Columnist Dean Juipe: Cannery decides to put a lid on boxing business

Dean Juipe

Thursday, Aug. 14, 2003 | 10:02 a.m.

Dean Juipe's column appears Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. His boxing notebook appears Thursday. Reach him at juipe@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4084.

The debut had its entertaining moments and appeared to be a success. The stands were set for 1,500 and were almost completely filled with 1,200 paying customers and another 300 comps.

That was May 7.

Since then the new Cannery hotel-casino in North Las Vegas has backed away from boxing, having had one potential card fall through at virtually the last minute and twice withdrawing requests for dates from the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

The Cannery was to have had a card Friday. And one on Sept. 16.

Instead, it will do neither.

"We were trying to do a low-cost boxing series on an occasional basis," Cannery vice-president of marketing Tom Willer said Wednesday. "But there's a real question of its feasibility. There are so many expenses."

But promoter Richard Steele, who did the May 7 show and had middleweight Rene Arostegui signed to headline the now-canceled Sept. 16 card, finds the Cannery's position difficult to comprehend.

"I don't understand it," he said. "They had to make money on the first show, but they've backed down ever since.

"I went back to them and said 'Just give me four dates and let's see what happens,' but they wouldn't do it."

The Cannery's boxing point man, former UNLV athletic director Dennis Finfrock, has also resigned. He, however, has health issues that played as great a role in his departure from the Cannery as its lack of current interest in boxing.

"There are no bad guys in this and we have the greatest respect for Richard," Willer said. "There were just some practical problems from our perspective."

He also denied that the Cannery's position on boxing is at least partly the result of rumored cash-flow problems at the casino.

Steele is attempting to regroup and find a hotel where he can put on a monthly card.

"I'm looking for a hotel that will come up to bat and be a place where local fighters can work on their trade and a place where fans can see monthly fights," he said. "There need to be club fights in town where fans don't have to pay $100 to get in.

"I'm always going to put on competitive fights because I don't own any fighters and don't want to own any. I can put on a card where it's $30 to sit ringside and everyone will leave happy.

"That's what I was looking to do when I first went to the Cannery.

"It's too bad it didn't work out. The fans need it and it seemed like the right location."

Ray Leonard will promote a card Sept. 5 at the Stardust and will use Lonnie Bradley in the main event if the Nevada State Athletic Commission approves. ... Barry's Boxing (2763 S. Highland) will host an amateur card Saturday that includes 12 fights as part of the Police vs. Fire Dept. Games. Admission is free. ... World Boxing Association featherweight champion Derrick Gainer suffered a torn pectoral muscle and had to pull out of his televised Saturday unification fight with International Boxing Federation champion Juan Manuel Marquez in Uncasville, Conn. Marquez, 40-2, will, instead, face Marcos Licona, 20-3-1, in a nontitle fight scheduled for 10 rounds.

Promoter Murad Muhammad used the term "done deal" late last week to informally announce that WBA heavyweight champ Roy Jones Jr. would face Corrie Sanders Nov. 8, but the fight remains in doubt. Jones, 48-1, has since said he would rather face light heavyweight antagonist Antonio Tarver. The proposed Jones vs. Sanders fight was being offered to various Las Vegas properties until Jones undermined it and Muhammad by saying he saw no need to fight Sanders, a much bigger man than himself who is 39-2. ... Yerington's Jesse Brinkley headlines an ESPN2 card Friday from Gardnerville and will step up the quality of his competition by facing former contender Danny Perez. Brinkley is 21-1 and Perez is 28-3 and they're scheduled for 10 rounds at 154 pounds.