LAS VEGAS – Juan Manuel Marquez’ strength coach has been called controversial. He’s been called a couple of other things too, including two different last names, once Heredia and now Hernandez. He’s always been Angel, yet with a devil in his past. He testified during the BALCO scandal that he supplied performance enhancers to Olympic track-and-field medalists.

The guess was that he was hiding behind an alias.

But guess what? He wasn’t hiding at all Wednesday. Hernandez or Heredia or none of the above was front and center at the most public of places, a formal news conference at the MGM Grand for the third Marquez fight with Manny Pacquiao Saturday night.

Marquez even introduced him, or at least thanked him.

“Memo Hernandez” Marquez called him as stood at the podium and gestured toward the strength coach’s seat near the stage and suddenly in the spotlight.

Memo to everybody else: Marquez is forthright and open about working with the coach of many names and controversies. Perhaps, it’s an attempt to erase the speculative cloud about whether something more than pumping iron went into the bodywork that has re-defined his appearance. The Marquez camp is acting as if it has nothing to hide. It’s the smart move, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the speculation will subside. It never does. Ask Lance Armstrong.

“I want to make clear I have done a clean preparation for this fight, like I always have done,’’ Marquez said in Spanish translated into English by his promoter, Fernando Beltran.

In terms of integrity, Marquez’ record is unquestioned. But circumstances have created an almost inescapable web. Boxing fans and conspiracy theorists are almost one and the same. Without conspiracies, the game’s history just wouldn’t be what it is.

The contracted weight for Saturday is 144 pounds. Marquez has been at more than 140 pounds only once and that was in a one-sided loss by decision to a bigger Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2009. He says he trained the wrong way to get ready for the jump up in weight. It left him sluggish. He then fought at 133 pounds, 134 and 138 in victories over Juan Diaz, Michael Katsidis and Likar Ramos.

Then, the work began for Pacquiao, who took a split decision from him at 130 pounds in 2008 and fought him to a draw at 126 in 2004. Marquez said he would train differently for the third fight against Pacquiao, his second attempt at fighting at a weight north of 140. Enter Hernandez, who was Heredia when he testified that he gave performance enhancers to Marion Jones and Tim Montgomery.

The controversy erupted when Victor Conte, who went to prison for his role in the BALCO, spotted him on HBO’s 24/7. In a tweet, Conte, who works with Nonito Donaire and Andre Berto, revealed that Hernandez had another name and links to the scandal.

Hernandez, who has a degree from Texas A&M, said Wednesday that he is suing Conte for defamation. He also ripped Conte, calling him a hypocrite.

“The guy has not only been convicted,’’ Hernandez said. “He’s a liar. It’s obvious he’s jealous. Because I’m part of boxing today, I guess he feels I’m competition again. His athletes could wind up being mine. He’s always been jealous.’’

Hernandez theorized that his college degree might a reason for that jealousy.

“He doesn’t have a degree,’’ Hernandez said.

Marquez said the strength training designed by Hernandez has involved weight-lifting, but in variety of ways and at changing weights. The idea is to retain his quickness while adding power.

Hard to do, says Pacquiao. Maybe impossible, says Pacquiao’s surprised trainer, Freddie Roach.

“I thought he’d come in at 135 and use his speed and counter-punching against Manny,’’ Roach said. “They moved in a different direction by getting bigger.”

If he has added muscle and sacrificed speed, Roach suggests Marquez will be in trouble against Pacquiao, who has added a potent right hand to power that dropped Marquez three times in the opening round of their first fight.

“I don’t think he’s going to be able to get up from this Manny Pacquiao punch,” Roach said.

A one-punch knockout from Pacquiao might be the only answer to any of the drug questions floating around in the dwindling days before opening bell. But Marquez, an astonishing 7-to-1 underdog late Wednesday, says it won’t happen, in large part because of the work he did with Hernandez. Or is that Heredia?

“My name is this,’’ Hernandez said as he tried to explain the name game in HBO 24/7. “My name is very long. My first name is Angel. I have a middle name, which is Guillermo. But in Mexico, they use ‘Memo,’ which is my nickname. Heredia, for some people, it’s very difficult for them to catch up.

“You can ask anybody here in the media sometimes they call me Heredia. Dr. Heredia. For some reason, I told you guys Hernandez, and it was easier for you guys to write it down.”

Next time, we’ll write it down with a pencil that comes with a very eraser at the opposite end. You never know when it’s going to change.

LAS VEGAS – Bob Arum threw a combination as only he can, first by praising Home Box Office for its work in the build-up to Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez and then ripping the network for its documentary, Thrilla in Manila, a look at the Joe Frazier-Muhammad Ali rivalry that HBO will replay Thursday and Sunday in honor of the late Frazier.

“That documentary, I find is disgusting,’’ Arum said Wednesday after HBO senior vice-president Mark Taffet announced the scheduling during a formal news conference for the third chapter in the Pacquiao-Marquez trilogy Saturday at the MGM Grand.

The 2009 film tells a story about the Muhammad Ali-Frazier rivalry through the eyes of Frazier, 67, who died Monday from liver cancer. Through most of his life, Frazier was bitter at the way he was treated by Ali, who called him “ugly”, a “gorilla,’’ and an “Uncle Tom’’ during their heavyweight trilogy.

Arum remembered Frazier as a great fighter, yet he was angry at the film’s portrayal of Ali.

“I’m 80,’’ said Arum, a former Ali promoter. “I was there. It is an unfair attack on Ali. Watch it. But don’t believe a word that is said.’’

The 90-minute documentary is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. (ET/PT) on Thursday and 5:30 p.m. (ET/PT) Sunday.

A contentious conference call full of questions about Juan Manuel Marquez’ hiring of a controversial strength coach linked to performance-enhancers included an offer that represents an opportunity for Manny Pacquiao.

“Whatever testing they want to do, blood or Olympic, I am ready to do it,’’ Marquez said. “We’ll do it, no problem, as long as he does it too.’’

Memo to Pacquiao: Say yes. Call the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. Schedule the test.

It’s hard to know if Marquez was serious or just bluffing Wednesday when — in an exasperated tone – he made the comment after another question about how he met Angel Hernandez and what he knew about his past, which includes testimony during the BALCO case that he provided PEDs to disgraced Olympic sprinter Marion Jones and Tim Montgomery when he had a different name, Angel Heredia.

It almost sounded as if Marquez just wanted to move beyond the controversy and back to the day-to-day business of preparing for his second rematch with Pacquiao on Nov. 12 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand. Can’t blame him, but the questions won’t go away easily, in part because of Hernandez or Heredia or whatever his name is this week. An alias, if that’s what it is, is a way to hide. At least, BALCO founder Victor Conte, who unlike Heredia-Hernandez did time in prison, didn’t change his name to Vinnie Barbarino before he started working for Nonito Donaire and Andre Berto.

In the short-term, an Olympic-style test would alleviate some of the suspicions that threaten to erode anticipation for a third fight expected to settle the debate about whether a draw and a split-decision for Pacquiao should have been scored in favor of Marquez.

In the long-term, it would eliminate any further debate about whether Pacquiao has agreed to the tests demanded by Floyd Mayweather Jr. Negotiations for Mayweather-Pacquiao fell apart in late 2009 over the issue. According to Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum, Pacquiao has agreed to random testing.

“Manny Pacquiao has said for two years that he will accept Olympic style testing, so that question is absolute nonsense,” said Arum, also exasperated at continuing talk about an issue that wouldn’t matter much if Marquez upsets the Filipino.

Nevertheless, Mayweather advisor Leonard Ellerbe told ESPN.com that the fight might happen on May 5. Drug-testing has been resolved, said Ellerbe, whose timing was interpreted by the Pacquiao camp as a grandstanding attempt to take away attention from the Marquez rematch.

But Mayweather, himself, has had more elusive moves for questions about Pacquiao’s reported agreement to random testing than Angel Heredia-Hernandez has names. During a news conference after his controversial stoppage of Victor Ortiz, Mayweather simply ignored them.

Now, however, there’s a chance to eliminate more of the same old talk with a test. Take it, Manny.

An awkward reunion
Friends aren’t supposed to fight, but that’s what super-middleweights Lucian Bute and Glen Johnson will do Saturday night at Quebec City’s Pepsi Center in a Showtime-televised bout. They grew to like each while sparring.

“When Glen and Lucian would spar, everyone in the gym would stop training to watch them fight,’’ Bute trainer Stephan Larouche said. “I thought, ‘If this is a sparring session, what would a fight be like?’ Saturday, we all get to find out.”

It’s intriguing on several levels. If Bute and Johnson can put aside their friendship for maybe as long as 12 rounds, it could be a heck of fight.

AZ Notes
Junior-welterweight prospect Jose Benavidez, Jr. (13-0, 12 KOs) of Phoenix returns to boxing’s biggest stage on the Pacquiao-Marquez undercard. He is scheduled to face Gary Bergeron (12-8, 7 KOs), a Louisiana fighter who has lost his last three. The agile, talented Benavidez should be ready.

He has been sparring with Amir Khan, who faces Lamont Peterson on Dec. 10 in Washington D.C. Sparring sessions with Khan a couple of years ago helped Benavidez gain some quick fame a couple years ago when they were seen on YouTube.

Timothy Bradley has lived with criticism, but hasn’t been able to make a living off of it. It’s a subtle distinction, perhaps. But it’s a lesson that Bradley accepted and then spun into simple wisdom that led him away from Gary Shaw to Top Rank.

“Criticism doesn’t pay the bills,” Bradley said.

A shot at Manny Pacquiao would. That’s not necessarily where his new deal with Top Rank’s Bob Arum will take him. But go ahead and connect the dots. A lot of people already have. Bradley has a better chance at Manny money now than he ever had while his career languished in Shaw’s never-never limbo.

Bradley’s fight against left-handed Joel Casamayor on the Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez undercard on Nov. 12 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand puts him in line, another possibility for the left-handed Pacquiao if chances at finally securing a date with Floyd Mayweather Jr. fall apart all over again.

Despite all of the inevitable questions about Mayweather, Arum said there has been no talk about Pacquiao’s plan after the third chapter in his trilogy with Marquez, who has posed more problems for him than anybody in his rise to stardom.

“As to whom Manny fights, that’s ultimately a decision made by Manny,’’ Arum said Thursday during a conference call with Bradley. “Do I make recommendations, proposals? Of course, I do. That’s my job as a promoter. But I have never discussed with Manny about an opponent after Marquez.

“Marquez is a very difficult opponent for Manny, as he proved twice, because of his style. Manny has his hands full, I think, with a new, improved Marquez, who physically looks like a much bigger guy. You know, when Manny fought him the first two times, Marquez wasn’t knocking anybody out. Now, he has a whole string of knockout victories. Obviously, he’s sitting down on his punches. He’s just a very dangerous opponent. So, until after Nov. 12, I don’t know who Manny is going to fight.’’

But the possibilities are there if Mayweather isn’t and Arum doesn’t believe he will be. At least, he didn’t on Wednesday. That’s when Arum told ESPNLosAngeles before a Pacquiao media workout at Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Gym in Hollywood that the Mayweather fight would “never, ever happen.’’

If not, there has to be options. Arum already has mentioned Mike Jones and Brandon Rios. Add Bradley to the list, despite complications. He faces a breach-of-contract suit from Shaw and co-promoter Ken Thompson. Further legal action is said to be a possibility. But attorneys told him and Arum to go ahead and sign.

That’s all he needed to hear. There was frustration, sitting idle for 10 month since a forgettable victory over Devon Alexander in an empty Silverdome near Detroit .There were few prospects and only those critics as company. What’s more, there’s another mouth to fight, a baby daughter, Jada, who was born in July. It was beginning to look as if the Bradley, unbeaten (27-0, 11 KOs) at 140 and 147 pounds, was doomed to spend his prime on the shelf. He had an opportunity at a reported $1.4 million against Amir Khan last summer. Why would he turn down that opportunity when it appeared to be the only one?

Had he fought Khan under his former promotional banner, it might not have widened his appeal, made him better-known. His fight against Alexander was supposed to have been a major step to stardom for Bradley. But it was a fight remembered more for head butts and empty seats in a forgotten arena.

“Top Rank brings that kind of exposure,’’ Bradley said of marketing that he says wasn’t there with Shaw. “A fight with Amir Khan through Top Rank, I think will be huge because you’ve got the top promotional company advertising it, doing what they’re supposed to – spending the money to make money and turning their fighter into a super-star.

“Kicking back and thinking about it, we made the right choice.’’

And maybe some big money.

AZ Notes
· Phoenix super-middleweight Jesus Gonzales is still waiting to hear if he’ll get a shot at Kelly Pavlik, who at last report is moving on to a new trainer and a different lifestyle, Oxnard, Calif., instead of Youngstown. If he can’t land a bout with Pavlik in January, Gonzales says he hopes to fight in December.

· Promoter Michelle Rosado put together an entertaining card of four-rounders in downtown Phoenix a week ago with hometown super-bantamweight Emilio Garcia (4-0-1, 1 KO) fighting behind a precise, body-to-head jab in a unanimous decision over Miguel Armendarez (0-5-1) of Mexico.

· And Hall of Famer Michael Carbajal did not, as expected, face his estranged brother Danny in a Phoenix courtroom last Friday. Carbajal’s attorney told him to stay away from a proceeding that is part of the preparation for a civil trial scheduled to begin Jan. 8. Danny Carbajal got out of prison in July after serving a sentence on fraud charges related to the theft of about $2 million dollars from Michael. Danny Carbajal is representing himself in his brother’s suit to claim ownership of 12 pieces of property that Michael said Danny bought with the money he earned in the ring. The trial will pit brother-against-brother in a divided family. It could get very ugly.

It’s a reach to make too much out of one punch. But we can hope, can’t we? I’m talking about Nonito Donaire, whose second-round thunderbolt in February dumped Fernando Montiel into a shaking heap and created an aura about Donaire.

There was more than just power. There was anticipation.

“Before I went in the ring I explained to each and every one of them how it was going to end,’’ Donaire said of a forecast he made in his dressing room.

No lie, Donaire trainer Robert Garcia said.

“He called it,’’ Garcia said during a conference call before Donaire’s bantamweight title defense against Omar Narvaez at the Madison Square Garden Theater in New York. “We’re not making this up or exaggerating. That’s just the way it happened.’’

If one left hook – the biggest punch in what thus far has been a forgettable year – says something about Donaire’s timing, maybe he can deliver some timely relief from a mind-numbing succession of confusion, controversy and disappointment.

Given what’s just happened, it’s reasonable to be skeptical. No, amend that. Fans should remember what Victor Ortiz forgot in September when he was knocked out by Floyd Mayweather Jr. Protect yourselves at all times.

On the scale of things nobody expected, there was Mayweather’s left-right combination at an Ortiz who left his hands at his side and didn’t keep a wary eye on the threat in front of him. What else could happen? Plenty.

Crazy turned bizarre in Los Angeles last Saturday when Chad Dawson’s shoulder did more apparent damage in the second round than any of his punches, dropping Bernard Hopkins, who must have felt like Michael Vick after an encounter with a defensive end.

By now, everybody has their own spin on what happened. From this corner, it still looks as if Dawson’s TKO victory should have been ruled NC, as in No Contest. But the absence of any real discussion in mainstream media indicates apathy, as in WC. Who Cares? Some controversy sells. Mayweather’s stoppage of Ortiz did, in large part because HBO’s Larry Merchant’s wish that he was 50 years younger so he could kick Mayweather’s ass.

But too much controversy creates exasperation, then boredom, the real peril. This is a year that began with Tim Bradley’s technical decision in January over Devon Alexander in an empty Silverdome near chilly, rundown Detroit. It continued with Shane Mosley’s retreat into defeat in May against Manny Pacquiao. Then, there was David Haye stubbing his toe, apparently injured, in a July loss to Wladimir Klitschko and Abner Mares’ majority decision over Joseph Agbeko in an August bout marred by low blows. Haye announced his retirement last week. A lot of fans, all with healthy toes, might join him this week, especially if any of them heard about an insulting post-fight news conference in the wake of the Dawson-Hopkins mess.

Dawson, who says he doesn’t trash-talk, talked nothing else, perhaps because Hopkins was in the hospital for a reported shoulder separation. Dawson mocked Hopkins for claiming to be a gangster. A gangster, Dawson said, would not have quit. Huh? Since when have gangsters been known to be courageous? A gangster would have let his boys, guys in the hallway with hidden nunchucks, continue the fight.

Then, there was a question about whether customers at Staples Center and in HBO’s pay-per-view audience should get their money back.

“Let Bernard take his paycheck and refund everybody,’’ Dawson promoter Gary Shaw said through a predatory grin.

Translation: Suckers.

All of this is a round-a-bout way of getting back to Donaire (26-1, 18 KOs), a likeable Filipino-American. By all accounts, he is expected to score a dominant victory over Narvaez, who has an impressive record (35-0-2, 23 KOs), yet is mostly unknown in the Northern hemisphere. But he is from Argentina, which is enough reason for Donaire to beware. Sergio Martinez, 2010’s Fighter of the Year, is from Argentina. So is Marcos Maidana, who was an unknown Argentine with an impressive record in 2005. Ask Victor Ortiz about him.

“I really believe that Nonito will be a major star,’’ said Top Rank’s Bob Arum, who has reunited with Donaire after a nasty battle eight months ago when Donaire tried to jump to Golden Boy Promotions.

The year needs one desperately. If Donaire’s timing is as good as many think, Saturday in New York is the perfect time and place to begin.

AZ Notes
Phoenix promoter Michelle Rosado stages her third card Friday night at Madison Events Center with eleven bouts, eight pro and three amateur. Super-bantamweight Emilio Garcia-Colon is scheduled for the main event. First bell is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. (PST).

Former Phoenix junior-flyweight Michael Carbajal, a Hall of Famer, expects to see his brother and former trainer Danny Carbajal for the first time since Danny went to prison in 2008 on fraud charges related to the theft of an estimated $2 million. A hearing is scheduled for Friday morning in downtown Phoenix. Michael is suing to recover property purchased by Danny, who was released from prison in July.

LOS ANGELES – Chad Dawson held up his gloved hands in celebration. Bernard Hopkins held his left shoulder in pain. Fans, an endangered species, held their noses. It stinks.

Stinks all over again.

Within one month after the controversy over the when, where and motivation for the Floyd Mayweather Jr. combination that knocked out Victor Ortiz while Ortiz wasn’t looking or defending himself, boxing has to explain another pay-per-view fight that ended in boos.

Dawson was credited for a victory, although it wasn’t clear whether it would stand. Here’s why: At 2:48 of the second round of a fight for Hopkins’ World Boxing Council light-heavyweight title at Staples Center, Dawson went under a right from Hopkins and picked him up like a linebacker. Dawson dropped him on the canvas, on to his left shoulder and under a bottom rope. He got more than a sack. Instead, referee Pat Russell gave him a victory.

Russell ruled that Dawson won by technical knockout.

“It was not a foul,’’ Russell said. “It’s a TKO. He could not continue because of injury.’’

Russell could not continue either. Pat Dodd of the California State Athletic Commission ordered him to shut up.

“At this time, it’s a TKO, for now,’’ said Dye, who didn’t need an interpreter to tell everybody that this fight’s result has yet to be decided.

A frustrated Hopkins didn’t need to look at the film. His opinion was immediate.

“It should have been no contest,’’ the 46-year-old Hopkins said. “He asked me if I could continue. I said, yeah, with one arm.

“They want me to leave boxing. This is one way to do it.’’

Dawson behaved as though he hopes he never sees Hopkins again. In the crazy aftermath at the center of the ring, Dawson walked toward Hopkins corner, pointed at him and shouted insults.

“I’m sorry for the disappointment for the fans,’’ Dawson said. “B-Hop disappointed a lot of fans. He’s been running from me for three years. He likes to run around and talk like he’s a Philadelphia gangster. He’s no gangster. Gangsters don’t quit.

“He wouldn’t fight. I gave him the shoulder.’’

For fans, it was a cold shoulder. Another one.

If you want to know why it’s called blood sport, download a photo of Jorge Linares (31-2,20 KOs) after a loss to Mexican Antonio DeMarco (26-3-1, 19 KOs) for the World Boxing Council’s vacant lightweight title. Linares’ face is there, somewhere, behind all that blood. It dripped from a deep wound at the bridge of his nose and from one above his right eye. Both were suffered from blows seemingly uninterrupted from round to round. It ended, perhaps, because Linares, of Venezuela, could bleed no more. He led on all three score cards when Raul Caiz Sr. stopped it at 2:32 of the 11th round..

Philadelphia junior-welterweight Danny Garcia (22-0, 14 KOs) improved his chances at a title shot with a split decision over Kendall Holt (27-5, 15 KOs) of New York in a WBC/IBF title eliminator. Garcia employed a thorough array of punches – head to body, body to head – in winning a fight that was curious only the scorecards. “I got out-hustled,’’ said Holt, who must have been surprised to hear that one judge, Wayne Hedgepeth, had him winning, 115-113.

The card’s first televised bout included Paulie Malignaggi, who is in a battle to get back into the welterweight picture. His battle almost ended when it started. Malignaggi ((30-4, 6 KOs), of Brooklyn, N.Y., was rocked by Mexican Orlando Lora (28-2-1, 19 KOs) in the first round. Malignaggi staggered, yet held on long enough to rally in the second and score often enough in the remaining nine rounds for a victory by unanimous decision.

In the final bout on the non-televised portion of the undercard, junior-featherweight Manuel Avila (5-0, 2 KOs) of Fairfield, Calif., scored a third-round knockdown, dropping David Reyes (2-1) of Los Angeles with a beautifully-executed left hook. Avila needed it. He won a split decision.

Dewey Bozella, wrongfully convicted of murder in 1983, won a unanimous decision over Larry Hopkins in a four-round cruiserweight bout on the Bernard Hopkins-Chad Dawson undercard.

Bozella, released from New York’s Sing-Sing Prison in 2009 after serving more than 20 years, fought for decades to pro his innocence. He needed only a couple of rounds to prove he was a fighter than Hopkins (0-4) of Houston.

“I used to lie in my cell dreaming about this,’’ Bozella said. “My dream came true.’’

The 52-year-old Bozella, who got a call from President Barack Obama and was awarded the Arthur Ashe Courage Award, looked nervous and stiff in the opening round. The quicker Hopkins rocked him with right hands. But Bozella employed the patience and determination he had acquired over his two-plus decades in prison. He walked forward, hitting Hopkins with body punches and just about anything else he could throw. Hopkins began to tire. In the fourth, he was done.

Hopkins spit out his mouthpiece five times. He was penalized point for the second time. He tried to catch it in midair as it popped out of his mouth for the first and final time. As he juggled it, Bozella rocked him with a right hand. Call it a punch for freedom.

If Nick Casal of Niagara Falls, N.Y., needed target practice, he got some in the third round of a welterweight fight, the third on the card, against Michael Anderson of Newark, N.J. Casal (22-4-1, 17 KOs) dropped Anderson (11-1-1, 9 KOs) once with a left-right combination and again with another combo before referee Ray Corona stopped it at 2:54 of the round and Anderson hanging on the ropes.

In the card’s second bout, a body shot from Mexico City junior-middleweight Freddie Hernandez put Luis Collazo, of Brooklyn, N.Y., onto one knee in the eighth round. Collazo (31-5, 16 KOs), best known for losses to Andre Berto, Shane Mosley and Ricky Hatton, looked like he was praying. His prayers weren’t answered. The more aggressive, quicker Hernandez (30-3, 20 KOs) won a unanimous decision.

Middleweights Donyll Livingston and Kurtis Colvin were the warm-up act, one of eight before Bernard Hopkins and Chad Dawson entered the ring Saturday night for the main event at Staples Center.

Livingston’s speed, perhaps a good sign for Dawson, prevailed.

Livingston (6-0, 3 KOs), of Palmdale, Calif., started fast, staggering Colvin (6-1, 5 KOs) with right hand in the closing moments of the first round. But Colvin, of Austin, Tex., held on, recovered and rocked Livingston with some wicked uppercuts in the fourth and again in the fifth. But when he needed the speed, it was always there for Livingston, who in the end finished with six-round victory by unanimous decision.

LOS ANGELES – Bernard Hopkins kept it light. He also kept his sunglasses on. Then again, it was Hollywood and he is the designated star for his fight Saturday night against Chad Dawson at Staples Center, just a few freeway miles from the scales Friday at Ripley’s Believe It or Not.

Hopkins, always more Captain Defiance than Father Time, was at 173.4 pounds, nearly two pounds under the light-heavyweight limit. Middle-aged men are supposed to struggle with their weight. But 46-year-old Hopkins doesn’t. He has only the age and none of the middle so common to most in his generation.

Dawson (30-1, 17 KOs) has fewer years and nearly one more pound than Hopkins (52-5-2, 32 KOs). Dawson, who is 17 years younger than Hopkins, tipped the scale at 174.2 pounds. Will it matter after opening bell? Probably not. But it was good theater on a warm afternoon at Ripley’s Believe It Or Not, where a Hopkins has been memorialized in wax.

Waxed, of course, is what each intends to do to the other in a bout for the World Boxing Council title that Hopkins won in rematch victory over Jean Pascal in May. Differing style have generated some worry that the HBO-televised fight could be deadly dull. Hopkins’ best chance is believed to be on the inside against the swift Dawson, who swift feet and boxing tactics could keep him on the perimeter.

“I want you to bring the best out of me,” Hopkins said to Dawson Wednesday at the formal news conference. “I am challenging Chad Dawson to try to knock me out. I want to see the best Chad Dawson.’’

The Dawson who Hopkins wants to see, however, might not be the smartest Dawson, whose youthful energy and proven endurance might be his best weapon over the scheduled 12 rounds. But the calculating Hopkins has talked other opponents into a lot of traps over the many years. Dawson doesn’t say much, so it’s hard to know if any of Hopkins words are about draw him into another one.

“I just want prove I’m the best light-heavyweight in the world,’’ Dawson said. “It was Bernard Hopkins. But now it will be me.’’

Undercard weights

Antonio DeMarco 134.4 pounds versus Jorge Linares at 134.6 for the WBC’s vacant lightweight title.

Kendall Holt 139.4 pounds versus Danny Garcia 139.4 in a junior-welterweight eliminator for the WBC/International Boxing Federation titles.

Paulie Malignaggi 147.4 pounds versus Orlando Lora 147.5 in a welterweight bout.
Dewey Bozella 190.6 pounds versus Larry Hopkins 192.5 in a cruiserweight bout.

It’s hard to know what to expect from Bernard Hopkins and Chad Dawson. Don’t blame Hopkins for that. After 23 years, we know Hopkins, mostly because he knows himself. He’s comfortable with what and who he has become. But the book on Dawson is an unfinished manuscript, an unresolved mystery. Who is he?

Nobody seems to know, perhaps because he doesn’t.

Dawson has gone through trainers the way Hollywood celebrities go through shrinks. From John Scully, to Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, to Floyd Mayweather Sr., back to Mustafa Muhammad, to Emanuel Steward, and now back to Scully. Only Dr. Phil hasn’t been in the mix.

The confusing map includes many moves, yet no apparent destination. Dawson seems to be searching for an identity more than a trainer.

“Scully is going to make a difference,’’ Dawson said at his media workout in Los Angeles. “The last two or three fights, I haven’t truly been myself.

Maybe, just maybe, Dawson (30-1, 17 KOs) is back at the beginning of what and who he was. If so, yeah, he can spring an upset of Hopkins (52-5-2, 32 KOs), the World Boxing Council’s light-heavyweight champion, Saturday night in an HBO televised bout at Los Angeles’ Staples Center. Everything else adds up to a measurable chance for him. Dawson is 17-years younger than the 46-year-old Hopkins. His hands are fast. His feet are quick. The fight’s promotional label, Believe It Or Not, could take on new meaning. Believe It Or Not, Dawson could win.

But there’s still that uncertainty about whether he has figured out how to truly be himself. Ordinarily, that might not be much of a factor. Dawson’s superior skill set would prevail, has prevailed against everybody but Jean Pascal. But against Hopkins, it matters. Hopkins is the oldest in history to win a major title because of a keen, predatory eye. It’s what allows him to survive against a younger generation with physical skills, but none of his smarts. If at any moment Hopkins senses doubt in Dawson, the fight will belong to the old man.

In a conference call a few weeks ago, Dawson made a startling admission, which in part was his way of trying to explain away his loss to Pascal, whom Hopkins beat in a rematch in his last outing.

“I became a bored fighter,’’ Dawson said. “I got bored.’’

Hopkins has said a lot of things, but he’s never said he was bored. The day he does, I suspect, is the day he’ll announce his retirement. A bored fighter is about to become an ex-fighter, or at least someone who is thinking about doing something else. In the later rounds, I’m guessing Dawson will wish that he was.

Hopkins by unanimous decision.

Moving on up
Nonito Donaire (26-1, 18 KOs) will be at bantamweight for the last on Oct. 22 at New York’s Madison Square Garden against Omar Narvaez (35-0-2, 19 KOs) of Argentina in the first defense of the titles he took from Fernando Montiel last February with a sensational second-round knockout.

“Definitely, this will be my last fight at 118,’’ Donaire said Thursday during a conference call. “122 is something we’re looking forward to.’’

AZ Notes
· Phoenix super-middleweight Jesus Gonzales is waiting to hear if Kelly Pavlik has any interest in a tune-up against him. Gonzales has been saying for months that he wants a shot at Pavlik, who is anxious for a comeback after he abruptly withdrew from a Top Rank card a couple of months ago. Gonzales hopes to hear from Pavlik by Oct. 22.

· Arizona promoter Michelle Rosado continues to re-ignite a dormant market with a card on Oct. 21 at the Madison Event Center in downtown Phoenix. Hometown super-bantamweight Emilio Colon-Garcia (3-0-1) is scheduled for the main event. First bell is scheduled for 7:30 p.m.

Bernard Hopkins will show up in wax next week. It ought to be granite. He’s been indestructible.

Hopkins’ defiance against time and his victories over opponents young enough to be his son continue like the clock that never seems to catch up with him. It will, of course. Nobody knows that better than Hopkins, who was wise enough to say this week in a conference call that he won’t still be fighting when he’s 50, yet he will be there for another opening bell on Oct. 15 against Chad Dawson just three months before he turns 47.

Like the graybeard he is becoming, he was philosophical, at times almost wistful, in a call that preceded his fight at Staples Center in Los Angeles where Ripley’s Believe It Or Not will unveil his wax figure. He couldn’t say when or where he’d answer his last bell.

“Can’t think about winning and retiring at the same time,’’ said Hopkins, who will defend the light-heavyweight title he won in a rematch against Jean Pascal.

But he was thinking about history, which he promised would include another chapter about a victory over the under-achieving, yet dangerous Dawson. In the end, history means a judgment, which is as inescapable as retirement. How will he be remembered?

Within the ropes, there won’t be much argument from anybody other than perhaps Joe Calzaghe. Calzaghe beat him on the scorecards in March, 2008, leaving Hopkins with one of his five losses. Calzaghe retired, unbeaten at 46-0. But 10 years from now, who will be remembered as the better fighter in history’s pound-for-pound debate, Calzaghe or Hopkins? I’ll argue that Hopkins will win that one every time. With no apologies to Floyd Mayweather Jr., Hopkins is the real face of boxing, which is more about conquering adversity than it is an unscarred record. Hopkins’ life is a boxing story, an American story which includes prison and a loss in his first fight.

In perhaps a sure sign that retirement is near, he now has arrived at a stage where he wants to be remembered for more than boxing.

“Boxing is what he did, but boxing is not who he is,’’ Hopkins said.

A healthy serving of self-promotion has always been part of the Hopkins personality. Some are offended by that. Many media colleagues are also offended by his racial comments. There was one last May directed at former Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb. More notorious, perhaps, was the one he shouted at Calzaghe in the middle of a crowded media room in Las Vegas before Mayweather’s 10th-round TKO of Britain’s Ricky Hatton in December, 2007. He told Calzaghe that he would never let “a white boy” beat him.

I wasn’t there for the McNabb controversy when Hopkins, while training for the Pascal rematch, was reported to have suggested that McNabb, now with the Minnesota Vikings, wasn’t tough enough because he wasn’t black enough. But I was there for the Calzaghe exchange, which was pure theater in the hype leading up to their fight.

In one moment, Hopkins was joking with a circle of British writers, telling them that they had better health care in the UK than the U.S.

“Then again, you all drink a hell of a lot more than we do,’’ Hopkins said.

Then, he spotted Calzaghe. He raced across the MGM Grand’s ballroom, shifted his vocal chords from joking to angry and screamed “the white boy” comment at him. It was all in the setting and tone, yet media reports included none of that context. With only the quote, it appeared to be a racial insult.

In meeting with some media before Amir Khan’s victory over Zab Judah in July, Hopkins talked about how it might have affected the judging in his split-decision loss to Calzaghe

“I lost that fight when I called him light-skinned,’’ Hopkins told a circle of reporters, many of whom were light-skinned.

Be careful of what you read. Hopkins doesn’t take himself that seriously. When he is approaching 60 a decade from now, I’m not sure how he will look at himself. But boxing obviously will be the biggest piece in a fascinating puzzle. Still, priorities always change and it is beginning to look as if Hopkins is too.

Hopkins trained in Philadelphia with Dewey Bozella, who will fight on the Oct. 15 undercard. Bozella was convicted and imprisoned in 1983 for a murder he did not commit. He served 26 years before his conviction was overturned in 2009.

“His life is bigger than the sport …bigger than anything I’ve ever done,’’ said Hopkins, whose record of convictions as a 17-year-old led to a five-year sentence in Pennsylvania’s notorious Graterford Prison. “You don’t get a second life. I went into jail because I did something. I wasn’t innocent. He was innocent.

“That’s a difference, a big difference.’’

A wise one, too, from somebody who hasn’t defied time so much as he used it, evolved with it.

AZ NOTES
· As expected, Phoenix junior-welterweight prospect Jose Benavidez Jr. is scheduled for the Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez undercard on Nov. 12 at Las Vegas MGM Grand. Gary Bergeron (12-8, 7 KOs) of Chalmette, La., is the scheduled opponent. But expect changes. Benavidez (13-0, 12 KOs) does. There were three to four changes before his last victory, a first-round stoppage, on Sept. 17 in Parker, Ariz. Bergeron, loser of his last three fights and 2-6 over his last eight, is also scheduled for a bout on Nov. 11 in Australia, which means he would have to book a seat on the Space Shuttle to get to Vegas in time for opening bell.

· And while Kelly Pavlik considers a tune-up or two in an attempt to get his career back on track, Phoenix super-middleweight Jesus Gonzales continues to lobby for a shot at the former middleweight champ. Gonzales turned 27 on Monday. When asked what he wanted for his birthday, Gonzales said: “A fight with Kelly Pavlik. That’s better than a Grand Slam from Denny’s.’’

Boxing needs another ruling body like the U.S. needs another downgrade, but if news from the amateur World Championships in Azerbaijan are an indication, Olympic boxing’s administrative acronym (AIBA) is rehearsing for a role on a scrabble board already crowded with the WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO.

First, there was an announcement that AIBA, an International Olympic Committee subsidiary, would investigate a story about bribes for gold medals at the 2012 London Games. The BBC reported that the Azerbaijanis paid $9 million to the World Series of Boxing (WSB), an AIBA subsidiary, to ensure that the former Soviet bloc country would win at least two gold in the London ring.

Then, there was a subsequent story about how each one of Azerbaijan’s nine boxers were seeded among the top eight in their respective weight classes at the World Championships, a qualifier for next summer’s Olympics.

Predictably, the two stories were linked, perhaps more by coincidence than fact. It’s a common practice in a variety of sports to reserve a spot among the top seeds for a host-country’s athletes. Call it a home-court prerogative.

But the allegations, denials, acronyms, subsidiaries and investigations are all too familiar. An interim belt must be in there somewhere.

Olympic boxing has never been able to move beyond the documented fix that robbed Roy Jones Jr. more than two decades ago. Bribery allegations send the sport tumbling back into infamy and the fraud that turned Jones’ gold into silver at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

In this corner, there always has been a theory that all of boxing has suffered from what happened to Jones so long ago. It robbed the pro ranks of an important developmental stage for prospects who in increasing numbers have since decided to forego the Olympics. Why risk it?

AIBA might be following the trend, or at least the young fighters who generate attention and money. The Swiss-based governing body wants to stick its toe into the alphabet soup with pros in 2016 at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics.

The plan, announced in early August during the U.S. Olympic Trials in Mobile, Ala., would begin with an international schedule for pros in 2013. One year in the proposed program would allow them to augment their income with Olympic medal.

Medals, AIBA President Wi Ching-Kuo of Taiwan said, would help enlighten “the lives and dreams of many boxers.’’

Not so fast, 2012 U.S. Olympic coach Joe Zanders said.

“It’s a little deflating to hear that,’’ Zanders said.

Zanders said the AIBA plan would eliminate an opportunity for young boxers, who often learn their craft in patchwork of rundown gyms in impoverished neighborhoods. Instead, it would favor marketable pros, already rich and well-known.

“What about us?” he asked.

Good question.

“For me, the troubling part is for the poor citizens who have used the Olympics as a step to improve themselves,’’ said Zanders, a longtime amateur coach from Long Beach, Calif., and a 30-year veteran as a youth counselor for the state’s Department of Juvenile Justice. “I guess, we’re going to have find another Greek version of Games for amateurs.’’

But it’s not as if professionalism is new to the Olympics. Pros have been competing in other sports for at least 20 years. U.S. basketball, the so-called Dream Team, is a virtual NBA All-Star team. Track-and-field medallists compete for money on the European circuit. American swimmer Michael Phelps got a $1-million bonus from his sponsor, Speedo, for his seventh of eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games.

Zanders knew that eventually boxing would be next. An initial step was the WSB, a team concept that allows amateurs to get paid and now is a centerpiece to a five-member panel’s investigation of alleged bribery.

Eventually, Zanders knew that boxing would be next.

“I expected it, but I’m just surprised that it happened so quickly,’’ said Zanders, who has famed pro trainer Freddie Roach working with him as a consultant for the 2012 team.

Still, Zanders wonders what has become of the old, perhaps quaint ideal of what it is to be an amateur.
“What makes you an amateur?” he asked.

Speculation about U.S. pros at the Olympics began to circulate many years ago when American teenagers started losing to older, more mature Cubans. It was boys-against-men. Without a desperate escape from the Fidel Castro’s island, however, the Cubans had only the amateurs as an option.

“But this is America,’’ Zanders said. “You can choose to be an amateur for as long as you want. Then again, they’re going to give you a saliva test if you decide to stay an amateur until you’re 34.’’

There’s a different kind of test awaiting AIBA, however, if the controversy continues and the acronym starts collecting sanction fees instead of investigating alleged bribes. It’s called a lie detector.

A Pavlik possibility

It’s no surprise that Kelly Pavlik is desperate to get back into the ring. It was predicted here after he abruptly withdrew from a tune-up last month because he was unhappy with his reported purse for a proposed bout with Lucian Bute.

It also was reported here that Jesus Gonzales, a once-beaten Phoenix super-middleweight, might be a leading possibility for Pavlik’s first fight after the flap.

Gonzales, a Pavlik sparring partner before his loss to Sergio Martinez, was quick to say he was available after hearing ESPN’s report about a chastened Pavlik asking for another chance.

“I think Pavlik is a great fighter,” Jesus Gonzales said in an e-mail. “I know I can beat him and I think he knows it, from sparring with him. I would love to fight him, it would be a great win for me.”l

AZ Notes
· Gonzales continues his good-guy commitment to his hometown with an appearance at a Phoenix car wash for Rick Favela, an ex-Marine and Phoenix city employee who suffered a brain hemorrhage. The fund-raiser is scheduled from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. at La Barquita Restaurant, 2334 East McDowell Road. Junior-welterweight Jose Benavidez Jr. will also be there.

· And every time I see Jorge Arce win — which has been often lately, I can’t help but think about how good Phoenix Hall of Famer Michael Carbajal really was. As the 34-year-old Arce avenged a loss to Simphiwe Nongqayi with fourth-round stoppage Saturday in Mexicali, I recalled Carbajal, long past his prime, stopping a young Arce in the 11th round of a 1999 fight in Tijuana. It was Carbajal’s last fight.

Try as one might, it is impossible to escape the yada yada about Floyd Mayweather Jr., Victor Ortiz, Joe Cortez and Larry Merchant. I’ve tried. Trust me, I’ve tried. Just when you think you’ve heard every argument echo from pillar-to-post, however, there’s another one. There’s no final word, I suspect, simply because there’s some truth in all of them.

Yeah, Ortiz’ head-butting was dirty. Yeah, Mayweather’s punches were legal, yet cheap. Yeah, Ortiz was foolish not to be vigilant with hands up and ready instead of down and helpless. Yeah, it appears Cortez was negligent when he apparently signaled the fight to resume, yet looked the other way when Mayweather threw a left and then the right that knocked out a defenseless Ortiz with one second left in the fourth round. Yeah, Ortiz got what he deserved.

Yeah, Mayweather behaved like a punk when he attacked Merchant’s professionalism with an expletive-laced tantrum at the 80-year-old HBO commentator. And, yeah, Merchant might have crossed a journalistic line when he involved himself in the story by countering that 50 years ago he would have kicked Mayweather’s immature rear.

But there’s one thing I haven’t heard: What would we be saying this week if Ortiz had been carried out on a stretcher? Would the tone of this argument be different if Ortiz was in hospital bed, still unconscious, five days after he was knocked out by a punch he never saw?

Mayweather’s punches have been called un-sportsman-like. No, they weren’t. They were dangerous.

Any punch is, but none more dangerous than one not seen. That inherent danger is the reason for the boxing cliché and commandment about protecting oneself at all times. Ortiz forgot that one. But Mayweather, who unlike Ortiz pays attention to detail, knows about that danger better than anyone in his generation.

He has often said that it is “not cool” to endure punishment. With his brilliant defense, he has eluded the painful damage suffered by so many others in what Mike Tyson called the “hurt business.’’

He knows what that right hand could have inflicted. He’s lucky – we all are – that it didn’t result in the lethal potential that lurked in a punch that could have been thrown when the chaos had cleared. Then, Cortez would have been watching. Then, Ortiz would have no doubts about whether the fight had resumed.

Then, Mayweather would have won without argument.

Mayweather-Ortiz, Part II
Here’s something else I didn’t hear: Instead of attacking Merchant, Mayweather could have used the opportunity to tell fans that he was sorry the fight had to end the way it did. He could have explained that he had to finish it then and there, because of the danger he faced from further head butts from Ortiz. Instead, he storms out of the ring.

For casual fans who don’t know or understand boxing’s ancient code of conduct, Mayweather behaved like a motorist who hits a jaywalker and then angrily says he was within the letter of the law because the guy wasn’t in the crosswalk. OK, but at a gut level it still doesn’t feel right.

AZ NOTES
· After pushing his 140-pound record to 13-0 with 12 knockouts on Sept. 17 in Parker, Ariz., Phoenix prospect Jose Benavidez, Jr., might make his next appearance on the Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez undercard Nov. 12 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand. The plan is to have Benavidez fight for a junior world title sometime next year.

· Former super-featherweight champion Jesse James Leija showed up Tuesday at Central Boxing, an old gym in downtown Phoenix where he was training hotel-and-motel proprietors for a charity event in Las Vegas. Leija’s take on Mayweather-Ortiz was similar to that of other fighters. Ortiz set himself up for retaliation with the head butts, Leija said. “I was pulling for Victor, but he got what he deserved,’’ Leija said. “Mayweather did what he had to. I would have done it, too.’’

LAS VEGAS – LAS VEGAS – Don’t ever say sorry to Floyd Mayweather Jr. He’ll make you feel sorry, very sorry, if you do.

Victor Ortiz found out just how sorry Saturday night at the MGM Grand.

Mayweather had no apologies for the way he knocked out Ortiz and no apologies for a tantrum he threw after a question asked by HBO’s Larry Merchant in the aftermath of a crushing left-right combination that caught Ortiz as he was looking at referee Joe Cortez at the end of the fourth round.

“You don’t know shit about boxing,’’ Mayweather screamed at Merchant, who must have felt like Mayweather’s dad, Floyd Sr. “HBO should fire you.’’

Merchant was at ringside before the 34-year-old Mayweather was born. He knows boxing. He also knows enough about good manners and sportsmanship to realize when a line has been crossed. Mayweather was way beyond it.

“If I was 50 years younger, I’d kick your ass,’’ the 80-year-old Merchant said.

Only Merchant didn’t have to say sorry. No apology was necessary for his counter, the best of the night.

It all happened as Mayweather (42-0, 26 KOs) was beginning take control of the bout for Ortiz’ WBC welterweight title. Ortiz (29-3-2, 22 KOs) tried to get more aggressive late in the fourth round. He threw a flurry of punches at Mayweather, whose back was on the ropes. In stepping inside, Ortiz threw his head in attempt at a butt. Cortez stepped in and penalized him a point.

Ortiz appeared to reach over and plant a small kiss on Mayweather’s cheek. As they then moved toward the center of the ring, Mayweather and Ortiz touched gloves. Cortez looked toward the scorer’s table when Mayweather threw a long left that landed with Ortiz’ gloves down and still at his side. Ortiz then looked at Cortez. That’s when Mayweather threw a right that landed like a baseball bat on a stationary baseball.

Ortiz went down, knocked out at 2:59 of the fourth. After he regained some of his consciousness, Ortiz smiled with the look of a victim who had to ask about had just hit him. A few days ago, Ortiz trainer, Danny Garcia, had called Mayweather a dirty fighter. After the bizarre ending, Garcia stood behind his fighter, smiling almost as if he couldn’t believe at how right he was.

At the post-fight news conference, Garcia seemed to blame Cortez more than Mayweather. According to the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Cortez said “Box.” Ortiz said he never heard him.

“He made a mistake as a result of Joe Cortez’ instructions,” Garcia said in Spanish translated into English by Ortiz manager Rolando Arellano. “Floyd took advantage of that.”

However, Garcia also said that he believes the fight-ending blow will prove to be illegal.

“But we have to review the tape to make sure,” said Arellano, who apologized for Ortiz’s attempted head butt.

Mayweather was as unapologetic a few days ago as he was Saturday night when told about Garcia’s accusation that he was dirty, Mayweather shrugged his shoulders. He countered that boxing has always been a dirty business.

“I got hit with a dirty shot,’’ Mayweather said of Ortiz’ attempted head butt. “He does something dirty. We don’t have to talk about what he did dirty or I did dirty.’’

Sorry, but somebody does. At least, Merchant tried, making him the only winner on a sorry night.

Erik Morales (52-7, 36 KOs) was in against a substitute, somebody named Pablo Cesar Cano (22-1-1, 17 KOs) instead of Lucas Matthysse, who withdrew because of a shoulder injury. But there was no substitute for what Morales faced in winning a TKO after 10 rounds.

Blood stained Morales’ white trunks like butcher cloth. Blood poured from a cut above his left eye, suffered in the seventh. But blood and guts are what have always defined Morales. That’s why he is called Terrible and that’s what he was all over again in the ninth and 10th rounds of a fight for a vacant and controversial 140-pound title.

But the WBC’s version of the championship doesn’t matter much. It’s just tinsel. But Morales is not. He’s still the stubborn, dangerous fighter he has always been, regardless of opponent and no matter what the title. In the middle rounds, Morales looked as if he was in trouble. But then it was clear that he been there, done that. He rocked Cano, a fellow Mexican, with a wicked left hook in the ninth. He busted a cut wide open above a Cano eye with a thundering right in the tenth.

Morales looked at the gushing blood, looked at referee Kenny Bayless and knew it wouldn’t go on much longer. It didn’t. Cano’s corner ended before the 11th.

Las Vegas junior-welterweight Jesse Vargas (17-0, 9 KOs), a Mayweather Promotions fighter, escaped his first loss and retained his prospect status with a split decision over Josesito Lopez (30-3, 17 KOs) in the first televised fight Saturday night on a card featured by Floyd Mayweather Jr.-versus-Victor Ortiz at the MGM Grand.

Lopez, of Riverside, Calif., appeared to be much stronger than the much-hyped Vargas, who began to back away after the first two rounds. For the next few rounds, Lopez delivered body shots and a wicked right hand without much resistance from Vargas, whose punches appeared to have no effect on a California fighter trained by former Oscar De La Hoya cornerman Robert Alcazar.

In the eighth of 10 rounds, Vargas threw a low blow. It appeared to be intentional. It might have been out of frustration. Whatever caused it, it cost Vargas one point, a penalty assessed by referee Tony Weeks. But Vargas began to mount a rally in the ninth and backed up Lopez with an uppercut in the 10th. Apparently that was enough for two judges, who scored it 96-93 and 95-94 for the hometown fighter. The third judge had it 95-94 for Lopez.

Floyd Mayweather’s trainer and uncle, Roger, began his day with a defeat. Oklahoma City welterweight Carson Jones (32-8-2, 22 KOs) won a TKO over the Mayweather-trained Said Quali (28-4, 20 KOs) when the fight ended after the seventh round with Quali still on his stool. Jones knocked down Quali, of Las Vegas, in the fourth. Then, stinging uppercuts from Jones for the next rounds turned Quali’s face into a bloodied, twisted mess.

Super-middleweight Dion Savage (10-2, 6 KOs) had Free Dion on the belt of trunks that were prison-like – black-and-white stripes. Canadian Adonis Stevenson (15-1, 11 KOs) freed him from having to go through eight punishing rounds. Stevenson dropped Savage with a right uppercut about 90 seconds after the opening bell. At 1:57 of the first and Savage hanging on the ropes, referee Tony Weeks stopped it for a Stevenson victory by TKO.

British lightweight Anthony Crolla (22-2, 9 KOs) of Manchester had a dollar sign on his trunks and some luck with him against Juan Manuel Montiel (6-5-3, 1 KO) of Mexico City. With a solid hook, Crolla split open a cut above Montiel’s right eye. Montiel fought through the blood, rallied late in the seventh round and throughout the eighth, but was left with a loss by split decision.

About six hours before Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Victor Ortiz were expected to step into the ring, Marco Antonio Periban and Dhafir Smith were there to answer a first bell that echoed through an arena as vacant as a foreclosed home.

The seats were empty.

Then again, there wasn’t much to see.

Periban (15-0, 10 KOs), a super-middleweight from Mexico, walked forward and almost over Dhafir Smith (24-22-7, 4KOs) of Upper Darby, Penn., to win a decision Saturday at the MGM Grand in an 8-round matinee on a card that would end at night with Mayweather and Ortiz for the World Boxing Council’s welterweight title.

Periban celebrated his country’s Independence Day by raining shots off Dhafir’s body and head with little resistance. Dhafir tried to back away behind a long jab. Other than a spot under a row or two of empty seats, there was nowhere to hide.

He had the name and an offer. But when it was over, Las Vegas junior-lightweight Cassius Clay still had the name, but a defeat instead of an offer. A contract possibility with Mayweather Promotions was lost in Kyrone Butler’s four-round victory by unanimous decision. Clay couldn’t seal the deal, because he couldn’t overcome the quickness possessed by the shorter Butler (1-0), also of Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS – Devon Alexander introduced his intentions Friday and made them official Saturday morning with a formal announcement that he has left Don King for Golden Boy Promotions in a move that also signals a move up in weight, from 140 pounds to 147.

“One-forty-seven is where I’ll take over,’’ Alexander said at a news conference that included Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer, his trainer Kevin Cunningham and manager Drexel Stith. “I know Richard will put me in a position to do what I’ve got to do at 147. That’s why I made this transition.’’

Alexander’s jump from King to Oscar De La Hoya’s company was evident Friday at the MGM Grand when he was introduced before the weigh-in for Saturday night’s Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Victor Ortiz fight, a Golden Boy promotion.

Schaefer said the negotiations were conducted over two to three weeks.

“It was very easy,’’ Schaefer said. “We wanted him to come to Golden Boy and they wanted to come to us.’’

The signing of Alexander adds further depth to the quality of Golden Boy’s fighters at junior-welter and welterweight. Schaefer said he would approach Showtime and Home Box Office next week about the possibility of staging tournaments at 140 and/or 147. There is a wide-range of possibilities at either weight, he said.

However, it will have to be at 147 for Alexander, who says he won’t fight again at 140. Alexander (22-1, 13 KOs) lost a technical decision in January to Timothy Bradley and won a controversial split decision in June over Lucas Matthysse, has struggled to make the junior-welterweight limit.

Schaefer says the heavier weight could transform Alexander the way it did Ortiz against Andre Berto in a dramatic win that earned him the shot at Mayweather.

“Victor was more aggressive,’’ Schaefer said. “We are convinced Devon will make some noise in the 147-pound class and also become a world champion at 147.’’

There already has been some noise. More of it was heard Saturday several hours before opening bell for Mayweather-Ortiz. Welterweight Paulie Malignaggi, a Golden Boy fighter, sat in the back of the room. He and Alexander already have been involved in a trash-talk exchange via Twitter. It continued Saturday in person.

“I’m not a trash-talker,’’ Alexander said.

Malignaggi, who has never ignored a chance to talk, countered: “You started it. If you don’t want to trash-talk, let sleeping dogs lie.’’

But it sounded as if Alexander wanted to sidestep rhetoric that might be the prelude to an actual fight.

“I’m at the top of my game; he’s on the downslide,’’ Alexander said. “I want to fight the best. He’s not at the top of the division.’’

Alexander said he hopes to fight for the first time under the Golden Boy banner in either December or January. Schaefer mentioned Berto as one possibility. As Schaefer talked early Saturday, he could only wonder whether another one might emerge later that night.

“If Ortiz would lose, then that would be a possibility,’’ he said.

LAS VEGAS – On and off the scale, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Victor Ortiz played their assigned roles. Ortiz was where he was supposed to be and who he was supposed to be. Then, there was Mayweather, light on the scale, yet heavy in every other way.

The heavily-favored Mayweather attempted to intimidate Ortiz with some heavy-handed tactics Friday before and after he weighed 146.5 pounds in front of lively crowd at the MGM Grand’s Events Center.

Actually, one hand said it all.

Mayweather put his right hand around Ortiz’ throat as the two stood, nose-to-nose, in what was supposed to be the traditional stare-down at the end of the formal weigh-in. Mayweather’s gesture summed up what he believes will happen in the scheduled 12-round bout for the belt, the World Boxing Council’s welterweight title, possessed by Ortiz.

Throughout the build-up, Mayweather (41-0, 25 KOs) has suggested that Ortiz (29-2-2, 22 KOs) will choke.

The 24-year-old Ortiz is a relative newcomer to all of the attention, media, hype, distractions and antics attached to a major fight. The 34-year-old Mayweather isn’t.

Mayweather has been there often throughout a 16-year career without defeat. He often acts as if he owns the big stage. Maybe, that’s why he treated Ortiz with such disdain at the weigh-in. He looked at Ortiz as though he was trespassing. He acted as if he wanted to throw Ortiz out onto the street, if not into a dumpster.

But Ortiz only smiled, before he was at the 147-pound limit and after Mayweather let go of his throat. Ortiz leaped like a kid, threw his hands over his head and flashed the telegenic grin that has captured the camera’s focus and much of the public imagination in the HBO series, 24/7.

“It’s a big joke,’’ Ortiz told a publicist as he left the stage while an estimated crowd of 4,000 roared. “It’s funny.’’

Funny, but not always comedy. The tension surrounding Mayweather always seems to be there, under the surface and dangerous. Both fighters have estranged fathers. Ortiz says his dad abandoned him when he was 7-year-old kid in Kansas. He said he tried to reconnect with his dad, Victor Sr., but failed. He’s moved on. Meanwhile, Mayweather’s relationship with his dad, Floyd Sr., is an ongoing series, also captured ad nauseam on 24/7.

In the latest chapter Mayweather Jr. and Sr. are estranged all over again. The senior Mayweather, who hadn’t been seen since the last blow-up a couple of weeks ago, was spotted on the floor at the weigh-in. A Tweet was attributed to him, although there was skepticism about whether Floyd Sr, even has a Twitter account.

“Can you believe that I ain’t even being invited to the Floyd Mayweather fight tomorrow?” the Tweet said. “The man who he owes everything to isn’t wanted there.”

If the Tweet didn’t come from Floyd Sr., the message has. In so many words, he has said exactly that many times.

There’s no word on whether Floyd Sr. will show up at the fight on his own. If he does, it’s safe to say he’ll watch from some seat far from his son’s corner. Then, there’s the potential for a twist that’s bizarre by even boxing standards. There continues to be speculation that Floyd Jr. has invited Ortiz’ dad to the fight. There’s even been talk that Victor Sr. will be invited to accompany Floyd Jr. into the ring along with former Ortiz trainer Robert Garcia and longtime rival Brandon Rios.

It’s funny only if you like sick comedy.

But Mayweather’s notorious gamesmanship has no limits. His uncle and trainer, Roger Mayweather, was not on the stage for the weigh-in. There wouldn’t have been much room for him anyway. Instead, a large entourage followed Floyd Jr., who paced and chewed gum. After both fighters stepped off the scale, some of the Mayweather followers went to work on Ortiz with taunts and trash talk. Hey, Mayweather can’t do everything.

But Ortiz walked away from the scene looking almost as though he were a fighter with little to lose. That might be his biggest advantage, although he’s confident he can win a title that would not be shared. Only one can be the first to beat Mayweather.

Before the weigh-in, Ortiz got a call from former heavyweight champ George Foreman. Four years ago, Ortiz won a fight in Houston, Foreman’s hometown. After the victory, Ortiz met with Foreman, who gave him a copy of his best-selling book, By George. Inside the cover, Foreman wrote “One day, you’re going to be a champion.’’

Ortiz reminded him of that Friday.

“You were right,’’ he told Foreman.

But now he faces a much tougher task. Against Mayweather, he has to prove that nearly everybody else is wrong.

Finding an opponent for Phoenix prospect Jose Benavidez Jr. is little bit like searching for a blind date. You never know who’s going to show up.

A roulette wheel of possibilities for a Benavidez foe Saturday night at BlueWater Resort & Casino in Parker, Ariz., appears to have finally stopped on Dedrick Bell (6-9, 4 KO’s) a junior-welterweight from Memphis, TNwho got the call after a couple of other opponents fell through.

Bel steps in for Adrian Hernandez who stepped in for Mexican Jorge Pimentel, who was forced off the FOX-televised card by an Arizona State Boxing & MMA Commission rule that disqualified him because he was stopped in his last three bouts within the last 12 months. Pimentel had been a replacement for Puerto Rican Angel Rios, who lost a decision last Saturday to Terence Crawford in Atlantic City.

Schedule changes are part of the learning process for any young prospect. The 19-year-old Benavidez (12-0, 11 KOs) has yet to encounter one that has dropped him from the head of the class. After a change before his last fight in June, he remained unbeaten with a stoppage of Corey Alarcon in Phoenix.

Against Bell) in a scheduled 6-rounder, Benavidez is expected to work on the lesson plan he continues to pursue in sparring at trainer Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Gym with Shane Mosley, Paulie Malignaggi and Mercito Gesta (22-0-1, 12 KOs), who faces Manuel Perez (16-6-1, 4 KOs) in the main event of at BlueWater. Seven fights are scheduled for a card put together by Top Rank and Showdown Promotions. First bell is set for 5 p.m. (PST).

LAS VEGAS – Referee Joe Cortez’ job of being in the ring yet out of the spotlight Saturday night for Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Victor Ortiz at the MGM Grand got tougher with further comments from Ortiz trainer Danny Garcia, who Thursday called some of Mayweather’s tactics illegal.

Some unwanted attention on Cortez promises to be there in the wake of Garcia’s complaints about Mayweather’s sharp elbows. Garcia also asked that Cortez not step in to break up the action when Ortiz, as expected, tries to fight on the inside.

“The elbow, that’s illegal,’’ said Garcia, who at a formal news conference Wednesday called Mayweather “a dirty” fighter. “The elbow can hit him, cut him, can break his nose.’’

Predictably, Mayweather’s trainer and uncle, Roger sneered at Garcia’s complaints about the alleged elbow, many of which apparently were thrown in Mayweather’s 10th-round stoppage of Ricky Hatton in a 2007 bout worked by Cortez.

“Using elbows? What are you talking about?’’ Roger Mayweather said in the second session of a media roundtable. “He didn’t knock out Hatton with an elbow. He knocked him out with that check hook.’’

Hatton’s corner complained that Cortez did not allow the popular Brit, a notorious inside brawler, to put enough pressure on Mayweather. A consequence, according Hatton’s corner, was that Mayweather used his speed and had enough space to throw counters.

Pressure is believed to be the only way to beat the undefeated Mayweather (41-0, 25 KOs). He needs some room to land the counter-right, his most lethal punch.

“Inside will neutralize Floyd’s right-counter, his best punch,’’ Garcia said.

But be very careful of what you ask for. What if Ortiz (29-2-2, 22 KOs) is permitted to close the distance, eliminate that room? At times, Hatton seemed to do just that, yet Mayweather appeared to respond in kind with brawling blows that, according to Garcia, came at the end of an unprotected elbow instead of a gloved hand.

“Obviously, my nephew finds a way to win,’’ Roger Mayweather said. “He’s found 41 ways to do it.’’

It sounds as if Garcia has studied Cortez almost as much as Mayweather. Cortez’ work in Amir Khan’s dramatic victory last December over Marcos Maidana represents a precedent that concerns Garcia, who mentioned Cortez’ role in the 2010 Fight of the Year.

Somehow, Khan survived a series of concussive blows from Maidana in the 10th round. He did, Maidana complained, because Cortez allowed him. He stepped in to break up the action just when it looked as if Khan would succumb.

“Look, I like Joe Cortez,’’ Garcia said. “He does a pretty good job. But he is like any other man. He makes some mistakes.’’

In perhaps another alert, Garcia said Mayweather should not be allowed to turn his back on Ortiz.

“The ref should know, if he turns his back, the punches are coming,’’ Garcia said.

The shoulder roll is one of Mayweather’s patented moves. It looks as if the familiar tactic limits the size of the target. Instead of a full upper-body — framed from shoulder to shoulder, an opponent sees only a narrow side. It is one element that makes Mayweather so elusive. But, Garcia says, Mayweather often rolls the shoulder so much that the opponent sees his back.

“Covering up from punches with his back, that’s not boxing,’’ Garcia said. “That’s not good defense.’’

Feuding families in every corner
Garcia’s comments about Mayweather’s tactics and Cortez’ role might be another attempt at gaining an edge in a welterweight fight full of gamesmanship from every angle.

Here’s the latest one, a rumor Thursday out of the Mayweather camp:

Ortiz’ estranged father, Victor Sr., has been invited to the fight by Mayweather, who said Wednesday that Ortiz is lying when he says his dad abandoned him when he was 7-year-old in Kansas. Mayweather advisor Leonard Ellerbe didn’t deny it.

“You never know,’’ Ellerbe told Lem Satterfield of Ringtv, The Ring magazine’ on-line edition produced by Yahoo. “We’ve got a lot of surprises for him. We’re working on a lot of things. Victor could look around the arena and see a lot of people. He could see anybody from his past. And that’s the truth.”

Ex-Ortiz trainer Robert Garcia, Danny’s brother, and Ortiz longtime rival, lightweight champion Brandon Rios, already have been invited to the welterweight fight by Mayweather, who tentatively plans to have both walk with him into the ring.

Danny and Robert Garcia are neighbors, yet won’t talk to each other.

“He’s my brother and I love him,’’ Danny said Thursday. “Robert can say anything he wants. But in this business he’s doing bad things.’’

Now, there’s a rumor that Ortiz’ dad might join the parade. Victor Jr. tried to reconnect with his dad not long ago. But his attempt failed. He has moved on.

If Ortiz Jr. has heard the rumor, maybe he should throw a counter and invite Floyd Mayweather Sr. to accompany him into the ring. Mayweather’s estranged dad has not been seen since the two got into an expletive-filled shouting match on HBO’s 24/7.

Photo By Claudia Bocanegra

LAS VEGAS – An experienced opponent for prospect Jose Benavidez, Jr., Saturday night at BlueWater Resort & Casino in Parker, Ariz., was forced off the FOX-televised card Wednesday because he suffered successive stoppages in his last three bouts.

Benavidez’ trainer and father, Jose Benavidez Sr., was told Wednesday as he was traveling to Parker that Jorge Pimentel would not be able to fight his 19-year-old son. Benavidez’ dad said Top Rank was searching for a new opponent.

An Arizona State Boxing & MMA Commission rule knocked Pimentel, a Mexican journeyman, off the card. Commission executive director Dennis O’Connell said it prohibits a boxer from fighting in Arizona if he has been stopped three straight times within a year.

“It’s clear,’’ O’Connell said.

Pimentel (23-12, 17 KOs) was stopped in eight rounds at Panama City on Nov. 30, in two rounds in Mexico on April 2 and in three rounds in Carson, Calif., on July 9.

The third of the three came at the hands of Mercito Gesta (22-0-1, 12 KOs), who is featured at BlueWater in a 10-round main event against Manuel Perez (16-6-1, 4 KOs) of Denver.

Benavidez (12-0, 11 KOs), a junior-welterweight, had to wait on a late change in opponents for his last victory, a fourth-round stoppage of Corey Alarcon on June 11 in Phoenix, his hometown.

Benavidez has returned to trainer Freddie Roach’s famed Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, Calif., after training for several months in Phoenix. He has sparred with Gesta, Shane Mosley, Rey Beltran and Paulie Malignaggi.

“The sparring with Gesta brought us back to the top,’’ the senior Benavidez said of recent sparring that became a YouTube hit.

LAS VEGAS – The news conference Wednesday included a meal and two mouthfuls of a lot more from Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Victor Ortiz. Who ate whose lunch? Doesn’t matter. There are no scorecards at a formal news conference. No winners either.

There was just an over-indulgence of promises and pontification to go along with the indigestion a few days before Mayweather and Ortiz break bread and maybe each other’s noses Saturday night at the MGM Grand.

At the top of the menu, there was a Mayweather allegation that Ortiz has been lying about how his father abandoned him when he was a kid in Kansas.

“I know the real truth,’’ Mayweather said of a story that has been told for years and re-told in HBO’s poignant portrayal of Ortiz in the 24/7 series. “His father didn’t leave. No, he didn’t leave. He went to high school in California. I’ve done my homework.

“But it’s good for TV.’’

Mayweather wouldn’t disclose his source, but it is believed to be Robert Garcia, Ortiz’ former trainer and the brother of his current trainer, Danny. The Garcia brothers, neighbors in Oxnard, Calif., don’t talk to each other. Apparently, Ortiz also doesn’t talk to Robert any more after an unhappy split.

“I understand,’’ Ortiz said after Mayweather delivered the line like a thespian at the MGM Grand’s Hollywood Theatre.”It’s a tactic.’’

Ortiz dismissed it as small piece, another imaginary pawn, in the mind games that Mayweather has learned how to play as well as anybody. Ortiz said it didn’t affect him.

“I’m a tree stump,’’ Ortiz said. “Things like that don’t bother me.’’

If it does, Ortiz is in trouble. The gamesmanship figures to continue. Mayweather has invited Robert Garcia and lightweight champion Brandon Rios to the welterweight fight. Rios, who is trained by Robert Garcia, claims he used to get the best of Ortiz when they were young amateurs at a gym in Garden City, Kan. Ortiz might even see his estranged trainer and his old rival staring at him after he steps through the ropes and waits for opening bell during the introductions. Mayweather plans to have both with him when he enters the ring.

In questioning the credibility of a story that has come to define Ortiz and his sudden popularity, Mayweather seemed to be testing his ability to deal with everything that comes and goes on boxing’s biggest stage. Mayweather has been there often. Ortiz has not. For Mayweather, the fight always begins the day that the contract is signed. His rips are rhetorical probes in an attempt to find weaknesses in Ortiz.

On Wednesday, however, it was hard to judge whether Mayweather had found any or even one in Ortiz, who was relaxed as ever. Ortiz even initiated a few of the exchanges. In his formal address to the media from the podium, he turned to the unbeaten Mayweather (41-0, 25 KOs), who was sitting to his right.

“I sense a little bit of nervousness in this area, right here,’’ said Ortiz, who holds the World Boxing Council’s version of the 147-pound title. “I’m going to teach what it is to have that one on your record. Hey, I’ve already got two.’’

Mayweather couldn’t resist. He interrupted Ortiz (29-2-2, 22 KOs), yelling:

“You got two draws, too.’’

Ortiz wouldn’t back down in an exchange that might have been preview of fight that both will end in a knockout.

“Somebody is scared,’’ Ortiz countered. “I’m going to put you on your ass, I promise.’’

An Ortiz victory of any kind would be a surprise. As of late Wednesday, betting odds at Las Vegas books heavily favored Mayweather at about 5 1/2 –to-1. If the news conference was a sign, however, more surprise could be imminent. For the first time that anybody can recall, Mayweather was called a dirty fighter. Over his 16-year career, he’s been called a lot of things, but never that. Enter Danny Garcia, who delivered the charge from the bully pulpit during the news conference.

“Please, fight a clean fight,’’ Garcia said as he turned toward Mayweather. “Don’t turn your back. Don’t hold.’’

Don’t waste your time, Mayweather countered in his turn at the pulpit.

“The trainer called me a dirty fighter,’’ Mayweather said. “When has boxing ever been a clean sport? It’s a sport when you’re trying to hurt the other guy.

“How can it be clean?”

No answer for that one from Garcia, or the media, or even Ortiz. Call the news conference a draw. Hopefully, the fight won’t be.

There are almost as many interpretations of the zero on the losing side of Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s ledger as there are victories in the column that betting odds say is about to go from 41 to 42. That 0 is a blank canvas. What adds up to nothing can amount to anything, maybe everything about Mayweather.

On one level, it’s baffling. Only in boxing can unbeaten mean unproven. Yet on another level, a fighter’s ability and character have always been measured in terms of how he deals with defeat. From Sugar Ray Robinson to Muhammad Ali, a loss makes them human and the comeback makes them great. Other than Rocky Marciano, those are the terms in the fine print that go into the creation of a legend.

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again: Without a loss, it’s just hard to know what to make of Mayweather. Perhaps, that’s unfair. Perhaps, it’s just a sign that there aren’t any great fighters these days, but don’t tell that to Manny Pacquiao. The suspicion is that Pacquiao-Mayweather hasn’t happened, simply because Mayweather is protecting that zero.

True?

False?

How about: Who knows?

That’s the only conclusion I got out of a conference call this week with Mayweather in the build-up to his Sept. 17 bout at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand with Victor Ortiz, who is enjoying a spike in popularity because he came back from lingering doubts left in the wake of a 2009 loss to Marcos Maidana.

Mayweather was his quick-silver self, which means he was entertaining, insightful, over-the-top cocky and annoying all at once. The zero said it all. We know zip about him.

He thanked the media. No kidding. Then, he turned his rhetorical venom on to his surrogate whipping boy, Oscar De La Hoya, while praising De La Hoya’s promotional CEO, Richard Schaefer.

“Can’t even call it Golden Boy Promotions anymore,’’ Mayweather said after ripping De La Hoya for talking about drugs, drinking and wearing women’s underwear in a recent Univision interview. “Got to call it Richard Schaefer Promotions.’’

Meanwhile, he sent up some more red flags about whether the left-handed Ortiz was in fact a step toward finally agreeing to a deal with Pacquiao, also a southpaw, for the only fight which interests casual fans, which means most people.

“If you’re the best, take the test,’’ Mayweather said in one of several references to the drug-testing demand that was the sticking point in the last round of abortive negotiations.

Mayweather repeated charges that could lead to a rocky start of renewed talks.

“It’s okay for (Pacquiao) to go from 105 (pounds) to 154 and he gets knockouts and they say: ‘You know what? It’ all natural,’ ‘’ he said. “But if I went from 147 to heavyweight and was knocking out heavyweights, would that be all natural? That’s what you got to ask yourself at the end of the day.’’

Mayweather compared himself to some of the best in his favorite pastime, basketball. Like LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson, Mayweather said he was well-known and considered a future professional star even when he was a high-school teenager. But Pacquiao, he said, came from nowhere.

“Suddenly at 25, he’s this good,’’ Mayweather said of the Filipino. “Come on.’’

Mayweather’s pointed questions were often offset by either common sense or a genuine sense that he cares. Remember, this is the same Mayweather who paid for Genaro Hernandez’ funeral in June. Hernandez helped launch Mayweather’s career in 1998 when Mayweather knocked him out in the eighth round.

“Hernandez gave me my first real opportunity,’’ Mayweather said during the conference call.

He said other things, both insightful and heartfelt.

On his notorious nickname, Money: “My health is more important than money.’’

When asked about possible distractions, he talked about alleged altercations, including one in which he was reported to have poked a security guard in the face.

“I don’t know no one who pokes somebody in the face when they’ve got a gun on them,’’ Mayweather said.

Anybody who has covered Mayweather through his long career has encountered this unexpected side to him. The man has money and moods. Yet in brief encounters away from a dysfunctional crowd that seems to egg on a personality that revels in being boxing’s bad boy, he can be a nice guy.

His legal problems include domestic abuse charges involving an ex-girlfriend, Josie Harris, also the mother of his children. In talking about that allegation, Mayweather talked about the night in 2006 when he beat Zab Judah. A brawl erupted, involving Judah, Yoel Judah, Zab’s dad and trainer, and Roger Mayweather, Floyd’s uncle-and-trainer.

Floyd Mayweather stood to one side, peaceful and under control in a ring where the violence threatened to become a riot.

The Mayweather of that night stands in sharp contrast to the one we often hear and the one we sometimes read about in stories that include a booking photo.

They don’t add up, just like that zero.

He’s either a surfer who happens to fight or a fighter who happens to be a surfer, snowboarder, golfer and tri-athlete. I have no idea. I’m not always sure Victor Ortiz does either. But Ortiz doesn’t waste time agonizing over perceptions about who he is or should be. He’ll leave the self-analysis to the media or perhaps Floyd Mayweather Jr.

“I have fun with this thing called life,’’ Ortiz said. “Apparently, that’s a sin in boxing. But I don’t care.’’

It was a comment, one of many, made by Ortiz Wednesday in a fascinating conference call that included a glimpse at layers to a personality that lacks only insecurity. The pieces don’t always seem to fit. To wit: The newly-minted welterweight champion calls himself “Vicious,” yet recalls he was repelled at the initial sight of fighters beating up on each other when he walked into a gym as a kid in Garden City, Kan., for the first time.

Contradictions make the man. They also make him interesting in a many-sided, yet distinct style that is defiant, humble, world-weary, child-like, cocky, funny, angry and always genuine. It’s the genuine part, I think, that fans have seen and seized upon since the dramatic resurrection of his career in a victory in April over Andre Berto and the ongoing build-up to Mayweather on Sept. 17 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand.

The public likes him. So, too, does most of the media, at least for now. His relationship with the media ranks as one of the prime contradictions. His frustration with damning criticism started with his loss to Marcos Maidana and multiplied like a contagion in a regrettable case of piling on until he beat Berto.

I can’t blame him for not forgiving and forgetting the clichéd rips that always questioned his heart, yet ignored the story about how he had raised a brother after he was abandoned by his parents. Ortiz’ story is about heart, always on his sleeve and maybe too much of it.

On Wednesday, he talked about a visit seven months ago with his mom, Manuela, who left him when he was 7.

“I don’t really know her,’’ said Ortiz, whose dad, Victor, left him six years later. “But it seems like she’s a sweetheart. I forgave her for everything.’’

The media missed that heart, instead defining it by what it didn’t see saw in his 2009 loss to Maidana and his draw with Lamont Peterson in December.

Lingering bitterness flared Wednesday when Ortiz was asked about his move up to welterweight from junior-welter. He said he never had trouble making 140 pounds, despite what had been reported. Then, it became evident his only trouble was with the media.

“Of course, the media is very negative,’’ he said. “They sit around all day, feeling sorry for themselves.’’

The contradiction – an irony — is that Ortiz’ found the media to be his greatest ally before Berto. It gave him a cause, deepened a hunger to prove everybody wrong. It’s a trick older than even Bernard Hopkins, who has never let a slight, real or imagined, go unused in stoking the motivational fires.

The sudden surge in Ortiz’ popularity looms as problematic against Mayweather, who at last report was a 6-1 betting favorite. The bad guy has become a lifetime role for Mayweather. It was clear he was rehearsing for it once again in an ugly rant at his dad, Floyd Sr., in the first segment of HBO’s 24/7. By opening bell, Ortiz will play the good guy, an overwhelming fan favorite but not a favorite to win. He will have to guard against the public’s evident affection for him. If he allows himself to be seduced by it, motivation to score a stunning upset might be diminished.

Ortiz talks as if he knows that. Rather than popularity, he nurtures his lifetime role as underdog.

“For guys like me, this is not supposed to happen, not in a million years,’’ he said. “But I don’t believe in statistics. I’m trying to make my own statistic.’’

Just one would set some history on Sept. 17 if he could beat Mayweather. In 41 fights, nobody has. Ortiz is sure that he can.

“Cause Floyd is overdue,’’ Ortiz said. “He should not be a 147-pounder. I’m going to show him that. I never have thought he was that great, not even when I was a kid. …He’s in trouble.’’

Growing up, he said, favorites included his promoter, Oscar De la Hoya, Shane Mosley and Zab Judah.

But Mayweather?

“Not impressed,’’ Ortiz said.

Not even his 41-0 record?

“Forty-one fighters, none of them were me,’’ said Ortiz, who in a couple of weeks will step into a ring and a moment that will say a lot more about him than the media or even he can.

AZ Notes
· Phoenix prospect Jose Benavidez Jr., a junior-welterweight who continues to generate headlines in sparring with Mercito Gesta and Mosley at Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles, has a scheduled opponent, 31-year-old Angel Rios, for a six-rounder on Sept. 17 at BlueWater Resort & Casino in Parker, Ariz. But Rios, of New York, also is scheduled for a bout on Sept.10 card featuring Yuriorkis Gamboa and Daniel Ponce de Leon in Atlantic City. If Rios (9-6, 6 KOs) is the foe, the 19-year-old Benavidez (12-0, 11 KOs) will encounter another fighter with experience against world-class opposition. Rios’ losses include one in 2001 to former lightweight champion Nate Campbell and another in 2003 to former super-featherweight champ Mike Anchondo.

· Alma Carrasco Canez enters the busy promotional market in Phoenix with a card Friday night featuring hometown super-bantamweight Alexis Santiago (9-1-1, 3 KOs) against Steven Johnson (7-3, 4 KOs) of Saint Joseph, MO. The card, at El Zaribah Shriners Auditorium, is scheduled for eight bouts. First bell is scheduled for 6 p.m. (PST).

Conference calls are a necessary task, perhaps, which also means they are often stuck between ho-hum and hum-drum on the interest meter. But then along comes Teddy Atlas. This Atlas doesn’t just shrug when asked a question. Word-for-word – and there were a lot of them Wednesday, Atlas knocked out the mundane with insight, a little schtick, genuine opinion and some real news.

Listening to Atlas from Alexander Povetkin’s camp in Russia made me think of Emanuel Steward when he is talking about Wladimir Klitschko or Miguel Cotto. Both are terrific commentators, Atlas for ESPN2’s Friday Night Fights and Steward for Home Box Office. But I find myself listening more attentively when they are back in a corner, back where they belong. Talk is like that old line about opinions. You know it. I’m sitting on one as I write this. Everybody has one. But few, very few, have the instinct, or patience, or smarts, or guts to be a real trainer.

The sport, I think, suffers when an Atlas or Steward spends more time behind a microphone than in a corner. I understand why they do it. The money is good. The headaches and hangers-on aren’t there in the maddening abundance that has to make them feel more like a circus-master than a teacher.

“The main difference is nobody can talk back to me on the microphone,’’ Atlas joked as he discussed Povetkin’s chances Saturday at the World Boxing Association’s vacant heavyweight title against Ruslan Chagaev in an EPIX-telecast fight from Germany. “I kind of like that.’’

Another thing to like is the absence of a commitment to a fighter and all of the complex emotions attached to it. There’s no risk.

“You don’t have to worry about who wins,’’ Atlas said. “Now, I’m in a position where, unfortunately, I do have to worry.’’

But the potential reward in victory and even in the process is huge. It’s also something that the rest of us don’t experience, or even attempt. It’s a lot safer to just comment and move on, insulated and anonymous.

It’s fair to guess that Atlas, like Steward, is back in a corner because that risk is there. They need it to stay sharp and credible for that microphone. But I’m also guessing they are lured back just because they love their craft, which starts with teaching. True teachers are hard to find. They may leave for a while to consult or commentate. But the best ones always complete the circle, finding their way back to a classroom or a corner.

Atlas touched on it when explaining his reasons for working with Povetkin under less than optimal circumstances, including a camp that lasted only 33 days.

“The thing I love is being in the gym teaching, being in the gym where nobody bothers you and you’re able to get into a kid,’’ Atlas said “You’re able to get his full, undivided attention, his belief, his trust and you’re able to improve that kid. You’re able to get him to think things he might not have thought and get him to try things he might not have tried.

“… I mean almost like — without being too ridiculous — almost like a parent. You’re watching your kid develop a little bit and that part is still beautiful and it’s pure. It’s the essence of boxing, watching somebody get better, watching somebody become more complete as a fighter, even as a person. They’re more sure of themselves.

“That’s still great. I just wish that could be bottled and there could be a fence put around it and all of the other stuff could be kept out. But you know what? That doesn’t happen because you’re dealing with life and you’re dealing with all of the other things that will come with anything.’’

Some of those things intruded on the game’s essence this time around. Atlas had announced on ESPN that he wouldn’t be with Povetkin because of a disagreement over where he would train. Because of his ESPN commitments, Atlas wanted him in New Jersey. But Povetkin, or at least people in his camp, decided to stay close to home. Atlas was mystified and more than a little frustrated.

“I told them to get their ass over here,’’ said Atlas, who said Povetkin wasn’t in the best condition when he arrived in Russia.

Atlas said that he even had the agreement written into his contract with Povetkin.

“I mean I did ask: ‘Why aren’t you keeping your commitment?’ ‘’ Atlas said. “I did say: ‘You had a commitment to come over here. We agreed to it. We even put it in the contract.’ ”

Bottom line: Atlas could have stayed at home, stayed within the comfort zone behind that microphone. But he didn’t, all because of the student, Povetkin, who looked as if he might have to fight for a title without a real trainer there to guide him.

“They called me up and said the press was asking: ‘Who is your trainer, who is your trainer?’ ‘’ Atlas said. “Nobody was answering except Povetkin and Povetkin said, ‘My trainer is only one person, Teddy Atlas.’ ‘’

Atlas realized that, for whatever reason or agenda, the fighter wasn’t getting all the information he needed from those around him.

“You didn’t have to be Columbo to figure that out,’’ he said.
In the end, the teacher couldn’t abandon the student in need, even if a contract said he could. Here was a fighter, he said, facing his biggest moment to date, yet his advisors had made no arrangements for another trainer.
“They called me up and said the press was asking: ‘Who is your trainer, who is your trainer?’ ‘’ Atlas said. “Nobody was answering except Povetkin and Povetkin said: ‘My trainer is only one person, Teddy Atlas.’

“Right there when I heard that, it just affected me from a human standpoint.’’

When Atlas boarded his flight for Russia, he began to think about the abbreviated camp. He even began to think like a pilot perilously low on fuel.

“I felt like I was throwing chairs and things we didn’t need out of the plane to make the flight lighter,’’ he said of adjustments brought on by a lack of time. “I mean there were days I had to make choices. No bag work today; I couldn’t do this work today.’’

Without a full eight weeks, Atlas has misgivings.

“It’s frightening to me because I’m in the chair of responsibility now,’’ he said. “I have made that choice, so at this point, I’m going to do everything I can to represent myself and this kid the best I can.
“I’ve been to church more than I normally go.’’

Say a prayer. Povetkin might not have one this time around. Later on, he could if Atlas continues to sit in that risky chair. He can already talk with the best of them. The conference call’s transcript is proof of that. But the best of them can’t train, not the way he can.

QUOTES, ANECDOTES
· Alfonso Gomez isn’t given much of a chance against Mexican star Saul “Canelo’’ Alvarez on Sept. 17 at Los Angeles’ Staples Center on the same night that Victor Ortiz faces Floyd Mayweather Jr. at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand. In pursuit of is first world title, but Gomez wouldn’t have it any other way. “My first try was against Miguel Cotto,’’ said Gomez, who was stopped by the Puerto Rican in 2008. This is another try against another superstar, Canelo. To get a world title, there are other ways to do it against lesser guys.’’

· An early yardstick of who is bigger in Mexico, Canelo or Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., will come on Sept.17. Chavez fights Ronald Hearns in Culiacan on the same night. The unflappable Canelo doesn’t care. “He has his fans; I have my fans,’’ Canelo said Wednesday in a conference call.’’

AZ NOTES
· Another promoter is helping to resurrect the Phoenix market, moribund for the last few years. Promoter Alma Canez has scheduled eight-to-nine fights for a card featuring young, local fighters for Friday, Sept. 2nd at the El Zaribah Auditorium. Popular bantamweight Alexis Santiago faces Steve Johnson in a six-rounder.

· Fifteen days later on Sept. 17, 19-year-old junior-welterweight prospect Jose Benavidez Jr., the face of Arizona’s re-emerging market, goes back to work in Parker at BlueWater Resort & Casino. It will be Benavidez’ second successive fight in his home state since controversy over the Arizona immigration law, SB1070, kept him on the road.

Referees know they have done a good job if nobody remembers their name. Poor Russell Mora. Mora lost his anonymity and gained some infamy for his work, or lack of it, in Abner Mares’ majority decision over Joseph Agbeko.

By now, the controversy has been played and re-played, analyzed and re-analyzed, ad infinitum in the days since Mares threw repeated low blows, was warned five times, yet never penalized by Mora, the fight’s biggest loser Saturday at Las Vegas’ Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Another review of the tarnished fight for the International Boxing Federation’s title in Showtime’s bantamweight tournament would be just another low blow.

But I couldn’t help but wonder, perhaps marvel, at the relative lack of controversy about referees in a sport full of noisy arguments about virtually everything else. Other than a cop on streets that might as well be the front lines in a tough neighborhood, there can’t be a job much more challenging than that of a fight referee. Controlled violence is an oxymoron if there ever was one. But even anarchy has rules, and it’s up to the referee to enforce them. Mora didn’t.

In an internet court full of opinion and not much accountability, Mora has been charged with incompetence, bias and a whole raft of other misdeeds. Take your pick. But it is a multiple-choice question without a proven answer. There are plenty of other questions

For one, there was no response from Agbeko when it was clear that the rules would not be enforced. Retaliation for an uncalled low-blow is about as fundamental as a jab. If Agbeko had thrown just one, he might have been able to restore order and his chances. He didn’t.

I can only wonder what he and his corner were doing, or not doing, while Mora repeatedly missed the obvious. It also makes me wonder whether no response from Agbeko is a flaw that would lead to another loss if a rematch within 120 days, as ordered by the IBF, in fact happens. On Anarchy Street, it is always wise to be skeptical about whether any order will ever be carried out.

Curious, too, is the absence of pre-fight controversy that actually might have helped avoid the Mora flap. Yahoo’s Kevin Iole reported Monday that Dana Jamison, operations director for Agbeko promoter Don King, objected to Mora. According to Iole’s story, King said he got a call from somebody who told him that Mora was “a Golden Boy referee.’’ Mares is a Golden Boy Promotions fighter. The Nevada State Athletic Commission reportedly heard the complaint, but did not assign a different ref.

Would Mora have acted differently if news of Jamison’s objection had been disclosed? Maybe not. But I can’t help but recall Bernard Hopkins well-publicized threat to withdraw from his 2007 rematch with Robert Allen in tuneup for is victory over Oscar De La Hoya, now Golden Boy’s president. Hopkins objected to the assignment of referee Joe Cortez, arguing that Cortez might have bias against him. Hopkins was worried that Cortez, a Puerto Rican, might have grudge against Hopkins, who ripped Puerto Rico before his upset of Felix Trinidad in 2001.

Hopkins, now a Golden Boy fighter, has never been afraid of throwing the race card. And, yeah, he’s also never been shy about grandstanding. The fight went off with Cortez as the ref. Cortez’ work was never an issue. Hopkins was a much better fighter than Allen and proved throughout every round of unanimous decision.

Had the fight been close, however, Hopkins’ objection might have served as some insurance against any chance that Cortez would have swung the scorecards in favor of Allen. As only he can, Hopkins broadcast his concerns to the court of public opinion, meaning fans and state regulators were watching Cortez’ every move.

None of this is to say that Nevada or any other state commission should seek approval from camps about a ref’s assignment. That would open the proverbial Pandora’s Box to a whole host of suspicions about influence peddling. But it is in the best interest for a promoter, manager, trainer or the fighter himself to make their objections know before, not after, opening bell.

Quotes, anecdotes
· Despite his surprising performance against Marcos Maidana in April, Erik Morales, a loser in five of his last eight fights, still had to defend himself in a conference call Wednesday that also included his next opponent, Lucas Matthysse, on the undercard of Floyd Mayweather Jr.-versus-Victor Ortiz on Sept. 17 at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand. Morales was asked: Why still fight? “Not only can I say it; I can do it’’ said Morales, who has been at it for nearly two decades. “I also love proving people wrong.’’

· Matthysse, an Argentine, returns to the United States after suffering two controversial losses by split decision in the U.S. – Zab Judah in New Jersey and Devon Alexander in Missouri. “Everybody knows that those two losses were bad decisions,’’ he said. “I was robbed in those fights.’’

AZ Notes
· Just guessing, but Jesus Gonzales’ chances at fighting Kelly Pavlik might have improved after Pavlik angered Top Rank by abruptly withdrawing from his last bout in frustration over a proposed purse against Lucian Bute. Before long, Pavlik might have to turn to Gonzales to get a fight. There were reports about slow ticket sales among Pavlik’s disaffected fan base in Youngstown, Ohio. Pavlik-Gonzales might be a better draw in Phoenix, where Gonzales is still popular.

· Former World Boxing Organization heavyweight champ Sergei Liakhovich (25-3, 16 KOs), a Scottsdale resident, packs his bags for Germany Saturday for a fight at saving his career on Aug. 27 against Robert Helenius (15-0, 10 KOs) in a bout televised by EPIX. Liakhovich is back with trainer Kenny Weldon, who was with him when he won the WBO title against Lamon Brewster and lost it to Shannon Briggs in the last second of the last round of his first defense. “Kenny and I are on the same page,’’ Liakhovich said.

The Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation told the Association of Boxing Commissions (ABC) that it will not host another Bare-Knuckle fight promoted by FelKO, which last Friday staged the controversial bout featuring Bobby Gunn at its casino on Native American land not subject to the Arizona State Boxing & MMA Commission’s jurisdiction.

In an apparent response to an ABC press release Wednesday that condemned the event as “perhaps, criminal,’’ Fort McDowell Director of Marketing Tom McGill wrote Association Vice President Gregory Sirb that “there will not be any more Bare Knuckle Boxing events provided by FelKO Promotions.

In a letter acquired by 15 Rounds from the ABC, McKee also wrote that no “financial compensation was paid to the boxers from FMC (Fort McDowell Casino) so it was not a professional event. FelKO Promotions did not pay anything either.’’

ABC President Tim Lueckenhoff does not believe that the fighters were not paid.

“There is no way I could imagine that either fighter is going to fight for free after being paid in the past,’’ Lueckenhoff told 15 Rounds Thursday in an e-mail. “It is hogwash!’’

Gunn, who won a third-round stoppage over a Chris Stewart, is a well-known pro who fought for cruiserweight titles, including the International Boxing Federation’s version two years ago in a loss to Tomasz Adamek.

If no money was paid, it would have been an amateur event, which means it would not be subject to state regulation. Then, however, Lueckenhoff said it still would have to be regulated by USA Boxing.

If true, Lueckenhoff said, “this must be sanctioned by USA Boxing.’’

Before the bout last week, Dave Feldman of FelKO said he expected controversy. He said he also understood the safety concerns initially expressed by the Arizona Commission.

Dennis O’Connell, Arizona’s executive director, said he would never have allowed the event. In a news release last week, the state’s regulatory agency stated that bare-knuckle bouts “have serious health and safety implications.’’

The ABC called it “abhorrent, barbaric, egregious.” The national association said the bout also was “in contravention of a multitude of federal, state, and tribal boxing laws and regulations.’’

The ABC questions whether the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation has in fact a working commission. In 2008, Fort McDowell terminated a relationship it had with the Arizona commission, which had supervised pro cards on the reservation as part of a compact that it continues to have with casinos on Native American property.

The ABC promised to investigate “with the possibility of a referral to the U.S. Attorney’s Office toward the ends of barring any such activity in the future, instituting a criminal prosecution, or both.’’

Feldman said last week that he plans further Bare-Knuckle bouts. He said he has spoken to people in other states interested in bringing back an era in boxing that vanished more than a century ago. Feldman declined to identify either the people or the states.

Promoters for a bare-knuckle fight featuring former cruiserweight contender Bobby Gunn Friday night at a casino on Native American land near Phoenix are promising enhanced safety measures for a controversial bout that the Arizona State Boxing & MMA Commission would cancel if it had the power to do so.

“Absolutely, we would not allow it,’’ Commission Executive Director Dennis O’Connell said of the bout at the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation, which is not subject to regulation by the state agency that oversees boxing and mixed martial arts.

Dave Feldman of FelKO Promotions said he understands the Commission’s objection.

“I respect their opinion 100 percent,’’ Feldman said. “I’d be a fool, otherwise. That’s why we’re taking all of these safety precautions.’’

Feldman said plans for the Gunn fight against MMA fighter Chris Thompson include two referees instead of one. The bout, the main event on the card (first bell/8 p.m., PST), is scheduled for ten 90-second rounds. Although the knuckles will be bare, Feldman said wrists and other parts of the hands will be taped. He also said additional medical personnel will be at ringside.

Cuts are the biggest fear, Feldman said. Rules have been modified to allow each cut-man an additional 30 seconds to stop the bleeding.

“Safety is paramount,’’ said Feldman, who says he has researched a bygone version of a street sport that has been not been conducted under official rules or with public approval for more than a century, or probably since 1889 when John L. Sullivan reportedly knocked out John Kilrain in the 75th round in Mississippi.

Feldman said the Gunn-Thompson bout will be regulated by the Fort McDowell Yavapai Nation. However, the Tribe is not a current member of the national Association of Boxing Commissions (ABC). It has not been since September of 2008, O’Connell said from the ABC’s annual convention in Washington, D.C.

In 2008, Fort McDowell also terminated a working relationship with the state Commission, which had regulated a few pro cards on the Yavapai reservation as part of a state-wide compact that includes other Arizona tribes.

In 2008, a Phoenix police officer, Barry Scott died on Sept. 16 four days after a bout on a FelKO promoted card at Fort McDowell featuring cops-versus-firemen. It was not regulated because the fighters were amateurs. Hunter, who wore gloves and headgear, died of suspected head trauma that might have been inflicted during heavy sparring while training.

With increasing interest in mixed martial arts, Feldman believes there might be a future for bare-knuckle boxing. However, he expects controversy and admits he is uncertain about what might happen.

“We’ll see,’’ said Feldman, who said he already has plans for more bare-knuckle boxing, perhaps in other states.

O’Connell said opposition to the bout was expressed in opening remarks at the ABC convention’s first day in Washington, D.C.

The Commission also sent out a press release, dated July 29 and headlined:

State Boxing Commission Not Involved in Upcoming Bare-Knuckle Bout at Fort McDowell.

In the second of only three paragraphs, the Commission’s release said:

“Bare-knuckle matches or bouts have serious health and safety implications for participating contestants. For that reason, Arizona laws and regulations governing boxing and mixed martial arts require the use of approved gloves. A bare-knuckle bout would never be sanctioned by the Arizona State Boxing and Mixed Martial Arts Commission, nor any other state or tribal commission that is a member of the National Association of Boxing Commissions.”

Distractions are an ally or an annoyance or a dirty word. Manny Pacquiao can’t get enough of them. Floyd Mayweather, Jr. sneers at them, then moves on to the next one. Kelly Pavlik doesn’t know what to do with them. Not yet, anyway

For Pavlik, learning how to manage them, or at least live with them, might be his greatest challenge, bigger even than an Aug. 6 tune-up against left-handed Darryl Cunningham in a super-middleweight battle to reassert himself at his profession’s highest level in a projected fight with Canadian Lucian Bute, also a left-hander.

News about Pavlik for the last year has mostly been about a lifestyle gone awry and a stretch in rehab. A difficult personal trial is hard enough without media attention. With it, the challenge threatens to become a succession of exaggerated cheap shots that can knock out a career, or at least leave a promising one short of fulfillment.

Pavlik’s fight against Cunningham in front of neighbors and the nosy in hometown Youngstown, Ohio, will happen on Showtime’s ShoBox within a few weeks of news about a reported altercation with his brother. According to various reports, they had been drinking. Even if drinking had not been mentioned, the public would have assumed it anyway.

“There’s nothing you can do about that stuff,’’ Pavlik said at the end of a national conference call Wednesday. “Ninety percent of Americans get into fights with siblings. I can’t get into a shoving match with mine. It is what it is.’’

In what is perhaps a good sign in the process of learning how to manage the inevitable, Pavlik sounded philosophical. There were times before his last fight and first one after release from rehab in May when he got exasperated, then annoyed, at repeated questions about the experience.

“Got a new thing I throw out there now: ‘Who cares?’ ‘’ he said when confronted by the question Wednesday. “I just can’t worry about pressure from the public or what people are going to say.

“…I’m going to be Kelly Pavlik.’’

That might be easier to say than do. I get the sense that Pavlik is still stunned to discover how fickle success and celebrity can be. In his early rise to the top of the middleweight ranks, he came across as a nice guy with a blue-collar approach and personality. He was gritty and genuine. Still is. That’s why I’ll be cheering for him, although I wonder if everybody in the Youngstown crowd at Covelli Center will be.

“You know what, I’m not sure,’’ Pavlik said when asked whether he expected a lot of support from a big crowd of hometown fans. “I’m hoping they are. Word is, it’s going pretty good right now. There’s a lot of people still saying they’re going to get their tickets. Mainly, you expect a walk-up crowd in Youngstown. That’s one of the big things, too.

“I’m going to do my thing. I’m going to put on a great show. I’m going to fight as hard as I can. Whatever happens — my true fans, and I’m sure there’s a lot — they’ll be in for a real treat.”

They will be and many also will be back, but only if Pavlik begins to beat back distractions in a compelling comeback that could be as gritty as it is genuine.

Quotes, anecdotes
· A noted publicist, on Zab Judah saying he thought he was getting “a standing eight-count’’ while on all fours after Amir Khan dropped him with a borderline shot on the trunk’s belt: “He must have been talking about a crawling count.’’

· Memo to Tim Bradley: Find the trash can into which Riddick Bowe dumped the World Boxing Council’s heavyweight title belt in 1992. That’s where the 140-pound belt stripped from you this week by WBC President Jose Sulaiman belongs.

AZ notes
· Pavlik (37-2, 32 KOs) said he is fighting Cunningham (23-2, 10 KOs) because is a left-hander, who will help him get ready for Bute. Pavlik didn’t mention Jesus Gonzales (27-1, 14 KOs), also left-handed and his sparring partner before a loss to Sergio Martinez. Gonzales, who is fighting to get in to the 168-pound title mix after a two-year hiatus, plans to continue his Phoenix comeback this fall.

· Thunderstorms tore off the roof of a popular gym, KO Boxing, in south Phoenix a few days ago. Phoenix promoter Michelle Rosado and Phoenix bantamweight Emilio Garcia are seeking donations to rebuild the gym, which is located on some of the city’s meanest streets. An ongoing rebirth of the Arizona market continues in September, first on Sept. 2 with an Alma Carrasco Canez-promoted card at El Zaribah Shriners in Phoenix and then on Sept. 17 with card in Parker at BlueWater Resort & Casino with unbeaten Top Rank prospect Jose Benavidez, Jr., an unbeaten junior-welterweight, in a featured fight. Benavidez, a Phoenix native, is back in trainer Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, Calif.

LAS VEGAS – It was a career on the borderline. Zab Judah always walked it. Amir Khan knocked him off of it Saturday night with a body punch. There will be controversy about the punch. Legal? Illegal? Below-the-belt? Right on it?

Review the video. Go ahead and argue. Judah surely will. He always has. Judah and controversy are a combination, if not a tiresome redundancy. There’s no way to separate them. Perhaps, Judah is an older, wiser man.

Perhaps, Judah has changed. There’s no doubt that Khan has. He changes and changes a little bit for the better almost every time he steps through ropes for a significant fight. He confounded Judah seconds after the opening bell, moving in-and-out foot and landing precise jabs as he circled to his right.

Judah, whose right eye was slightly hurt in an apparent collision in the first round, appeared confused, then weary. He began to drop his right hand, leaving himself wide open to Khan combos that were sure to come. They didn’t, only because of body shot in the fifth round that put Judah on his hands-and-knees before he started arguing.

Judah bent over after he was rocked by a right hand. As he held on, Khan threw another right to the body. At first, it looked as if it might have been below the belt.

But repeated reviews from different angles of video at the Mandalay Bay Events Center appeared to show that the punch landed right on Judah’s belt, gold above his black trunks. At 2:47 of the round, referee Vic Drakulich counted out Judah, a loser by knockout. Other than the ensuing controversy, there was nothing technical about it.

“The shot when he went down was clean on the belt,’’ said Khan, who earned a minimum of 1.07 million and added Judah’s IBF junior-welterweight belt to his WBA title “If the fight had gone a few more rounds, I would have knocked him out with a clean shot. I knew he was hurt. It was only a matter of time.’’

At ringside, a theory quickly began to circulate about whether Judah simply went down to avoid the beating that seemed to be inevitable. His post-fight comments only seemed to support that speculation.

“I thought it was a low blow,’’ said Judah, who collect a minimum of $500,000. “I thought the referee was trying to give me a standing 8-count. I didn’t understand.’’

Yeah, it is hard to understand how Judah thought he could get a standing eight count when he was on hands, knees, an occasional elbow and never his feet.

On the back of Judah’s belt, there was this inscription: Godspeed.

Should have been goodbye.

On the undercard
The Best: It was another chapter in an ongoing comeback for Texas middleweight James Kirkland (29-1, 26 KOs), who scored his second successive stoppage by putting an overwhelmed Alexis Hlores (15-3-2, 11 KOs) onto his knees at 28 seconds of the second. Kirkland, who is fighting to restore his earlier promise after a stretch in prison, scored a first-round KO after he got knocked out in April.

The Rest: Unbeaten Peter Quillen (25-0, 19 KOs) threw chocolate kisses at the crowd and the corner for Jason LeHoullier (21-6-1, 8 KOs) of Dover, NH, threw in the towel at 1:38 of the fifth after the Brooklyn middleweight nicknamed Kid Chocolate punished him wit body shots and uppprcuts;

featherweight Gary Russell (17-0, 10 KOs) of Capitol Heights, MD, put some more polish on an already bright future by scoring one knockdown and winning all eight rounds in a one-sided decision over Eric Estrada (9-2, 3 KOs) of Chicago;

Philadelphia heavyweight Bryant Jennings (9-0, 4 KOs) was stronger and faster throughout six rounds for a unanimous decision over Theron Johnson (5-6, 1 KO) of Chicago;

lightweight Jamie Kavanaugh (8-0, 3 KOs) of Hollywood, Calif., won a six-round unanimous decision over Marcos Herrera (6-6-1, 2 KOs) of Arvada, Calif.;

Brooklyn super-middleweight Josiah Judah (10-1-1, 2 KOs) scored a six-round majority decision over Rafal Jastrzebski (4-7-1, 1 KOs) of Poland;

junior-lightweight Ronny Rios (15-0, 7 KOs) of Santa Ana, Calif., moved in a hurry and finished Noe Lopez (8-9, 5 KOs) in a hurry, stopping the Mexican at 1:12 of the first round.

LAS VEGAS – Bernard Hopkins tried to stir up some interest Saturday in a rematch with Joe Calzaghe by mentioning the possibility and then telling UK reporters to speak to Calzaghe about it.

Hopkins suggested a rematch was in order when UK reporters told him that Calzaghe was in Las Vegas to watch fellow Brit Amir Khan fight Zab Judah.

“You’ll have something to write about on Sunday,’’ he cracked at the UK reporters who were at Mandalay Bay for a breakfast roundtable.

Hopkins (52-5-2, 32 KOs) has always believed he was robbed of a victory in a 2008 split decision that went to Calzaghe, now 39 and retired. Controversy preceded the fight when Hopkins told Calzaghe that he’d never let “white boy” beat him.

“I won that fight,’’ said the 46-year-old Hopkins, who faces Chad Dawson (30-1, 17 KOs) on Oct. 15 in defense of the light-heavyweight title he won against Jean Pascal in a victory that made him the oldest ever to claim a major title. “I think I lost that fight when I called light-skinned. I think that changed the way people looked at that fight.’’

It was not known early Saturday if Calzaghe was interested. He has never indicated one way or another whether he has even considered a comeback.

“He retired because he knew the world wanted to see a Hopkins-Calzaghe rematch,’’ Hopkins said. “Joe knew the pressure would be too much.’’

Hopkins, who always has a lot to say, also offered to fight UK heavyweight David Haye, who balmed his embarrassing loss Wladimir Klitschko on a broken toe

“Hey, I’ll fight David Haye tomorrow,’’ Hopkins said. “I’ll spot him 20 pounds.’’

Hopkins thought Haye had blamed the loss on a busted big toe. When told it was a small toe, Hopkins said:

“OK, I’ll spot him 50.’’

Hopkins (52-5-2, 32 KO) lost his light heavyweight belt to Calzaghe in April 2008 by split decision in a bowling shoe ugly fight that was debated by many but is regarded fondly by few. After that win, Calzaghe (who was already the super middleweight champion) fought just once more, beating the shell of Roy Jones Jr in November 2008 in a pay-per-view bomb in Madison Square Garden.

Calzaghe then retired with a record of 46-0 (32 KO), but it’s a record many still don’t consider truly great, despite the Welshman having never lost a fight. Now 39 years old, Calzaghe has made no serious indication that he’s looking to return to the ring, but there has been mild speculation since he retired. The biggest headlines he’s made in his time out of the ring came, unfortunately, when he admitted to cocaine usage. He also appeared on the reality show contest “Strictly Come Dancing.”

LAS VEGAS – The scale might as well have been a stage. The weigh-in played out as though it had been written and rehearsed. It was a non-event. The fight doesn’t figure to be.

Amir Khan and Zab Judah each weighed 140 pounds – the junior-welterweight limit, posed like body-builders and smiled politely at each other Friday in front of a quiet crowd of about 300 at Mandalay Bay.

Unscripted drama is supposed to supplant the predictable Saturday in the Khan-Judah clash for two pieces of the junior-welterweight title, also at Mandalay Bay, in an HBO-televised bout. There are no guarantees. Never are.

But talk suggests that a dramatic twist is possible. It’s up to Judah (41-6, 28 KOs), who is at crossroads that includes only two paths. Win, and he is on the road to a rebirth. Lose, and his career is on the exit ramp. When the fight was announced in June, it looked as if Judah was already hurtling down the ramp to nowhere. But his intriguing talent, quick hands and fast feet, is still there, which means he still has a real chance.

One scenario has Judah, the International Boxing Federation’s champion, aggressive early in search of the suspected weakness in Khan’s chin. By the middle rounds, a swift left uppercut might find it for an upset of Khan (25-1, 17 KOs) in a stunning stoppage.

Here’s one reason: Judah is more capable of setting up a precise punch than Marcos Maidana, whose wild whirlwind of punches lacked tactical design, yet were enough to almost stop Khan in a memorable 10th round last December. Here’s another: Khan looked vulnerable to a left uppercut in his last outing, a decision over Paul McCloskey, who lacked the power to do any real damage.

That might be Judah’s best, perhaps only chance if there is anything to believe in a second scenario that circulated Friday during the formal weigh-in. If the fight goes into the later rounds, the guess is that Khan, the World Boxing Associations champ, will survive and prevail.

Here’s one reason: Judah is known for meltdowns. The longer the fight goes, the better the chance at another one. Here’s another: Khan’s mastery of tactical skill means he is built for the long haul, which means his best chances rest between the eighth and 12th rounds.

Rest of the weigh-in for an eight-fight card scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m. (PST):

10-round middleweight fight: Peter Quillin (24-0, 18 KOs) of Brooklyn, NY, 161 pounds; Jason Lehoullier (21-5-1, 8 KOs) of Dover, NH, 161 pounds.

Eight-round featherweight: Gary Russell (16-0, 10 KOs) of Capitol Heights, MD, 126 pounds; Eric Estrada (9-1, 3 KOs) of Chicago, 128.

Six-round heavyweight: Bryant Jennings (8-0, 4 KOs) of Philadelphia, 221; Theron Johnson (5-5, 1 KOs) of Chicago, 231.

Eight-round middleweight: James Kirkland (28-1, 25 KOs) of Austin, TX, 157.5; Alexis Hloros (15-3-2, 11 KOs), Mt. Clemens, MI, 157.5.

Eight-round junior-lightweight: Ronny Rios (14-0, 6 KOs) of Santa Ana, CA, 129; Noe Lopez (8-8, 5 KOs) of Mexico, 130.

Six-round super-middleweight: Josiah Judah, (9-1-1, 2 KOs) of Brooklyn, NY, 163; Rafal Jastrzebski (4-6-1, 1 KO) of Poland, 166.

Six-round lightweight: Jamie Kavanaugh (7-0, 3 KOs) of Hollywood, CA, 135.5; Marcos Herrera (6-5-1, 2 KOs) Arvada, CO, 135.5.

Zab Judah speaks like a preacher these days. He has to believe, even if few in the gambling congregation do anymore. The proverbial last stand sometimes brings out the prophet in a man. Against Amir Khan Saturday night at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay, that’s where Judah finds himself.

“Zab Judah will be the winner; Zab Judah will be the winner,’’ he said in a conference-call refrain. “I promise you.’’

Promise has always been the issue with Judah. It’s been unfulfilled throughout a series of misadventures ever since his unmistakable talent launched him so rapidly that stardom must have seemed like an entitlement. It never is, of course. Losses to Kostya Tszyu, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Miguel Cotto, Joshua Clottey, Carlos Baldomir and Cory Spinks are lessons that fast hands and agile feet won’t win if not accompanied by maturity.

Maturity is about the only thing slow to develop in Judah (41-6, 28 KOs), now 33 and a Christian living in Sin City. Doubt lingers about whether enough of it is there even now. That accounts for the 5-to-1 odds favoring Khan (25-1, 17 KOs) in the junior-welterweight bout for two pieces of the 140-pound title.

Other than a gritty and poised performance in 2007 against a Cotto then at his best, Judah has never shown anything that says he can contain his emotions — maintain his composure — at the moment of inevitable adversity in a big fight.

That label was affixed to his reputation in 2001 against Tszyu, who looked as if he were about to be overwhelmed by the swift Judah in the first round. In the second, Judah’s confidence got the best of him. He mocked Tszyu by shaking his hips. Judah dropped his hands. Then, Tszyu dropped him with a right. Judah stumbled around, picked up and threw his stool like an angry bar patron at last call and futilely went after referee Jay Nady. Ten-year-old images are unfair perhaps. But in the age of YouTube, they endure. Judah has been stumbling through his career ever since.

A mini-riot erupted during the 2006 bout against Mayweather, who looked across the ring and apparently didn’t see a security guard. Mayweather was the only one to display any poise, which in hindsight looks like a huge upset after his reported and repeated altercations with rent-a-cops. Mayweather moved into a neutral corner and calmly waited out the storm. For Judah, there was a six-month suspension and a $75,000 fine.
Days of suspension, fines and rage are behind him, he swears.

“I’m more focused on my career and my family,’’ Judah said. “I’m at a great place in life right now.’’
Changes in lifestyle, he says, are complemented by a more purposeful approach to business. A boyhood hero, retired defensive wizard Pernell Whitaker, is his trainer instead of his dad, Yoel. Fathers as trainers have always been problematic. Emotions get confused and in the way. With Whitaker, that dangerous potential is gone. Whitaker says Judah has become a more scientific boxer, which means more deliberate skill and less of the undisciplined emotion.

There’s also Victor Conte, whose infamous past includes Balco, Barry Bonds and performance enhancers. Conte has moved into boxing in an attempt to rebuild his reputation as a nutritionist and conditioning coach. Neither the family physician nor my auto mechanic has any idea what hypoxic training is. If Conte’s new-world methods had anything to do with Nonito Donaire’s stunning, second-round stoppage of Fernando Montiel last February, however, Khan has reason to worry.

Judah believes that Khan, the World Boxing Association’s champion, will enter the ring Saturday with a strategy based on what he saw in his many meltdowns.

“The old Judah,’’ said the International Boxing Federation’s champ, who figures to test Khan’s questionable chin early and often with an uppercut. “But after the first round, I think we’ll come back to the corner and say: ‘Guys, I don’t think this is the Zab Judah we prepared for.’ ‘’

But it isn’t the first round. It never has been for Judah. It’s what happens later. I can’t help but wonder how Judah would have reacted last December if it had been him instead of Khan in a wicked 10th round. The poised Khan held on instead of panicking or overreacting in the face of a withering assault from Marcos Maidana. Maidana’s repeated punches left Khan looking as if he were precariously balanced on a tight rope. But he stayed upright and held on to win by decision.

I’m not sure Judah would have kept his wits about him. He never has.

Yet, he has a chance against Khan. Judah is called a live dog. That means he’s a cornered one. There are no more chances if he loses in one more an attempt to prove he has grown beyond his reputation and grown up into the fighter everybody thought he would be.

AZ market on the mend
The Arizona market, dormant for the last two years, is staging one of boxing’s biggest comebacks these days.

There are two cards in the state Friday — one (first bell/7:30 p.m.) staged by longtime and legendary promoter Don Chargin at Tucson’s Casino del Sol and the other (first bell/7:30 p.m.) by Michelle Rosado of Face II Face Events in Phoenix at Madison Events Center.

The Arizona State Boxing Commission, strapped by budget cuts and suddenly busier than ever, will only regulate the Phoenix card, which will feature young Phoenix fighters, including bantamweight Emilio Garcia (2-0-1).

Chargin’s card will be regulated by the Pascua Yaqui, which owns and operates Casino del Sol. Without the tribe’s regulation, the two probably would have been scheduled on different dates. The Commission doesn’t have the personnel to work two on the same night.

There are several reasons for the boxing resurrection in Arizona, which has been home to six cards during the last four months. Controversy over the state’s tough immigration bill, SB 1070, has lessened since last year.

The biggest factor, however, is simply in the documents needed by Mexican fighters. For a couple of years, Mexican nationals were forced to get work visas instead of a tourist visa. Work visas are harder and more expensive to acquire

About a year ago, the state determined that Mexicans could again fight in Arizona with a tourist visa. That re-opened the market in a border-state with a rich boxing tradition.

Chargin has always been fond of Arizona. Over the years, the Hall of Fame promoter has staged several cards at Casino del Sol’s spacious outdoor arena.

“My wife and I used to say that Casino del Sol was our favorite place,’’ said Chargin, who lost his beloved wife, Lorraine, in April 2010.

Chargin, who will feature unbeaten super-bantamweight Christopher Martin (22-0, 6 KOs) of San Diego against Mexican Jose Silveria (12-3, 4 KOs), isn’t surprised by the state’s comeback. There are too many boxing gyms throughout Phoenix and Tucson to keep it down for long. A lively gym culture ensures that a boxing market will always be there.

“They’ve tried and tried and tried to kill it, but they can’t,’’ Chargin said.

AZ NOTES, QUOTES
• There are initial talks for Phoenix super-middleweight Jesus Gonzales’ third fight in his hometown, probably in the fall. Gonzales’ promotional company, Fanbase, approached Fernando Vargas about fighting Gonzales. Vargas has talked about a comeback, but his initial price was too high. Darin Schmick of Fanbase said Vargas asked for $2.5 million and a percentage of the gate. Big money might have been Vargas’ way of saying he’s not serious about a comeback. Schmick said he is still willing to talk to Vargas about the proposed fight. But a deal probably means Vargas would have to subtract a few figures from the seven he wants

• Junior-welterweight prospect Jose Benavidez Jr. is scheduled for his next bout in Parker, Ariz., at BlueWater Resort & Casino on a Sept. 17 card that will also feature Filipino Mercito Gesta. The date conflicts with Mayweather’s comeback against Victor Ortiz at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand on Sept. 17. Promoters for the Parker card, Top Rank and Showdown, talked about moving the date. October 1 was a possibility. But the promoters stayed with Sept. 17, in part because of contractual obligations.

If it isn’t the biggest upset in many years, New Jersey’s suspension of the three scorekeepers in the decision given to Paul Williams and stolen from Erislandy Lara is a stunner that is laudable for its immediacy, yet incomplete in its scope, language and accountability.

To wit: It is hard to judge, which is something Al Bennett, Hilton Whitaker and Don Givens were not able to do on cards that must have made Lara feel like a bank teller with a note from a guy in a ski-mask.

In a letter Wednesday to Lara’s reps at Golden Boy Promotions and Williams promoter Dan Goossen, New Jersey Commissioner Aaron Davis told them of the indefinite suspensions after a review that did not turn up “evidence of bias, fraud, corruption or incapacity.’’

For now, we’ll have to take New Jersey’s word on the first three. But incapacity? It can mean a lot of things. Presumably, New Jersey meant to say that the scorekeepers were capable enough to know which end of a pencil to use.

But “being incapable” is part of Merriam-Webster’s primary definition. Synonyms include inability, incompetence and ineptitude. The three scorekeepers were all of that in scoring a majority decision Saturday for Williams in an Atlantic City bout dominated by Lara, who from opening bell through the 12th repeatedly rocked Williams by landing 49 percent of his power punches.

Davis’ letter, which included an apology, said New Jersey was “unsatisfied” by the scoring. But “unsatisfied’’ is not a satisfactory explanation for New Jersey’s assignment of three scorekeepers to a high-profile, HBO-televised bout. Bennett, Givens and Whitaker will have to undergo further training before they are issued another scorecard, according to Davis’ letter. Left unexplained is what kind of training they underwent in the first place.

A lot already has been said about their relative lack of experience. It’s been reported that Bennett, who scored it a 114-114 draw, had never worked a title fight televised by HBO or Showtime. OK, but does that explain how not one of the threesome knew that Lara was winning? Bennett was closer to reality than either Whitaker (115-114) or Givens (116-114), but all three might as well have been watching waves from a seat on the boardwalk instead of a one-sided fight from a perch at ringside.

The training, assignment and identity of judges has always been a murky process — different from state-to-state, nation-to-nation. HBO does a good job in providing some details about their respective records, including scores in significant fights. Yet, there are still nights when the three judges might as well be Manny, Moe and Jack.

Who are these guys?

For Williams-Lara, it looks as if the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board had no clue. It’s no surprise that Bennett, Givens and Whitaker didn’t either.

REMEMBERING KIMBALL
I couldn’t help watching the Lara-Williams controversy without thinking about what George Kimball would have written. It would have been uniquely his and his alone. Through the terrible toll of cancer, Kimball never lost his ability to express outrage or be outraged. I suspect it kept him alive long after doctors told him he had six months to live in 2005 when he was diagnosed with a death sentence. Kimball, who died on July 6, just loved a good fight.

Kimball was a fellow Army brat. I went to more high schools than he did. But he had more of everything else.

He became a mentor for me and then a friend during two weeks in Athens for the 2004 Olympics. During the preliminary rounds of boxing at a rundown gym in a lousy Athens neighborhood, I bet him 50 Euros that the U.S. wouldn’t win a single medal. Kimball, then a Boston Herald columnist, looked at me like the fool I was, took the American field and collected the 50 Euros on the night Andre Dirrell won bronze, two nights before Andre Ward won gold.

As I paid him off, he gave me a shrewd, amused look – pure Kimball.

“Why don’t you pay me after we get back to the Olympic Village?’’ he said. “That way, I won’t get robbed while we try to get out of this place.’’

For anybody who loves great writing from irreplaceable characters, his death robs us all.

AZ NOTES, ANECDOTES
· The Arizona market, dormant for the last few years, continues to heat up. On Friday, July 22, two cards are scheduled, one in Phoenix and one in Tucson. Longtime promoter Don Chargin is in Tucson at Casino del Sol with a card scheduled for seven fights and featuring super-bantamweight Christopher Martin (22-0-2, 6 KOs) of San Diego against Mexican Jose Silviera (12-3, 4 KOs). In Phoenix, Michele Rosado of Face II Face Events is at Madison Events Center with a card that includes two bantamweight bouts, featuring Emilio Garcia in one and Alexis Santiago in the other. If a large, noisy crowd at a Phoenix news conference Wednesday is a sign, both are becoming local attractions.

· Phoenix super-middleweight Jesus Gonzales, entertaining and gutsy in an ESPN2 victory last Friday, got six stitches for a cut over one eye suffered in an apparent heat butt with Francisco Sierra. Gonzales is expected to fight again in Phoenix sometime in the fall. Another fall fight is also expected for 19-year-old Phoenix prospect Jose Benavidez, Jr., who pushed his junior-welterweight record to 12-0 in his hometown debut six weeks ago. Benavidez fought with injuries to both hands in his last victory. The hands have healed. He’s back in the gym.

PHOENIX – There was blood this time instead of tears.

Bloody sweet.

Phoenix super-middleweight Jesus Gonzales tasted victory Friday night in the only place he ever lost with a unanimous decision over Francisco Sierra at U.S. Airways Center in a back-and-forth bout that in some ways summed up a Gonzales career first paved with promise, then frustration and now resilience.

Gonzales won a minor title, the North American Boxing Federation’s version of the 168-pound title. But there was nothing minor about the triumph. It was personal. It was about confronting old fears, coming back to a building that in his nightmares had come to haunt him. US Airways was where fear and Jose Luis Zertuche beat him in 2005.

Six years ago, perhaps, Sierra could have done the same thing as Zertuche. In the fifth round, Sierra threw a winging right hand that dropped Gonzales onto the mat and into a spot that seemed to say history was about to repeat itself. It didn’t.

“There was no way I was going to get knocked out,’’ Gonzales (27-1, 14 KOs) said after winning in front of an estimated crowd of 5,000 fans. “No way. The last time, I was here I just panicked. But this time, I was poised instead of panicked. I got hit, yeah. But I wasn’t going to lose. I just wasn’t.
“That knockdown was a wake-up call.’’

And maybe, just maybe, a new beginning for Gonzales.

“I’m back,’’ said Gonzales, who spent two years out of the ring and working at odd jobs, including late nights of loading trucks at Target and walking school hallways at midnight as a security guard.

Yet, even a happy Gonzales conceded there’s still a lot of work to be done. His defensive shortcomings, noted by ESPN2 commentators before opening bell, were not as evident against Sierra. Yet, they were there long enough for the Mexican to knock him down.

In the early rounds, Gonzales displayed agile head movement and footwork in a vigilant effort to elude the power possessed by Sierra (24-4-1, 22 KOs), who could not win the NABF title because he failed to make weight Thursday.

On the official scale, Sierra, who was fined $2,400, was 175 pounds. Gonzales, who weighed in at 167 and said he was at 175 on Friday, guessed that Sierra was at 190 at opening bell. Overweight might have meant out-of-shape. In a tactical attempt to test that theory, Gonzales went to the body early and often with his powerful left hand. It worked. In the fourth, Gonzales scored a knock down with body shot that sent Sierra stumbling and then to his knees.

That’s when Gonzales’ well-known shortcomings appeared. In the fifth, a seemingly confident Gonzales seemed to forget what he had practiced in the gym. His head and feet stopped moving. Sierra immediately capitalized, landing a right that put Gonzales on his back and left his nose bloodied. That single shot serves as a warning for Gonzales, who has said he would like to fight Kelly Pavlik. Pavlik’s right is one of the best at any weight.

Sierra’s right possessed just enough power to remind Gonzales to stay vigilant. Over the last five rounds, Gonzales did, despite a head butt that left a deep cut near the corner of his left eye. After getting up in the fifth, he gathered his wits in the sixth and got back to the brutal business of body-to-head combinations that eventually — perhaps inevitably — wore out Sierra, who took the fight on late notice.

“I don’t have to call anybody out,’’ said the 26-year-old Gonzales, who says he’ll fight three-to-four more years in pursuit of major title. “Everybody saw what happened tonight. I’m just going to keep on working, keep on doing what I do.’’

But there’s a big difference now. He’ll do it without panicking.

Best of the undercard: If Emanuel Lucero’s parents ever warned him to be careful about what he asked for, he didn’t listen. Lucero asked and Yaundale Evans delivered, fourfold.

Lucero (26-7-1. 14 KOs) asked Evans not to run during pre-fight news conference. Evans (15-0, 11 KOs) didn’t, winning a sixth-round TKO and dropping Lucero four times — once in the first, again in the second and twice in the sixth – in a super-featherweight bout.

“I don’t think he knew I had that kind of power,’’ said Evans, a Cleveland prospect who is promoted by Roy Jones Jr.

Biggest punch: Canadian junior-middleweight Janks Trotter (5-0-1, 5 KOs) threw one that could have qualified him for the Home Run contest Monday in festivities leading up to the major-league All-Star Game Tuesday at Chase Field, a couple of blocks down the street for US Airways Center.

In winning a rematch of a technical draw, Trotter threw a right hand that launched Arturo Crespin of New Mexico into mid-air at 25 seconds of the second round. The bottom of Crespin’s shoes could be seen from a ringside seat. Crespin (6-2-1, 2 KOs) fell face first on to the canvas. He had to be helped up. It was several minutes before he could walk under his own power.

Some of the rest: Super-middleweight Jose Gonzalez, a former national amateur champion in Mexico , is struggling in his pro apprenticeship. He has yet to win, losing a decision to Kevin Riding-In (3-2) of Zuni, N.M., just weeks after getting a draw in his debut.

PHOENIX – Mexican super-middleweight Francisco Sierra can’t win the North American Boxing Federation’s 168-pound title against Jesus Gonzales of Phoenix in an ESPN2-televised bout Friday night, because he failed to make weight Thursday.

Sierra stepped on a digital scale twice, weighing 176.5 pounds the first time and 175 an hour later after a 30-minute run through Phoenix streets with the temperature at about 107 degrees.

Gonzales didn’t hesitate about going forward with the fight at U.S. Airways Center despite Sierra’s weight.
“I’ve fought heavier guys before,’’ said Gonzales, who was at 167 pounds. “We’re going to fight.’’

Gonzales will win the NABF title if he beats Sierra, who agreed to the fight on July 1 after the original opponent, Henry Buchanan, withdrew. It will remain vacant if Sierra wins.

Sierra agreed to pay a 20 percent fine, according to Gonzales promoter Darin Schmick of Fan Base. The 20 percent — $2,400 from Sierra’s $12,000 purse – will go to Gonzales (26-1, 14 KOs).

Talks continued late Thursday between Schmick and Sierra’s management about another weigh-in before Friday’s opening bell at 6 p.m. (PST). In the Gonzales corner, there was concern that Sierra (24-3-1, 22 KOs) might step into the ring as blown-up cruiserweight, 190 pounds, which could mean added leverage to some proven power. Sierra has 22 stoppages in 28 bouts.

“The extra weight also might mean he’s just out of shape,’’ Gonzales said. “I’m ready for whatever. The show must go on.’’

PHOENIX – Jesus Gonzales wears a Fifties’ style hat that is everywhere these days. Old-school is new-century chic. Everybody has a hat and a Twitter account. But Gonzales has been wearing the hat for as long as anybody in Phoenix has known him, which means his hometown still calls him Ernie.

“Yeah, I’m a lot more of an Ernie than a Jesus,’’ Gonzales said not long after he began his pro career in 2003 as Jesus instead of the Ernie who had promoters and managers buzzing about a powerful, promising amateur nearly a decade ago.

Then, Top Rank’s idea was to re-name Gonzales in an attempt to better sell him to Mexican and Mexican-American fans. But a stage name never changed the identity. Gonzales, now a super-middleweight, has always been the friendly, approachable personality you would expect an Ernie to be. It’s who he is. It’s who his 4-year-old son is. He didn’t name him Jesus, Jr. He’s Ernie III.

“If Ernie The Third was here right now, he’d be racing around this place, playing, saying hello to everybody and just having fun,’’ Gonzales (26-1, 14 KOs) said at US Airways Center where he faces Francisco Sierra (24-3-1, 22 KOs) Friday night in an ESPN2-televised bout.

If fathers are like their sons, Gonzales, now 26, still has lot of the kid in him. There have been tough days, moments inside and outside of the ring that he wishes he could re-do. Through it all, however, Gonzales is still that kid, just having some fun.

A lot of hyped prospects collect as many grudges as they do scars in careers that go awry. But there’s no chip on Gonzales’ shoulder. There’s only that hat. Let somebody else be angry. Gonzales moves forward with undiluted optimism rare in a cynical business, yet as undiminished as the power in a left-hand that accounts for his nickname, El Martillo — The Hammer.

The temptation is to say that Gonzales is just naïve. But there’s something refreshing about a fighter who hasn’t let the game’s unforgiving criticism drive him into bitterness. For a couple of years, he couldn’t get a fight because of management problems and old stories about interference from his father, another Ernie, who is no longer his trainer.

He wound up doing whatever he could to support his growing family. Another child is on the way. He loaded trucks for Target at midnight. He worked late-night shifts as a security guard. In tough times, he saw people stuck in the same place he was.

“I did whatever I could to make a little money,’’ he said.

He vowed that if he ever got back into a position where he could help, he would. Since he launched his Phoenix comeback with a victory in March, that’s what he’s been doing. He has worked with underprivileged school kids and spent time with cancer patients. The Phoenix City Council honored him for work in the community.

“I’ve been in a position where nobody would help me,’’ Gonzales said as he stood in front of a wall covered by posters full of cheers done in crayon by school kids. “I can’t give anybody money, cause I don’t have any money. But I can give them my support.’’

Gonzales, a people person, is back in the fight to become a people’s champ, which seemed to be his destiny when he signed with Top Rank. If anything, his renewed attempt at recapturing an Ernie’s promise will be at least as difficult as it was when the name changed and Jesus’ hopes unraveled.

He returns to the scene of his lone loss Friday at US Airways Center against an opponent, Sierra, who took the fight on short notice when Henry Buchanan of Maryland backed out late last week. In some ways, the place and the opponent bring Gonzales back to the beginning of the end. He was stopped in eight rounds by Jose Luis Zertuche in 2005.

It’s difficult to judge Sierra. The Mexican failed to make the contracted 168 pounds Thursday, meaning he can’t win the North American Boxing Federation’s vacant title. Only Gonzales can. Sierra was heavy in two trips to the scale – 176.5 pounds the first time and 175 an hour later. He reportedly had been training for a fight later in July in Mexico. He agreed to the Gonzales bout only last Friday. It’s hard to know if Sierra is ready.

Nonetheless, his record says he’s dangerous. He beat former champion Jose Luis Lopez and lost to Edison Miranda. Twenty-two knockouts in 28 fights add up to fight-stopping, career-ending power. If Sierra is ready, he looms as Gonzales’ toughest challenge since Zertuche.

What’s more, the ESPN2 cameras will be there. Gonzales fell off the national radar after the Zertuche loss. Against Sierra, he has a chance to re-introduce himself and perhaps get in line for a shot at even bigger prize.

Gonzales is known for being the last fighter to beat reigning super-middleweight Andre Ward. It happened in the amateur ranks. Gonzales hasn’t forgotten and – for a while at least – neither had Ward. A couple of years ago, Ward was quoted as saying he wanted to avenge the loss to Gonzales. Ward has bigger fish to fry these days. First, there is Carl Froch for the Super-Six Tournament title.

For Gonzales, perhaps there’s a better chance at a fight against Kelly Pavlik, who is trying to get back into the mix after a stint in rehab.

“Pavlik makes some sense,’’ said Gonzales promoter Darin Schmick, whose Fan Base card includes lightweight Emanuel Lucero (26-6-1, 14 KOs) against Roy Jones-promoted Yaundale Evans (14-0, 10 KOs) on a seven-fight card scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. (PST).

Gonzales sparred with Pavlik before Pavlik was beaten in 2010 by Sergio Martinez in a crushing defeat. According to Gonzales, he injured Pavlik’s rib cage.

“I spent three weeks with him in camp,’’ Gonzales says. “If we fought, he knows how it would go. I don’t think he’d take a chance against me. I think Pavlik wants big money in a world title fight. But we’ll see. Right now, I’ve got Sierra that’s more than enough to worry about. I’ll just keep on working, doing what I do.’’

Doing what an Ernie would do.

PHOENIX – A taller opponent and a potentially bigger risk confronts Phoenix super-middleweight Jesus Gonzales, who faces Francisco Sierra of Mexico instead of Henry Buchanan of Maryland Friday night at U.S. Airways Center in an ESPN2-televised fight for the North American Boxing Federation’s version of the 168-pound title.

“Buchanan was too cowardly to get on the plane, come on out here and fight,’’ said Gonzales (26-1, 14 KOs), a one-time Top Rank prospect who is fighting to re-start his career in a hometown comeback.

It’s not exactly clear whether Buchanan (20-2, 13 KOs) wanted more money or was out of condition or just didn’t want to fight the heavy-handed Gonzales. Darin Schmick of Fan Base Promotions suspects it was about money.

“Basically, he was trying to do an old-fashioned shakedown,’’ said Schmick, a Canadian who is trying to resurrect Phoenix boxing, a dormant market for the last few years.

Sierra (24-3, 22 KOs) took the fight on short notice, a shuffle that means the 5-foot-10 Gonzales will be the shorter opponent instead of the taller one. Sierra is 6-1; Buchanan is 5-8. It also could mean a more challenging night for Gonzales. Sierra, who beat former champion Jose Luis Lopez in 2010 and was knocked out by Edison Miranda in 2009, is considered slow, but he possesses fight-stopping power.

“He likes to bang,’’ Gonzales said Wednesday at a news conference for a seven-fight card scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. (PST). “He’s a little more dangerous, but that’s what I’ve been training for.’’

The bout, scheduled for 12 rounds, also represents Gonzales’ return to the only place he ever lost as a pro. He was stopped in eight rounds by Jose Luis Zertuche on a 2005 card at U.S. Airways Center, the NBA home for the Phoenix Suns. Gonzales’ career never recovered from that lone defeat.

“I’ve got to make up for what happened the last time I was here,’’ said Gonzales, who was at about 170 pounds about 24 hours before the official weigh-in Thursday at 4 p.m. (PST), also at U.S. Airways Center.

For years, Wladimir Klitschko has been the solitary chess master against a field full of guys who should be playing checkers. He’s been winning with a stoic efficiency that earns polite applause, yet without any of the passion that captures the public imagination.

Maybe, David Haye, a joker on Klitschko’s familiar board of squares, can change that Saturday on HBO at Imtech Arena in Hamburg, Germany. There’s a theory that Haye has been winning the psychological rounds, the fight before the fight. It’s as if he hired Bernard Hopkins to be a consultant.

Haye’s insults, choreographed to be as outrageous as possible, have ringside psychologists reading the body language and interpreting the words for signs of anger in Klitschko (55-3, 49 KOs). An angry Klitschko might result in mistakes that could turn him into a beatable Klitschko, whose many advantages include a powerful jab, size and friendly German fans.

Haye’s tactical gamesmanship is a reasonable, perhaps necessary, weapon in a plan to lure Klitschko away from strengths and into an exchange designed to expose a brittle chin to quick hands that could score a dramatic upset. Still, it’s hard to tell whether Klitschko’s anger is just some gamesmanship of his own. Nobody has ever questioned Dr. Klitschko’s smarts.

Klitschko, who has a PhD in philosophy and sports science, has to have a pretty good read on what Haye (25-1, 23 KOs) is trying to do. It ain’t academic. It’s been all street, including a cartoonist’s rendering of Wladimir and brother Vitali’s severed heads bleeding across a T-shirt. Haye has even gone Hitler on Klitschko. He tweeted a link to Downfall, a film about Hitler’s final days. Maybe, Haye’s parade to the ring will include a few goose-steps. There’s nothing he won’t do to offend, offend and offend again.

Trouble is, Haye probably has turned Germany into a bigger fan of Klitschko than he already is. I’m not sure Klitschko will ever express the kind of emotion that becomes a bond between some fighters and their countrymen in other corners of the world. The Filipinos identify with Manny Pacquiao. Mexicans looked at Julio Cesar Chavez and saw themselves. Klitschko, a Ukrainian, looks like the stoic face of an Eastern European edifice. He is as hard to know as he is to appreciate during the weakest era in the heavyweight division.

For the last several years, we’ve watched Klitschko to applaud his skill. But Haye, as unlikely a business partner as there has ever been, has created an opportunity for him to become somebody he has never been.
“If you keep winning, something is going to come up,’’ Klitschko trainer Emanuel Steward said nearly a year ago when asked what or who will propel the heavyweight champion into a legacy of his own.

Then, Steward said it would be Haye, who has willingly and perhaps unwittingly transformed himself into a bad guy. For Klitschko, it means chance to be cheered like a hero instead of applauded like an artist. It means a place in heavyweight history.

NOTES, QUOTES
· Floyd Mayweather Jr. said this week in New York that he never accused Pacquiao of using performance-enhancers. “I’ve never said that Manny Pacquiao was taking steroids, I never said he was taking enhancement drugs,” Mayweather said during a news conference for his Sept. 17 fight with Victor Ortiz. Huh? So what was Mayweather trying to say last September in his infamous YouTube rant? That’s when he said: “I’m gonna fight the Pacman when he’s off the power pellets.” What he meant by power and/or pellets figures to be a question he’d have to answer under oath if he shows up for a deposition in the defamation suit filed against him by Pacquiao. So far, he hasn’t. A district court judge this week denied Mayweather’s appeal for an order to prevent a court-ordered deposition.

· Memo to the International Boxing Hall of Fame: Put broadcaster Nick Charles on the next ballot for induction. Charles, who died June 25 after a long battle with cancer, earned a spot alongside journalists already in the Hall. It’s been a tough few weeks for boxing. In addition to Genaro Hernandez and Charles, the game lost former Hopkins trainer Bouie Fisher and former junior-welterweight champ Billy Costello. Fisher was 83; Costello 55.

· A sign of a boxing resurrection in Phoenix will include television cameras on July 8 for super-middleweight Jesus Gonzales (26-1, 14 KOs) against Henry Buchanan (20-2, 13 KOs) in a ring near the center of the floor at the Suns home, US Airways Center. ESPN2 will be there.

· And a sure sign you’re getting old: Happy Birthday, Mike Tyson. He turned 45 Thursday.