Columnist Dean Juipe: Texas Station card will help cash-hungry UNLV program

Dean Juipe

Thursday, Feb. 15, 2001 | 10:16 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.

The program just marked its second birthday and there isn't much doubt that the UNLV club boxing team has been an artistic success.

But financially?

Well, that's another story.

"To be honest, I thought it would be a little easier," head coach Skip Kelp said Wednesday. "We're poor. We need a serious donor."

Without any support from the university beyond the right to use a bunker-like facility that serves as its on-campus gym, Kelp's team scrounges for the basic necessities and the money it takes to fund travel expenses.

Currently in the midst of a schedule that will lead to the national tournament in Reno April 5-7, UNLV has a nine-bout card lined up for Saturday night at the Texas Station. Proceeds will benefit not only Kelp's team but Nevada Partners and the Center Ring gym, both in North Las Vegas.

"We do need the money," Kelp said, "but Texas Station wanted to spread (the ticket money) around a little bit, which is fine."

Tickets are priced at $10 and $20, with UNLV students and children under 12 admitted for $5.

All nine scheduled bouts on the 6 p.m. Texas Station card will feature UNLV fighters. Of those nine, Kelp said he has "three or four who really have good chances" of winning national titles.

Foremost among the Rebels is Manny Libatique, a 125-pounder with a national championship already under his belt. He's coming off a knockout victory earlier this month over a leading rival from Penn State.

Kelp also mentioned Jose Gonzalez (139 pounds), Joey Song (119) and a pair of fighters at 112, Xenon Mallari and Lynden Manalopou.

Song, who Kelp said "has improved incredibly" in recent months, may have the toughest fight Saturday, as he will face "his nemesis from the Air Force."

Aside from the Academy, other schools with representatives on the card include California, Nevada-Reno and Lock Haven (Pa.).

NCAA regulations prohibit collegiate fighters from having had more than five amateur fights before the age of 16.

UNLV's 2001 schedule also includes a visit to Reno next week and March 3 at either Kentucky or Cal. NCAA regional competition will be held March 22-24 in Las Vegas at a site to be determined, followed by the nationals at UNR.

Crayton, 31-14-2 with 19 knockouts, is scheduled to face Rogelio Casteneda, 13-5-2 with four KOs, in the 10-round main event. "I was in great shape (then)," Crayton said of the delay, "but I'm in better shape now."

Also scheduled for a card that opens at 7 p.m. are: Dustin Kim, 15-1, vs. Jorge Monzon, 14-8, eight rounds, featherweights; Tabu Thomas, 3-0, vs. Larry Banks, 3-9, four rounds, middleweights; Juan Ruiz, 2-0, vs. Alejandro Lopez, 0-4, four rounds, featherweights; and Cederic Ferguson vs. Juan Pablos in a battle of fighters making their pro debuts.

It was a poorly organized and attended press conference, but Naseem Hamed eventually showed up Tuesday at the MGM to say a few words about Las Vegas and fighting here for the first time, as he will do April 7 when he takes on Marco Antonio Barrera. Hamed, 35-0, is a minus 280 betting favorite in the MGM sports book over Barrera, who is 52-3 and a plus 220. ... The MGM sports book also has Evander Holyfield at a minus 240 and John Ruiz at a plus 200 for their March 3 heavyweight title fight at Mandalay Bay. It is also listing Zab Judah at a minus 170 and Kostya Tszyu at a plus 140 for a May 19 junior welterweight unification title fight that does not yet have a site. ... Fernando Vargas vs. Wilfredo Rivera is apparently on for April 28 at a site to be determined. The HBO card will also have WBC lightweight champ Jose Luis Castillo in with Juan Lazcano, negating an earlier announced Lazcano vs. Stevie Johnston fight that had been set for April 14 at Mandalay Bay on the Bernard Hopkins vs. Keith Holmes card.

The Holyfield vs. Ruiz undercard has taken shape and looks to include these fights: Rosendo Alvarez, 28-1-1, vs. Beibis Mendoza, 27-0, for Mendoza's WBA light flyweight title; Tim Austin, 21-0-1, vs. Jose Perez, 20-0-2, for Austin's IBF bantamweight title; Bruno Girard, 38-2-1, vs. Manny Siaca, 14-2, for Girard's WBA super middleweight title; and Miguel Angel Gonzalez, 44-2-1, vs. Manuel Gomez, 17-10, 10 rounds, welterweights. ... Felix Trinidad's fight with WBA middleweight champ William Joppy is officially on for May 5 at Mandalay Bay. That fight is the second half of a middleweight doubleheader which opens April 14 at the same site with Hopkins vs. Holmes. The winners will meet later this summer.

Don't get too caught up in the Lennox Lewis vs. Mike Tyson hype that surfaced this week with regard to a summer fight. They may very well meet, but it's far more likely to be in September when the pay-per-view audience is traditionally stronger than in any of the summer months. ... Don King says he'll take the Holyfield vs. Ruiz winner to China for a summer fight. ... Citing the death of his trainer's son, David Reid withdrew from a main event scheduled for Sunday in El Paso. Quinn Rose, 36, a Philadelphia policeman and the son of trainer Al Mitchell, was killed last week. Reid said he was "too upset" to fight Tony Menefee and that televised fight has been replaced by Enrique Sanchez vs. Carlos Contreras.