10 KOs), back at work after a one-sided loss to Bernard Hopkins, threw the day’s first punch in front of a lunch time crowd at the MGM Grand, scoring a 5th-round TKO of overmatched Robert Thomas Jr. (14-3-1, 9 KOs) of Beckley, WV.

Tokyo junior-middleweight Yoshihiro Kamegai (25-2-1, 22 KOs) walked through Oscar Godoy (13-4, 6 KOs) of San Jose, Calif, Saturday in an early bout on the Showtime-televised card featuring Amir Khan-versus-Devon Alexander at the MGM Grand.

Actually, Kamegai could have walked over him, too. Godoy offered no opposition, hitting the canvas three times, twice in the second round. At 1:58 of the fourth, Godoy was finished, unable to get to his feet before referee Jay Nady reached the count of 10.

Kazakhstan cruiserweight Beibut Shumenov (15-2, 10 KOs), back at work after a one-sided loss to Bernard Hopkins, threw the day’s first punch in front of a lunch time crowd at the MGM Grand, scoring a 5th-round TKO of overmatched Robert Thomas Jr. (14-3-1, 9 KOs) of Beckley, WV.

By Norm Frauenheim-

LAS VEGAS – Boxing’s chessboard is full of potential moves Saturday with dueling cards that include 18 bouts televised by competing networks and each promoted by rivals who are learning how to cooperate.

Look for more lessons than solutions, more possibilities than answers, for a business confronted by declining pay-per-view numbers and no resolution to the tired question about Manny Pacquiao-versus-Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Pacquiao-Mayweather is a riddle without an answer. Yet, it’s always there, taking the air out of the game and, worse, diverting attention from a generation of young fighters who might help everybody forget about what hasn’t happened.

Meet Keith Thurman.

Fight fans know him. So do fighters. But their awareness of him includes emerging fear. Thurman, a welterweight, is beginning to fall into that category occupied by middleweight Gennady Golovkin. He’s somebody to avoid.

Consider this judgment: Oscar De La Hoya was asked Friday to pick between Thurman and Golovkin.

Who’s better?

“Thurman,’’ said De La Hoya, whose Golden Boy entity is promoting the Showtime television card at the MGM Grand that includes Thurman in a co-featured bout before the main event, a possible Mayweather eliminator between Amir Khan (29-3, 19 KOs) and Devon Alexander (26-2, 14 KOs).

Thurman (23-0, 21 KOs), who faces Italy’s Leonard Bundu (31-0-2, 11 KOs), is unlike Golovkin in one key aspect. He isn’t shy.

Thurman might be in a secondary role Saturday night. But he was front-and-center at Friday’s weigh-in.

He mocked Mayweather’s power. Why-oh-why, he asked, should anybody worry about getting knocked out by the so-called pound-for-pound king. Mayweather hasn’t stopped anybody in nearly a generation.

“If anybody should be scared, it’s Floyd Mayweather,’’ said Thurman, who tipped the official scale at 146 pounds during a weigh-in in which everybody made the mandatory except Jose Ramirez (24-3-2, 15 KOs) , the opponent for featherweight Abner Mares (27-1-1, 14 KOs).

Ramirez was three pounds heavier than a catch-weight, 128. He faced a fine if he did not lose the excess pounds. Both Khan and Alexander weighed 147. Thurman’s opponent, Bundu, came in at 146.5.

If Thurman can’t talk his way into a Mayweather bout, he hopes for a chance at Timothy Bradley, who is the star at the top of Bob Arum’s promoted card Saturday at the nearby Cosmopolitan.

Thurman said he wants to be the first to knock out Bradley (31-1, 12 KOs), who faces Argentina’s Diego Chaves (23-2, 19 KOs) in an HBO-televised show.

The forthright Bradley might be the most reliable possibility for Thurman. He says he’ll fight anybody and there’s never been any reason to doubt him. His promoter, Top Rank, however, might have some other ideas. Kell Brook has been mentioned. So, too, has a rematch with Juan Manuel Marquez .

There are, after all, reasons to avoid Thurman. More reasons than even Golovkin, De La Hoya said.

Both possess dangerous power. But De La Hoya says that Thurman possesses an added dimension in his ability to move. Sure, Golovkin is strong.

“Very strong,’’ De La Hoya said. “When Canelo (Alvarez) was sparring him up in Big Bear (Calif.), he said how strong he was. But a lot of fighters are strong. There are ways of beating strong fighters. But one thing about Keith Thurman is that he knows how to move. He has lateral movement. He throws combinations. He thinks in the ring.

“Golovkin is a fighter who has to beat you with his power. He has to. He can’ beat you by moving side-to-side, or going back. The thing about Golovkin – something that I learned from studying him – is that if he moves back, he can’t fight. He can’t fight. He can’t.

“But try and move him back. Good luck.’’

But at least there’s a chance at doing that. Golovkin still represents optimism at creating new business. Same with Thurman. There’s a potential for good luck in both, unlike the Paquiao-Mayweather riddle. By now, we know where that one leads. Still nowhere.

Notes: Jose Benavidez Jr. came in looking hungry at the weigh-in for his first world-class out against Mauricio Herrara on the Bradley-Chaves undercard. The 6-foot Benavidez (21-0, 15 KOs) was 138.5 pounds Friday for the junior welterweight bout. Herrera (21-4, 7 KOs) was 139.5. “I’m ready, more than ready, ’’ said Benavidez, a Phoenix prospect. “ …Irish middleweight Andy Lee (33-2, 23 KOs) tipped the scales at 19.2. Matt Korobov ((24-0, 13 KOs) was 159.4 Korobov-Lee is on the Bradley-Chaves card. …Unpredictable Victor Ortiz was as unpredictable as ever at the weigh-in for his comeback on the Khan-Chaves card. After some verbal taunts from Manuel Perez (21-10-1, 4 KOs), Ortiz (29-5-2, 22 KOs) began to push his welterweight opponent across the stage with the same forehead he used to head-butt Mayweather.

By Norm Frauenheim

LAS VEGAS — The ring doesn’t look like much of a refuge. Ropes contain the violence within them. Step inside at your own peril. But Devon Alexander feels more fortunate than ever at his chance to be there Saturday night. It’s his shelter from the storm.

“With all the stuff in Ferguson – the rioting and everything going on, coming here is iike a vacation for me,’’ Alexander said Thursday during a news conference at the MGM Grand before his welterweight bout Saturday night with Amir Khan. “You know, having fun.

“All of that stuff going on back there is crazzzzy. So, I just want to thank everyone.’’

Crazzzzy, all right.

True, too.

Alexander grew up in St. Louis about 15 minutes from Ferguson, which erupted in flames after a grand jury did not indict a policeman for the shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown.

The podium at a news conference is something of bully pulpit. It’s a chance to express an opinion, sell a point-of-view. But Alexander didn’t go there. He didn’t have to. Instead of more talk and more pontification, Alexander has a chance at something real rather than rhetorical.

He can win one for a community desperately in need of one. A sure sign of that intent was there in a Cardinal-red baseball cap stitched with the white SL initials. Alexander didn’t have to wear his heart on his sleeve. It was on his head.

“I want to bring all the positivity,’’ Alexander said in a conference call a couple of days before arriving in Las Vegas. “I know all of St. Louis is going to be looking at me from the Ferguson situation. They’re looking for something positive to come along with all of the rioting and everything like that.

“This win is going to make them feel like they won, too.’’

It’s an added dimension that dramatically multiplies Alexander’s personal stake in the Showtime-televised bout against the narrowly-favored Khan. For some fighters, that might mean more pressure. But not for Alexander, who grew up amid the real-life pressures of living in an impoverished neighborhood.

“Like I said, this is kind of fun, getting away from all of the madness, danger and rioting,’’ he told 15 Rounds after Thursday’s new conference. “All I have to do is focus on Amir.

“Compared to what’s going on in Ferguson, that’s a cakewalk.’’

Alexander’s trainer, Kevin Cunningham, is an ex-cop who grew up in Ferguson.

“Went to Ferguson Junior High and McCluer High School, which is in Ferguson,’’ Cunningham said in a conference call.

Cunningham didn’t attend Thursday’s news conference, because of slight illness, Golden Boy promoter Oscar De La Hoya said. Cunningham had announced plans to have Michael Brown’s father, Michael Brown Sr., at the fight. But it wasn’t clear Thursday whether he would be able to attend.

“We’ll represent St. Louis the way we always represent St. Louis,’’ Cunningham said Monday.

That means Alexander at his best and no frills attached.

His fight with Khan will be a study in stark contrasts. The UK media reported that Khan will wear designer trunks with 24-karat gold thread woven through the waist band. Off the rack, they’re not. Some reports placed the value at 30,000 pounds. That’s about $50,0000, or $15,000 more than Diego Chaves’ $35,000 purse for his HBO televised bout against Timothy Bradley in another significant welterweight bout Saturday night at The Cosmopolitan

“Where I come from, that’s a lot of money,’’ Alexander said. “It could be spent on something else. It’s not something I’d do. But I’m not flashy guy. I’m a simple man. I just want to show my skills.’’

He let his cap show his heart.

By Norm Frauenheim

LAS VEGAS – For better or worse, Jose Benavidez Jr.‘s time as a prospect is about to end. It’s his choice. Nobody else’s.

The 22-year-old Benavidez listened to alternate possibilities from Top Rank and his father, yet in the end the 22-year-old decided to take the training wheels off his career for a tough, grown-up test against veteran junior-welterweight Mauricio Herrera Saturday night at The Cosmopolitan in an HBO-televised bout for an interim WBA belt.

Nothing is more interim than a prospect. A moth has a longer shelf life. But a few interim steps were still possible for Benavidez, who signed with Top Rank not long after he won a national Golden Gloves title as a 17-year-old prodigy in 2008.

“I have a lot to prove here,’’ Benavidez said Wednesday during a media workout at the Top Rank Gym. “Everybody says he going to beat me, that he has more experience. But I’m ready to show everybody that I belong here, belong at this level.’’

By any yardstick, however, it’s a big leap. Benavidez (21-0, 15 KOs) has never gone beyond eight rounds. Saturday night’s bout is scheduled for 12, a distance that Herrera (21-4, 7 KOs) knows well. He’s been there in each of his last two fights, winning a majority decision over Johan Perez in July and losing a very debatable one in March to 140-pound champion Danny Garcia in Puerto Rico.

Benavidez could have taken an easier path. He was offered a 10-round bout at a catch weight against the Golden Boy-promoted Herrera.

“Yeah, we were going to fight a 10-rounder at 141, 142,’’ said Benavidez, who will get his first world-class test on a card featured by Timothy Bradley-versus-Diego Chaves. “”We might as well go down two pounds and fight for the title. That’s what I’ve really wanted.’’

Benavidez’ bold confidence is an expression of a maturing fighter and perhaps one who has regained confidence in a problematic right hand that sidelined him a couple of years ago. He underwent surgery to have a bone spur removed from his right wrist a couple of years ago. For at least a couple of fights, the unbeaten he was virtually a one-handed fighter. But that one hand happens to be at the point of a jab as good as any. It allowed him to survive a near knockout in the eighth round of a 2012 bout for a unanimous decision over a tough Pavel Miranda in Carson, Calif.

It’s a jab that figures to score against a tough and resilient Herrera, too. In a 10 rounder, that could have added up to a pivotal difference on the scorecards. But if it goes another two rounds?

“I’ve always trained to go 12 rounds,’’ said Benavidez, who trained for six weeks at nearly 7,000-feet amid the Big Bear ski slopes east of Los Angeles.

The weight also has been no problem, said the lanky Benavidez, who fought as a welterweight in a first-round stoppage of Henry Auraad in Phoenix, his hometown, on July 26.

“I thought 140 might be, but, no, no problem at all,’’ Benavidez said.

Benavidez’ father and trainer, Jose Sr., said he presented all the options to his son.

“I told him about the 10-rounder and catch-weight, but he told me ‘Let’s’ go two more rounds and go after that title,’ ‘’ his dad said. “It’s a chance to fight on HBO. A chance to get known. He thinks it’s a good opportunity and so do I.’’

Benavidez has been at the edge of world-class waters for the last nine months. Top Rank wanted to put him in against Brandon Rios, but HBO balked because he had never gone 10 rounds, much less 12. Benavidez dad said that there was some talk of a fight with Jessie Vargas. But, Jose Sr. said, the Vargas camp said no.

Then, a second opportunity against Rios popped up when there were doubts about whether Chaves, of Argentina, could get a visa in time for the August 2 bout. Chaves got the visa. Got disqualified, too.

“But we wouldn’t have taken that fight anyway,’’ the senior Benavidez said. “HBO called and asked if we were interested. I told them no, because it would have been just one week between fights.’’

But now, father and son say, is the right time.

From Herrera’s perspective, it’s lesson time. During his media session Wednesday, Herrera promised to take Benavidez to school.

“Yeah, he’s been doing a lot talking, saying he wants to make statement and all that,’’ Benavidez said. “But it’s not like I haven’t sparred with great fighters. I sparred with Manny Pacquiao, Amir Khan and Shane Mosley. When I was 15, I sparred with Bradley.

“We’ll see, we’ll see who schools who.’’

Who graduates, too.

By Norm Frauenheim–

The arenas and networks will be different.

Nearly everything else about dueling cards on Dec. 13 shares a common theme and the same Strip of tourists, vendors, mimes, pickpockets and Las Vegas neon.

From the Top Rank-promoted show featuring Timothy Bradley-Diego Chaves on HBO at The Cosmopolitan to Golden Boy’s Amir Khan-Devon Alexander on Showtime and about half-a-mile from the MGM Grand, it’s a fight for relevancy.

For the fighters.

For their business.

The two cards are one chance to finish a 2014 that saw a steady decline in pay-per-view numbers and even a dip in a non-PPV bout for the HBO telecast of Terence Crawford’s brilliant decision over Raymundo Beltran last Saturday.

Explanations for the trend abound. Main events start too late. Opening bell for Crawford-Beltran was after midnight in the East. It’s hard to generate interest in the American PPV market for fights in China. As of Thursday, there was no official count from HBO on the PPV audience for Manny Pacquiao’s blowout of Chris Algieri. But speculation made it sound as if there was more of the same in a downward spiral

Take your pick for what to blame, who to blame, in 2014. Blame Obamacare, or climate change, or any of the other convenient targets for anything and everything. But let Bradley get to the heart of what ails his livelihood.

“Pay-per-view is not what it used to be, baby,’’ Bradley said Thursday during a conference call. “These fans are catching on. They’re not buying anymore. They’re not buying the fights like they used to buy.

“You know, some of the best fighters in the world can’t even hit the million buys anymore. So, the best fighters got to fight the best in order to accumulate, get, those type of numbers again, man. For boxing, because people love boxing. But they want to see great fights.”

The cards on the second Saturday in December might – just might – be a move in that direction. Although on the same night and in competition for what appears to be a dwindling fan base, there’s real cooperation — instead of just talk — between the promotional entities. For while, it looked as if the Top Rank-Golden Boy feud would last longer than the 30 Years War.

Then, however, Golden Boy’s Oscar De La Hoya reached out to Top Rank’s Bob Arum in May in a move that shook up the game’s assumptions and hierarchy. Nearly eight months later, there’s tangible evidence of a thaw.

On the Bradley-Chaves card, Top Rank junior-welterweight prospect Jose Benavidez Jr. moves into world-class waters for the first time against the Golden Boy-promoted Mauricio Herrera.

Then, there’s Bradley’s trainer Julio Diaz. If the timing is right, Diaz will work Victor Ortiz’ corner in his comeback at the MGM Grand and then make .58-mile trip to The Cosmopolitan for Bradley in his bid to get back into the welterweight division’s championship mix.

It’s fitting, perhaps, that Bradley asked for an end to the feud during a speech at the Boxing Writers Association of America’s annual dinner last May.

“The fact that they’re working together is great,’’ said Bradley, who is coming off a scorecard loss to Manny Pacquiao in a rematch of his hugely controversial decision over the Filipino. “If I had anything to do with it, fantastic. And if I pissed anybody off, I’m proud.’’

Bradley is not exactly in the peace-making business. Like any other fighter, he’s an independent entrepreneur. He’s contract worker. If Top Rank and Golden Boy are on the same page, there are more opportunities for him if he beats Chaves. Only time, however, will determine whether the two can sustain a working relationship.

If so, maybe there would be fight for him against a Khan or Alexander. Kell Brook also as been mentioned.

“I live in the present tense,’’ he said. “I don’t live in the future. I try not to. The thing is, there are still some bridges that need to be crossed. Okay? The Cold War, yeah, they say it’s over, or ‘we’re trying to work together.’ That’s one thing. …I would embrace any of the type of fights that have been mentioned. But there’s still some bridges that have to be crossed. That’s the bottom line.

“Until those things are fixed, hey, I don’t know, I don’t know. But I’m going to stay in my lane. I’m going to do what I do. If these guys want to fight, I’m right here.’’

It’s no secret that Bradley would not be at the top of Khan’s list if – as expected — he beats Alexander. In Khan’s quest to regain relevancy, the UK welterweight hopes to restore his candidacy to be Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s running mate if the been-there, done-that campaign for Pacquiao unravels all over again.

Bradley said Thursday he hopes Pacquiao-Mayweather happens.

“I think it should happen,’’ he said. “I don’t know if it will happen. Right now is the perfect time for it.’’

Bradley predicated that Pacquiao-Mayweather would set the PPV record with 3 million buys. That’s a number, a milestone, that would say the business has won the fight. Relevancy restored.

But is it a bridge too far? In 2015, the answer to that one will be the Story of the Year. Maybe, Fight of the Year, too.

Bradley calls Chaves dirty

More than one headline always comes out of a Bradley conference call. Chaves, disqualified against Brandon Rios in his last bout, is a “dirty fighter,’’ he said.

“Really a dirty fighter,’’ said Bradley, who came to that conclusion after studying video of several Chaves’ bouts.

If Chaves fights dirty, Bradley said he is prepared to counter.

“With stuff of my own,’’ he said. “Everybody knows what that is.’’

Bradley is often accused of his using his bald head as a weapon in intentional butts.

More Bradley: Meat on his vegan bones

Bradley has suspended a strict vegan diet for at least this fight.

“Eating fish, eating beef,’’ said Bradley, who hopes the additional protein will make a difference.

By Norm Frauenheim–

Manny Pacquiao has spoken. Freddie Roach has spoken. Bob Arum and Oscar De La Hoya have spoken. They’re still speaking. We’ve yet to hear from the Republicans and Democrats, but even they’d agree. The bandwagon demand for a Pacquaio-Floyd Mayweather Jr. fight is back at the top of the noise meter. It’s as loud as ever. But it’s hard to say whether that means it’s any closer to reality or just back in the same old echo chamber.

Has anybody heard from Mayweather? Hello, Floyd, are you there? Hello, hello?

As of Thursday, there had been no public response from Mayweather, other than an Instagram mocking Pacquiao’s face-down knockout suffered against Juan Manuel Marquez. Zilch, nada, bupkus. It’s impossible to know why. Maybe, Mayweather is talking through back channels, through Al Haymon. That’s the optimistic take. Or maybe he spent Thanksgiving trying to make room for turkey by extracting the foot that has been in his mouth since September when he was ripped for saying that the NFL should not have increased its suspension of Ray Rice from two games to indefinite for a knockout punch of his then fiancé. That’s the cynical take.

The less Mayweather says to the media these days, the better. Over the last three months, the unbeaten Mayweather’s credibility has taken a beating. It continued when he threw Showtime and his own believability under the proverbial bus with comments to the Nevada State Athletic Commission that some segments in All-Access were more entertainment than real, more fiction than fact.

There’s no change at the top of the pound-for-pound debate. Mayweather is the consensus No. 1; Pacquiao is among the top five, depending on the rating. In terms of their public profiles, however, there’s no comparison anymore. Where there’s mistrust in Mayweather, there’s renewed credibility for Paquiao. Before and after his blow out of Chris Algieri, he picked up endorsements with Foot Locker and AirAsia. Mayweather’s endorsements? Zilch, nada, bupkus.

Pacquiao’s commercial success gives him a media presence that Mayweather doesn’t have. That was oh-so evident in the entertaining Foot Locker ad that gave Pacquiao a subtle, yet effective way of talking about the Mayweather fight without mentioning Mayweather himself. It’s safe to say that one annoyed Mayweather, who was frustrated several weeks ago when a Jamaican woman in a London barbershop didn’t recognize him. The guess here is that she probably would recognize Pacquiao. She, like most people, sees more ads than pay-per-view boxing. The endorsements give Pacquiao a bully pulpit. Mayweather has Instagram.

But it’s hard to judge whether the power in Pacquiao’s endorsements and universal support will finally make the fight. This isn’t a democracy. Without Mayweather’s vote, it stays in never-never land.

The best guess here is that Mayweather, the cautious counter-puncher, is waiting on some leverage. As of Thursday, there had still been no reports on HBO’s pay-per-view number from Pacquaio’s six-knockdown demolition of Algieri in Macao. By the way, has anybody ever witnessed six knockdowns in what was supposed to be a major fight? Howard Cosell, remembered for Down Goes Frazier, would have ruptured a vocal chord. But we digress.

Disappointing PPV numbers would give Mayweather a potential edge at the negotiating table. That’s when he might begin talking. A civil claim by his ex-fiance, Shantel Jackson, is another potential factor. In a suit filed by legal gunslinger Gloria Allred, Jackson alleges assault, battery and invasion of privacy. TMZ reported Wednesday that Mayweather’s attorneys filed court documents asking for dismissal of some claims. According to the documents, Mayweather argues he did not violate her right to privacy when he reported through social media that they split because she had an abortion.

A judge has has yet to rule. Safe to say, however, the suit has the potential to be messy, explosive and expensive. There are unsourced reports in the Philippines that Mayweather could be guaranteed $100 million in a Pacquiao fight. A percentage of that speculated number represents a lot of money in an out-of-court settlement or a judgement against Mayweather for a piece of his future earnings.

Come to think of it, it says more than Pacquiao, Roach, Arum, De La Hoya and the media could ever say. It also might explain why Mayweather hasn’t said anything at all.

By Norm Frauenheim–

Chris Algieri has had tougher fights than Manny Pacquaio, Algieri trainer Tim Lane said Thursday before Pacquiao trainer Freddie Roach said the Filipino would score a a knockout within three rounds.

From opposite corners, the trainers had widely — wildly too — different views on how things will play out in a 144-pound bout scheduled for midday Sunday in the Chinese gambling mecca of Macao and Saturday night (9
pm EST/6 pm PST) on HBO pay-per-view.

If Lane is right, it’ll be the biggest boxing upset in Asia since Buster Douglas’ 1990 knockout of Mike Tyson in Tokyo. If Roach is right, it’ll be a quick end to what would be Pacquiao’s quickest finish since a third-round stoppage of Erik Morales in 2006 and his first stoppage of any kind since a 12th-round TKO of Miguel Cotto in 2009.

In a conference call from China, there wasn’t much agreement, other than the respective degrees of difficulty. Neither corner is expecting it to be too tough. That wasn’t a surprise from Roach, who all along and in so many ways has been saying that Algieri is overmatched. But it was a surprise from Lane.

Pacquiao is Algieri’s greatest opportunity. But, Lane said in a matter-of-fact tone, Ruslan Provodnikov was a tougher fight.

“What he did to Ruslan, he did with one eye,” Lane said of a June 14 bout in which Algieri got up from two first-round knockdowns and fought with his left eye swollen shut for a stunning split decision over the favored Russian. “I thought he would have a flawless victory against Ruslan. I did not find that to be our toughest challenge. But he wound up getting hurt in the first round. When we were offered the Manny Pacquiao fight, I believed that this was not as tough a fight as Ruslan. Styles make fights. Manny Pacquaio, being a lefty and what he brings to the table, I do not find that to be as challenging as it was with Ruslan.

“So, I believe Chris will dominate Pacquiao more so than he did Ruslan. With two eyes.”

Safe to say, Lane’s bold comment was an eye-opener.

Algieri is at least an 8-to-1 underdog. That’s not quite the 42-to-1 underdog Douglas was nearly a quarter of a century ago. Nevertheless, it still means that Algieri’s chances are thought to be somewhere between slim and none.

“I’m absolutely expecting a KO,” Roach said. “He’s in way over his head.”

Algieri has advantages in height and reach. His educated footwork, Lane said, will allow him to elude Pacquiao’s power, which he launches from countless angles. But Roach said that Algieri has never encountered Pacquiao’s kind of speed.

“Once he gets in the ring, he’ll be shocked,” Roach said. “That’s why it won’t last more than three rounds.”

Pacquiao has beaten fighters bigger than he is. But Lane called them “zombies.” They were tough guys who didn’t know how use their feet in the subtle dance that takes thinking fighters out of harm’s way, Lane said. When asked if would he identify some of the zombies, Lane declined. Then, he was asked if he was talking abut Antonio Margarito, who was bigger than Pacquiao, yet lost a bruising unanimous decision to the Filipino four years ago at Cowboys Stadium in Dallas.

“Yeah, that’s the guy,” Lane said.

Roach’s confidence in an early KO is rooted in what he saw and felt in training. Pacquiao worked harder than he has in years on the heavy bag, Roach said. Renewed energy and power were so evident in sparring that Roach said that he jokingly warned Pacquiao not to stop Algieri too quickly. Talk about a Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather showdown has been re-ignited in the build-up for the Algieri fight. If Pacquiao scores a quick and impressive KO, would Mayweather back away from the rumored possibility?

“Definitely, definitely,” Roach said.

No matter what’s next, however, Pacquaio might not be able to contain his power. Roach said the Filipino knocked him down with a left hand in training.

“Hit me in the chest,” Roach said.

The power, Roach said, was enough to launch him into a somersault, which also might have been one way to
celebrate an old feeling.

PHOENIX — Phoenix lightweight Victor Castro (12-0, 6 KOs) is scheduled Saturday night for a six-round main event against Robert Rodriquez (7-4, 3 KOs) of Greeley, Colo., at Celebrity Theatre on an Iron Boy Promotions card.

Castro is trained by retired junior-featherweight legend Israel Vazquez.

The card is scheduled for 14 bouts. First bell is 6 p.m. (MST).

Iron Boy will resume its partnership with Top Rank on Dec. 20 for a Unimas-televised card, also at Celebrity Theatre.

By Norm Frauenheim-

Sergey Kovalev’s victory over Bernard Hopkins was one thing. His dominance was something else. After awhile, the benefit of hindsight will make Kovalev’s win look predictable. Nobody ever whips the clock, although Hopkins did it longer than anyone ever has. The shutout on the scorecards, however, was a stunning testament to a Kovalev skill set that had been unappreciated as much as it had been unexpected. It meant something else, too.

If there was ever a time and place to say that the ex-Soviet fighter has arrived, it was there, Saturday night in Atlantic City, with Kovalev’s thorough and patient triumph over an acknowledged master. There was an underlying assumption that the clever Hopkins would force Kovalev into an adjustment that would result in a critical mistake. There was a lot of talk about how Kovalev had never been beyond eight rounds. Translation: In the end, he would fight like a Russian. Didn’t happen, mostly because that stereotype no longer exists. For years, Soviet fighters were said to be tough, well-conditioned and powerful. But they were robotic and unable to think on their feet.

Like the Berlin Wall, that stereotype has fallen onto history’s scrapheap, gone for good. By going a full 12 rounds against Hopkins, Kovalev scored a symbolic stoppage of an assumption that might still linger had he knocked out a man just two months shy of his 50th birthday.

Kovalev proved himself to be more than a power puncher. He went the distance for a thorough, light-heavyweight victory over one the smartest guys ever in the ring. Fighters from the old Soviet Union aren’t thinkers? Think again.

Wladimir Klitschko has long been a thinking man’s fighter. For some reason, however, his smarts never captured
the U.S. imagination, perhaps because all of America’s best heavyweights are middle-linebackers and defensive ends these days. But Kovalev’s victory over Hopkins might awaken new found respect for Klitschko, who hopes to extend his eight-and-half-year-long heavyweight reign Saturday against Kubrat Pulev in Germany.

In the days since beating Hopkins, Kovalev has begun to show up in the pound-for-pound debate. P4P is an overrated exercise, to be sure. But it’s noteworthy this week, simply because of who else is already in many of the mythical ratings. In the ESPN edition, Kovalev is a new addition at No. 9. He’s one of three fighters from the old Soviet empire among the top 10. Middleweight Gennady Golovkin, of Kazakhstan, is No. 6. Klitschko, of the Ukraine is No. 8. Three fighters from old the Soviet bloc amount to more than from any other region in the world on a list hat includes two Americans, Floyd Mayweather Jr. at No. 1 and Timothy Bradley at No. 4.

There’s a theory that fighters from the discarded Soviet system are emerging because they now are forced to be creative. Dmitriy Salita, today a promoter and a former welterweight from the Ukraine, once told me that under the Soviet style every step in a fighter’s plan was marked down, rehearsed and memorized. Even the footwork was programmed, Salita said. But with the end of Soviet control, fighters, like entrepreneurs, had to hustle, which meant thinking for themselves. Hence, we have a Kovalev, a Golovkin, a Klistchko and others who one day might be included in the pound-for-pound debate. Featherweight Vasyl Lomachenko is a good possibility.

In 2014, it mean just one thing:

The collective — no pun intended — face of the fighter from the old Soviet Union should be Fighter of the Year.

By Norm Frauenheim-

Bernard Hopkins’ life as street thug, ex-con, Congressional witness, peace-maker, fighter, promoter, pundit, provocateur, butcher, baker and candlestick maker includes different nicknames, a couple of masks and roles only he knows are still within him.

“I’m not human,” Hopkins said in a recent conference call.

But he is.

There’s an endless array of humanity jammed into that one being who over the many years has been called Inmate #Y4145, The Executioner, B-Hop and today The Alien.

It’s what makes him so compelling. So challenging.

He shows us what is humanly possible on either side of those proverbial ropes. He’ll have to do it all over again Saturday night in Atlantic City against Sergey Kovalev in a light heavyweight-fight (HBO 10:45 pm ET/PT) as intriguing as any bout in the last year.

By now, circumstances confronting Hopkins have been documented and over-analyzed. Kovalev’s power and relative youth – he’s 31 – are a couple of factors that some think will finally stop Hopkins’ unprecedented defiance of time’s inevitability. He’ll be 50 in January.

Half-a-century is a long time anywhere. For anybody whose mileage has taken them past that birthday and deposited them in the senior-citizen division, Hopkins’ resilient ability to fight on is science fiction-like.

Hopkins swims as part of his training regimen these days. While watching him in the water during HBO’s pre-fight documentary, I wondered if there was a youth-restoring Cocoon from director Ron Howard’s 1985 Academy Award-winning movie at the bottom of that Philadelphia pool.

It’s alien all right, which explains that silly green mask that Hopkins wears. It’s not because he’s trying to hide a gray beard. He has always understood that boxing is a mix of sport and theater. Maybe, Kovalev will prove to be nothing more than just another vanquished face in his supporting cast. I think not. I predicted a Kovalev victory by decision for The Ring. http://ringtv.craveonline.com/news/362819-who-wins-bernard-hopkins-sergey-kovalev

Then again, I picked Hopkins to lose to Kelly Pavlik in 2008. Maybe, I should start wearing a fool’s mask.

Truth is, Hopkins is already a winner. The fight could get ugly, which might diminish what has already been accomplished. Nevertheless, Hopkins has done what you expect of somebody about to turn 50.

To wit: He’s become role model for a sport that badly needs one.

In stepping up to fight an emerging star and one of the game’s most feared punchers, he has embarrassed pound-for-pound contenders who are more than a couple of decades younger.

Hopkins reminds us – and hopefully them – that building a legacy is serious business. It’s a not a mere logo for a souvenir. Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s pursuit of legacy has begun to look manufactured. His TBE — The Best Ever – is on T-shirts and caps. Wonder if Manny Pacquiao has bought one? For a bonfire, maybe.

The Best Ever is not possible with a fight against the best. That’s what Hopkins is doing in his decision to face Kovalev. The build-up to the bout has included much of what is often attached to a Hopkins fight.

Race became an issue when he told ESPN that the fight is not a cover piece for Sports Illustrated or other major media, because he’s black. Because his last name isn’t Marciano or Stern, he said.

The comments, of course, generated some major-media coverage. It also was nothing new from Hopkins, who once said retired NFL quarterback Donovan McNabb wasn’t “black enough” and told Joe Calzaghe that he could never go back to the projects if he let “a white boy’’ beat him.

Any discussion of race these days is on the wrong side of the politically-correct fence. But when has race not been a part of boxing? It is the sport, after all, that created The Great White Hope, a term still used. Agree with Hopkins. Disagree with him.

But thank him for his honesty. He’ll never be able to mask that or anything else in a life full of evolving lessons about what humans shouldn’t do and what they can be. That’s a victory on any scorecard.

By Norm Frauenheim

Drivers pass the Lonnie and Muhammad Ali Pavilion Center near downtown Phoenix all the time. It’s just another building at an intersection full of people en route to and from work, school and the mundane. But on Thursday it was something different.

If you looked up and saw the name that overlooks the traffic from its location at the northeast corner of a busy neighborhood, you were taken back to a day 40 years ago. Call it an intersection of time and place. A crossroads with history.

The anniversary of Ali’s eighth-round stoppage of George Foreman on Oct. 30, 1974 in Zaire has been recalled by those who were there and those who weren’t. My favorite is a column from columnist Jerry Izenberg, who was there.
http://www.nj.com/sports/index.ssf/2014/10/forty_years_ago_muhammad_ali_shocked_george_foreman_and_the_world_in_the_rumble_in_the_jungle_and_i.html

Reading Izenberg made me wish that I had been. Instead, I saw it as rookie sportswriter on closed-circuit in Jacksonville, Fla.
It was captivating then. It still is. It has stayed with us. It is an enduring piece of the public imagination, recalled vividly by those who were there and remembered by those of of us who saw it in black-and-white on tiny screens in dilapidated arenas. I’m not sure that anything in High-Def will ever be remembered the way Ali-Foreman is.

Floyd Mayweather Jr, has made a claim on being The Best Ever with his TBE caps and T-shirts. But will anybody recall his rematch victory over Marcos Maidana 40 years from now? Didn’t think so.

Forty years later, Ali and Foreman are a current lesson in what TBE really means. They were fearless, or at least courageous enough to fight despite countless reasons to be afraid of each other. They were willing to do it on the other side of the world in a locale as unpredictable, potentially volatile and exotic as any. It was a universe away from the MGM Grand, which in hindsight makes it that much more profound.

There was a price and a reward, but it not in the way it might have looked in the immediate aftermath of a right-hand lead that Ali landed in a stoppage heard-round-the-world.

For Ali, the victory ensured him of being the global icon he is today. As you drive past his name on the Pavilion that houses The Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center four decades later, however, you wonder whether the punches he absorbed from one of history’s most powerful heavyweights in in so-called “rope-a-doe” tactic contributed to his condition.

Doctors never link the punches to his Parkinson’s. Yet in the public imagination, the collective mind’s eye, that link is always there. I still remember a moment with the late Joe Frazier. He was in Indianapolis during the 1996 U.S. Olympic Swimming Trials for a lunch that the USOC threw to commemorate the 25th anniversary of his 1971 unanimous decision over Ali at New York’s Madison Square Garden. A film of that fight was playing in the corner of the ballroom. I asked Frazier about Ali’s condition.

“You see that left hand?’’ Frazier said as he pointed at the screen just as his potent left crashed into Ali’s face. “That’s why he is the way he is.’’

It was harsh. It was cruel. It was honest. It was 180-proof, an undiluted mix of what boxing has often been called: Life in a shot glass.

Ali, whose speech has been robbed by the terrible disease, has never complained about what the sport might have done to him. It was something he chose to do. The risk was known then. Today’s medical technology has told us more about the dangers that come with concussions. But even forty years ago, fighters knew they were walking straight into the jaws of potential harm. Ailing fighters have always been there, broken-down evidence of what can happen.

But Ali has used his condition and celebrity to further research into the disease that knocks down anybody it strikes. He and his wife, Lonnie, have devoted their time and energy to battling Parkinson’s at The Barrow Neurological Institute at St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center. He appears at spring-training games or Suns game while staying at his winter home in Phoenix. People gawk at his condition. They talk. But he’s there, as fearless now as he was 40 years ago.

Then, there’s Foreman. The loser 40-years ago has undergone an amazing transformation. In Zaire, he was as intimidating and scary as Mike Tyson once was.

A favorite story comes from Bill Caplan, Foreman’s longtime friend and the best publicist anybody could ever have. Ali arrived in Zaire as the good guy. He was staying at a string of viilas along a river that Zaire President Joseph Mobutu had built for himself.

Foreman played the opposite role. He was the bad guy, which was exemplified by a German Shepherd that reminded people of the dogs they feared when they were under Belgian rule. He had reservations at a Spartan-like military post.

“A stockade with barb-wired fences, guards and everything else,’’ Caplan said.

Caplan recalls that one day Foreman decided to pay promoter Don King a visit at the InterContinental Hotel. But King wasn’t in an ordinary room. When Foreman knocked on the door, he discovered King was in the Presidential Suite.

“George told Don, ‘You’re moving out and I’m moving in,’ “ Caplan said.

King didn’t argue.

He even got rooms at the InterContinental for Foreman’s entourage of 21 people.

Few argued with Foreman in those days. Few argue with him today, but for a different reason. The onetime bad guy has become as likable as anybody. A senior citizen, he’s become the genial grandfather everybody wants to be around. His hamburger grill made him a lot richer than any fight purse ever did. Younger generations remember him more for the grill than they do for heavyweight titles.

In the end, he’s thankful for the chance to have fought Ali, whom he calls a legend bigger than boxing. His loss to Ali put him on the path to who he is today. Ali’s victory turned him into an icon, yet at a steep price

For Ali and Foreman, that day 40 years ago was a personal intersection. Personal, too, for a lot of us who are reminded of it every time we travel through it.

By Norm Frauenheim–

Chris Algieri is good enough to fight Manny Pacquaio, but he might not be good enough to beat some of his sparring partners.

That, at least, was Pacquiao trainer Freddie Roach’s suggestion Thursday in a conference call from the Philippines where the Filipino Congressman is training in his hometown, General Santos City, for a Nov. 22 bout with Algieri in Macao.

“We’ve got some great sparring partners …I think some better than our opponent, but we’ll see,’’ Roach said.

The comment from the ever-honest Roach caused a few ripples. It begged for a follow-up and, sure enough, Roach was asked to explain.

“Sometimes, the truth hurts,’’ Roach said later in the call.

In terms of world-class credentials and experience, two of Pacquiao’s sparring partners, ex-welterweight contender Mike Jones and emerging junior-welterweight Viktor Postol, have more on their boxing resumes than Algieri, who jumped to the head of the line with a victory over Ruslan Provodnikov for a dramatic upset that complements a good back story. The New Yorker magazine portrayed the college graduate with two degrees as a real-life Rocky. It’s hard to predict whether that’s the hook that will bring cross-over fans back into the pay- per-view audience, which Pacquaio promoter Bob Arum says could be between 750,000 and 900,000 for the HBO bout.

Algieri brings something different to the table at a time when PPV customers are heading for the exits. There’s been a decline throughout 2014. Maybe, a guy, a virtual unknown a year ago, can reverse that trend. Everybody is a sucker for the guy not believed to have much of a chance. Algieri has already created his own chances by getting up from two knockdowns against the feared Provodnikov. There’s some doubt about whether he could repeat that kind of drama. Against Pacquiao, however, he’ll get that opportunity. It’s intriguing.

But, as Roach suggested, some of that intrigue is tempered by facts. Consider this: If Algieri were fighting Jones or Postol instead of Pacquiao, who would you pick? Jones beat Jesus Soto Karass twice. The unbeaten Postol (26-0) is a ranked contender at 140-pounds. His record includes victories over DeMarcus Corley and Selchuk Aydin. Combine their records, and they’re 52-2. Compare that to Algieri’s 20-0 resume. There is no comparison.

Postol and Jones, Roach said, are in Pacquiao’s camp because of their height. They are taller than Algieri, who is listed at 5-10 and looks down on the shorter Pacquiao in news conference photos. By the way, Pacquiao has been getting ripped for playing basketball in the Filipino league for the team, Kia, he coaches. Pacquaio says he won’t play again until after the fight. On the floor, however, the 5-7 Pacquaio was competing with guys bigger than even Jones and Postol. In terms of competing with much taller rivals, a few minutes on the basketball floor might have helped. But that’s another story.

Algieri’s advantage in height is a factor, especially in his ability to sustain an effective jab. But there’s more to it than that. Postol, a Ukrainian, might be a key to Pacquiao’s readiness. Above all, Algieri is a thinker. That, he says, will be his advantage. Pacquiao has been an instinctive fighter. If he gets on a roll, he’ll roll over anybody. But Algieri has taken a page out of Juan Manuel Marquez’ four-fight book on Pacquiao. Marquez disrupted Pacquiao’s instinctive rhythm. He threw different looks at him, forcing him to stop and adjust. That was just enough for Marquez to finally catch him wide open for the right hand that knocked out the Filipino in their last edition.

“I’ll make him think,’’ Algieri said Oct. 18 during a news conference at StubHub Center in Carson, Calif., before Gennady Golovkin’s knockout of Marco Antonio Rubio.

Postol is also a thinker.

“He makes Manny think and that’s what Algieri will do,’’ Roach said of what might be the real truth as to why a current contender is in Pacquiao’s camp.

CARSON, Calif. – Going ga-ga for Triple-G continued Saturday in Gennady Golovkin’s campaign to discard the most-avoided title for a shot at Miguel Cotto or anybody else with credentials that would prove his pound-for-pound potential.

Golovkin (31-0, 28 KOs) did it quickly, did it definitively, in a second-round stoppage of Marco Antonio Rubio in front of capacity crowd at Stub Center.

Rubio never had a chance. As it turns out, neither did Nonito Donaire, whom Nicolas Walters knocked out in a sixth-round stunner. For Donaire, it might have been more than a loss. It could have been the end. More on that later.

The card, dubbed Mexican Style, was staged for Golovkin. He was in Los Angeles for his first bout in the West almost as if it were a campaign stop. The job was to win over Mexican fans. He did. His trunks were Dodger blue. Many in a crowd of more than 9,000 wore T-shirts that said “Mexicans For Golovkin.’’ Rubio, a Mexican, was just a prop, a piece in setting up Golovkin’s future.

“I think, first Miguel Cotto,’’ he said when asked what and who was at the top of his wish list. “First, Miguel
Cotto. I respect him.’’

Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., Canelo Alvarez and UK light heavyweight Carl Froch are also on the list. But Cotto is called the lineal middleweight champ. He beat the man who beat the man. Golovkin wants to be in that line. But he might have to wait on a Canelo-Cotto fight, perhaps in early May.

Whatever happens, Golovkin wipeout of Rubio (59-7-1, 51 KOs) won’t do anything to lessen the fear of fighting
him. Rubio was supposed to be a dangerous puncher. In the opening round, however, Golovkin walked through whatever Rubio threw at him. In the second, it was over.

First, Golovkin landed a beautiful right uppercut that traveled between Rubio’s upraised hands and landed onto the Mexican’s chin with chilling precision. Rubio, who was 1.8 pounds over the 160-pound limit at the weigh-in, stumbled into the ropes. That’s when Golovkin threw a left that traveled like a baseball bat. It bounced off Rubio’s head and sent him bouncing off the canvas. At 1:19 of the round, referee Jack Reiss waved it off .

Moments later, Golovkin waved to the fans who chanted his trademark initials, GGG.

Mission accomplished.

Another mission was accomplished by Walters, (25-0, 20 KOs), who took the WBA’s Super featherweight title from Donaire (33-3. 21 KOs). Walters crushed him with a winging right hook that bounced off the side of his head.

“A wonderful man,’’ Walters said of Donaire, who was left with swollen and bloodied eyes.

For a few seconds, an unconscious one too.

Donaire had no excuses. Not much of a chance, either.

“He beat the shit out of me,’’ Donaire said.

But honesty was still there. Donaire left the ring with all of that intact. He’ll need it. He stepped through the ropes and into an uncertain future after a loss that left him face down for the first time in his career. When he awakened, Walters was dancing to Reggae.

The Jamaican was taking his first steps into the stardom that once belonged to Donaire. In the exchange, Donaire was left to think about retirement.

“We’ll decide,’’ said Donaire, who plans to speak to his wife and review options that include a possible move down in weight, from feather to bantam, or to some place out of harm’s way.

On The Undercard

· It was a unanimous decision. A unanimous snoozer, too. Light-heavyweight Edwin Rodriguez (25-1, 16 KOs) nearly scored a shutout in taking a 100-90, 99-91, 100-90 decision over Azea Augustama (17-2, 9KOs) of Hollywood, Fla. But the crowd reacted as if there were no winners. They only cheered when the plodding 1-rounder was over.

· Middleweight Abraham Han (23-1, 14 KOs) of El Paso was on the canvas once, was on his knees in apparent exhaustion at the end of one round and yet managed to beat Mexican Marcos Reyes (32-2, 24 KOs) in a 97-91, 94-94, 97-91 majority decision. A mystifying one, too.

· Sacramento junior-welterweight Moris Rodriguez (8-3-1, 4 KOs) scored a fifth-round knockdown and applied the finishing touch with a right hand that knocked out Jaime Oceguda (8-1, 5 KOs) of Los Angeles early in the sixth.

· Kazakhstan lightweight Ruslan Madiyev (1-0) got the canvas ready for Golovkin, a fellow Kazak, with a punishing decision over Oscar Rojas (0-1) of Salinas, Calif.

· Neither a low blow nor a hot Southern California sun could slow down Los Angeles featherweight Walter Sarnoi (16-4, 10 KOs), who outworked Mexican Sergio Najera (8-16-2, 2 KO) to win a unanimous decision.

By Norm Frauenheim

CARSON, Calif. – Marco Antonio Rubio lost money instead of weight in failing to make the 160-pound limit Friday for his attempt to upset favored Gennady Golovkin Saturday at sold-out StubHub Center.

Rubio forfeited $100,000 when he chose not to step on the scale for a second time two hours after he was 1.8 pounds heavier than the middleweight mandatory. It was no sweat for Golvkin, who came in one pound light at 159.

According to contracts filed with the California State Athletic Commission, the $100,000 price for being over-weight will be subtracted from Rubio’s $450,000 purse, which had ranked among the biggest in the Mexican’s long career. Golovkin (30-0, 27 KOs) will collect $900,000. If he loses, his title will be vacated, according to the re-done deal negotiated after the weigh-in.

Rubio trainer Robert Garcia was disappointed, yet not surprised. Despite several attempts at shedding the excess weight, Rubio (59-6-1, 27 KOs) couldn’t do it, said Garcia, who told reporters that his body “just shut down.’’

It’s hard to know what that might mean for Rubio’s chances against the heavy-handed, heavily favored Golovkin in an HBO-televised bout (10 p.m. ET/PT).

In the undercard’s featured bout, featherweights Nonito Donaire (33-2, 21 KOs) and challenger Nicolas Walters (24-0, 20 KOs) made weight, 125.6 pounds apiece.

By Norm Frauenheim–

CARSON, Calif. — The GGG at the belt of his waistband isn’t much of a secret anymore. But Gennady Gennadyevich Golovkin’s initials might as well be evolving into a marketing acronym. These days, it could be Gennady Going Global.

World class means more than a gaudy piece of tin on a plastic belt worth a lot less than the fee paid to the sanctioning bodies. It also means hitting the road the way Muhammad Ali did when he fought in Manila, Zaire, Ireland and Indonesia. Faraway places are part of the intrigue. More significant, perhaps, they are also part of the challenge. At least, they used to be.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. reigns as boxing current pound-for-pound champ. But when was the last time he answered an opening bell outside of Las Vegas’ MGM Grand? He’s become as much of a regular at the MGM as Cirque du Soleil. His last 10 bouts have been there. Mayweather plays it safe, stays at home mostly because he can.

But Golovkin has been on the move since his days as an amateur in Kazakhstan. There was a 2004 Olympic silver medal in Athens. Then, there were bouts in Germany and Monaco with a stop in Panama before a string of appearances in New York. Stamp-for-stamp, Golovkin’s passport has to be a contender. He must have more frequent-flier miles than a passenger on the old Space Shuttle.

Unlike Mayweather, Golovkin has to travel. The initial challenge was just to indtruduce him to an American audience that would have had hard time finding Kazakhstan on a map. Then, became boxing most-avoided fighter, which might be another way of saying that Mexican stars Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and Canelo Alavrez won’t fight him in their backyard.

No problem. Golovkin will still go into that backyard anyway, albeit against a lesser Mexican name in Marco Antonio Rubio Saturday night in an HBO-televised about at the Stub Hub Center in Carson, Calif. It’s Golovkin’s first fight in Southern California and its loyal Mexican, Mexican-American fans. That audience, boxing’ most important demographic, makes this stop as significant as any in the wide, wide world of GGG.

If ticket demand is any indication, those fans are as anxious to see him live as he is to win them over. It’s a sellout. It has been for about month. The 8,000-seat outdoor arena has been expanded three times just to fulfill the demand

Make no mistake, the fans aren’t turning out to see Rubio, who is a competent enough challenger with just enough power to make things interesting. No, this is all about Golovkin and his debut in a key boxing market. If Golovkin (30-0, 27 KOs), the WBA’s 160-pound champion, impresses that crowd with another big victory, public pressure will mount on Canelo and Chavez Jr., to finally fight him. It’s just another piece in the marketing puzzle of turning Golovkin into a world-class star, who can’t be avoided anymore.

In part, Golovkin’s bout with Rubio (59-6-1, 51 KOs) has the feel of a political campaign. He’s making the Southern California stop to unleash the power in his hands, shake a few hands, win over the customers with a shy smile and leave them with no doubt about the world-class credentials possessed by a Gennady Going Global.

By Norm Frauenheim-

Sad spectacles are little bit like jagged scars. They are always there, an uncomfortable reminder that real estate between the ropes is as bizarre as it is dangerous. Jermain Taylor is another chapter in the never-ending tale of a love-affair with stories that unfold like accidents. They are doomed to fail.

Leave it up to others to judge whether Taylor should have been allowed to fight for the IBF version of the middleweight title, which he won Wednesday night with a unanimous decision over Sam Soliman in an ESPN2-televised bout in Biloxi, Miss.

We know about the brain bleed he suffered in a 2009 loss to Arthur Abraham. We know that he is facing two felony charges for allegedly shooting his cousin on August 26 at his home in suburban Little Rock. We know about the Facebook video in which he waves a gun and says he’ll never “lose to another white boy.’’

I should be outraged. But I’m not. We’ve seen it before.

Joe Mesi, who retired unbeaten, fought seven times after it was reported he had suffered two brain bleeds in a 2003 victory over Vassiliy Jirov. Floyd Mayweather Jr., who hopes to retire unbeaten, was allowed to fight and beat Miguel Cotto in 2012 before going to jail for domestic violence. Bernard Hopkins, 0-2 against Taylor, once raced across a crowded press room, confronted Joe Calzaghe and shouted that he “couldn’t go back to the projects if I let a white boy beat me.” Four months later, Calzaghe, who also retired unbeaten, scored a split-decision over Hopkins.

The story lines are familiar, because of compliant commissions, judges, legal loopholes, acronyms and money. In Taylor, however, they have come together in what looks like a perfect storm. The IBF’s 160-pound championship appears to be nothing more than a paper crown. But it’s a piece in a jagged puzzle put together behind the scenes by Al Haymon, who promised Taylor the title shot. Haymon fulfilled the deal by moving another one of his fighters, the young and dangerous Peter Quillin, into a position to take the title from Taylor, who also faces a mandatory IBF defense against Hassan N’Dam.

The light-hitting and hobbled Soliman was one thing. He’s 40-years-old. He had 11 losses in 55 fights before the loss. What qualified him to be the IBF’s middleweight champ in the first place? All of that, of course, mattered little to Haymon. Soliman added up to an easy target and that’s what Taylor has become. What might be easy for Quillin, however, is dangerous for Taylor.

It’s hard to know what to make of his Facebook video. It’s offensive, but perhaps it’s intended to be in what was a misguided attempt to sell the Soliman fight. He’s waving around a gun within seven weeks after he was arrested and charged with shooting his cousin? That’s not salesmanship. That’s stupid. It makes you wonder what Taylor is thinking, or if he’s thinking at all.

Nevertheless, Taylor is moving through a system that has pushed other star-crossed fighters into the cross-hairs they always seek and that the sport regrets after it’s too late. It’s not clear where Taylor is in the legal process. As of Thursday, there was still no court date. It could be months when he faces the only mandatory that should matter. Throw in a couple of delays, and he’ll be facing the unbeaten Quillin before he faces a jury. He has a better chance with that jury.

By Norm Frauenheim–

Dan Goossen’s death this week is a reminder that boxing survives because of the characters who have always understood that theater is as fundamental as a good jab. It’s balancing act that includes just the right mix of salesmanship, comedy, opinion and conviviality.

Goossen is the face of a passing generation that has worked hard to stay in the spotlight. He liked it. The brighter that light, the brighter the sport coat. Goossen’s colorful plumage could make sideline reporter Craig Sager’s blazers look dim. He was colorful because he wanted to be. But it was more than that. He had to be there, beneath a magnifying glare that burns out many and keeps others from ever daring to enter it.

Bob Arum understands the role. Arum never fails to enliven otherwise uneventful news conferences with a blend of jokes and insults that create headlines. Attendance is mandatory. Nothing is sacred when Arum assumes the bully pulpit. Then, there’s Don King. He has faded from the public arena, but there was a time when his malaprops and booming braggadocio were integral to the show and, more often than not, more entertaining than the card. They aren’t there to be believed. Goossen knew that. Arum and King know that. Good theater, after all, includes a lot of fiction.

There’s much to mourn in Goossen’s passing early Monday from liver cancer. He was a master at engineering the successful comeback. I remember James Toney. The media and rival promoters had already assigned Toney to the scrap heap after his career went sideways following a 1994 loss to Roy Jones Jr. Toney was woefully out of shape when he began showing up at gyms and local cards in Phoenix, where I worked for the city’s biggest daily in a forgotten era when newspapers still had fight writers. Toney had signed with Goossen, who proceeded to put together a Phoenix card in 2002 that featured him in a victory over Sione Asipelli. If memory serves, Goossen wore the purple sport coat for that one.

A reason to bring Toney to Phoenix was not without a plan. It was home to Vassiliy Jirov, then considered the world’s best cruiserweight. Goossen and Toney were in Jirov’s backyard to call him out. It worked. In April 2003, Toney scored a dramatic decision in Connecticut over Jirov in a bout the Boxing Writers Association of America voted Fight of the Year. Nobody could take the snoozer out of cruiser, but Goossen managed to with instinct that led to a Toney upset of Evander Holyfield in his next bout.

It was a brilliant one-two promotional punch, But it would not have happened without Goossen’s willingness to wage a public campaign that would have exhausted a career politician. That inexhaustible well of energy went into representing Pete Rose after the gambling scandal and Mister T, who was a bouncer in a Chicago bar when Goossen spotted him and transformed him into an offbeat movie star.

In mourning Goossen, I wonder where the business is headed without him. Can anybody imagine Al Haymon conducting a news conference? Amend that. Can anyone even imagine a Haymon quote in any media outlet? If Haymon is the example of what to expect, the spotlight might as well be a wildfire for the next generation of promoters and managers. They’ll stay away.

The spotlight enforces a level of accountability. An Arum, or a King, or a Goossen might talk, talk and talk around a looming issue or in defense of some indefensible behavior. But they are there. Buyer beware. With Haymon, however, there’s not even a chance for that caveat. The man said to be boxing’s biggest powerbroker is always in the background or in some back room. He doesn’t take questions, hence there are only suspicions.

It’s no way to run a show. Goossen was aways front and center, always in front of the curtain, instead of behind it. The show must go on. Without him, however, you wonder how it will. If it will.

By Norm Frauenheim

Canelo Alvarez’s jump to HBO from Showtime isn’t surprising. He follows Bernard Hopkins, who took the first step in a move that altered the business landscape with his decision to fight Sergey Kovalev on November 8. It’s hard to know what will happen next. A prediction is a fool’s exercise, especially with unresolved questions about who and how many fighters are under contract to Golden Boy Promotions and/or Al Haymon. But it’s safe to say it’s been a tough couple of weeks for Floyd Mayweather Jr., who suffered a fat lip on Sept. 13 against Marcos Maidana and then had his credibility trashed in an appearance before the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

The announcement about Canelo’s move to HBO and Mayweather’s appearance in front the of the commission happened on the same, Tuesday. Coincidence? Probably. Still, you have to wonder. This is boxing, after all. It’s a place where coincidence and conspiracy often mean the same thing. Let’s just say that Canelo and HBO celebrated while Mayweather and Showtime squirmed.

There was reason to celebrate the Canelo side of the equation.

It further paved the way for a Canelo-Miguel Cotto fight, probably next year, in a bout as big as any in the tradition of the great Puerto Rican-Mexican rivalry. It resurrected a chance at an all-Mexican showdown between Canelo and Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. showdown, although there are doubts about whether Chavez Jr. will ever get his act together long enough to be a reliable partner in any potential venture. It even generated talk about Canelo-Manny Pacquiao, but that one looks unlikely because of the weight disparity. Canelo is growing out of the 154-pound weight class and Pacquiao is considering a move down the scale, from 147 to a more natural 140.

What it took off the table, however, was just another blow for Mayweather and Showtime on an already difficult day. Forget a Canelo-Mayweather rematch. With two fights left on Mayweather’s landmark deal with Showtime, an encore with Canelo had to be at least a consideration. With 2.2 million pay-per-view customers, Mayweather’s majority decision over Canelo set revenue records. For the fighter who calls himself Money, that was the primary reason to do it one more time. Given ho-hum pay-per-view results for the other three fights on his Showtime contract — fewer than one million PPV for Robert Guerrrero and twice for Maidana, the network would have been happy to go back to the Canelo bank.

It’s hard to know exactly where Mayweather and Showtime go now. In his post-fight news conference after his rematch victory over Maidana, Mayweather suggested that he might take off a year, skipping his resumed May date for a fight next September. With talk about an imminent split between him and promotional partner Leonard Ellerbe, that looks to be as likely as any other possibility. Some quiet time might be the only option for Mayweather. The more he talks, the less believable he becomes. If the emperor has no clothes, the pound-for-pound king has no credibility. He said he had a personal goal of knocking out Maidana in the rematch, yet he danced away from the opportunity in the 12th round. He said he had no relationship with controversial conditioning coach Alex Ariza before opening bell and then Ariza tells Filipino media that he has signed a two-year contract with Mayweather.

At the Nevada hearing, he embarrassed Showtime by saying sequences shown on All-Access were staged. Don’t believe, he said, sequences showing 31-minute rounds of sparring in the so-called Dog House at his Las Vegas gym and of women smoking what was assumed to be marijuana at his home.

“That’s all for the reality show,” Mayweather attorney Shane Emerick told the regulator board. “It does not happen.”

Huh? Reality is the new fantasy, or vice versa, or some thing like that.

Then again, maybe there’s a chance at some good news in the Mayweather mess too. Now, more than ever, he needs Pacquiao to restore his credibility. Question is, does he really care about that? If he doesn’t, he might retire unbeaten, but with a legacy defined by Pacquiao, Antonio Margarito, Kostya Tszyu, Sergio Martinez, Paul Williams and everybody else he didn’t fight.

Ben Miranda Boxing Promotions will make its Arizona debut Friday night with a card scheduled for seven bouts at the Phoenix Convention Center.

Phoenix super-middleweight Andrew Hernandez (6-0-1, 1 KO) is scheduled for the main event against Rollin Williams, also of Phoenix. Williams is 48-years old, according to boxrec.com. His 43 pro fights include 23 victories, 18 losses, two draws and eight knockouts, mostly at junior middleweight.

Super-featherweight Keenan Carbajal (4-1-1, 3 KOs) is scheduled to appear on the undercard. The new Phoenix promotional company is named after Ben Miranda, a longtime attorney who represented junior-flyweight Hall of Famer Michael Carbajal in contract negotiations. Miranda died last November

First bell is scheduled for 7 p.m. (PST).

PHOENIX — He is a man of many faces. A baby face. A face of intimidation. He’s man of many styles. Left-handed and right-handed. Heavy-handed, too.

In the end, the many sides of Russian welterweight Konstantin Ponomarev provided to be too much for Cosme Rivera Saturday on a UniMas-televised card

Ponomarev baffled Rivera with a variety of looks and style, scoring a decision that was more one-sided than unanimous at Celebrity Theatre.

Rivera, a well-traveled Mexican with losses to Zab Judah and Alfredo Angulo on his resume, simply couldn’t keep up with Ponomarev’s quick feet. The young Russian (25-0, 12 KOs) moved from southpaw to right-hand leads and back, landed solid shots with both hands from the outside and seemed to baffle Rivera from start finish throughout the 10-round bout.

Ponomarev (25-0, 12 KOs) proved to be a lot of things in scoring a 100-90, 98-92, 100-90 victory on the cards. He danced on agile feet. Despite a baby face, he had undisguised contempt in his eyes. After the fifth round, he at Rivera as if to say the Mexican had no chance. Maybe a younger Rivera would have. But at 38-years-old and 59 fights (37-19-3, 26 KOs), there was just too much wear-and tear for Rivera to have any shot at scoring an upset.

The Rivera who lost to Judah and Angulo might have been able to capitalize on another another side to Panomarev. Roy Jones Jr. employed more defense. The Russian keeps his hands down while moving his head. His energetic feet allow him to dance him of harm’s way, at least from an older fighter. Against a younger fighter, he might not be so hard to figure out.

Two other Eastern Europeans, both trained by Robert Garcia, were impressive on a staged by Top Rank in a partnership with Iron Boy Promotions of Phoenix. Ukrainian Oleksandr Gvozdyk (3-0, 2 KOs), a bronze medalist at the 2012 London Olympics, knocked out Lamont Williams (5-6-1, 2 KOs) with a crushing right hand at 1:38 of the fifth round. Lithuanian welterweight Egididjus Kavaliauskas (8-0, 7 KOs) , a two-time Olympian, scored three knockdown for a first-round TKO of Eduardo Flores (17-15-3, 12 KOs) of Ecuador.

“Both are very, very disciplined,” said Garcia, who also said that both Gvozydk and Kavaliauskas are living with their families near his gym in Oxnard, Calif. “They’ll succeed because of that discpline. They are on a mission to accomplish something in the United States.”

Best of the undercard: Victor Castro, a Phoenix lightweight, had super-bantamweight legend Israel Vazquez in his corner and perfect timing in his left hand. Pablo Becerra never had a chance. Castro (12-0, 6 KOs, who has been training under Vazquez’ guidance for the last several weeks, rocked Becerra (7-6, 6 KOs) with a succession of punches during the third round’s final minute. Then in the round’s final seconds, he landed a left hook, as wicked as it was beautiful. It lifted Becerra off his feet and onto his back. Becerra appeared to be unconscious before he hit the canvas in a devastating knockout at 2:59 of the third. “It’s an honor to to have somebody like Israel training me,” Castro said. “It’s about confidence. He gives me that confidence.”

The rest: Another Garcia-trained fighter, Phoenix light-heavyweight Trevor McCumby (16-0, 13 KOs), scored a first TKO of Martin Verdin ((20-19-2, 11 KOs) of Houma, LA. In noteworthy upset, Shane Mosley son lost in only is third pro bout. Super-welterweight Shane Mosley Jr. (2-1, 2 KOs) lost a split decision to Marchchristopher Adkins (3-1 1 K0) of Dallas.

By Norm Frauenheim–

PHOENIX — Vasyl Lomachenko’s pro resume hasn’t quite caught up with his passport. But give him time. The resume was stamped with a major title, the WBO’s featherweight crown, in only his third trip inside a pro ring. No telling how many stamps are in his well-worn passport.

He’s on the road, all over again, as he prepares to go back to China where he won his first Olympic gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Games. Last week, the two-time gold medalist was at home, training in the Ukraine.

This weekend, he’s in Phoenix to visit an old Olympic teammate, light-heavyweight Oleksandr Gvozdyk, a 2012 bronze medalist who hopes to go 3-0 as a pro Saturday night against Lamont Williams on a UniMas-televised card at Celebrity Theatre. Next week, he’s in Oxnard, Calif., to train at Robert Garcia’s gym.

Final stop: Macao on Nov. 22 on a pay-per-view card in the first defense of the title he won in June in a majority decision over Gary Russell in Carson, Calif. A first-time defense for a first-time champion is often a gimme. But Lomachenko, who faced and lost to tough Orlando Salido in his second bout, is not in the habit of accepting handouts.

On a Top Rank card featuring Manny Pacquiao-Chris Algieri, Lomachenko faces a dangerous challenger, who is unknown in West, yet popular in Asia. Ever heard of Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo? Didn’t think so. But here’s an introduction. Piriyapinyo, of Thailand, is 52-1 with 33 knockouts. His lone loss is to one of the few Asian fighters known in the West. He lost a decision in 2012 to Indonesian Chris John, who beat Juan Manuel Marquez in 2006.

“Vasyl wanted to fight another guy with a title,’’ said his manager Egis Klimas, who is also in Phoenix for a card that includes two-time Olympian Egidijus Kavaliauskas (7-0, 6 KOs) of Lithuania in a welterweight bout and Russian welterweight Konstantin Ponomarev (24-0, 12 KOs) in the main against journeyman Cosme River (37-18-3, 26 KOs). “But nobody was available.

“So he went down the list and just asked for the most dangerous guy. For him, it was the guy from Thailand. In his mind, this fight is like a mandatory. He wants these tough fights, because he wants to learn. Then, may we’ll get a shot at (WBC champion) Nonito Donaire or (IBF champ) Evgeny Gradovich.’’

Donaire is scheduled to fight Jamaican Nichols Walters on Oct. 18 in Carson, Calif., on the Gennady Golovkin-Marco Antonio Rubio card. Klimas also manages Gradovich. Meanwhile, there are lessons for perhaps history’s most accomplished amateur. Like stamps in that passport, Lomachenko is trying to acquire as many as he can.

At Friday’s weigh-in Mesa, a Phoenix suburb, Ponomarev was 148.6 pounds and Rivera tipped the scales at 145.6. Gvozdyk, who is trained by Robert Garcia, was 175.2 pounds and Williams (5-5-1, 2 KOs) 175.8. Kavaliauskas, also trained by Garcia, was 147.8 pounds. His opponent, Eduardo Flores (17-14-12 KOs) of Ecuador was 145.6. Phoenix light-heavyweight Trevor McCumby (15-0, 12 KOs) was 173.6 and his opponent, Martin Verdin (20-18-2, 11 KOs) of Louisiana, weighed 176.0.

By Norm Frauenheim–

Floyd Mayweather Jr. is boxing’s undisputed Drama Diva.

The latest from The Money Team’s long-running soap opera is an apparent split between Mayweather and his longtime advisor and promotional partner Leonard Ellerbe. So much for the team in TMT.

In comments to FightHype.com , Mayweather complained about a breakdown in communication, a lousy ringside seat for his daughter and his disagreement over the decision to put two of his titles, the WBC welterweight and WBA junior-middle, at stake in his decision last Saturday over Marcos Maidana.

Al Haymon will be back, he said. But he made it sound as if everybody else is as expendable as spit in a bucket. A new team might surround him, he said, if he fights in May, although he suggested during the post-fight news conference that he might not fight again until next September.

Blah, blah, blah.

Yeah, Mayweather and Ellerbe might be headed for splitsville. But this is boxing. There are no friends. There are just associates. Mayweather’s primary loyalty is to money and the manager who generates it for him. In Haymon, he trusts. But it’s the money end of the equation that is forcing him to at least talk about changes. Reports of 925,000 for the pay-per-view telecast of the rematch with Maidana were actually better than expected, especially after a week of noisy controversy surrounding his comments about former Baltimore Ravens running back Ray Rice and domestic violence.

It represents a jump of between 25,000 to 75,000 PPV customers. Reports on the first Maidana fight put the PPV number between 850,000 and 900,000.

But better isn’t good.

Showtime, a CBS subsidiary, is paying Mayweather a minimum of $32-million a fight. The contract includes two more fights. Mayweather can count on another $64 million. At that price, the network has a right to expect one million pay-per-view customers per fight. So far, Mayweather has exceeded the one-million mark only once with 2.2 million in his revenue-record setting victory over Canelo Alvarez.

Throughout the week before the Mayweather-Maidana rematch, there were rumblings that CBS President and CEO Les Moonves was pushing for a Mayweather-Manny Pacquiao fight. There was speculation — started by Bob Arum – that there were behind-the-scene talks between HBO and the CBS-owned Showtime about finally putting it together.

When asked about the rumors, Stephen Espinoza, Showtime executive vice president for sports, was cryptic. Espinoza didn’t say no. Didn’t say yes. He joked. But, come on, if you’re the CBS boss and on the hook for another $64 million, you’re demanding Mayweather-Pacquiao.

The real question is whether Mayweather will ever let it happen. He opened the door in the immediate aftermath of his unanimous decision over Maidana, but then began to throw out reasons that it never will. He’s called himself the A side, which means he would demand more than a 50-50 split. A couple of days later, he talks about a split with Ellerbe. It sounds like a feint. Promise a few cosmetic changes, and before you know it, the deal is done and Mayweather’s money is safely in the bank.

But Mayweather’s promises don’t always match up with what he delivers. To wit: He said his goal was to knock out Maidana in the rematch. He had a point to make, he said. He wanted to do it more for himself than even the fans. What happens? In the 12th and final round, he protects his lead on the scorecards by staying away from Maidana. What happened to the point he wanted prove? What happened to the KO? He never even pursued it. That was no goal. It was garbage.

Even his complaints to FightHype.com about the two titles are suspicious. It’s fair to wonder if there was, in fact, a hidden agenda. Putting up the WBA junior-middleweight title alongside his WBC welterweight belt might have been a clever attempt at forcing Maidana to wear 10-ounce, instead of 8 ounce, gloves. The WBA title is 154 pounds, a weight at which both fighters are required to wear 10 ounces. At welterweight, the mandated glove is eight ounces.

A few days before opening bell, there was a potential controversy. Maidana trainer Robert Garcia said 10 ounce gloves were mentioned on a document. He called it a typo. The controversy passed. The fight was contracted to be at welterweight. They fought at eight ounces. At 10 ounces, Maidana would have had less of chance than he had anyway. The 10 ounces might have been a way for Mayweather to avoid the fat lip he sustained.

If the ploy had worked and 10 ounces would have been the weapon of choice, it’s unlikely there would have been a complaint from Mayweather. Mere typo or not, it didn’t work. But it does give Mayweather reason to complain and another reason to make another promise.

By Norm Frauenheim–

Top Rank’s attempt to resurrect a dormant Phoenix market continues Saturday night in a partnership with Iron Boy Promotions in a UniMas-televised card at Celebrity Theatre that includes a couple of ex-Olympians, Shane Mosley’s son and a Russian prospect.

The prospect, welterweight Konstantin Ponomarev (24-0, 12 KOs), faces perhaps his biggest challenge against Mexican Cosme Rivera (37-18-3, 26 KOs), whose well-traveled resume includes a 2005 loss to Zab Judah in a bid for the WBC’s 147-pound title.

Light-heavyweight Oleksandr Gvozdyk (2-0, 1 KO), a bronze medalist for the Ukraine at the 2012 Olympics, will appear in his third pro bout with trainer Robert Garcia in his corner. Egidijus Kavaliauskas (7-0, 6 KO), a two-time Olympian from Lithuania, is scheduled for a welterweight bout.

Shane Mosley Jr. (2-0, 2 KOs) will fight for the third time as a pro as a super-welterweight on an11-bout card. First bell is scheduled for 6 p.m. (PST).

The weigh-in is scheduled for Friday (2 p.m.) at Crescent Crown in Mesa. It is open to the public.

LAS VEGAS — Floyd Mayweather Jr. kept alive his pursuit of an unbeaten legacy. Kept his fingers, too.

In a rematch full of some unusual twists and Marcos Maidana’s mouth full of more than a mouthpiece, the result Saturday night at the MGM Grand was predictable.

Mayweather (47-0, 26 KOs) shook off some heavy punches from the wild-swinging Maidana (35-5, 31 KOs) in the early rounds, began to exert control midway through the fourth round and landed with precision throughout the rest of the fight for a 116-111, 115-112, 116-111 decision. On the 15 Rounds card, it was 115-113 for Mayweather.

Only a knockout eluded Mayweather in the rematch of his majority decision over Maidana in May. A KO was his goal, he said several times before opening bell.

“I give myself a C, C-minus,” Mayweather said after the fourth fight in a Showtime deal for a possible six fights and a potential $250 million.

A chance at a stoppage for an A might have been eliminated in the eighth round. That’s when Mayweather said Maidana bit him on his gloved left hand.

No, Maidana said. How could he bite anybody with a plastic guard on his teeth? Video of the mount appeared to
inclusive. But Mayweather walked over toward the press section, leaned over the ropes and yelled that Maidana bit him.

“After the eighth round, my fingers were numb,” Mayweather said. “I couldn’t use my left hand.”

His right was more than enough against Maidana, who appeared to grow increasingly wild with each round. In the 10th, Maidana was penalized a point for pushing Mayweather onto the canvas. It almost looked as if Maidana was about to walk over Myyweather like a fallen pedestrian about to get trampled. In the 11th, Mayweather was warned for a low blow. Maidana was given time to recover. Mayweather impatiently waved at him, urging to continue the fight. It was as if Mayweather wanted to finish the business at hand and move on to the next fight.

When it was time to address what was next, he was asked the inevitable. He was asked about Manny Pacquiao. When isn’t he? Pacquiao-Mayweather has been the subject of futile talks and rumors for years. It won’t die. The surprise was that Mayweather kept it alive this time around. He usually dismisses it.

“Manny Pacquiao, if that fight presents itself, let’s make it happen,” he said.

There wasn’t much doubt and Leo Santa Cruz made sure of it with a devastating one-punch demolition of Manuel Roman that strengthened his claim on being one of the world’s best junior-featherweights.

“I want to fight Guillermo Rigondeaux,” Santa Cruz said of the Cuban who is considered to be No. 1 in the competitive weight class.

Roman (17-3-3, 6 KOs) was just an impressive work out for Santa Cruz, who stayed unbeaten (28-0-1, 16 KOs) and retained the WBC version of the 122-pound title. In the second round, Santa Cruz grazed Roman, his former sparring partner and a 50-to-1 underdog at the sports book, with a jab. He followed with a straight right that landed on the soft tissue behind a Roman ear. Roman collapsed. As he tried to get up, referee Robert Byrd ended it at 5 seconds of the round.

It wouldn’t be a fight card without a wild card. It came in Mickey Bey’s split decision over Miguel Vazquez for the IBF’s lightweight title. It was deadly dull, which means it could have been a draw. After the boos, the first two scores were announced. A draw sounded likely. Judge Julie Lederman had it 115-113 for the Mayweather-promoted Bey (21-1-1, 10 KOs) of Cleveland. Adalaide Byrd scored it 115-113 for Vazquez (34-4, 13 KOs) of Mexico. But it was Robert Hoyle who dealt the wild card, 119-109 for Bey, who bloodied Vazquez early, yet was never dominant enough to win by a double-digit margin.

James De La Rosa of San Benito, Tex., celebrated with a back-flip. When he landed, he stumbled. But he didn’t fall. Nothing could knock De La Rosa (23-2, 13 KOs) off his feet. Alfredo Angulo (224, 18 KOs), of Mexicali, tried in a furious finish to a 10-round middleweight bout in the first pay-pr-view fight on the Floyd-Mayweather Jr.-Marcos Maidana card. Angulo landed a couple of wicked left hooks and followed with successive rights, but De La Rosa survived to win a unanimous decision over a bloodied Angulo, who lost the first eight rounds, suffered a knockdown in the second and was penalized one point in the seventh for a low blow.

In a foul-fest, Mexican junior-welterweight Humberto Soto suffered two low-blows and was penalized for throwing one of his own, yet survived to win by unanimous decision over John Molina Jr. of Covina, Ca., in a Showtime telecast before the first pay-per-view fight.

Molina (27-5, 22 KOs), who appeared to throw punches after the bell in the early rounds, was penalized for low-blows in the sixth and seventh. Soto (65-8, 35 KOs) retaliated and it cost him a one-point penalty in the tenth. In the end, however Soto was the stronger fighter and a 95-92, 96-91, 95-92 winner on the cards.

Las Vegas cruiserweight Andrew Tabiti, who promises to take the snoozer out of cruiser, continued to display power and promise, pushing his record to 8-0, all by stoppage, with a sixth-round TKO of Caleb Grummet (3-2, 3 KOs) of Lake Odessa, Mich. Tabiti dominated Grummet for five-plus rounds before Vic Drakulich stopped it at 2:01 of the sixth.

Armando Lopes scored the undercard’s first upset, beating junior-welterweight prospect Damian Sosa of Argentina in the third bout on the card’s non-televised portion. Sosa (8-1, 6 KOs), a Robert Gracia-trained fighter, suffered a knockdown in the second round and never really recovered, losing a unanimous decision to Lopes (5-3, 1 KOs) of Nogales, Mexico.

In the second bout on the non-televised portion of the card, welterweight Fabian Maidana (3-0, 2 KO) got things warned up for brother Marcos with a first-round stoppage of Jared Teer (2-3), an Illinois fighter was knocked twice in the opening moments.

Super-middleweight Kevin Newman and Azamat Umarzoda opened the show two hours after high noon and about five hours before the Floyd Mayweather Jr.- Marcos Maidana Saturday at the MGM Grand. Seats were empty. But there wasn’t much to see, anyway. Newman (0-0-1), of Mayweather Promotions, and Umarzoda (0-5-2) of Tajikistan, fought to a draw through an uneventful four rounds.

By Norm Frauenheim-

LAS VEGAS – Oscar De La Hoya got a key to the city Saturday and promised major cards in Vegas around each of the Mexican holidays in May and September.

“I have to thank the great Julio Cesar Chavez, because that man got that tradition started,’’ De La Hoya, president of Golden Boy Promotions, said to fans and politicians while accepting the symbolic key in front of the old sign that welcomes tourists to Vegas. “I promise to continue the tradition.’’

Over the last couple of years, Floyd Mayweather Jr. has moved into those dates. He fought Marcos Maidana in a rematch Saturday night at the MGM Grandin a bout scheduled to be part of the annual celebration of Mexican Independence on Sept. 16. He also has been fighting in early May as part of the Cinco de Mayo party.

A potential conflict looms if De La Hoya fulfills the promise. In an interview after the ceremony under a hot sun in the Nevada desert, he told reporters from 15 Rounds and the Los Angeles Times that he is obligated to schedule fights for Canelo Alvarez on those dates.

De La Hoya, the promoter of record for the Mayweather-Maidana rematch, said he will meet with Canelo on Wednesday to discuss options, which will include possibilities in May. There’s a lot of talk about Canelo-Miguel Cotto in a bout that would rank among the biggest in the great tradition of the Mexican-Puerto Rican rivalry.

“Canelo-Cotto is the biggest fight out there, other than Manny Pacquaio-Mayweather,’’ said De La Hoya, who was a Vegas headliner in May and September throughout his Hall of Fame career.

For years, Pacquiao-Mayweather has only been a lot of futile talk. There’s no reason to believe it will happen next May or ever. There’s speculation that Mayweather might decide to fight Amir Khan next May. Let’s say the choice is between Mayweather-Khan and Cotto-Canelo.

“Who would you pick?” De La Hoya asked.