Columnist Dean Juipe: Move to Las Vegas paid off for Adams

Dean Juipe

Thursday, Dec. 27, 2001 | 8:46 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.

Sitting at his kitchen table this week and looking out into the spacious backyard that complements his new home, Bones Adams finds it easy to reflect on what is and what might have been.

A respected yet stagnating fighter prior to moving to Las Vegas 23 months ago, Adams has since become a world champion and a well-paid craftsman. At 27 years old, he realizes the simple act of relocating to the fight capital of the world paid the type of dividends he was missing when he was based in his home state of Kentucky.

"It's almost like I was a genius," Adams said of his move here in January of 2000. "I said things would work out within six months, and by March 4 of last year I was a world champion only because I was here and ready to fight."

Stepping in for an injured Danny Romero to fight then-champion Nestor Garza for the World Boxing Association title at 122 pounds, Adams overcame 8-1 betting odds to win a decision that propelled him into the limelight.

While he has since relinquished that WBA belt and lost a disputed, split decision to Paulie Ayala, Adams remains on the cusp of greatness. He's fighting Ayala again, Feb. 23 at Mandalay Bay, and the stakes are at least equal to their first bout, which was worth $500,000 to each man.

"If I hadn't moved here, I'd still be fighting and waiting for a title shot and not getting paid much for it," Adams said. "The fight before Garza (vs. Aristead Clayton in New Orleans) I was paid only $5,000.

"Before that, I'd fought for $500 and had to pay my own way there."

Now he's living in a delightful house in an old but pristine Las Vegas neighborhood and is a borderline celebrity in a city teeming with big names.

"No promoter wanted to deal with me," he said of his pre-Vegas days, although he had links to Madison Square Garden before it ceased to exist as a promotional firm. "I felt I was out of it. I didn't really have anyone behind me."

Now he has signed James Prince as manager and retains a link to Top Rank, which promoted his fight with Garza as well as both of the fights against Ayala.

"I owe it all to Bruce Trampler," Adams said of the Top Rank matchmaker. "Top Rank had let me hang around their offices and Bruce knew I was in shape when he needed someone to fight Garza.

"He knew I was ready to go and I know he pushed the issue."

Adams would like to have the same fond view of Top Rank boss Bob Arum, but he doesn't feel the promoter has been as open toward him as he could.

"Bob doesn't really want to get to know his fighters, although I know he had breakfast with Paulie the morning of our fight," Adams said. "But I know how it goes and boxing's a business.

"Bob tries to get one over on me, and I try to get one over on him."

Popular demand brings Adams (41-4-3) and Ayala (33-1) back for a rematch of an Aug. 4 bout at the same Mandalay Bay site, although Adams promises there won't be a trilogy.

"We're not (Evander) Holyfield and (John) Ruiz," Adams says with a laugh, referring to the heavyweights who have fought three times and could conceivably meet again. "It's convenient for both of us to fight one another again ... if we didn't have each other we'd be fighting somebody just as tough for $75,000.

"But I know I want to move on, and Paulie has to feel the same."

Adams likes Ayala, likes him a lot in fact. Yet he can't explain the Texan's hold on Nevada's judges, who have enabled him to win no fewer than four extremely close fights in Las Vegas.

Ayala not only bested Adams in August, he took two slim wins over Johnny Tapia (in 1999 and 2000), with a majority win here over Johnny Bredahl in between.

The scoring in the first Adams vs. Ayala bout: Jerry Roth 115-112 for Ayala; Dave Moretti 114-113 for Ayala; and Duane Ford 114-113 for Adams.

"Paulie's a tremendous guy and this is nothing against him because he didn't do anything wrong, but I just don't get it," Adams said. "I don't know what it is. It could be his management, it could be Bob (Arum) or it could be Paulie himself, but there's something the judges like about him.

"I've always fought in the pros with the belief that the winner is the guy who throws the most effective blows. I know I had the most effective blows in our first fight."

Adams rallied from a 10-8 second round and overcame a damaged left eye to take Ayala to the wire in August in a fight held at 122 pounds, which is four more than Ayala usually carries.

"I enjoyed fighting him the last time but I don't know how he took the shots he did," Adams said. "Whew, I didn't even hurt him. It was amazing and I don't understand how he did it."

But a sense of compassion has also come into play.

"Between the shots he took from me and some other fights he's had, I hope he's OK," Adams said. "He's had a lot of hard fights. I hope he gets out of the game before too long."

Adams promises a rematch with as much intensity as his first fight with Ayala.

"We'll both go 100 percent," he said. "We'll fight as hard as we can, no matter what.

"We have to. We both like to please the crowd and if we didn't (go hard) there wouldn't be any bigger fights for us to move on to."