You know, the revised Professional Boxing Safety Act has been in effect since October 9, 1996 (there's a 1995 version as well). This is a federal law, passed through the House and Senate, signed by the President, preceded by a lot of hearings and pre-interviews, glad-handing and press releases from various politicians, including John McCain, Mike Oxley, and others that no doubt insisted, "This is a positive step forward for boxing reform".

Sounds just like what we're seeing and hearing now, doesn't it?

Section 5 of the Act, titled "SAFETY STANDARDS", reads like this:

"No person may arrange, promote, organize, produce, or fight in a professional boxing match without meeting each of the following requirements or an alternative requirement in effect under regulations of a boxing commission that provides equivalent protection of the health and safety of boxers:

(1) A physical examination of each boxer by a physician certifying whether or not the boxer is physically fit to safely compete, copies of which must be provided to the boxing commission.

(2) Except as otherwise expressly provided under regulation of a boxing commission promulgated subsequent to the enactment of this Act [enacted Oct. 9, 1996], an ambulance or medical personnel with appropriate resuscitation equipment continuously present on site.

(3) A physician continuously present at ringside.

(4) Health insurance for each boxer to provide medical coverage for any injuries sustained in the match."

Terrific.

Unfortunately, there's nothing in that law prohibiting imbeciles from operating boxing commissions. I checked.

I ask you - did that law prevent Jack Kerns, the FIRST VICE-PRESIDENT of the Association of Boxing Commissions, in his capacity as chairman of the Kentucky Athletic Commission, from ensuring that three of the four aforementioned provisions would NOT be in effect on the night Greg Page met with his unfortunate ring injury in Erlanger, Ky.?

Quite obviously not. And to add to the insult, there hasn't even been a lesson learned from it. From glancing over the interrogatories associated with Page's lawsuit against the commission, Kerns, and others, is the official position of Kerns that since there was no provision in the Kentucky law to have oxygen, EMT's, an ambulance, or in fact anything beyond a stretcher (which incidentally was not available either) at ringside, that HE IS NOT RESPONSIBLE.

It is his official position that since it is the "promoter's responsibility" to have the oxygen, the ambulance, the stretcher, the insurance, that the fault should be placed squarely on the shoulders of the PROMOTER, and the commission should be free of any liability.

It is his official position that if the fighters do not register a protest and demand that a fight be canceled, that it is perfectly within his rights, and the commission's rights, to allow that fights go forward, even after the discovery that the safety provisions required by law are not present.

It appears to be his official position that a ringside physician, appointed by the commission, does not have to be licensed in his state to practice medicine.

It is not known whether Kerns or his lawyers consulted with his colleagues on the Board of Directors of the Association of Boxing Commissions before formulating this "strategy". But it should be noted that JACK KERNS IS PART OF LEADERSHIP THAT IS BRINGING YOU THE PROFESSIONAL BOXING AMENDMENTS ACT OF 2002.

Apparently, to this day, there is no acknowledgement on the part of Kerns, or fellow imbecile Nancy Black, the commission's executive director (who had never been to a fight before), that the federal law - the Professional Boxer Safety Act, and specifically Section 5 - completely overrides his own state law, unless that state law provides for "MORE STRINGENT" safety standards.

Black herself admitted to me that she didn't know what was in the federal law; as for Kerns, he hasn't spoken in public about it but one must assume he is claiming ignorance about it as well.

For Kerns, claiming ignorance as easy, though I doubt that's not going to provide any legal relief for him.

Even allowing for the possibility that Kerns can't read (I leave ALL possibilities open when it comes to boxing commissioners), there is a lawyer specifically assigned to the Kentucky Athletic Commission by the state attorney general's office. His name is Rob Jones. Evidently, Jones never schooled Kerns on this law, quite possibly because he doesn't even know it himself. That's HIS fault. We've established that Black, who is also an attorney by trade, didn't know it. That's HER fault. None of Kerns' fellow commissioners know the law, or bothered to learn it. That's THEIR fault.

I can break out transcripts from meetings held at ABC conventions in which the federal law was specifically discussed. Kerns, who loves to take trips like this, was at these meetings, and Black is known to have been present at some of them as well.

So excuse me if I don't want to hear any bullshit from them.

The point is this - you could pass TEN THOUSAND LAWS and if regulators like Jack Kerns and Nancy Black don't feel like enforcing it, what's the use? So where's the problem - the LAW or the PEOPLE implementing it?

I mean, here you have a conspiracy of idiocy between Kerns, Black, Jones, and the rest of the Kentucky commission structure. Stupidity is a powerful thing. Consequently, it's pretty hard to overcome that kind of conspiracy.

Sure enough, they'll learn in the end - because their wallets will tell them so - that it was NOT Greg Page's responsibility to educate them on federal law - it is THEIR responsibility to know it.

But that realization will not come as a result of any mechanism that is provided for by "reform legislation"; it will come through a civil proceeding.

And by the way - as you can probably guess, Kerns is hardly the only commissioner in the United States who has ignored federal law.

The real absurdity is that, even though the law exists on the books - and it is actually not a bad part of the law (although it doesn't go far enough) - I'm not sure there is any provision included in it to guarantee its enforcement, i.e., there is no prescribed punishment for an individual or entity who violates the law.

I wonder - where were the Greg Sirbs of the world when the "do-gooder" politicians were soliciting input for this bill back in 1996? Nowhere to be found, I'm willing to bet.

Couldn't someone - ANYONE - have mentioned that an ambulance should not be an option, but a NECESSITY at a fight? Couldn't anyone have devised a way to punish a commissioner who openly flouted the law? Couldn't someone have explained to them that fighters' lives could be at stake?

No - my guess is that these guys were too busy kissing some politicians's ass to notice.

Yet, Ken Nahigian, on behalf of McCain, is ready to hand the keys to the kingdom to people like Sirb, Kerns, and the rest of the ABC's brainless-trust when it comes to establishing standards for safety, the ranking of fighters, the selection and appointment of officials, and a whole lot more.

That's a tragedy.

fightpage@totalaction.com

Copyright 2002 Total Action Inc.

State commissioners - and there are notable, yet few, exceptions - don't have a clue as to how to reform boxing. Their general posture - and I have witnessed this personally - has been to concern themselves with LESS, rather than MORE, unless it becomes something in which it's entirely inappropriate for them to be involved. In those cases, they seem to be ready to jump in with both feet.

Come to think of it, I'd be hard-pressed to advocate any boxing legislation that doesn't fundamentally change the bad actors in this play.

And how many times do we need to be told that the various attorneys general won't enforce the Ali Act?

The people who have been empowered which such authority hardly even RECOGNIZE instances where the Ali Act, and/or the best interests of boxing, have been violated. Then again, think about it - asking state law enforcement officials to go out of their way to prosecute federal offenses would appear to be just a bit impractical, wouldn't it?

There's another way that seems to work much better.

One of the interesting - and I might add - unexpected, things I've discovered is that when you actually WRITE things about people, you tend to get the most reaction out of them. Voila!

Through the publication of "Operation Cleanup", we have managed to exert a certain degree of influence on the boxing industry. Almost any chapter that appears has something in it that prompts discussion, and sometimes action is even taken as a result. Of course, more often than not, it's because people have been shamed into doing so. There have been a LOT of people who have expressed gratitude that someone is stepping forward to say some of the things that need to be said. At the very least, we have created a certain degree of awareness, which has had more than its share of residual effect - I might have a hard time believing it unless plenty of others had told me as much.

Perhaps this is best summed up by a quote I received from Guy Jutras, a veteran boxing man who is head of the WBA Officials Committee -

"There is no doubt that you are forcing all members of the sector to be more accountable for their behavior. Which is a very good thing."

Indeed. I was recently asked by an interviewer how I would define "boxing reform". My response is that I imagine it wouldn't be so much different than reforming any industry - it involves effectively identifying problem areas, having the imagination to construct plausible solutions, while being fair and equitable in your assessment, and creating an atmosphere by which malfeasance cannot thrive without bringing serious repercussions - the end result being that, over the course of time, you have the effect of changing the behavior of those who will be subject to the reforms that are put in place.

So while violations of the Ali Act have, and likely will continue, to go unpunished, bad people who do bad things have become a little more conscious of being exposed right here, and if they're not, they should be. No, we can't prosecute anyone. But there are effects nonetheless, whether they be short or long-term - embarrassment throughout the industry, increased awareness on the part of the press, possible civil litigation, increased activism by parties who feel they have been "wronged" in the course of doing business, possible civil litigation, regulatory changes on the part of those agencies who DON'T have their head up their ass, and in the most extreme cases, even criminal consequences. It creates - here's that word again - ACCOUNTABILITY.

As such, "Operation Cleanup" has probably had more of a "reforming" effect on boxing than any of the legislation we've seen.

Let's see -- since September of last year, when our Kentucky series, which I look upon as a prequel to "Operation Cleanup", was first published:

-- We have managed to expose and reveal mechanisms at work in this industry that were heretofore completely unknown to regulators and legislators (not that they've done much with the info), not to mention the public;

-- The ABC has had to take a much longer look at how it needs to deal with overseeing fights held in non-commission states;

-- Dirty commissioners, and their neglect, have been exposed in the state of Kentucky, something that will ultimately change the way safety issues are addressed everywhere in the country;

-- We've scuttled fights that promoters should probably have thought twice about before putting together;

-- We've brought important issues to the table regarding officials, including the unwarranted interference on the part of the sanctioning bodies, and on the other side of the coin, the concerns about neutrality of officiating in title fights;

-- Some commissions will now start to tax and regulate ALL promoters who receive money from the networks for a fight, not just the "lead" promoter;

-- There is, from what we understand, an imminent "shakeup" going on at ESPN;

-- Information from our stories will be instrumental in at least three civil suits that will have a direct effect on the way boxing is conducted in the future;

-- The "geniuses" in Washington have been forced to change the language of their legislation (more on this later).

And there's much more.

Most importantly, we've presented a side to the issues that has been suppressed - not by accident, I'm presuming - from the general public.

Having found out, early on, that people inside the so-called "system" were not interested in affecting any useful, realistic change, I have found that within this atmosphere, more could be accomplished for boxing by working OUTSIDE that system - a pleasant surprise, to say the least.

The mediocre efforts of John McCain and his friends have been irrelevant by comparison. So what do I need THEM for?

There's nothing in the world worse than "pseudo-reformers". That's because they deflect attention away from what the real problems - and the real solutions - are. Forget about going "against the grain" - their chief interest is in saying and doing only what is politically expedient. The effect, of course, is COUNTER-productive to real progress. And God forbid that anyone who would seek to have standards imposed on others would have those same standards applied to THEMSELVES.

I think it's safe to say that almost everyone involved, directly or peripherally, in this government "reform movement" would fit that description.

The way I see it, if I'm going to present a package on boxing reform, it's my duty to tell you:

- That Jack Kerns, the Kentucky commissioner who came within a pubic hair of being charged with negligent homicide in the Greg Page case, is a high-ranking member of the board of directors of the Association of Boxing Commissions (ABC);

- That other members of that ABC board have put the safety of fighters in imminent danger by not insisting on having ambulances at fight cards, by approving dangerous mismatches, and by allowing, in direct conflict with their own state law, underage fighters to get into a professional boxing ring.

- That there are television executives who have not hesitated to leverage their position in order to carve out a handsome personal profit for themselves, enabled in large part by the networks they work for, and that the "reformers" have very consciously looked the other way, for reasons that are dubious at best;

- That promoters have often grabbed more than 100% of the purse of their own fighter by way of a "side deal";

- That while state commissions profess to advocate fairness and equity, they actually campaign AGAINST neutrality and uniformity with regard to championship rules because it doesn't afford them the absolute power and control they need to return political "favors";

- That the best law is one that protects EVERYBODY, and not one that specifically pits one segment of the boxing industry against another.

Yet McCain, a civil servant, doesn't feel it's HIS civic duty to tell you any of that, or to act on it.

Draw your own conclusions as to why.

fightpage@totalaction.com

Copyright 2002 Total Action Inc.

Ken Norton is best known for breaking Muhammad Ali’s jaw as a 7-1 underdog in a stunning upset on March 31, 1973. Ali and Norton would meet two more times with Ali winning each time by a controversial decision. Here are Ken Norton’s thoughts on all three historic bouts.

Frank: Kenny, Muhammad Ali is held in such high esteem today because of all the great fighters he fought. You and Joe Frazier are the only two fighters he fought three times. Can you tell us why you were chosen to fight Ali the first time?

Norton: I fought on the Ali-Bob Foster under card against Henry Clark. After the fights he was down in the bar or lounge area with a bunch of ladies. I came down and kinda stole part of his thunder. He jumped up and said I’m gonna box you and started yelling I’m gonna kick your butt. So that was the beginning of the end for Ali.

Frank: What were you ranked at that time?

Norton: Seventh by Ring Magazine.

Frank: You were a 7 to 1 underdog going into that first fight with Ali. You fought as if you were the favorite. What was it about him that made you so confident you could beat him?

Norton: Bob Foster told me after his fight with Ali, he came up and said you can take him. I knew I would beat him because mentally I felt that way and my whole camp felt that way. I felt at that time I could’ve beat Godzilla.

Frank: Of all the fighters Ali has beaten, you are the only one he never beat convincingly.

Norton: A lot of it was the mental part of it. Ali defeated everyone mentally first. With Frazier, Ali had him so mad Joe was trying to kill him with every shot. With Foreman, he tried to kill him with every shot. Mentally, Ali could not defeat me and physically I felt I was as much a physical power as Ali was. He couldn’t upset me in any way and plus, I had Eddie Futch. Eddie knew how to fight Ali. You can’t go to the head with him. You have to go to the body first and then eventually he will bring his hands down and lower his head.

Frank: Over the years there has been much speculation as to the round you broke his jaw. Ferdi Pacheco who was Ali’s doctor at that time said it broke during the 2nd Round. What round do you believe it was?

Norton: Round 12. Ali had a break that was an inch and a half long and you keep getting hit as hard and as much as I hit Ali, the pain would take over and you would pass out.

Frank: Which one of your three fights with Ali do you think you fought your best?

Norton: I would say that the one I fought the best was the last one at Yankee Stadium. After 15 rounds I was not tired and felt I could’ve fought 15 more.

Frank: Which fight did Ali fight the best of the three?

Norton: Ali, I would say the second fight for him.

Frank: Which of the three fights do you think was the closest?

Norton: I would say the second.

Frank: Do you think Ali stole the second fight by winning the 12th Round with his two big flurries in that round?

Norton: Yes. Ali was bigger than boxing at that time.

Frank: Is it fair to say that Ali won the second fight by winning the last round, and that’s why he won the decision?

Norton: Yes, I can see why they gave him the decision.

Frank: In your third fight, which was for Ali’s title, it came down to the 15th Round on the judges’ scorecards. All three scored the round for Ali. What was your thinking at that time going into that 15th Round?

Norton: I was told by my trainer, at the time which was Bill Slayton, that I was ahead on points. He said don’t go out and get cut, don’t go out and get hurt, just go out and control the round and watch yourself and be careful. I went out and thought I did enough to have a draw in that round.

Frank: If you could fight that round again, how would you fight it?

Norton: I would fight it like I fought the other 14. I would just go out and win it. Like I said, I could’ve fought 15 more rounds.

Frank: In your book you say, after the third fight with Ali went against you, you lost your heart for boxing, but you continued boxing. Why?

Norton: I lost my edge for boxing, I didn’t put as much into it as I did before. I didn’t run as far. I didn’t train as hard. I didn’t eat correctly. I started drinking a little bit every now and then. Of 1-10 I put in about a 5. I felt that no matter what I did that they would do what they want anyway.

Frank: In other words, unless you scored a knockout you weren’t going to get the decision.

Norton: Right. This is not to take away anything from Larry Holmes who I fought after that, but if I trained for Larry the same way I trained for Ali, I felt I could’ve done quite a bit better.

Frank: Who was stronger, Muhammad Ali or Larry Holmes?

Norton: Oh Ali definetly, Ali was very strong but because he wasn't a one punch KO artist it is overlooked. Hitting Ali in the body or on the arms was like hitting a piece of cement.

Frank: In your book you say Ali is the best ever. Do you believe that?

Norton: As far as I’ve been around, yes.

Frank: Is Ali the best fighter you ever fought?

Norton: Yes.

Frank: You also say in your book that you and Ali are good friends today. Is it true that he was one of the first to come and see you in the hospital after your terrible car accident in 1986?

Norton: That’s very true.

They don’t start thinking about becoming heavyweight champion of the world.

Still, Witherspoon (55-11-1, 38 KOs) has that overhand right that won’t go away, won’t let him quit. It’s there patiently waiting for another chance, another young career to ruin. If Witherspoon has lost anything over the years, it wasn’t his ability to end fights early. Punching power is usually the last thing to abandon a fighter. If you can knock guys out when you’re 24, you can knock them out when you’re 44. Like George Foreman, Witherspoon has that gift. It’s already carried him to two world championships.

Now he hopes he can ride it to a third.

He’ll be packing that overhand right with him on Sunday when he takes on Lou Savarese (42-4, 34 KOs) at the Table Mountain Casino in Friant, CA., for the NABO heavyweight championship.

Billed as King of the Mountain, the fight will help decide who gets to move to the next square and who has to go back three spaces. The winner will earn some kind of heavyweight outskirts bragging rights, though it’s hard to say exactly what those will be. While Witherspoon has that “not so secret’’ overhand right, Savarese isn’t coming into this fight unarmed or unaware. A heavy-hitter himself, he’s stunned his share of  heavyweight hopefuls, though he was pretty much the stunnee against Mike Tyson. But so were a lot of good heavyweights.

Still, the legend in this fight belongs to Witherspoon. He’s the one with the infamous punch, the second childhood and the two heavyweight titles.

“It would be idiotic to not be somewhat concerned about that punch,’’ Savarese said recently. “Tim is still dangerous. You’ve just got to be smart about it.’’

As for what it feels like to be fighting an old man, Savarese, at 37, knows better than to consider Witherspoon anything less than a huge threat. Terrible Tim lands that one special punch and Savarese’s career is suddenly pitched into the abyss.

“Age isn’t that much of a factor,’’ he said. “Look at Larry Holmes and George Foreman and what they did when they were older. Look at Lennox (Lewis) and Evander Holyfield. Those guys are all getting older, but they’re also taking better care of themselves.’’

Like Witherspoon is doing.

What’s important to remember is that during his long career, Witherspoon was known to speed past the gym in order to arrive early at the party. Self-discipline has never been his strong suit. But at 44, he can’t get away with bad habits and still fight, and he knows it. His time left in the fight game is short and can be measured with a stopwatch. He can hear the seconds ticking away and that’s got to be the scariest thing of all.

Except for maybe that overhand right of his.

Let's give a little background first, for those who haven't paid much attention. This bill, S2500, is to be "marked up" today, where it will be voted through committee and placed into a "queue", from which it will be slated for debate on the Senate floor. How soon that happens probably depends on how seamlessly it can be fit into the schedule between other, more important bills that will take longer to debate.

From there, the Senate will vote on it. If it passes, it will then go to the House of Representatives. If the House passes it, it will be submitted to the President for signature, at which point it would become law. Then the procedure for nominating and appointing the so-called national boxing "czar" will take place.

Much has been made over the fact that Nevada Senator Harry Reid (Democrat), who has a competing bill, will serve as a stumbling block for this legislation to pass. Reid's bill, which is called the National Boxing Commission Act, is, on balance, superior to the aforementioned Professional Boxing Amendments Act. The fundamental difference between the substance of Reid's bill and the Amendments Act, which is sponsored by John McCain, is that Reid insists upon the licensing of commercial networks as "promoters", and favors a five-person committee, rather than a single boxing "administrator", sitting at the top of the regulatory structure.

It also centralizes authority a little more, leaving less in the hands of incompetent (for the most part) state boxing commissions. Of course, that's also the problem with the bill, in that states are not likely to be willing to give up too much in the way of sovereign rights.

Nevertheless, when all is said and done, Reid is going to have to be fully satisfied in some way, considering his position as Majority Whip of the Senate. McCain has already taken a step toward him, including a change in the Boxing Amendments Act to facilitate regulation of networks as promoters.

So why is it that I haven't paid much lip service to all this?

Because, frankly, I'm not sure any of it really matters.

First of all, the Boxing Amendments Act has to pass. And through the years, better legislation than this poorly-written mess has been put forward and died in the House or Senate.

And considering we've been through more than fifty chapters in this series, trying to bring many of the REAL-WORLD issues in boxing into the discourse, it's quite remarkable - and equally as alarming - how few of those issues, which carry serious weight, have even been addressed by this, or any other legislation. The most important matters that could possibly be covered - things like the conflicts of interests involving network employees who also promote fights and fighters (i.e., Russell Peltz at ESPN), the establishment of a practical process in the selection of officials for championship fights, the regulation of relationships between promoters and fighters, malfeasance on the part of boxing commissions, or a system for arbitrating disputes between parties that are subject to licensure, just to name a few, are avoided like the plague.

Why? Because those who put together this bill, and other bills before it, have made the conscious decision to consult with nitwits or those with only self-interest at heart instead of honest, experienced people who actually have a working knowledge of the boxing industry. And, quite possibly, because they're lazy, ignorant, indifferent, or all three.

Before "Operation Cleanup" was published, they may have had an excuse for their lack of knowledge. Now there ARE no excuses. Who could be faulted for coming to the conclusion but that these people just don't give a damn about the long-term interests of boxing, but rather a short-term interest that might satisfy a political objective?

Much of the blame has to be laid at the feet of Senator John McCain. He brought aboard a guy named Kenneth Nahigian - one of those "instant experts" who has never had a clue - to write the bill and screen the people who would be considered for the position of boxing "czar". You should see his list of candidates (actually, you WILL, a couple of chapters from now). Some of these people, and who they represent, should actually be the SUBJECT of an investigation, rather than the ones who would be empowered with DIRECTING an investigation. But then again, that's what you wind up with when you don't know a goddamn thing.

At the beginning of this process, I was more than willing to help out. I wrote a letter to Nahigian, explaining what I would be doing and offering any assistance I could. Example - "I am not interested in detracting from the campaign to better the sport and business of professional boxing, but rather, to ensure that the correct path is taken to addressing the problems that have plagued it. I'm sure that you share my concern, and recognize that I can be of help to any sincere effort."

I'll tell you what his response was, and I'll quote this directly:

"I don't know how you got this e-mail address, but I would appreciate if you would never use it again."

That told me everything I needed to know about who and what Nahigian was, right there. And if that doesn't tell you enough about him, in the process of gathering information for the purposes of putting together a "boxing reform" measure, he's actually utilized Russell Peltz as a "consultant"! Perhaps that explains why Peltz, who has committed some of the most egregious violations against the best interests of boxing, not to mention the public interest, and whose case study should actually serve as a CATALYST for useful boxing reform legislation, has not, and WILL not, be touched in any way, shape or form, if Nahigian has his way.

It's one thing to construct a useless bill. It's quite another to be an "enabler", which appears to be what Nahigian is.

At the risk of sounding self-aggrandizing - inasmuch as we're well past fifty chapters in this series, for which I have received unanimous praise, do you think - just maybe - that it might have done this guy any good to have a little dialogue with me somewhere along the way?

Not that Nahigian would even hesitate to take an original story of mine and transform it into some political capital for himself and his boss. On July 17, someone faxed him a copy of Chapter 35 of this series, entitled "Hijacking in the Hoosier State", and about ten minutes later he was at the word processor, typing a letter to the WBC on behalf of McCain (which was later shown on HBO) that was completely based on the "Operation Cleanup" story, making each and every one of the points I had already made in Chapter 35, about the fiasco in Indiana which took place when it came to the selection of officials for the Vernon Forrest-Shane Mosley fight.

I'm almost sorry I enabled HIM.

By the way Ken, notwithstanding the fact that your e-mail address (

Kenneth_Nahigian@commerce.senate.gov

) is public, I got it from Tim Lueckenhoff, President of the Association of Boxing Commissioners, who apparently thought it was important enough that I have it.

So now you know.

It's interesting that every one of these chapters has been sent via e-mail to a rather large mailing list of boxing people, and NOT ONCE have I gotten a reply even remotely resembling that of "I don't know how you got this e-mail address, but I would appreciate if you would never use it again."

But maybe I shouldn't be surprised if everyone on that list cared more about the future of boxing than one Kenneth Nahigian.

Another thing that has brought up on these pages before is that what matters infinitely more than the quality of the LAW is the quality of the PEOPLE who are going to carry out that law. I don't know when people are going to wake up to this piece of reality. If you're talking about the state commission structure being responsible for enforcing the law and identifying violators, you're in trouble, because then you are trusting enforcement to a group of which 80%-90% are either incompetent, uninterested, uninformed, or corrupt. And the people they consider to be the most knowledgeable are often the ones who are the most clueless.

As long as you have the same people in place, what in the world is going to be any different about the QUALITY of regulation?

No one has to school me on any of this - I've seen it in action. And as for any boxing "writer" who thinks all of this is a wonderful thing for the game - go out and spend ten years learning what this industry is all about, THEN come back and give me your opinion, okay?

Go ahead - sit there with a straight face and tell me that you actually FAVOR a group which numbers Jack "Mr. Negligence" Kerns among its LEADERSHIP having control over ANY part of the process of regulating boxing on a grand scale, and I'll laugh you right out of this business.

Well, apparently John McCain, Byron Dorgan, and Ken Nahigian feel that way.

Think about it.

I'm too busy laughing.

I'm also tired right now. This conversation is to be continued..............

fightpage@totalaction.com

Copyright 2002 Total Action Inc.

It’s convenient for the reader to understand that the attacks, as well as the evasions, of a champ or top contender are, for the most part, clever moves created consciously or subconsciously by a combination of instinct and calculated but instant conception of inconceivable proportions.

All this, of course, is only applicable to serious prizefighters. For among them there is an emotional and psychological strength that never ceases to come to their aid. Soon enough, the people who want to learn about boxing will discover that every champion possesses those gifts, and that championship crowns are won neither by accident nor by chance. Exceptions to this rule can be counted on the fingers of a single hand.

With that concept pasted all over the walls of my brain, I couldn’t just look the other way when I heard a few days ago a ridiculous comment made by the undisputed world’s heavyweight champ Lennox Lewis, in a vain effort to justify his decision to relinquish his International Boxing Federation (IBF) championship belt.

Renouncing a mandatory fight against IBF’s number-one contender, Chris Byrd, Lewis said that:
“Today, I announce my decision to give up my IBF crown. My team and I have determined that there is no public interest in a bout between Lennox Lewis and Chris Byrd.” He also said that Byrd couldn’t offer him a competitive challenge and that “only a champ makes the crown important, not the other way around.”

It sounded strange to me that a boxer who became champion only because the then champ, Riddick Bowe, dropped his championship belt inside a trash can in anger, proclaim all of a sudden his refusal to defend his title simply because the IBF’s number-one challenger lacks quality.

To begin with, it’s absurd for a boxing champ to refuse a legitimate and mandatory match just because his rival doesn’t possess the competitive quality of a good pugilist.

The paradox seems brutal when one discovers that those words came from a prizefighter. For one is supposed to know that professional boxing is a business where good managers know that they are not in it to produce heroes or super-machos, but to develop champions and make money for them.
“It was Emmanuel Steward (Lewis’ Trainer) the reason why Lennox Lewis doesn’t want to fight me,” Chris Byrd screamed to the world. “Emmanuel is the one who knows that my style would make life impossible for Lewis inside a boxing ring. Lennox is not going to touch me and Emmanuel knows that. He also knows that I’m not going to stand in front of him and make myself available to be hit.”

Indeed, knowing that Lennox had never looked dim-witted to me, especially inside the four ropes, I started to search and research for the place where this “lament” of relinquishing his IBF heavyweight crown had come from. Pretty soon I had the pleasure of sighing with delight.

I discovered that Don King, boxing’s most “astute” negotiator, had decided to provide a gift of $1 million and a Range Rover automobile to the undisputed heavyweight king, to cover any emotional discomfort that the champ could have suffered from giving up the IBF championship belt.

No one can accuse King’s gifts of having anything to do with Lewis’ harsh decision. But the boxing world is very much aware that the aggressive promoter, like a magician from another planet, already has sensational future boxing cards that include:

1. Lennox Lewis versus Vladimir Klitschko
2. Chris Byrd versus Evander Hollyfield
3. John Ruiz versus Roy Jones, Jr.

Looking at such possibilities, anyone who knows and understands this immature business -from the prizefighter point of view- of pugilism, may think that there will be no losers in that program. But everyone would suspect that the one extracting the most gold from all that confusion and manipulation would be none other than Mr. Don King.

The spectacular promoter will again be in control of the heavyweights in professional boxing -the dream of every promoter- showing us all that he’s still in charge of the perspicacity that has characterized him all throughout his boxing career.

However, if we are lucky, and by the time King’s maneuvers have subsided, all mediums and boxing fans, should claim from the astute promoter and the TV media involved in fight promotions, to start complying with the full disclosure clause which stipulates the airing of all fight income, as demanded by the Muhammad Ali Bill, an active Federal law for almost two years now. I wouldn’t mind seeing in black and white all the earnings received by everyone involved in boxing promotions including the promoter, sanctioning organization, cable TV, boxing commission… and also an explanation of the role they played in it.

Although promoter Bob Arum told me recently that as a promoter he divulges all the numbers in writing after each promotion, I’ve never heard or seen such generosity from anyone, except prizefighters. We all know the income of a boxer, and what they do to earn it. It would be of great delight to many of us to see how the money produced by the sweat and blood of prizefighters is shared in their business.

When one looks at the consequence of conditions like those mentioned in this article, one has to realize that the prizefighter has no voice and no vote in the business he produces. For without boxers, there will be no boxing business. And as it is, the boxer is abused and treated as a second-class citizen in his own terrain.

As such there is only one route left for the prizefighter to take: A Union! They would then have their own powerhouse!

The Boxers Organizing Committee (BOC) has been working on that for over ten years, under the magnificent leadership of Paul Johnson, from Minnesota. I’ve been advising him for the last three years. Boxing fans should get together and scream to the world that boxers must unite and demand their rights to become a collective force, just like the baseball, basketball and soccer players, as well as movie actors, and most working people in this country.

After all, prizefighting is one of the most popular sports in the USA. So that to demand equality for prizefighters in the sports world is not only a right, but an obligation.

We shouldn’t wait any longer. We must do it now!

But, who is stirring all this commotion? None other than the two pugilists.

De La Hoya has always been conscious that the power of the loud word could be used as an effective weapon in every debate, including boxing. But it looks as if Vargas is no fool by a long run. With uncommon surprise, he was the one to show signs of having bad blood with Oscar. “Oscar is no Mexican,” Vargas told the press with anger. “Mexicans don’t run away from opponents the way he did with Trinidad. Mexicans do like I do, they take risks like a pure macho man, to hit and get hit. And that’s why I consider Oscar a simple American boxer, with an American style.”

Oscar couldn’t remain quiet. “I’m tired of his insults and lies! He screamed. “Due to this consistent behavior I refused to fight him so that he wouldn’t make millions. For, the only fight that could produce him ten times more money than with any other opponent, was with me. I’m the only boxer he can get rich with. Now to hell with it; I’m going to make him rich, but he’ll pay in that ring when I finish with him. He’s gonna get what he deserves.”

Indeed, Oscar is getting lots of attention from the media, and not because he’s handsome –and he is. His prominence has been increasing consistently even though he suffered two defeats –a close decision at the hands of Félix Trinidad and another against Shane Mosley, two super champions of extraordinary talent. The man is charismatic and has a sensitive personality, which contrast immeasurably with his pugilistic ability. Outside the ring he looks like an altar boy.

Meanwhile, Fernando gives the impression of being the kind of brave prizefighter boxing fans imagine –strong with protruding muscles, super macho and ready to accept punishment in his effort to attain victory. His insults to Oscar make him seemed like a guerrilla man ready to offer his life with the classic valor of a Mexican macho-man.

Of course, a victory over his colleague –calling him “compatriot” may bother Vargas- would make Fernando at least a Four-Star General in the army of the Pure Mexican Machos.

Still, watching how poison has always been the clue for the successful marketing and publicity of boxing promotions, De La Hoya is not impressed with it. He obviously recognizes that to allow Vargas’ insults affect him emotionally could represent accumulation of points for his adversary.

“I’m not mad at Fernando, and feel no hate for him,” De La Hoya said. “I have been involved in boxing and its gossip for a long time, and I’m conscious that all is the same everywhere I go.”

Stating that he can deal with that kind of gossip without losing any concentration on the fight, Oscar continued: “If this fight is considered the most important one of his boxing career, he better watch out for he’s going to be painfully disappointed.”

From Vargas’ camp we heard a different song. The man couldn’t be better physically. He’s enjoying a magnificent physical condition, with a body that seems one of a weight-lifter and a new muscular definition in his chest, shoulders and abdomen.

Indeed, Oscar is fully aware that the muscular aspects of a prizefighter are not considered relevant in boxing, unless his rival possesses the physical, psychological and emotional condition prevalent in Oscar.

In any event, the Latino population is on its feet expecting an exciting fight from these two troublemakers. And, frankly, this is one of those fights very difficult to figure out. For now I would advise caution to every bettor. Don’t place every penny you have on either of the combatants. It would be a most dangerous risk.

They both have the physical tools to destroy the other. Oscar is a master at getting out of trouble when in danger, and he knows how to accompany his escapades from danger with great backing from an explosive artillery he always produces from –seemingly- nowhere. Meanwhile, Fernando employs a volatile pressure very difficult to resist, backed by a devastating bombing session that destroys anything it finds in its way.

I know, for example, that the principal conflict that both will be forced to undertake has to do with the mean pressure and great punch of Fernando Vargas. But, could Oscar De La Hoya overcome that with his experience and intelligence?

I’ve always been impressed with Fernando Vargas. He’s one of the best boxers of his time.

But Oscar De La Hoya’s brainpower is awesome. And you all know my view of boxing at the top level. I always pick the one who best uses his head instruments, as killer bombs come rushing his way.

It was confusing, really. You tuned in expecting to see a fist fight and  instead, you get the opening act at the MGM. You get dancing girls and  flashing lights and glitter and a wailing fighter pretending he’s a rap star.

And you get this pained look on your face, thinking you missed the  fight and now you have to sit through the Gorgeous George show.

When Roy Jones Jr., finally left the dance stage Saturday night after  his prefight theatrics, he climbed into the ring and went about his business with his  usual efficiency, toying with a game but seriously out-gunned Clinton Woods.

It wasn’t a fight as much as it was a guest appearance by Jones, a quick  cameo for all the beautiful people who pay top dollar to witness a beating.

Woods had as much chance of beating Jones as Barney Fife. What Jones did to Woods was what he’s been doing for the last couple  years: boring us to death. You’ve got to believe HBO is wondering how it can  get out of this crazy, multi-fight contract mess with Jones. Maybe if he  fought someone we’d heard of before - someone who actually knows how to slip
a punch and throw one - he’d clean up his reputation. Because right now, he’ s popular in that strange, Michael Jackson sort of way: You shrug your shoulders and wonder what the hell is going on inside his head.

He’s either the best fighter in the world or the best manipulator - the  best dodger - the fight game has ever seen. The last time he shared the ring  with someone dangerous, it was Don King. Or maybe it’s just the light-heavyweight division going through some  rough times. Maybe there’s no other 175-pounder out there who can fight, who  knows how to slip a punch, throw an uppercut or land a right cross. Woods  showed heart, but after awhile, you get tired of seeing all the blood.

Guys with heart are always getting beat up.

Now that he’s made his mark in the journeymen-fighter circuit,  Jones should either fight WBO champ Dariusz Michalczewski or Antonio Tarver,  or he should get out of the light-heavyweight division.

A fight with IBF cruiserweight champ Vassily Jirov would be interesting,  but that won’t happen. Jirov is a legitimate threat. Jones knows who to fight. He’s made a career out of it.

Let’s try the heavyweights.

Lennox Lewis? You’re joking. The Klitschko  boys?

Another knee slapper. David Tua? Get serious.

How about John Ruiz, the WBA champ? His name keeps showing up in all the  Roy Jones stories.

Why Ruiz? Because Jones knows he can beat him. Ruiz is a nice guy with  heart, but compared to Jones, he's slower than the month of January and  easier to catch than a two-legged dog. He throws a punch and clinches, throws  a punch and clinches. He’s hand-made for Jones, a large, slow moving target  who couldn’t get out of the way of a stalled truck.

They don’t start thinking about becoming heavyweight champion of the world.

Still, Witherspoon (55-11-1, 38 KOs) has that overhand right that won’t go away, won’t let him quit. It’s there patiently waiting for another chance, another young career to ruin. If Witherspoon has lost anything over the years, it wasn’t his ability to end fights early. Punching power is usually the last thing to abandon a fighter. If you can knock guys out when you’re 24, you can knock them out when you’re 44. Like George Foreman, Witherspoon has that gift. It’s already carried him to two world championships.

Now he hopes he can ride it to a third.

He’ll be packing that overhand right with him on Sunday when he takes on Lou Savarese (42-4, 34 KOs) at the Table Mountain Casino in Friant, CA., for the NABO heavyweight championship.

Billed as King of the Mountain, the fight will help decide who gets to move to the next square and who has to go back three spaces. The winner will earn some kind of heavyweight outskirts bragging rights, though it’s hard to say exactly what those will be. While Witherspoon has that “not so secret’’ overhand right, Savarese isn’t coming into this fight unarmed or unaware. A heavy-hitter himself, he’s stunned his share of  heavyweight hopefuls, though he was pretty much the stunnee against Mike Tyson. But so were a lot of good heavyweights.

Still, the legend in this fight belongs to Witherspoon. He’s the one with the infamous punch, the second childhood and the two heavyweight titles.

“It would be idiotic to not be somewhat concerned about that punch,’’ Savarese said recently. “Tim is still dangerous. You’ve just got to be smart about it.’’

As for what it feels like to be fighting an old man, Savarese, at 37, knows better than to consider Witherspoon anything less than a huge threat. Terrible Tim lands that one special punch and Savarese’s career is suddenly pitched into the abyss.

“Age isn’t that much of a factor,’’ he said. “Look at Larry Holmes and George Foreman and what they did when they were older. Look at Lennox (Lewis) and Evander Holyfield. Those guys are all getting older, but they’re also taking better care of themselves.’’

Like Witherspoon is doing.

What’s important to remember is that during his long career, Witherspoon was known to speed past the gym in order to arrive early at the party. Self-discipline has never been his strong suit. But at 44, he can’t get away with bad habits and still fight, and he knows it. His time left in the fight game is short and can be measured with a stopwatch. He can hear the seconds ticking away and that’s got to be the scariest thing of all.

Except for maybe that overhand right of his.

Ironically, Michael Mudd, the commissioner in question, was not even on hand that evening in Erlanger, Ky., when Page lapsed into a coma following his loss to Dale Crowe. But the ex-fighter, who had only been with the commission a matter of months, spoke freely about Page when questioned by an Associated Press reporter shortly after the fight.

When asked what would have prompted the 42-year-old to enter the ring for just $1500 that night, and whether Page's advanced age may have had anything to do with the injury, Mudd replied, "Look, your brain sits in liquid in your brain pan -- so your brain is constantly being crashed against one side of the cranium or the other during a fight. But some of these guys love boxing and they can't give it up." Mudd also spoke to representatives of other media outlets, including the Cincinnati Post and Cincinnati Enquirer, and did not appear to be laying the blame at the feet of anyone.

Nonetheless, this brought the wrath of Nancy Black, a shadowy figure who had never attended a professional fight before, and whose appointment to an administrative post as director of the Kentucky Athletic Commission was under dubious circumstances at best.

"Nancy Black called me, and honestly, I didn't even know who she was," says Mudd. "She told me , 'Well, I'm with the athletic commission, and I don't want you to talk to the press'. I told her, 'I'm going to talk to whoever I want to. This is still America.

"Then she said, 'I'm telling you right now - I don't want you talking to ANYBODY'. And I said, 'Nancy Black, fuck you'. It was as simple as that."

Shortly thereafter, Mudd was informed that he had been removed from the commission.

He wasn't altogether disappointed, considering the level of respect he had developed for his colleagues.

"They're just the biggest bunch of jerks," Mudd says. "Having them on the boxing commission is equal to having a guy refereeing a high school football game who had never been to a game before in his life."

With regard to the main culprit in the Page mess - Jack Kerns - Mudd is even more explicit. "Look, this guy never goes to a boxing gym; he only knows fighters by name, or if someone points it out to him. I don't know what the other boxing commissions are like, but this guy Jack Kerns is the biggest idiot that ever was."

Mudd asserts that, in terms of boxing, the other people involved with the commission were just as smart as Kerns. He uses Black as a perfect example.

"This woman had never been to a fight in her life before the Page fight, and here she was after that, in the dressing rooms, insisting that she sign on the wrapped hands," he says. "But she had never wrapped hands before. What the hell did she know? A trainer would tell her he wrapped his fighter's hands right, and she would sign off on it."

Mudd did not bad-mouth the commission in any public statements before, but he explains that it was only because "they didn't ask me the right questions."

"A guy from a local TV station (Mudd is from Louisville) came to interview me, and I was telling him before we went on the air that these people (his fellow commissioners) weren't qualified at all for their job," recounts Mudd. "But during the whole interview, this guy never bothered to ask me exactly what qualified someone to be a commissioner. I would have told him."

One thing Mudd didn't have any personal knowledge of were the events that unfolded last March 9, so he couldn't comment on the lack of oxygen at ringside. But he is among several sources who have told us that there has never been oxygen, or even a stretcher, on-site at any card the Kentucky Athletic Commission presided over before the Page-Crowe fight, even subsequent to the passage of Federal law that would require it.

"You don't have to be a rocket scientist to see what's wrong with the commission," Mudd says. "You've got a bunch of people who never had anything to do with boxing."

Mudd is a named defendant in a lawsuit filed by Page and his family this past March, since the defendants include not only the commission but each member of that commission individually; however, since he was not present at the time, it's likely he will be dropped somewhere along the way.

Not that he wouldn't want to get in a courtroom speech about Kerns, who he thinks concerned himself more with matchmaking than regulation.

"This is really a bad guy," he says. "The lowest of the low."

(Naturally, members of the Kentucky Athletic Commission could not be reached for comment)

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