Busy boxing weekend on tap

Dean Juipe

Thursday, April 11, 2002 | 9:40 a.m.

Three cards in three days, that's what's in store for Las Vegas boxing fans this weekend as the Stardust, the Fremont Street Experience and the Hard Rock take turns hosting fights of varying significance.

Going chronologically, the Stardust will feature a rising local talent Friday; the downtown venues will offer a succession of younger fighters Saturday; and the Hard Rock has a main event in which a pair of veterans are featured Sunday.

The particulars follow:

Friday at the Stardust

Willie Stewart came through his first main-event assignment without any mishaps and has been rewarded with a second one, as he takes on Keith Sims in a 10-round super middleweight bout promoted by James Pollins.

Stewart, of Las Vegas, defeated Vitali Kopitko by unanimous decision on Dec. 1 at the Stardust to improve to 17-0. But this time he'd like to add to his knockout total, which stands at 10.

"I'm looking for a stoppage," Stewart said. "I don't want this fight to go the distance."

Prompted by Pollins' desire to push him toward a legitimate title, Stewart is very conscious of adding to his credentials and, correspondingly, his fan base.

"I don't really feel pressure, because you put your a-- on the line every time you fight," Stewart said. "But there is a pressure on me to win and perform, and a certain amount of pressure to put on a good show. I can't just win; I have to be impressive, too."

Sims -- described as an "aggressive boxer known for his flashy ring entrances" in a flier distributed by his manager -- is 17-7-1 with 10 KOs but has limited experience against top-flight competition.

"I haven't heard of the people he's fought," Stewart said, while acknowledging that Sims could look at Stewart's record and make the same claim.

Regardless, Stewart says he's feeling fit and is ready to fight.

"I'm in better shape now than I was (in December)," he said. "I've been running at Mt. Charleston three times a week, three or four miles at a time. I know what I've got to do and I'm confident I can do it."

Pollins hopes so.

"I know Willie has been working hard," he said. "I'd like to move him along and I told him there's a lot of pressure on him. He has to look good and dominate.

"Willie has some ability and I think there are a lot of guys in the top 10 that he can beat handily."

Also scheduled on the 7 p.m. card: Chauncy Welliver, 8-1-1, vs. Francis Royal, 4-3, six rounds, heavyweights; Almazbek Raymkulov, 6-0, vs. Alfonso Garcia, 3-4, six rounds, light heavyweights; Artur Petrostan, 8-4, vs. Adam Gonzalez, 8-5, six rounds, junior middleweights; Alex Bunema, 19-3-1, vs. TBA, six rounds, junior middleweights; Robert Ortiz, 3-0, vs. Altamir Souza, 0-1, four rounds, lightweights; and Yvone Caples, 4-3-1, vs. Para Draine, 10-4, four rounds, women.

Saturday on Fremont Street

Luis Collazo is a mere 20 years old yet finds himself in the enviable position of topping a Showtime card for the second time in eight months. That's not only a sign of potential, but of being well-connected.

"I'm excited about it," he said by phone from New York. "I've never been to Vegas, so fighting there puts a little pressure on me. But it should be fun."

Collazo, 14-0 with seven KOs, will meet Edwin Cassiani, 23-3 with 20 KOs, in a 10-round welterweight fight under the canopy of the Fremont Street Experience that tops the debut card of promoter Sterling McPherson. Showtime, under its ShoBox series logo, will televise.

"He's a southpaw and a damn good boxer," McPherson said of Collazo, who gained a decision win over Luis Alberto Santiago in his previous Showtime outing, last August. "This kid can fight, and I think the better the opponent the better he looks."

Cassiani, 29, has won his last six fights and figures to test his younger opponent.

"He's got some experience," Collazo said of Cassiani. "That makes him dangerous."

Collazo, whose most recent win was a TKO-4 over Orlando Milian Jan. 18 in upstate New York, realizes he's something of a novice yet has high hopes.

"I've got to keep training and practicing," he said. "I feel I'm improving, but when I look at the tapes after every fight I see where I stand and know there's always something else to learn.

"Hopefully, someday I'll be a world champion. Maybe in a year or a year and a half I'll be ready for a title shot."

Also scheduled on the 12:30 p.m. card: Victor Santiago, 16-1-1, vs. Jose Luis Tula, 14-7-2, 10 rounds, featherweights; and Guillermo Jones, 27-2-1, vs. Tim Williamson, 13-0, eight rounds, cruiserweights.

Sunday at Hard Rock

Derrick Harmon has seen the poster he shares with Roy Jones that's on the wall of The Jewelers of Las Vegas store on Western Avenue, and he hopes it won't be his only claim to fame by the time his career is complete.

Harmon, of Las Vegas, fought Jones 14 months ago in Tampa and lost when he was unable to answer the bell for the 11th round of the light heavyweight title fight. Now the question is: Can Harmon regain the stature that it takes to get into a fight that merits a splashy poster?

"If I win this fight here, hopefully it'll put me back in contention," Harmon said, referring to his main event at the Hard Rock with Glencoffe Johnson that tops a Goossen Tutor card to be televised by Fox Sports Net. "I've done everything right in training, so I'm looking forward to a good fight."

Harmon, 21-2 with 10 KOs, figures to have his hands full with Johnson, who is 38-7 with 27 knockouts and upset then-undefeated Thomas Ulrich last July in Germany. Earlier, he lost title fights to Sven Ottke and Bernard Hopkins.

"Both guys are right there," promoter Dan Goossen said of Harmon and Johnson being on the brink of a big fight. "The winner comes out with the ability to get a championship fight.

"We'll see who rises to the occasion."

Harmon says Johnson's style plays well with his.

"Glencoffe isn't going to do any running and that fits me perfectly," he said. "I don't have any problem with guys coming to me."

But Harmon, a southpaw, hasn't always been paired with opponents who make him look good, which is something Goossen addressed.

"Derrick has to realize what fans want to see is someone who takes the fight to the other guy," Goossen said. "There have been times when he shows his blood and guts in a fight, like against Jones, and then other times he looks kind of disinterested or lackluster, like he did against Greg Wright (in a 1999 loss).

"If he wants to elevate himself in the eyes of TV people and the fans, he needs more consistent performances."

Harmon agrees.

"There are nights that things don't click right," he said. "I try to be perfect every fight, but sometimes it just isn't happening."

But Harmon expects to look good against Johnson and he has the advantage of the experience of a fight with Jones.

"Jones has something most fighters just don't have: he's awkward and has great hand speed," Harmon said. "I've fought the best fighter in the division already."

A former NABF champion, Harmon is athletic and supposedly focused with this important fight at hand.

"Consistency is what I need at this point in my career," he said. "Glencoffe has won 38 fights, so I think it'll come down to who can get off against the other."

Also scheduled on the TV portion of the 2:30 p.m. card is a welterweight fight between Mohammad Abdullaev, 6-0, and Joel Salas, 10-1-1.