Columnist Dean Juipe: Vargas in peak form to fight Quartey

Dean Juipe

Thursday, March 30, 2000 | 9:30 a.m.

Dean Juipe's boxing notebook appears Thursday. His sports column appears Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Reach him at juipe@lasvegassun.com or 259-4084.

Fernando Vargas couldn't say it often enough: His condition is exemplary and he's ready, at 22 years old and with a mere 18 fights behind him, to defeat veteran Ike Quartey when they fight April 15 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

Speaking on a conference call this week, Vargas continually reiterated the improvements he has made in conditioning. Having added a strength trainer and a dietician, he's feeling his oats.

"I'm much quicker and more explosive," he said. "I feel like never before and I look like never before. I'm definitely more ripped than ever; I'm more defined."

Vargas, 18-0 with 17 knockouts and the IBF junior middleweight champion, realizes he has a fight on his hands. But his confidence is peaking for a bout that figures to attract a capacity crowd in the 11,000-seat arena.

"Some people think I'm rushing it, some people think I'm not," Vargas said. "But I want to show I can beat these type of guys. Quartey gets up for fighters that are tough, and I'm looking forward to that."

Quartey, 30, is 34-1-1 with 29 knockouts but hasn't fought in 14 months. Extended layoff or not, he's a deadly fighter with a host of skills.

"I can't underrate him because he's had a layoff," Vargas said from his training camp in Big Bear, Calif. "He had another (16-month) layoff before he fought (Oscar) De La Hoya, and what happened?"

What happened was Quartey lost a split decision that many in the audience that night disputed.

"If I beat Ike Quartey and beat him convincingly and maybe even knock him out, people are going to make their own comparisons and see who was better," Vargas said, referring to De La Hoya's inability to decisively whip Quartey. "Winning this fight will certainly move me to mega-stardom and I'll be where I always wanted to be. It'll be a great accomplishment in my life."

His manager, Shelly Finkel, said Vargas "is not hyping you. He really looks great." Likewise, his promoter, Gary Shaw of Main Events, said "Fernando is stronger than anyone has ever seen him. His agility is something to behold."

Vargas will have to be at his best to get past Quartey.

"He's no joke," Vargas said. "He has the best jab in the business; it's so powerful it's like a right hand. I know he's going to be ready."

He added that contrary to earlier reports, he did not predict he would win the fight within five rounds.

"Somebody made that up," Vargas said. "I have great confidence in myself but I never make a prediction and never will. I'm not Muhammad Ali.

"I don't have anything bad to say about Quartey."

Vargas said he is within four pounds of being at weight and that he's ready to go.

"I feel I'm going to take this fight to another level because of my conditioning," he said. "I want to show that sometimes you don't need 30 or 40 fights to be a great fighter."

* McCULLOUGH STEWS: Las Vegas resident Wayne McCullough, a super bantamweight and former world champion who is 23-3, is upset with his promotional team.

"America Presents is in breach of our contract," he said Wednesday. "I haven't been offered a fight in 120 days."

That contract, which expires in July, has another stipulation that America Presents has not lived up to, McCullough said.

"My next three fights have to be in Great Britain or Ireland and I know they can't do it," the Irishman claimed. "It's been four and a half years since I've fought in Belfast, and that's a long, long time.

"If they're busy with other fighters, I understand. But I need to fight in my homeland. I'm not asking for much."

A proposal that he fight on an April 29 card in England fell through, and he rejected a May 30 fight in Chicago on the grounds that it wouldn't do him any good.

"Fighting in Chicago doesn't make any sense for me," McCullough said. "The places I should be fighting are Las Vegas, where I've only fought three times, and Ireland. These are things they promised me.

"I'm almost 30 and I only want to fight for a couple more years, so time is running out. They may think my career is already coming to an end, but I know it's not because I live clean. I know there are other promoters who are interested in me if Mat (Tinley) and Dan (Goossen) want to get out."

* DRAWING TO A PAIR: Hard as it is to believe, both Las Vegas fighters who were competing out of town last week fought to draws. In New Orleans last Friday, Limmie Young was knocked down in the sixth and final round and had to accept a draw with Charles Daughtry. Young slips to 9-1-1.

In Huntington Park, Calif., last Saturday, John Palaki failed to completely handle journeyman Benito Rodriguez and was held to a draw in an eight-round fight at 130 pounds. Palaki is 22-1-2.

* LAUGHLIN CARD: Simultaneous with the Saturday card at Regent Las Vegas, Harrah's in Laughlin will conduct a show that has heavyweights Obed Sullivan (34-6-1) and Jeff Lally (23-18-1) in the 10-round main event. Six other fights are scheduled, including two of some local interest: Derrick Harmon, 19-1, vs. Armando Campos, 8-23-4, eight rounds, light heavyweights; and Brian LaSpada, 28-7-4, vs. Sam Hampton, 21-7-2, six rounds, light heavyweights. Harmon is a current Las Vegas resident and LaSpada is a former one.

* QUICK HITS: If it comes off, the Evander Holyfield vs. John Ruiz heavyweight fight will go June 10 (instead of June 3) at Caesars Palace. Being discussed as a companion main event that night is a fight between junior middleweight champs Felix Trinidad and James Page. ... For the June 3 date, promoter Don King now has light flyweights Pichinoi Siriwat and Rosendo Alvarez set for Caesars. ... Bam Promotions of Las Vegas has resumed business and has an April 9 card at Lake Tahoe. ... Local junior welterweight Vince Phillips, 40-5, has Ricky Quiles, 29-4-1, for an opponent April 28 in Lafayette, La. ... Unified light heavyweight champ Roy Jones will announce today that he's fighting Richard Hall May 13 in Indianapolis. ... Incarcerated heavyweight Ike Ibeabuchi is scheduled to be in court today regarding the sexual-assault charges pending against him. The tr ial had been delayed in an effort to reach a plea agreement. ... Bantamweight Johnny Tapia says he'll fight Javier Torres May 6 in Las Cruces, N.M., and do it without trainer Freddie Roach, who has left the fighter's camp.