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02/10/2005 Archived Entry: "Octavius James: Mobley will Give Hernandez Rematch, but on His Terms!"
Octavius James: Mobley will Give Hernandez Rematch, but on His Terms!
By Juan C. Ayllon
Octavius James (R) with Johnny Novak
MERRILLVILLE, INDIANA – Upon meeting with boxing promoter, Octavius James of One in a Million, Inc., one is immediately impressed by his winsome persona, a disarming personal style exuding intelligence and professionalism. Show business is, after all, a people business.
As such, he enjoys a strong reciprocal relationship with Chicago’s 8 Count Productions and its promoter, Dominic Pesoli, for whom he often provides fighters, as well as support staff for their events, and vice versa. His boxers, as well as business associates speak highly of him.
Yesterday, “Macho” Miguel Hernandez—who fights for 8 Count Productions—granted the Cyber Boxing Zone an interview in which he made some statements regarding James’ fighter, Shay Mobley. Hernandez lost a match to Mobley on January 14th and essentially demanded a rematch immediately. In making his case, he said some things that did not sit well with James.
James enjoys his relationship with Pesoli, and likes Hernandez as a boxer and a human being. Thus, it was with some trepidation that he called the Cyber Boxing Zone to set the record straight.
On his desire to maintain an amicable relationship with Miguel Hernandez:
OCTAVIUS JAMES: I don’t want Miguel to think I’m angry; I love Miguel a lot! It’s just that a couple things that he said [in his interview] were inaccurate.
It’s not a situation that’s where there’s bad feelings. They fought a gentlemen’s fight and I would like it to remain gentlemanly; I don’t want things to deteriorate into a pissing contest.
On Miguel’s saying, “After the fight, he [Mobley] said, Miguel whenever you want to fight, I’ll do it again…then, [later on] he says he wants a tune-up fight in March”:
OJ: Mobley was scheduled to fight on March even before his bout with Miguel.
He would fight Miguel no problem. But it has to be conducive to what Shay has going on. He has his eye on winning the Indiana state title. It has to be on Shay’s terms.
I explained this to Dominic [Pesoli], who’s my buddy. I don’t think the fight should have happened. However, maybe someone said something to someone at a gym…and both parties agreed on it. Once the contracts were signed, it happened.
[Moreover] I never once told Miguel he wanted a “tune-up” fight. He just had an obligation to fight on March for One in a Million.
On Hernandez’s statement, “I said that after I win the fight, because I know I will, he can carry the [Illinois State Championship] belt for me back to the locker room”:
OJ: Mobley said he would be more than happy to carry the belts for him if he [Mobley] lets him beat him.
On Hernandez’ insistence that they fight in April or, by implication, not at all:
OJ: When Corey Spinks beat Zab Judah, he didn’t give Judah a rematch right away; it came about a year later. The person that loses doesn’t dictate when a rematch takes place. That’s just the way it is in boxing.
Shay Mobley is anxious to fight Miguel, but first he needs to fulfill his obligations to “One in a Million”, as well as his [Indiana State] Title. He’ll fight Miguel, but it has to be on his time.
