New England Chatta

New England Chatta - June 30, 2000

JD Vena

P.A.L. Pals Strive for Ring Glory:
Oliveira & Pemberton Share ESPN2 Card
June 30, 2000

NEW BEDFORD - As world rated super-middleweight contender, Scott "The
Sandman" Pemberton drove his Nissan Pick-up through the city of New Bedford one recent Saturday morning, something woke him up as if he had just soaked his head in a cooler of ice (a New England pastime the past weeks). While driving his son, Jarel, to a skateboard park, Pemberton noticed his longtime Fall River P.A.L. stable mate and fellow New Bedfordite, Ray Oliveira, undergoing his morning roadwork routine.

    "As soon as I got home from dropping off Jarel, I kicked out five miles," said the 33 year old Pemberton.

    Both Pemberton and Oliveira have fought on many boxing cards together. Tonight, the two will headline two separate ESPN2 feature bouts at the Rhodes-on-the-Pawtuxet in Cranston, RI.

    "It makes me happy and proud to share the same card with Scott," said Oliveira. "I hope he wins but at the same time, I'm saying to myself, 'I gotta look better than him.' I have to prove that I'm the main event. When I fight in the co-feature, I want to look better than the main event."

    Unlike Pemberton, jr. welterweight contender, "Sucra" Ray Oliveira knows what it's like to be showcased in a nationally televised main event. Tonight's bout with Mexican Isaac Cruz will be his 10th in a career that includes 39 wins, 7 defeats, and one draw.

    At 32, Oliveira's career would be complete if he wins in a third title shot, a shot he hopes to obtain soon. In his two previous attempts, Oliveira's extreme efforts fell short in losing 12-round squeakers to Zack Padilla and Jake "The Snake" Rodriguez. In his valiant loss to Padilla he and the champion eclipsed the 3,000 mark in total combined punches thrown, a record that stands by itself for any fight since the inception of CompuBox.

    This past February, Oliveira moved one giant step toward his goal when he
upset unbeaten prospect Vivian Harris over ten pulsating rounds. The victory
catapulted Oliveira back into the world ratings (including #9 by the CBZ) for
the first time since he lost a close 12 round verdict to Reggie Green, an opponent who reportedly turned down Oliveira this Friday.

    Prior to his loss to Green in 1997, Oliveira had just recorded his second
convincing victory over former world champion, Charles Murray. Oliveira was
written off as a contender when world-beating welterweight Vernon Forrest
defeated him over 12 rounds.

    "I honestly think that beating Harris did nothing for my critics," said Oliveira. "I have to prove more than ever before that my critics are still wrong about me. The Forrest fight suggested to people that I was washed up, but I wasn't even fighting at my regular weight (of 140 pounds). Besides, I trained 5 days to fight Forrest and I only did it because I needed the money."

    Forrest's victory over Oliveira marked the first of only two occasions in which Forrest failed to register a knockout as a welterweight in a fight scheduled for 12 rounds.

    "The criticism has helped me a lot," said Oliveira. "It allows me to focus more on my training. I have more dedication than I had when I was younger and I travel all over looking for good sparring. I don't care who it's with, big guys, little guys, anyone that will make me and the guy I'm sparring with a better fighter."

    Oliveira had just returned from the New York based camp of Tony Marshall, the WBC's #1 jr. middleweight contender. Marshall will challenge its champion Francisco Castillejo on July 21st in Madrid, Spain. After Oliveira faces Cruz Friday night, he will revisit Marshall's camp to help prepare him for his long-awaited shot.

    "I need to stay busy to get my shot at the title," said Oliveira who returned to the Fall River P.A.L. this past Friday for final preparations. "I feel more confident about my body and I know what my body is capable of doing."

    "Ray is like a fox right now," remarked Pemberton. "Until this year, he rarely ever went running. Right now he looks better than I've ever seen him."

    Having a fellow world class contender working out at the same gym has paid dividends for Pemberton who faces his sternest test of his career, Glenwood "The Real Beast" Brown. Like Oliveira, Brown has lost in his two bids at a world title, the last being eight years ago. Brown, despite entering his 60th career bout Friday night and owning nearly three times as many fights as Pemberton's 20-2-1 record, Brown is 6 months Pemberton's junior.

    "I would have liked to have had a couple more weeks to get ready, but I don't have them, I'm not going to complain about it, so batten down the hatches," said Pemberton.

    "I just spent 30 days in the house of correction for something I didn't know was a crime (defending himself)," said Pemberton.

    Pemberton was convicted for pelting an angry motorist in what sounded to be a classic "road-rage" incident.

    "All I did was return a gesture of the middle finger chucking that he gave me in his rearview mirror," explained Pemberton. "He stopped his car in the middle of the street and got out of his car while my truck was behind him. I got out of my truck to show him the size disparity between us (Pemberton is 6'2 while his traffic rival stood 5'7) and apparently it didn't faze him. He walked right over to me screaming so and I whacked him as soon as he got in my face. People are shot and stabbed in New Bedford everyday and I wasn't about to give him any chances."

Pemberton being the boxer won the fight with one punch but was dealt a bigger blow as a result of the damages inflicted on the man who is suing Pemberton in excess of $45,000.

"Since they don't let you work out, I got fat and out of shape," said Pemberton. "Out of the 30 days I served, I was let outside five times. Also the food is mal-nourishing just as you hear about, the kind that gives cancer to rats. It was very discouraging, especially for my son who looks up to me. "

    Pemberton was to have originally faced Brown in a non-televised main event back on April 21st, a week before his traffic altercation.

    "It's pretty sad because I feel like the victim," said Pemberton. "Not only am I facing a civil suit and a year of probation, I have to attend anger management classes.

    "But as for this fight, it couldn't have worked out any better because now I get to beat him up on live television in front of nine different countries," said Pemberton. "I'll beat Glenwood no doubt about it, but had I had a little more time to train, I would have knocked him out."

    As if the wake-up call for Pemberton hadn't been enough, he spoke of a conversation, which took place recently while working the target pads with his assistant trainer, Mike Perry. Before Pemberton was sentenced, he asked his son Jarel if he could finish his school semester with 'A's.' Jarel succeeded.

    "I was working the pads with Mike and told him about how proud I was of my son who got all A's for the first time," explains Pemberton. "Mike said to me, 'Scott, you asked your son to get all A's for you and he did it, now you go out there Friday night and beat Glenwood just as he asked you!' That really lit a fire under my ass. My son is what keeps me motivated and honest with myself and about what I'm doing."

    Pemberton will need that motivation Friday night when he hopes to get a taste of the sweetness that he and his pal "Sucra" plan on devouring.