GUEST EDITORIAL

by Gordoom@aol.com

It's 1996 & already I'm getting sick of the bellyaching. The boxing community's major whine is "If only there was a federally regulated commission, all the bad illing & chilling in boxing would go away." Bullshit!... Has anybody checked out how well, the rabidly, budget cutting posse of wolverines, up on the hill are doing in DC?

I can only imagine how Newt & his tribe of compassion less, rookie piranhas regard an outlaw venture like boxing ... Boxing promoters such as Bob Arum, the Duvas & most especially, the charismatic, Don King circumvent the Federal Government time & again & basically tell everybody to kiss their ass if they don't like it ...

But, it be boxing, were talking, not that painfully comedic soap opera of fools on the Hill... The point that the Ol' Spit Bucket is circuitously trying to make is: Big Bro' aint ever gonna do shinola for boxing - unless, it smells big bucks it can scavenge & with guardians of the gate like King & Co ... it aint freakin' likely.

So what are the options? There is really only one. Public pressure applied by cyber-creeps like us. The computer is a beautiful thang ... Thru the sheer volume of e-mail that us boxing die hards could generate to the networks, boxing magazines, local sports sections & boxing commissions, we could force a change in the way the game is so cavalierly played by the powers that be.

Now don't get the idea that the Ol' Spit Bucket is some kinda commie cyber-revolutionary ... nothing, could be further from the truth. I believe that there is no fundamentally nobler sport than boxing. I also believe there is no sport more fundamentally corrupt than boxing & throughout it's history, it's always been so. Why should anything change at this late date?... Because we are heading for a new age & a new century & all things, must eventually change ... even boxing.

It is now apparent that the best way to implement significant changes is through Cyberspace. And we are here to help. Indeed, in just a few months this Newsletter has gathered correspondents & readers from all over the globe. Over the next few months, we will create a totally interactive zone for boxing enthusiasts. A forum for the aficionados as well as the casual fan to interact, gather information & hell, just have fun ... but the underlying raison de etre is to bring about a fundamental change in the way the sport of boxing is conducted & presented to the public.

It's time to begin revising how this sport is conducted & presented & the only way to do that is by the power of the almighty dollar & that power can only be brought to bear by the buying public & that public needs a highly irreverent voice ... that's us. So come visit -- The Cyber-Boxing Zone.

---

SHUN'S REPORT

by Shun Matsuoka (a42591@cfi.waseda.ac.jp)

YURI ARBACHAKOV W 12 RAUL JUAREZ,WBC FLYWEIGHT TITLE

On February 2, a technically superior Yuri Arbachakov retained his WBC flyweight title via unanimous decision over Raul Juarez. It was his 8th defense. Arbachakov, 29, started slowly, then dropped Juarez, 21, with a right to the head in the 3rd.

The pace quickened in the 5th, during which Juarez rebounded to capture the 5th and 6th, scoring with rights and left hooks. Arbachakov reestablished control in the 7th, then dropped Juarez with a left uppercut to the body in the 8th. From the 8th to the finish, it was one-way traffic, with Arbachakov dictating terms to the last bell. In the 10th, Arbachakov dropped Juarez with a left hook to the head.

The scoring was unanimous with 117-110, 114-112, 117-111, all in favor of Arbachakov. Arbachakov improved to 22-0(15). Juarez dropped to 19-2(11).

---

Pugil!

by Mike DeLisa (delisa@aol.com)

February was Black History month and March 8th was the 25th anniversary of The Fight, so I guess that it is no accident that in recent days I have been recalling some of my childhood heroes -- Joe Frazier, Dr. King, and John Henry. Frazier needs no introduction to the readers of this newsletter, nor, I hope, does Martin Luther King. But it was a heavyweight battle of recent days -- Gary Kasparov vs. IBM Blue -- that caused me to recognize the aspect of boxing that links John Henry to boxing to a computer to Kennedy McKinney to John Woo. They are all linked by that much-maligned combination of nobility, desire, and intellect -- boxing.

When I was a boy -- in that Pleistocene era before buck-ninety- nine videotapes -- I would look forward to the day when the George Pal Puppetoon of John Henry versus the Inky-Poo would be shown on TV. For the uninitiated, Pupettoons were Gumby-like animated morality plays. John Henry took up the yoke of defending man against machine, in his case the steam drill. John agrees to race the engine -- who can drive railroad spikes more quickly. Ultimately, John wins, but it was not so much his victory that impressed me as a six-year-old, it was the first time I realized that there could be satisfaction (and glory) in merely trying your best win or lose.

Later, Joe Frazier came to embody for me the spirit of John Henry. For what was Joe besides a determined, honorable and inspirational sports figure. Indeed, Frazier was more than that because he was a real man -- flesh and blood -- while Henry was myth. When Joe Frazier fought you saw an honest, truthful, incredibly willful effort by a man who may not have been as big as the person he was fighting but whose desire and dedication certainly were second to none. And you just had the feeling that if Frazier were to lose -- which for a good time did not seem likely, he would be able to leave the ring with his head held high, the residue of his attempt to overcome a stronger man by dint of his will.

It is no surprise to me therefore that chess matches and boxing matches are often described in similar ways. Journalists refer to boxing matches devolving into chess matches; and Kasparov is described as engaging in a heavyweight battle when he takes on a computer whose muscle power is, it seems, clearly superior.

The metaphor crops up in current popular culture (sorry chess fans, you are in a ghetto, along with boxers). John Woo uses a pair of boxing matches as bookends to the plot of his recent hit film with John Travolta, Broken Arrow. At he start of the film, a puny Christian Slater is pummeled by the egoistic Travolta -- not just physically, which could be expected considering their relative size, but intellectually as well. In short, how low is Slater that he must be lectured by Barbarino? Nevertheless, it is Slater's persistence, will, and intellect that allows him to pursue Travolta throughout the film and to prevail.

But, in real life, we don't always prevail, no matter how hard we try. Yet, as the McKinney-Barrera fight proved once again, the struggle itself to scale the height can be its own reward. As the readers of this Newsletter certainly know, McKinney was stopped at 2:05 of the last round of his attempt to win the WBO Junior Featherweight crown from Marco Antonio Barrera. Barrera acted the steam engine to McKinney's John Henry and ultimately drilled him. But McKinney's effort was a stirring piece of drama and art. City for Conquest without the city or the conquest. Sure McKinney was paid for his effort. I suspect though that the fight despite his loss will yield long lasting rewards in the form of respect and admiration and, if he wants it, a rematch.

How many of us, even when well-paid, can say we gave it our best effort; that we laid open our hearts at the risk of loss and humiliation simply because we desired not to be bested? And I ask, as we move toward the millennium, who can we look to teach us the way to do so. The answer for me lies with my heroes -- John Henry, Joe Frazier, and Kennedy McKinney

---

NO STIFFS, ANDS OR BUTTS: PUTTING OUR HEADS TOGETHER TO CURE BOXING'S EXCEDRIN HEADACHE #1

by Dave G(DscribeDC@aol.com)

Once upon a time, being "carried off on your shield," meant that a warrior had given his all in defeat. Nowadays, in the boxing game, it could also be a prescription for a world title. Sure, world titles have changed hands on fouls before (Marcel Thil, Max Schmeling), but never before has the sport seen so many horizontal heroes carried out of the ring clad in a championship belt. It's a strange, vexing and undeniably sensitive situation that has set off a slow-boiling debate within the boxing community.

What do we do when a fighter, through headbutt or foul, is rendered unable to complete a bout? Whether it's an illegal blow, a headbutt or some other foul that causes the damage, all commissions and rating organizations provide rules governing the possibility. Unfortunately, in a competitive situation, the application of these rules often leads to curious and, in some opinions, inequitable, results. What if a fighter who is butted and feels the tide turning against him, simply stays down and opts not to finish a fight? Is he entitled to a championship? In a number of recent fights (Norris-Santana I and II, Chavez-Randall II, Coggi-Randall II), situations arose which tested the application of foul and headbutt rules, and led to results considered by many to be unsatisfying, if not downright unfair.

The most common form of the "headbutt rule" provides that in the event an accidental butt occurs after three rounds have been completed, the fight is halted and the judges' scorecards are read to determine the winner. Some governing organizations fix the length of time before the cards are consulted at six rounds. If the butt occurs prior to the conclusion of the appointed number of rounds, the fight is deemed a "technical draw."

The most bizarre illustration of the rule's potential for inequity came during the rematch between Juan Martin Coggi and Frankie Randall for the World Boxing Association junior welterweight title. In the fifth round, Randall's and Coggi's heads collided sharply. Randall remained erect and fighting, but Coggi, apparently disoriented, walked back to his corner, where he stood, then fell into a crouch, then finally, collapsed to the canvas. Complaining of dizziness, he claimed to be unable to continue the contest. Although Randall had begun to take the play away from Coggi in the fourth round, and to land the more telling blows, the fight went to the cards and was awarded, along with the title, to the fast-starting Coggi. Last year, Randall, who is rapidly becoming to title fights what Jim Kelly is to Super Bowls, lost a disturbingly similar decision to Julio Cesar Chavez, who suffered a bloody headbutt, but (with the help of a point deduction against Randall) prevailed on the cards.

No one can ever really know whether the force of the butt truly incapacitated Coggi or whether he exaggerated the impact of the collision to preserve his narrow and eroding margin of victory. After the bout, some indignant fans (including this writer) hinted that Coggi's swoon may have owed less to Randall's noggin than to pure calculation. Coggi, it was pointed out, was an aging fighter, and knew his stamina was limited. The butt left no blood or swelling visible to the television cameras. Randall appeared unfazed and ready to continue after the impact. And Coggi, prior to hitting the canvas, had taken a number of seemingly normal, upright steps toward the corner, where he stood for a few seconds prior to sinking to a sitting position. (In all fairness to Coggi, the effects of head injuries are in no way fully discernible by laymen watching at ringside or on television. Coggi was diagnosed after the bout by attending physicians as having suffered a concussion, and was released from the hospital the next day in "good condition.")

It goes without saying that the fighter's safety comes first in all cases, and every doubt (from a medical standpoint) must be resolved in the athlete's favor. No fighter who feels unfit to continue should be compelled to complete a bout. But Randall-Coggi II left a sour taste in the mouths of some and prompted cries of outright fraud from the Randall camp. The allegation (admittedly, unproven and unsubstantiated) was raised that a fighter had used the butt rule to steal a title.

Even if Coggi's injuries were as grave as the fighter asserted, the public was forced to witness another new champ "celebrating" his title victory from a stretcher. And it was not the first time that accusations of fraud and cheating had been raised in this or a similar context. In the 1994 battle between heavily-favored Terry Norris and journeyman Luis Santana, Santana went down from Norris rabbit punches (illegal blows) and could not (or, as some skeptics hinted, would not) regain his feet and finish the bout. Given Norris' foul, the referee opted to award Norris' title to Santana, even though some felt that Santana may have overplayed the effects of the illegal punches as a tactical ruse. (Santana did little to reassure his critics in a 1995 rematch, when he responded to Norris' flagrantly after-the-bell cross by crumbling to the canvas and, again, failing to rise.)

Even if all of these controversial injuries were bona fide, the sport still has a definite image problem. When title fights are decided on technical, non-competitive, grounds, the perception of impropriety virtually always hovers over the proceedings. In a sport with boxing's already-massive public relations headaches, the innuendo of cheating and chicanery is one that the game can ill afford.

Do the headbutt and foul rules really work? Can they be rewritten to preserve a sense of intrinsic equity and justice while also ensuring that titles are fairly and competitively contested? If so, how is this best accomplished?

When a foul is intentional and flagrant, there can be no argument. If only for punitive effect, a title must be awarded to the fouled fighter. Even if Santana had played possum in his second bout with Norris, given Norris' flagrant rules transgression, the title had to go to Santana, lest illegal tactics be encouraged. But what about when a butt or other similar foul is ruled unintentional?

My proposal for reforming this area of the sport is twofold:

1. Mandatory yearly catscans for all fighters: this procedure will help commissions track which boxers are suffering advancing cranial injuries. Hopefully, this step can help prevent medical emergencies by keeping frail fighters with incipient brain injuries from entering the ring at all.

2. Revision of headbutt rules: the principle is simple. No title fight should be decided in any manner other than a KO, TKO or decision. For non-title tilts, the cut-off for going to the scorecards should be extended to six or more completed rounds. Three rounds is simply not a sufficient amount of time for the ebb and flow of a contest to take shape. In title fights ended prematurely by unintentional butts or similar circumstances, the result would be an automatic technical draw. The title would be vacated, with the contestants automatically becoming the sanctioning body's mandatory #1 and #2 contenders. A rematch would be automatically mandated by rule.

What are the merits of this approach? There would be no "technical" champions crowned. Fighters would win their titles by besting an opponent in boxing skill, or not at all. A champion would have less incentive to butt a dominating challenger in a manner disguised as accidental, because I) he could not so retain his title, and ii) a butt ruled intentional would cost him the crown. A wilting champion who disguised an intentional butt as an accident might spare himself a defeat and live to fight another day, but he could not continue as champion. Challengers sensing a shift in momentum would have no incentive to force a fight to the cards by overplaying the effects of an accidental butt, since no title would be at stake in such an event. By vacating the title, the sanctioning body would preserve the rights of the fighters to contest the title in the future while ensuring that both camps were placed on equal footing for negotiating purposes, with proper motivation to agree to terms on a prompt rematch.

Given the fact that the headbutt that caused the stoppage was an accident, it stands to reason that neither side should be unduly penalized or rewarded for it. Removing the need to crown an immediate titlist would eliminate the injustices that arise from these disputed decisions. The rule would also function to get both contestants back into the ring as quickly as possible in order to ensure that the championship be fully and fairly contested at the earliest possible time. There would be no headbutt heroes, concussion kings, whiplash winners, or rabbit-punch rulers. Only those who fought to the finish and had their hands raised the old fashioned way could call themselves the kings of the hill.

The significance of today's title belts has already been immeasurably diminished by the sheer proliferation of ratings bodies and weight classes, political ratings maneuvering, and selective matchmaking. The alphabet soapers can ill afford to have their titles further devalued by more "technical" title changes.

I sum it up thusly: no scrap, no strap. It's hard to argue when it's put so simply.

---

GORDOOM'S SPIT-BUCKET

by gordoom@aol.com

[Editor's Note: Have any of you read Norman Mailer's Harlot's Ghost. Well, that is where I learned all I ever want to know about spooktalk. And I think you all should know that Gordoom's ceaseless complaints about my so-called activities smack of counter-espionage. Is Gordoom really in Cuba? Was he ever? Why is it that this Newsletter vanished from cyberspace at the very same time that a significant international incident sparked by Cuba dominated the news? Is Gordoom the tough-talking macho dude he professes to me or is he a committee of political flacks experimenting with various modes of computer hacking? Why is it now that I get the following unenycrypted message? I await your thoughts.]

DATELINE: HAVANA, CUBA:

Life has a way of turnin' yr' shit up side down ... As of the last post, the Ol' Spit Bucket, thought his finely shaped butt, was finally grass compost. Here I was, on a barely floating, rusty old bucket ( no relation) ready to make cozy with Neptune & other slithering denizens of the deep ... the Bucket's outlook, was looking way grim ... I'd barely transmitted my last column to DeLisa, when a primeval, shuddering, metallic groan, reverberated thru the U.S.S Planned Obsolecense , & the sea began torrentially rushing in, to end the Bucket's, fragile hold, on this mortal coil ...

I came back, to a semblance of consciousness, with the ship's 1st mate, the some kinda Native American, who claimed his name was Queer Trains, vaporizing me, with high octane, alcoholic, reality numbing breath ... which jarred me back to the fuming hear & now ... His way up tight face, filled my field of vision, as Trains, in a screaming whisper, told me to completely chill ... Right above us, on the dunes, we were soggily huddling under, a squad of Cuban Militia, was avidly searching for any remains of the unlamented U.S.S. Planned Obsolecense ...

The storm was still careening on to our pitiful beachhead & luckily the raging, slanted by the wind, downpour, covered any noises we might have been making & Fidel's goon squad passed us by. Queer Trains grinned at me, " Y' wanna drink, man?" he said, pulling out a liter of tequila from the backpack he had on. " What was that name again?" I said, reaching with both of my shaky hands, for the bottle ...

Two days later, the Ol' Spit Bucket was again planting his butt in a hammock ... Only this time, I wasn't adjacent to a golf course; this time, I was in the garden of the Cuban Minister Of Sports' mansion, on the outskirts of Havana. Say wha??? I can hear the many noises of astonishment & the breeze from the shaking heads reading this cyber - rag ... Let me tell you, it wasn't easy. But then, none of this ordeal, that the Evil Excoriator, DeLisa, set in motion to plague me has exactly been a vacation. Oh sure, 2 weeks on a golf course sounds relaxing, but most of that time I was on the lam, which doesn't exactly put you in a serene state of mind. So I'm gonna milk this sitch for all it's worth.

Havana ... the name conjures up so many conflicting images ... She's a sexy, hot gloaming, bitch angel. & She always has been ... ever since that misguided, obsessive greed visionary; Chris Columbus, the very first Euro-trash scam artist, to ever land on the pristine shores of the Americas ... Yeah, well ... I digress deliriously, once again ... The point is, until Fidel & his Montanistas, stomped the shit outta all the fun back in '59; Havana was the party pearl of the Cara Bean. Just a hop skip jump from Miami, it offered forbidden fruits that Vegas can only caricature ... these days, Havana's, an old embittered sun burnt crone with nothing left but memory's ... & yet, here the Bucket reposes inna hammock in some muckety mucks supercilious domicile, built on the battered backs of the workers of the Commie Paradise ... & being the man of the peeps & the American that I am, I'm feeling what the talk shows call, culpability challenged ... I wanna go back home, only home, is a place that the Feds, thru DeLisa's devious machinations managed to obliterate ...

REQUIEM FOR A HEAVYWEIGHT

The shock wave that went thru the sporting world after Tommy Morrison's revelation regarding testing positive for the HIV virus was palpable. It was also a hypocritical crisis of conscience for many athletes. There's been a lot of head shaking & phony pandering to the joys of monogamy & safe sex. Truth be known, a large number of athletes lead lifestyles exactly like what caused Morrison's downfall ... & will continue to do so, to the deep regret of a few ... When you are a young stud; even more so, when you are a world acclaimed athlete, rock star, movie or TV icon ... the temptations of the flesh are overwhelming & a whole helluva lotta fun - that's why they indulge ...

The Ol' Spit Bucket, has never been one of the aforementioned. However, having grown up in San Francisco in the 60's, & made the bulk of my living as a nightclub owner, concert promoter & manager & booking agent for numerous national recording acts, I've gotten a real good handle on the fringe benefits ... & they are considerable ... but after a while, reality sets in ... or you self destruct. Unfortunately for Tommy, by the time he had learned the lesson, it was already too late ...

Life's an unforgiving bitch. If you don't know that by now, you're living in an immaculately foolish paradise. Nobody I know, lives there. Tommy Morrison knows that. Boy howdy ... although it's incredibly easy for all of us, as scientists of the squared circle, to shrug knowledgeably & say we could see it coming, it's not quite, that easy ... the evil, shit rain mojo that has come down on Tommy Morrison is jez another freakin' sign of these diseased times ...

None of us can have it our way, all the time ... that's why we watch the chosen few battle it out on our TV screens ... Every one of our lives is filled with desperately unfulfilled desires; that's why on the weekends we fill ourselves with visions of Homeric sports figures that fulfill & devastate our own seemingly insignificant dreams... ... It's easier to rail at our failed heroes, than it is on our own fallible selves ... Johnny jivin' across the floor, he always scored ... once too many times ...

All our youthful fantasies eventually give way to the eventual realities of our maturity ... but the dues that Tommy Morrison will have to pay are brutal, & unforgiving. As Tommy said, during his poignant press conference, following the unrevokingly final blood test, " I thought I was bullet proof ..." Yeah, well ... what can you say? At one time

or another we've all felt that way ... but we expect our sports heroes to ride the river another way ... like they do on the playing fields; but real life, is the great equalizer killing floor ... & none of us has a place were we can hide from eventually crossing the great divide ...

There's different kinds of death ... some kid, getting gunned down in East LA ... sends no shock waves; a relative of yours, strikes you hard when they fade off into the night ... Our heroes, in the arenas that replace our own inadequacies & despairs are supposed to be somehow way different ...we view them with a pathetic innocence, verging on delusional ... & yet, we are somehow shocked when one of our icon's suffers the indignities of real life.

No matter how you cut it, Tommy, not to mention Magic's prognosis, aint looking like a happy shiny ending ... but Tommy has stepped up to the plate & proclaimed himself as being in a campaign, under Magic Johnson's guidance, to educate today's youth about the perilous adversities of casual ( but so immediately gratifying ) sex ... as opposed to a life of totally uncool abstinence ... Yeah, well ... good luck fellas. As to paraphrase Morrison in his press conference, it's different than Magic ... I'm white ..." & unfortunately in America, in the 90's, because of his pigmentation, he's right. There is no doubt that Tommy generates way more media attention, than say, another afro-american heavyweight contender ...

Tommy Morrison was a press agents dream. A young, good looking golden boy out of Oklahoma ... said to be the goddamn Duke's h'self's, John Wayne, great grand nephew or something ... & he co-starred with Mr. Gonad, Sylvester Stallone, in the worn out franchise known as ROCKY V. All this, & he could fight more than a little bit. As the years went by, Tommy racked up an impressive record against a bunch of no hopers & once-had-beens. His first true, trial by fire was his brutal bout with Ray Mercer back in '91. Despite suffering one of the most devastating knock out's the Bucket has ever seen ... Tommy recovered from a normally career ending blowout to come back on the scene like a recurring Lazarus from minor calamities like Michael Bentt (ko by 1) ... One thang you had to give Tommy, he was a fucking warrior. Win or lose, he never backed off from an encounter in the pit.

The Duke never backed off from anybody. That's what got him in trouble with some of his opponents & at least one woman. I don't write this as criticism or any kinda moralizing on Tommy Morrisons' lifestyle. I can cast no stones ... my glass house will shatter, we've all been there at one time or another ... Tommy was just shit outta luck ...

Ever since the heavyweight championship started sharding off into splinters after Leon Spinks / Muhammad Ali II - back in 78, the boxing world has been in a state of anarchic, semi-organized chaos ... Larry Holmes, quite & very convinced the world thru out most of the 80's that he was the Man. Then there was Tyson ... & then he was gone & now he's outta the house of many slammers ... Holyfield was the only one left that could truly carry the torch with dignity. Even though Evander was the man who beat the man , the pitiable, yet ... self - renumerative Buster Douglas ... no matter how much he spilled his guts on the canvass, America wouldn't cut him any slack, he was to small, no real power, he fought dinosaurs. So what, he fought everybody put in front of him ... it aint his fault the comp wasn't stellar, just like it wasn't Marciano's fault that he fought a gallery of old stepping stones in his quest for immortality ... or that the eternally cursed Sonny Liston would always be a bridge between the old school thuggish way of doin' biz & Ali's modern TV Quotient way of approaching the sports machine .... Ce la vie that's the way the Mercede's bends ... life in the 90's.

Tommy was the first viable white heavyweight since Jerry Quarry in the 60's & early 70's. (While Tommy was a seriously flawed fighter in regards to his stamina & chin; he rose to the occasion often enough to make himself a serious contender in today's heavyweight championship stakes. Hard losses to Ray Mercer, Michael Bentt & Lennox Lewis; were offset by gutty performances against Joe Hipp, Carl Williams & Razor Ruddock. His fight with Big George was strategically masterful.

At his best, Tommy Morrison, was a good boxer with excellent movement for a heavyweight. He also possessed a hard, range finding jab & an absolutely killer left hook. But none of that matters anymore ...

In the aftermath of Tommy Morrison's personal Armageddon, his boxing career is superfluous ... all that matters is the life he has left & how he decides to deal with it. At this point I have a lot of admiration for his up front & courageous stance. Tommy may never have been heavyweight champion of the world ... but he has displayed the heart of a champion in dealing with the brutal finality of the disease he has contracted.

In the meantime, Tommy has a clear & inarguable message for all the young, would be Lothario's of the 90's ... The 60's & 70's were a long time ago. When it comes to sex ... you missed the party. It ended a long time ago ...

---

DAVE'S TOP 10 List

by David "Honeyboy" Iamale

Top 10 Boxers Who Should Retire:

1. George Foreman
2. Larry Holmes
3. Tommy Hearns
4. Julian Jackson
5. Tony Tubbs
6. Bobby Czyz
7. Charles Williams
8. Aaron Davis
9. Frans Botha
10. Evander Holyfield
11. Michael Moorer

(1)Regardless of outcome of Moorer fight big George should finally say enough is enough; (2) Foreman match-up is only interesting fight out there for Larry and there's about as much chance of that happening as Don King getting voted man of the year; (3) I like this guy too much to see him take a beating in the ring. His interviews are painful to watch; (4) Still has power, but no chin; (5) Seems he'd rather go to the crack-house than the gym; (6) Washed up at any weight; (7) See Merqui Sosa fights I and II; (8) See #3 Tommy Hearns; (9) Painful to watch "fight", if he needs steroids to be this bad, I'd hate to see him without them; (10a) If this guy is healthy I'm #1 contender to WBC Heavyweight title!; (10b) Looks about as excited about boxing, as I am about ballet! This is the first left-handed heavyweight champ? Pee-U! Just barely missing inclusion Hector "The Holder" Camacho. Please just go away!

Top 10 Fights I'd Like To See In 1996:

1. Chavez vs. De La Hoya
2. Chavez vs. Randell III
3. Mike Tyson vs. Riddick Bowe
4. Bowe vs. Lewis
5. Roy Jones vs. Nigel Benn
6. Bruce Seldon vs. Tim Witherspoon
7. Frank Bruno vs. Herbie Hyde
8. Felix Trinidad vs. Ike Quartey
9. "Yori-Boy" Campas vs. Whitiker
10. Chavez vs. Whitiker II

(1) I just want to see if Julio can whip himself into shape for one last hurrah; (2) Frankie deserves a break, this guy's got the worst luck I've ever seen! (3) The battle of the Bronx!! (I wouldn't bet my lunch money on this one); (4) Finally?! Look for Lennox to KO Bowe by round 6, provided he keeps Manny Steward as trainer; (5) Jones would probably kick his ass, but that's what I though Gerald McClellan would do; (6) Terrible Tim deserves a title-shot for more than a $5.00 purse. Come on D.K. -- forgive and forget?; (7) Call it a morbid curiosity, I truthfully would not be all that surprised if Bruno KO's Tyson! (Remember, you heard it here first); (8) Hey, I like Ike! Trinidad's real good but his chin is suspect to say the least. This one could be a real brawl!; (9) Whittiker might be too slick for Ramon, but one punch could turn this one around; (10) I think Chavez is pissed about this one, Ditto "Pea".

Top 10 Fighters To Keep An Eye On In 1996:

1. Naseem Hamed
2. Ike Quartey
3. Frankie Randall
4. Dana Rosenblatt
5. Lennox Lewis
6. Nate Miller
7. Montell Griffin
8. Lamar Murphy
9. Ancee Gedeon
10. Courage Tshabalala
11. Andrew "War" Council

(1) This guy is the goods. Look for him to clear out feather weight division, if any of the three champs are foolish enough to fight him; (2) If Pernell signs to fight this guy, he's stupider than his nick-name; (3) After his last bout with Coggi and the rumors about his hitting the sauce, this poor S.O.B. could go either way. If Chavez refuses to give him a re-match and Coggi hides out in Argentina look for Frankie to fade into oblivion; (4) Could be the Benny Leonard of the 90's or just a flash in the pan. 1996 should be the year we find out how good this kid is; (5) If Bowe fight does finally come about, a KO victory secures a top spot in the heavies for this British Bomber; (6) Just how good is "Mr. Miller"? I don't see Orlin Norris name in any list of Cruisers anymore. Must secure another big win to make me a believer; (7) Hey, he kicked James Toney's ass! If he wins proposed bout with Fabrice Tiozzo, he's for real; (8) I thoroughly enjoyed watching him pummel Gonzalez. Don't hold your breath for a re-match; (9) This guy's "living on the streets" story is like some kind of Grade B Hollywood boxing movie. I wish him the best of luck; (10a) The way HBO talks about this guy you'd think he actually beat someone already. So where is he already?; (10b) Makes list just for retiring Buddy McGirt.

Top 10 Most Under-Rated Fighters

1. Terry Norris
2. Chibuita Gonzalez
3. Yori Boy Campas
4. James Toney
5. Henry Maske
6. Bruce Seldon
7. Lennox Lewis
8. Jorge Castro
9. Ricardo Lopez
10. Evander Holyfield

(1) Losing to Luis Santana and a washed-up Simon Brown sure don't help your pound-for-pound standing. Look for terrible Terry to rebound in '96; (2) Known as just a banger, Gonzalez possesses good, solid boxing abilities. Needs a challenge to stay on top of his game; (3) His record speaks for itself. Now that he's been to the show, look for an improved performance if anyone is foolish enough to give him a title-shot; (4) Caused his own problems with pathetic performance against Jones and has looked very unfocused in recent bouts. But at new higher weight has potential. Maybe married life will settle him down?; (5) If he'd get a plane ticket out of Germany maybe American public would embrace this guy? He's definitely a better fighter than Axel Schultz; (6) Give this guy a break, already! He's the Rodney Dangerfield of the heavies. Needs big win to get some respect; (7) Can you tell, I like this guy? Again, better be the one boxer smart enough to hang on to Manny Steward (no matter how much money he wants.); (8) His come-from-behind victory over John David Jackson was one of the best turn-arounds I've seen in the last ten years -- 98-4-2 not too shabby!; (9) Michael Carbajal, Hello -- are you out there? Don, please put these two guys together!; (10) Never appreciated in victory, only defeat. Best cruiser ever.

Top 10 Most Over-Rated Fighters

1. Bronco McKart
2. Kostya Tszyu
3. Marco Antonio Barrera
4. Miquel Angel Gonzalez
5. Bernard Hopkins
6. Al Cole
7. Johnny Tapia
8. Riddick Bowe
9. Mike Tyson
10. Wayne McCollough

(1) This guy just does nothing for me. I thought "Superman" Davis kicked his ass, and he's a one-eyed fighter, 10 years past his prime; (2) Who's this guy ever beat"? Jake Rodriguez, gimme a break!; (3) He's no Chavez. Needs big win to impress me. So, go be a lawyer already -- If I hear that story one more time, I'll puke; (4) See Lamar Murphy; (5) Seems to have some talent, but doesn't fight very often. I don't think Butch Lewis has had his hands so full since Leon Spinks; (6) This guy stinks at any weight! Only good point, can take a punch. Cole vs. Grant III anyone? I didn't think so; (7) I really like Johnny but for defense he's got one hell of an offense. Lot's of guts and heart, not enough talent. Got more than one lucky decision in '95; (8) Looks good against the Larry Donald's. But the expression on his face when Commander 'Vander deposited him on his can said a lot. He's lucky Holy appeared to be having a freakin' stroke in the ring or he'd just be a heavy weight footnote by now. Plus, Eddy Futch can't live forever, God bless him!; (9) Looked like shit against Buster Mathis, for cryin' out loud. Win over Bruno is so-so in by book; (10) See #7 J. Tapia. Like the guy -- no defense. He's no Barry McGuigen.

Top 10 "Opponents" For Mike Tyson

(10) George Foreman

(9) Lou Savarese

(8) Oliver McCall

(7) Larry Holmes

(6) Scott Ledeux

(5) Pete McNeeley

(4) Larry Merchant

(3) O.J. Simpson

(2) Don King

(1) Desiree Washington

(10) Mike should wait at least five more years, just to be safe; (9) Ha, ha, ha, ha, hee, hee, hee -- wait, wait -- ha, ha, hee -- oh, forget it!; (8) Ok, so he lost to Bruno, refused to take post fight drug test, and cries on his way to ring. Sounds about right?; (7) Could be an interest -- whoops, I forgot I already saw this ten year ago. Oh, what the hell, give Larry another shot, already -- maybe he'll stop crying about all the money Foreman's making, but I doubt it; (6) I love it! Con vs. Con. Live from Sing-Sing. Loser goes back to the can. Howard Cosell is probably rolling over in his grave. Sorry Howie, just kidding!; (5) Hey, who knows what would've happened if Vinney didn't step into the ring? Yeah, right; (4) Tyson's already got a grudge. I'd give Merchant edge if he's allowed not to wear a mouth piece. Boring stories would lull Tyson to coma-like state. "A man once said. . .", enough already! I'd shell out PPV$ to see anyone punch this guy in the yap!; (3) Hey, he's a good runner. Who knows, he might kill Tyson (ouch, did I really say that?!); (2) No flying toasters! Mike's got the KO power, Don has Judges and sanctioning bodies in his pocket. Tough call, Don does have the better record; (1) This one could finally put the old fire back in Iron Mike. She may have won the battle, but this could be Mike's chance to win the war. Although, she does know most of his best moves.

Top 10 Fighters (Pound for Pound)

(1)

Roy Jones, Jr. 31-0

(2) Oscar De La Hoya 20-0

(3) Frankie Randell 52-4-1

(4) Felix Trinidad 26-0

(5) Naseem Hamed 20-0

(6) Terry Norris 41-6

(7) Jorge Castro 99-4-2

(8) Yuri Arbachakov 21-0

(9) Ricardo Lopez

(10) Pernell Whitaker 36-1-1 (really, undefeated)

(1) Can't see anyone under heavy making this guy even break a sweat (with possible exception of Nigel Benn). Hand speed? Man!!; (2) Showdown with Chavez would be a changing of the guard. Oscar and Roy should have an ego contest, man, that would be a tough one to call!; (3) Kicked J.C. Superstar's ass, twice. Makes list just for that alone; (4) Makes "Macho" Cammacho look like the might moolah. Next great Puerto Rican Superstar!; (5) Needs only U.S. exposure; (6) Definitely on the road back to stardom; (7) Any guy with over 100 fights who gets clocked like this guy, deserves to make list; (8) See #5; (9) If he can stay healthy and Don King can get anyone to fight him, he'd be even higher on list; (10) Hey, the guy is really undefeated -- two rob-jobs don't count. Only reason he's #10 and not #3 is boredom factor drags him way down. Watching him fight is like watching synchronized swimming.

Top 10 Heavyweights (with apologies to Phrank)

1. Riddick Bowe
2. Lennox Lewis
3. Frank Bruno
4. Bruce Seldon
5. Mike Tyson
6. Tim Witherspoon
7. Corrie Sanders
8. Henry Akinwande
9. Axel Schultz
10. Vaughn Bean

(1) Winner by default. We'll see after Lewis fight (if Rock Neuman is stupid enough to actually let it happen.); (2) You have my opinion, already; (3) Well, he is the Champ! -- for now!; (4) Ditto; (5) Makes list on "name factor" alone. Moves to #3 if he beats Bruno; (6) He's baaaack!! Okay, maybe I'm feeling a little nostalgic. Any guy who wins a law suit against Don King can't be all bad; (7) Need at least one South African on list and White-Buffalo was busy getting his shots!; (8) Who is this guy, anyway?; (9) Gets robbed more than a 7-11; (10) Makes list for cool name. Plus, I kind of like watching Butch Lewis fight with Don King.

---

END QUOTE:

"I'm no angel, bub."

-- Harry Greb quoted in James Fair, Give Him to the Angels (1946).