Thursday, Oct. 30, 1997 | 9:28 a.m.
His previous trainer quit in frustration, walking away from big money and a heavyweight champion.
Dealing with Michael Moorer just wasn't worth it as far as Teddy Atlas was concerned and he bailed out following Moorer's somnambulistic March 29 victory over Vaughn Bean at the Las Vegas Hilton. Goodbye and good riddance was Atlas' closing shot.
Stepping in to replace him is Freddie Roach, a former fighter and now a Los Angeles-based trainer.
He said this week from L.A. that training at his Wildcat Gym is going very well and that Moorer looks to be at his peak both mentally and physically. Roach went so far as to say Moorer may surprise his many critics and not only defeat fellow world champion Evander Holyfield Nov. 8 at the Thomas & Mack Center but handle him convincingly.
"I think Michael could win easy," Roach said. "I believe Evander will come out quick and that the first three or four rounds will be critical. He'll try to force the fight early and come out and jump on Michael.
"But that's fine with me because I have the stronger guy. Evander is sculptured but Michael's stronger and can push him around."
The quick-start scenario may be wishful thinking on Roach's part or it may be precisely what Holyfield has in mind.
"Evander took this fight because he feels he has something to prove," Roach said, referring to Moorer's 1994 victory over Holyfield at Caesars Palace. "He believes his loss to Michael was a fluke.
"The thing is, Michael has the style to beat him. It's like Mike Tyson complemented Holyfield's style, but Holyfield complements Moorer's style.
"But I think Evander will want to establish early that he's the man, so we're training as if we'll have to keep pace with him and maybe even take advantage of him."
Toward that goal, Roach said Moorer has been roughing up his sparring partners and one of them, veteran Everton Davis, agreed.
"Moorer's strong as an ox," said Davis, who added that he has never been knocked down in 22 professional fights while admitting he tasted the canvas during a sparring session with Moorer. "He surprised me. I've been there with everybody and no one has ever knocked me down before."
Roach feels Moorer, the IBF champion with a 39-1 record, had become complacent in previous training camps and that was one reason for a lack of aggressiveness in his fights.
"Teddy didn't want him knocking out sparring partners," he said. "But it's OK with me. I've given him the green light. He's been very aggressive in sparring and I believe it will carry over to the fight and that he'll fight like he trained."
While not being critical of Atlas per se, Roach said the sparring mentality speaks for itself.
"Michael grew up in the Kronk Gym (in Detroit) where it was a war every day," he said. "Then, with Teddy, his sparring became passive. I want to get him back to like he was at Kronk."
He said his relationship with Moorer has been one of mutual respect.
"I think I'll get a lot more out of him by being his friend than by being his enemy," Roach said. "So far, so good. He's boxed three days a week and we've gone 12 hard rounds on the mitts other days. He's responded well and I'm very happy with his progress."
Holyfield, the WBA champion with a 33-3 record, remains a slight betting favorite -- he's a --240 and Moorer's a +200 at most sports books in town -- but Roach said at least this time Moorer will be ready to perform.
"If Michael's not motivated for fighting Evander Holyfield," he said, "well, then, he never will be."
Moorer, Roach and their attendants will arrive in Las Vegas on Saturday and will train at least early next week at The Mirage.
Steward weighs in
One man, Emanuel Steward, has trained both Moorer and Holyfield in years past and he said this week on a conference call that he likes Holyfield to take the Nov. 8 rematch. "Holyfield can use footwork because Moorer has never proved he can use footwork, and Holyfield can also go the other way and go inside and start slugging toe to toe," Steward said. "Moorer could win the fight but he has to put a lot more pressure on Holyfield and not let Holyfield fight in spots. Holyfield has too many all-around tendencies going for him."
Steward, who trained Moorer from 1987 to '92 and who had Holyfield for two fights in 1993, said "it's going to be interesting to see where each guy is mentally. If both are up on a high level, it could be a very explosive fight."
He also said Moorer approached him about training him for this fight, but that he turned it down for "ethical" reasons because he also trains WBC heavyweight champ Lennox Lewis. Another possible reason Steward rejected Moorer's offer is his belief that "Moorer is the strangest kid you'll ever meet. He doesn't like boxing; he has a total dislike for boxing. He's totally preoccupied with not wanting to be hurt but when he gets enraged and really wants to impress someone, he's the opposite. He's very inconsistent."
Around the ring
In a stunning result Tuesday night in Philadelphia, Las Vegas super middleweight Joseph Kiwanuka suffered his second professional loss and relinquished his NABF championship to veteran Thomas Tate. Kiwanuka, 25-2-2, was looking to avenge his only pro defeat yet Tate, once again, was up to the task and prevailed with an 11th-round knockout that sent Kiwanuka through the ropes. The referee did not start a count and immediately stopped the fight. Tate, who won by decision over Kiwanuka two years ago, improved to 33-5. ... That loss knocks Kiwanuka out of a mandatory title shot with IBF champion Charles Brewer, who will take a Dec. 2 fight in Philly with Joey DeGrandis. ... The Nevada State Athletic Commission has named Mitch Halpern to referee next week's Holyfield vs. Moorer fight. The NSAC also appointed Jerry Roth of Las Vegas, Glen Hamada of Washington, and Stanley Christodoulou of South Africa as judges for the fight. ... Dr. Elias Ghanem has been reappointed chairman of the NSAC. ... Promoter Don King won the purse bid for the IBF junior welterweight title fight between Vince Phillips of Las Vegas and No. 1 contender Freddie Pendleton. The fight appears set for Dec. 13 but the site remains uncertain, although Phillips' manager, Akbar Muhammad, said this week the fight could end up in Las Vegas. ... Longtime referee and boxing judge Davey Pearl of Las Vegas said "I've never enjoyed myself so much" when asked about being inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in Los Angeles last Saturday. "It's the best treatment I've ever received in my life," he said Wednesday. "I'll never forget it. Everything went smoothly and my speech went over so well I couldn't believe it."
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