Thursday, Aug. 11, 2005 | 9:36 a.m.
Jeff Haney covers boxing for the Las Vegas Sun. Reach him at (702) 259-4041 or [email protected].
A series of nagging injuries has kept heavyweight Vitali Klitschko out of the boxing ring since last December, forcing the WBC champion to miss a highly anticipated appointment with Hasim Rahman, the former world champ and No. 1 contender.
As a result, promoter Don King petitioned the WBC to sanction Rahman's next fight as a so-called "interim championship" bout.
WBC officials agreed, ordering Klitschko to meet the winner at a date and site to be determined, according to King.
So Rahman said he's looking at Saturday's fight against Monte Barrett at the United Center in Chicago as his sport's equivalent of the NBA's Western Conference finals, with a megafight against Klitschko the prize for the winner.
"I absolutely feel this is a title fight," Rahman said on a national conference call. "Without a winner of this fight, there is no title shot -- so this is the title shot. ...
"I don't look at it as the heavyweight championship of the world, but it is a must-win to get to the heavyweight championship of the world."
Rahman, who is based in Las Vegas and trained here for Saturday's showdown against Barrett, makes no secret of his desire to secure a date with Klitschko, last seen battering Danny Williams on the way to a technical-knockout victory at Mandalay Bay.
A victory against Barrett, the WBC's No. 2 contender, should do the trick, Rahman said -- assuming Klitschko's injuries heal.
"I just want to get Klitschko in the ring. ... (I'll) do whatever it takes," Rahman (40-5-1, 33 knockouts) said. "This (decision to fight Barrett) is gonna make me look like a genius or a dunce ... and I've never been referred to as a dunce. ...
"Monte signed the contract first. He left me no choice. I've gotta answer the call."
While Rahman claims he has been successfully "multi-tasking" -- preparing to face Barrett while keeping one eye focused down the road on Klitschko -- Barrett maintains Rahman might be looking past him.
"Vitali who?" Barrett said. "Brother, please. I don't even know who he is. ...
"I don't do that (look ahead), baby. I leave that to Rahman."
Barrett (31-3, 17 KOs) said his training camp in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania is festooned with photographs of Rahman, and that to further motivate himself he spent time watching film of Rahman's best fights, including his big upset of Lennox Lewis in 2001 for the world heavyweight title.
"The only thing I'm thinking about is Hasim Rahman," Barrett, a 2-1 betting underdog, said. "When I wake up, when I'm running, when I'm eating ... all I see is Hasim Rahman. ...
"When I look at Rock's (fight) tapes, I look at his best tapes. I don't look at his worst. I know the best Rock will show (Saturday) ... he'll say, 'Monte beat me on my best day.' "
Though Rahman and Barrett have a genial relationship outside the ring, the friendship won't be a factor Saturday, Barrett said.
"I was good friends with Dominick Guinn and I took his head off (winning a 10-round split decision last year)," Barrett, of Queens, N.Y., said. "This is a blood sport. There's only one winner and one loser."
Barrett said he feels a "sense of urgency" to make his mark on the heavyweight division, particularly after his past three fights -- a majority-decision loss to Joe Mesi followed by victories against Guinn and Owen Beck.
Rahman, however, dismissed his opponent's motivational techniques with a derisive laugh.
"I could care less about his urgency," Rahman said. "I don't feel his 'A' game is on par with my 'A' game. ...
"When I'm running (in training camp), it doesn't matter who I'm thinking about. When I'm weightlifting, does it matter who I'm thinking about? I'm not a robot; I can multitask. ...
"No boxer in the heavyweight division has a better jab than me. Whatever you plan on doing, you gotta start and finish with the jab ... unless he thinks I'm gonna leave my jab in Vegas."
Rahman, who by his own admission allowed himself to get out of shape in recent years after losing a rematch to Lewis in 2001, said he expects to weigh between 230 and 235 pounds -- his ideal weight -- for Saturday's fight.
"I'm taking no shortcuts in training," he said. "I have in the past, but I'm not doing it (now)."
In the featured undercard bout Saturday, Ricardo Mayorga (27-5-1, 23 KOs) fights Michele Piccirillo (44-2, 28 KOs) for the WBC junior middleweight title.
Showtime Pay-Per-View will televise ($39.95 suggested retail price).
Sept. 24 card
Las Vegas heavyweight Samuel Peter (24-0, 21 KOs) is scheduled to fight Wladimir Klitschko (44-3, 40 KOs), Vitali's younger brother, on Sept. 24 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, according to Top Rank, which will promote the bout along with Duva Boxing and K2 Promotions in association with Caesars Atlantic City.
Also on the card, Miguel Cotto (24-0, 20 KOs) will defend his WBO super lightweight title against Gianluca Branco (36-1-1, 19 KOs) of Italy. HBO will televise.
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