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Antonio Says It's Tarver Time
By Steve Kim (September 6, 2002)

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Light heavyweight contender Antonio Tarver won't be watching Roy Jones toy with Clinton Woods this Saturday night on HBO. No, he won't be 'Roycotting' like many of you readers out there. Tarver, who is the mandatory challenger for the IBF belt Jones holds, will be there in person from Portland, Oregon.

"I can't watch it on TV. I HAVE to be there, my presence HAS to be felt and the world has to know that I'm here, willing, ready and able," said Tarver, when asked if he'd be watching Jones' latest mis-mandatory on the tube. "And he's talking about fighting Bernard Hopkins in December? Why can't that be Antonio Tarver? Bernard Hopkins is a middleweight and he's a great middleweight. I don't see anything happening in that fight that didn't happen in the first fight. Let's give Roy Jones a fight that, who knows? Nobody knows if he can win it or lose it. But there's a lot of drama, a lot of mystery to that fight. I want to do that and Roy should step up and give me that opportunity."

And unlike Jones' last several mis-mandatory defenses, Tarver is actually a guy that has earned his lofty status.

"We just beat Eric Harding, we just beat Reggie Johnson, we beat Lincoln Carter and we beat Chris Johnson. I beat four top-10 contenders in a row," Tarver told MaxBoxing.com. "I can say I single-handedly wiped out the light heavyweight division and there's no one else left. And if Roy Jones is going to continue to campaign at light heavyweight he must face me."

Tarver's gutsy decision to fight Harding (who had thoroughly beaten him in June of 2000) again and the subsequent victory over him in July has placed Tarver in a position where he has become the most note-worthy of all the light heavyweight contenders. For Tarver it was a chance to separate himself from the rest of the pack. It was a huge gamble and he came through with a royal flush in stopping Harding in five rounds.

"I thought I did enough prior to that fight (to get a shot at Jones)," explained Tarver, a 1996 bronze medalist. "My skills and my ability and talent, I don't think that's ever been questioned. But it's always been a question of my determination, my focus and my will. And we proved to everybody in the boxing world that we had that and more.

"Taking the Harding fight, it was not based solely on financial gain. It was based on opportunity. I had a chance to redeem myself from a loss in which I pretty much felt I came unprepared for that fight and I gave Eric Harding every opportunity to be successful and when opportunity and luck match, then you get victory. We left room for that and this time, the second time, we came in tip-top shape. We were focused, we were determined to right the wrong that happened in 2000 and we did that. And I put myself head and shoulders above everybody at light heavyweight. I am the undisputed challenger to Roy Jones' crown."

Prior to his only professional loss to Harding, Tarver was known as an under-achiever that had failed to live up to the hype and hoopla that preceded him into the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia. He would hit rock bottom when Harding fractured his jaw on his way to taking a decisive 12-round decision from him in Biloxi, Mississippi. Tarver says it was the wake-up call he needed.

"I beat 16 guys in a row on skill and talent alone and I was taking things for granted and I just wasn't focused," Tarver said. "I didn't see the big picture until I came up from that defeat. Then I knew I had to grind, I had to really put it in fast motion, I had to give myself 110-percent chance to make the most out of my career. And I was faced with everything at that point and sometimes they say only the true champions can comeback from defeat and I proved that I am a true champion."

Tarver doesn't just give answers to questions when being interviewed, he gives campaign speeches. Along with taking care of business inside the ring, he has done his best to push his name outside of it. And his lobbying seems to be working, HBO, which is dead set against airing this latest mis-mandatory on Saturday night, is eagerly anticipating Jones-Tarver because of his big win over Harding and his out-spoken personality.

"Let's go back before the fight (Tarver-Harding II) was made, when I got a phone call from Joe DeGuardia, Antonio's promoter, saying that Antonio wanted to step into the ring with Eric Harding not withstanding his number one position," stated Xavier James of HBO Sports. "That was a great thing from our perspective. A guy who is jeopardizing his so-called ranking to increase his name recognition and thus increasing the viability of a Roy Jones fight. So we thought that was great thing and it turned out it was a great risk that paid off for Antonio.

"So in terms of a Roy Jones-Antonio Tarver fight, that's a fight we'll accept. That's a good fight, relative to the Glen Kelly's, the Ricky Frazier's, this is a competitive fight and if it gets to that point we'll be amenable to making it."

Tarver's bout with Harding was in July and Jones isn't scheduled to appear on HBO again until early 2003. So does Tarver sit and wait for his turn? Nope, he says he'll go right back on the campaign trail.

"If I can't get Roy Jones immediately, I will continue to destroy any light heavyweight that's willing to step in the ring with me," Tarver said. "I'm on a mission right now and my mission is to become the world champion and be undisputed light heavyweight king and that's my mission. And I won't stop until I get that. If Roy Jones is not next, then Bruno Girard [who holds the 'un-super' version of the WBA belt] is in my way. If Bruno Girard is in my way, he must go in dramatic fashion. If I have to go to France I will. And after I dethrone Bruno Girard, I'm looking at Dariusz Michalczewski. I'll go to Germany, I'll eliminate him and if Roy Jones then wants to step up, I'll take him on as well. There's no light heavyweight in the world that I can see stopping Antonio Tarver from his goals and his destination: that's to become one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world."

And he feels as though he comes in with a completely different attitude than Jones other opponents.

"I'm re-revolutionizing the sport," Tarver said. "All these mandatories sitting on top of that number one spot are scared to fight because they don't know within themselves if they're championship material. They fight and wait for Roy Jones to spoon-feed them one payday and then they're done.

"That's not going to be Antonio Tarver, I'm looking to make history. I'm looking to etch my stone, my rock in history and my name will reign supreme for years to come. I'm 33 years old, I look as young as 23, 24, I feel like I'm in great health. I can do this for three, four, five more years to come and I'm not going to sit around and wait on Roy Jones to dictate my future or my career.

"I'm taking my career in my own hands and any light heavyweight willing to call Antonio Tarver's name - which I haven't heard not one since I turned pro - that wants to challenge me. I'm willing to step up."

Archie Moore would be proud.

LIGHTS OUT

And we don't mean James Toney. But if you're a gambler or a college football fan (or both) I'm sure you've heard about the plight of the Wisconsin contingent that was in Las Vegas to see their Badgers take on the UNLV Runnin' Rebels this past weekend. The Badgers always travel well. They routinely turn the Rose Bowl into Camp Randall West (especially when they play UCLA and their bandwagon fans) but this time in Las Vegas they made their biggest mark at the sports book as they bet heavily on their team driving up the line several points. From a three-point favorite, Wisconsin by kickoff, was up to six.

Fast-forward to the fourth quarter and the Badgers were dominating UNLV by a score of 27-7 and it looked like there was going to be a mass exodus of 'Cheeseheads' from Sam Boyd Stadium to collect their winnings. One problem though, with 7:37 left in the game, the lights went out and the game was called. And because the game didn't go 55 minutes, all bets were off.

It was the most tragic thing to happen to these folks since 'Happy Days' was canceled. Now, I don't want to be a smart ass and say something to the effect that when the lights went off it was the best the Rebels looked all year or that watching UNLV quarterback Jason Thomas attempt to throw a spiral would cause someone to turn off the lights, I would never say such a thing, but it does look mighty suspicious. It's even money that Oliver Stone puts this scenario in his next movie.

But what if something like this were to happen in boxing, an 'Oceans Eleven' scenario where the lights go out in the middle of a fight? Then what?

"We have several different scenarios," explained Marc Ratner, the executive director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission. "One is you continue six weeks later because you can't put them in the ring the next day, that's a problem in boxing. Another is that if it goes four full rounds, then you go to the scorecards.

"You would score it to that point and it would be just like an accidental foul or somebody couldn't continue because of that and you go to the scorecards. That's the way we'd handle it."

And therefore the fight would become official and all wagers would be honored. Ratner, also points out that in situations like the infamous 'Fan Man' who swooped down and interrupted the Evander Holyfield-Riddick Bowe rematch in 1993, they can also continue a fight after a long delay.

Ratner points out that his organization has made contingency plans for September 14th when Fernando Vargas and Oscar De La Hoya duke it out.

"We're talking to the Mandalay Bay to make sure that if there was a power problem in the hotel - and they have auxiliary power anyway - but to have extra auxiliary power."

STUNNING

That's how I'd describe Michael Katz's latest story regarding Chris Thorne milking and bilking the East Coast Dinosaur Organization, uhh, I mean the Boxing Writers Association out of $31,000.

I'd be pretty embarrassed if I was part of the East Coast Circle Jerk, excuse me, the Boxing Writers Association. But I have to admit, I'm somewhat impressed. I would have never thought that they would have that much money to steal from. Based on what happened here I think that the EgoManiacs 'R' Us, oops, I mean the Boxing Writers Association should be an honorary sanctioning body. That way they can vote on the champions just like they vote for themselves for awards and continue to take stuff off the internet without attribution.

The Flatlanders, damn, I keep doing this, sorry, the Boxing Writers Association is even turning on themselves now. Poor 'Uncle Mike', don't worry, at least you moved to Las Vegas where there is still world-class boxing and a real commission.

To counter this, I'm starting my own writers association and don't worry I'm holding my association to the exact same standard as the Betamax Boxing Scribes, I mean the Boxing Writers Association (this must be a Freudian thing here or something). My organization will be self-important, take itself waaaay too seriously, bicker like grumpy old men, recycle the same tired stories and hold an annual dinner.

If you want to join, just hand me an envelope filled with unmarked bills or a check in the amount of $1,000 to Steve Kim. Remember, that's
S-T-E-V-E K-I M.

We'll call it the 'Every Other Boxing Writer West of Philadelphia Association'.

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E-Mail Steve Kim at k9kim@maxboxing.com

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