Columnist Dean Juipe: McCline foresees upset of Grant

Dean Juipe

Thursday, July 19, 2001 | 11:16 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.

Given the prominence of the heavyweight division, the stakes will be extremely high Saturday night at Caesars Palace when Michael Grant takes on Jameel McCline in the primary undercard bout beneath the Shane Mosley vs. Adrian Stone welterweight title fight.

Grant is 31-1 with 22 knockouts but hasn't fought in 15 months.

McCline is 25-2-3 with 15 KOs and hasn't lost since his fifth professional fight.

The betting line at Caesars is offering terrific value for those who feel an upset is at hand, as the relatively unknown McCline is a plus 650 to Grant's minus 950.

"I say this humbly, but if Grant's not already on a downward slide, I'll put him on it," McCline said Wednesday. "He's been off for a long time and had a couple of surgeries and lost his last fight, so he's got to have some self-doubt -- especially compared to me."

McCline, 31, has emerged as a decent fighter and would join the upper ranks of the division with a win over Grant.

"The level of calmness I have is unbelievable," he said. "I've had weeks and weeks of training and I'm just so calm, it's almost as if I'm not concerned.

"This fight is coming at the exact right time for me. When we were asked 'Yes or no, do you want to take this fight?' how could I hesitate?

"It's a dream come true to participate at this level, and it's a chance for me to fulfill my destiny."

Las Vegas fans have had only one look at McCline but it was a stunner. Last January at the Hard Rock he flattened King Ipitan in the opening round and made quick work of a fight that looked competitive on paper.

McCline has since defeated former cruiserweight world champion Al Cole by decision in Norfolk, Va.

He's getting $100,000 for this fight, while Grant takes home $200,000.

"I know Jameel McCline and by no means is he a 'set-up' guy for Michael," said Grant's new trainer, Teddy Atlas. "He's a solid fighter."

Of course Grant has the bigger name and greater experience, having defeated David Izon and Andrew Golota before losing by second-round knockout to then-champ Lennox Lewis in April of last year.

"I expect a tough fight, but, to be honest, every fight is tough for me," Grant said. "I only had 12 amateur fights, so I don't have a long background in the sport.

"I feel I'm still learning and that if I was fighting a middleweight it would still be a tough fight for me."

Now 28, Grant is newly aligned with not only Atlas but Cedric Kushner Promotions.

"He's one of the most gifted athletes in the history of the heavyweight division," said his co-manager, Jim Thomas. "We think we've made the adjustments that needed to be made."

It's a significant test for each of the fighters, yet one Grant said he is ready to face.

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't fully prepared," he said.

As for McCline's comment about contributing to Grant's "downward slide," Grant said he took no offense.

"But," he added, "if he said those things about me, he'd better be ready to live up to his words."

At the same site one night earlier, Friday, Kushner Promotions also has a card, this one featuring all heavyweights.

Scheduled: Attila Levin, 19-1, vs. Ray Austin, 15-2, 10 rounds; Robert Davis, 24-2, vs. Sedreck Fields, 15-13, 10 rounds; Talmadge Griffis, 18-1-2, vs. Lovy Page, 14-5, six rounds; Roman Bugaji, 10-1-1, vs. Charles Hatcher, 13-2, six rounds; Willie Palms, 8-0, vs. Derrell Dixon, 12-4, six rounds; Chikashi Inada, 5-0, vs. Adriano Dos Santos, 2-6-1, six rounds; Todd Diggs, 3-2-3, vs. Freddy Gatica, 3-2, four rounds; and Mark Tullius, 1-2, vs. Chris Sparks, 0-1, four rounds.

Levin, who is trained by the legendary Angelo Dundee, is the focal point of the card and will be trying to add to his still-developing credentials. While he was upset by Earl Hayes last year in New York, Levin does have some ability and has won 16 of his fights by knockout. In Austin, he gets a fighter of similar stature, albeit one who defeated Hayes when he faced him after Hayes had beaten Levin.

The sports book at Caesars has Levin up as a minus 500 favorite, with Austin a plus 350.

The card opens at 7 p.m. and has tickets priced at $20 and $40.

Roy Jones is using local light heavyweight Joseph Kiwanuka as a sparring partner as he prepares for Julio Gonzalez July 28 in Los Angeles. ... Al Cole may get the job as Juan Carlos Gomez's opponent Aug. 4 at Mandalay Bay. ... Top Rank is working on a Dec. 1 card that will offer WBC featherweight champ Erik Morales in a rematch with Guty Espadas, as well as Marco Antonio Barrera in a separate event. The winners would meet next spring.