Columnist Dean Juipe: Lewis’ prediction could be right on the money

Dean Juipe

Thursday, Nov. 16, 2000 | 11:24 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.

Lennox Lewis believes a fight with Mike Tyson is probable, if not inevitable.

Speaking Wednesday on the ESPN show "Up Close," the World Boxing Council and International Boxing Federation heavyweight champion said negotiations for a bout with Tyson have already begun.

"I think it's going to come about," Lewis said. As for a possible conflict between cable rivals HBO (which has Lewis) and Showtime (which has Tyson), Lewis said "they're both talking now."

Lewis vs. Tyson figures to be a huge money fight for everyone involved. Lewis would also like to see the fight fall into place to secure his reputation.

"You could say the shine has come off Mike Tyson ... and I realize he's maybe got some kind of head problems," he said. "But Tyson's got some fans that want to see the fight and I've got some fans that want to see the fight.

"People aren't going to take him serious unless he comes up against me. A Tyson fight is economics for me and it would seal my spot in history.

"There's definitely an open door for him."

That door swung open the moment Lewis' unanimous decision victory over David Tua was announced following their one-sided fight last Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Events Center. Lewis, 38-1-1, won the fight by 10, 8 and 6 points on the judges' cards.

"At first I would have said Tua would be tougher than Tyson," Lewis said. "But it turns out Tua wasn't that hard.

"They said he had a great left hook but I wouldn't (rate it) that high. He actually did hit me a couple of times with it and nothing happened.

"He wasn't actually that strong."

As for the prefight expectation that Tua would take the fight to Lewis, the champion said many fans "didn't get what Tua promised them" and as the fight wore on Tua "got tired."

Those fans who didn't respond favorably to the fight or to the lack of a knockout failed to appreciate what Lewis was doing, he said.

"Those are people who missed out on the beauty of the sport," he said. "It's an art form. I'm a big man and that's the way I box. I'm not going to slug it out with a little guy."

Lewis added that he has not set his 2001 itinerary but that a fight with Tyson would be a natural for Las Vegas. Asked about the location for the lucrative bout, Lewis said "Maybe Nevada. Why not? It's the best place for it."

Ortega, ranked No. 8 by the IBF, is 29-7-1 with 18 knockouts. Williams is 18-3 with 13 KOs.

In the primary undercard bout, junior welterweights Arturo Rodriguez and Dagoberto Najera are paired in a rematch of an earlier fight won by Najera. Rodriguez is 10-5, Najera 11-4.

Three other fights are tentatively scheduled with a 7 p.m. opening bell. Tickets are $15 to $40.

Owned by the financially troubled Planet Hollywood, the All Star Cafe closed last year after opening late in 1996. Located within the Showcase Mall, the restaurant at one time boasted 250,000 "pedestrian visits" per week.

Backed by seven well-known athletes -- Andre Agassi, Monica Seles, Ken Griffey Jr., Joe Montana, Wayne Gretzky, Shaquille O'Neal and Tiger Woods -- the All Star Cafe was stocked with sports memorabilia.

It is unclear if the facility, if converted to a boxing theme, would contain a restaurant. The "Hall of Champions" name was the second option after Milstein was informed his first choice, "Boxing Hall of Fame," was a copyrighted title.

A May, 2001, opening was discussed if the project gets off the ground.

"He didn't do right by me," Williams said Wednesday before working out at Nevada Partners. "He lied to me about a rematch (with Vassily Jirov). It turns out he hadn't signed the contract for it."

Muhammad had led Williams to believe a rematch with Jirov -- who defeated Williams for the IBF title -- was contractually mandated, but Williams has since learned otherwise.

Williams, 33-5-1, last fought Aug. 10 and has no fights scheduled. But he's ranked No. 6 by the IBF (behind Alex Gonzalez, Torsten May, James Toney, Marcelo Dominguez and Carl Thompson) and is anxious to fight again for the title.

(Jirov, who recently parted ways with his promotional firm, Top Rank, has his mandatory due with Gonzalez and it apparently has gone to purse bid.)

"The USBA title (held by Gonzalez) will be vacant, so I'd like to fight for that," Williams said of a lesser championship that is sanctioned by the IBF. "One thing I can say for sure is that I'm not going to give up without getting my title back. I want it now more than ever. I'm hungry.

"Don't count me out."

He has said he will retire if his doctor believes it's appropriate.

"It's been hard not knowing for sure," McCullough said Wednesday. "I still don't know what he thinks, because he said he wanted to consult with some sports doctors yet.

"But we'll find out sooner or later."

Forbes, 18-1, and Brown, 22-7, will be paired with the vacant IBF junior lightweight title at stake.

"Brown's a tough guy, but Stevie is so fast, so strong and so motivated that I think there's more than a good chance he'll win," Duncan said. "I just don't see him being denied."

As of next Monday, Brown will join Forbes in training for the fight in Las Vegas.

Holmes is 67-6 and Weaver is 41-17. Holmes probably likes the idea of what may be a relatively easy fight with Weaver after turning down a potentially difficult fight with Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, who was once a light heavyweight champion under his given name, Eddie Gregory.

"Larry knew the challenge was out there," Muhammad said from his Las Vegas home. "He knows what I've been doing and that I wouldn't be a pushover.

"I'm not blaming him for not taking a fight with me, but I sure wish he would have. It would have been interesting while it lasted."

Local light heavyweight Miguel Jimenez, 19-1, may fight on a Dec. 5 card in Los Angeles and has been mentioned as a possible future opponent for WBO champ Dariusz Michalczewski in Germany. Jimenez added to his stock with a KO-5 win over Segundo Mercado last Friday at Mandalay Bay. ... Local heavyweight Cliff Couser, 20-6, is looking for a promotional deal and hopes to fight soon. "All of my fights have been hard," he said of building a resume without being attached to a major promoter. ... The Top Rank vs. Oscar De La Hoya lawsuit has a Dec. 27 date in federal court in Los Angeles. The fighter is looking to escape from his promotional contract with promoter Bob Arum's firm. ... Heavyweights Larry Donald, 38-1-1, and Obed Sullivan, 36-7-1, will headline a Nov. 28 card at the Orleans to be promoted by Don King. The companion feature has Nate Jones, 15-0, taking on fellow heavyweight Sam Hampton, 21-8-2. ... David Reid, 14-1, meets Kirino Garcia, 28-20-1, Nov. 26 at the Regent Las Vegas. Reid, moving up a division after losing to Trinidad, is eyeing a fight with IBF middleweight champ Bernard Hopkins next year. ... No boxing notebook next week as the Sun does not publish on Thanksgiving.