With typical hyperbole, Don King introduced Felix "Tito" Trinidad as someone who is loved by everyone in the boxing world.
Well, everyone except Ricardo Mayorga, who was sitting about 6m to Trinidad's left.
"Tito has been knocked out ever since he signed that contract," said Mayorga, Trinidad's opponent in Saturday's middleweight fight that could be one of the highlights of the boxing year. "Once a car wrecks, it does not have the same value as before."
Mayorga, the former WBA and WBC welterweight champion, believes Trinidad lost his skills when he retired 29 months ago. To emphasize his confidence about beating the Puerto Rican star, Mayorga offered to bet "anyone who wants" US$1 million on the outcome of the 12-round bout.
The Nicaraguan even did a tap dance on a poster of Trinidad at Wednesday's news conference and wrote KO next to Trinidad's picture.
"When Tito falls and there is two to three seconds of silence, the only thing you'll hear is the old man (Trinidad's father and trainer, also named Felix) stepping up to the ring," Mayorga said, "to take care of his son."
Mayorga is known for his unpredictable behavior in and out of the ring. A smoker, he often has lit up cigarettes after fights. During bouts, he's been known to drop his glove and stick out his chin, daring an opponent to hit it.
Trinidad, who has 34 knockouts among his 41 victories (and one loss, to middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins), will gladly oblige Mayorga if so challenged.
"Tito is not coming to play in the ring," Trinidad promised. "He's coming to fight and will be hitting very hard [against] any challengers -- even more when they have a big mouth. This is the case even more with Mayorga.
"He doesn't understand with whom he'll be in the ring."
Mayorga (27-4-1, 23 KOs) will be in the ring with one of New York's most popular fighters.
Although the 31-year-old Trinidad grew up and lives in Puerto Rico, he has spent much time in the US.
Shohei Ohtani and Clayton Kershaw on Friday joined their Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in sticking their fists out to show off their glittering World Series rings at a ceremony. “There’s just a lot of excitement, probably more than I can ever recall with the Dodger fan base and our players,” manager Dave Roberts said before Los Angeles rallied to beat the Detroit Tigers 8-5 in 10 innings. “What a way to cap off the first two days of celebrations,” Roberts said afterward. “By far the best opening week I’ve ever experienced. I just couldn’t have scripted it any better.” A choir in the
After fleeing Sudan when civil war erupted, Al-Hilal captain Mohamed Abdelrahman and his teammates have defied the odds to reach the CAF Champions League quarter-finals. They are today to face title-holders Al-Ahly of Egypt in Cairo, with the return match in the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott, on Tuesday next week. Al-Hilal and biggest domestic rivals Al-Merrikh relocated to Mauritania after a power struggle broke out in April 2023 between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary force. The civil war has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced more than 12 million people, according to the UN. The Democratic Republic of the Congo-born Al-Hilal
Shohei Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez and Tommy Edman on Thursday smashed home runs to give the reigning World Series champions the Los Angeles Dodgers a 5-4 victory over Detroit on the MLB’s opening day in the US. The Dodgers, who won two season-opening games in Tokyo last week, raised their championship banner on a day when 28 clubs launched the season in the US. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shuffled his batting lineup with all four leadoff hitters finally healthy as Ohtani was followed by Mookie Betts, then Hernandez and Freddie Freeman in the cleanup spot, switching places with Hernandez. “There’s a Teoscar tax to
Matvei Michkov did not score on Monday, but the Philadelphia rookie had a hand in both goals as hosts the Flyers earned a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Predators. Ryan Poehling and Jamie Drysdale got the goals for the Flyers (31-36-9, 71 points), who won their third straight. Michkov and Travis Konecny assisted on both. Ivan Fedotov stopped 28 shots to earn his first win since March 1, ending a personal six-game losing streak. Zachary L’Heureux got the lone goal for Nashville. Michael McCarron and Brady Skjei got the assists for the Predators (27-39-8, 62 points), who have just four goals in their
RSS