Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.sports From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Bowe's camp not sure what's next Date: Sun, 15 Nov 92 16:56:27 EST Message-ID: \SE C;SPORTS \HD Bowe's camp not sure what's next \BY Thom Loverro \CR THE WASHINGTON TIMES \DT LAS VEGAS LAS VEGAS - At the party in honor of Riddick Bowe's victory Friday night, former world heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield danced on the ballroom floor of The Mirage like a man who had just had an enormous weight lifted from his shoulders. Actually, he did lose some weight Friday night at the Thomas & Mack Center. Only it came from his waist - the three championship belts from the governing bodies of boxing that were decisively taken from him by Bowe in a 12-round unanimous decision. As the swollen-faced Holyfield danced, his promoter, Dan Duva, and Frank Maloney, the manager of heavyweight contender Lennox Lewis, talked in another part of the room. They were plotting the future of the heavyweight division without Holyfield for the first time in nearly three years. The 30-year-old Holyfield spoke all week about the pressures of defending the title he had won Oct. 25, 1990, with a third-round knockout of Buster Douglas. He talked about the possibility of retiring, although he always added the disclaimer that he would have to wait and see how he felt after Friday's fight. Those disclaimers were fairly weak when the former champion met with the press after his battle with the 25-year-old Bowe. "I think I'm finished," he said. "I don't want a rematch. I feel relieved. I can spend more time with my kids." The title - and the pressures that accompany it - now pass to the former Brooklyn, N.Y., resident who has adopted Fort Washington as his home and, with the help of his manager, Rock Newman, is clearly making Washington ties. Newly elected City Councilman, and former mayor, Marion Barry was one of the group that led Bowe into the ring Friday night. So, as Robert Redford inquired in the film "The Candidate," after he was elected senator, "What do we do now?" Why does Bowe do now? Does he follow the orders of the World Boxing Council, one of boxing's sanctioning bodies, and fight Lewis, his 1988 Olympic nemesis, as a mandatory challenger? Or does he thumb his nose at the WBC and take a possible big payday with 43-year-old George Foreman, as has been the talk much of the week in Las Vegas. "We will assess the situation," Newman said. "I don't think that I am smart enough to give you an accurate assessment of what we should do right now. I frankly have to study all the possibilities." The WBC, in writing, has said that Bowe has to fight Lewis next. If he refuses to do so, the WBC will strip him of its version of the title and turn over the belt to Lewis, who stunned the heavyweight division with his second-round knockout two weeks ago of Razor Ruddock. That, however, would mean little to Bowe, who would still hold the heavyweight titles of the other two sanctioning organizations, the World Boxing Association and the International Boxing Federation. And boxing fans do not recognize champions who are made in board rooms. They want their champions made in the ring, and in the public's mind, Bowe likely will be considered the champion for his win over Holyfield. The WBC - a strong ally of boxing kingpin Don King - has been trying to regain control over the world heavyweight championship ever since Mike Tyson was knocked out by Buster Douglas in February 1990 in Tokyo. Holyfield, under the direction of Duva, dismissed the WBC and picked opponents they felt served their financial needs, particularly the two big-money title defenses against Foreman and Larry Holmes. That strategy served Holyfield well, since he is now the second-ranked fighter in history in career earnings with $80 million, behind only Sugar Ray Leonard's $110 million. And the WBC does not relish the prospect of dealing with Newman, who has called the organization a "corrupt" body and has said, "The WBC means nothing to me." The future, then, could likely unfold either of two ways: Bowe fights Foreman sometime in April, reportedly in China. The WBC strips him of its version of the belt and gives it to Lewis. Lewis, a Englishman and a national hero, fights another popular English heavyweight, Frank Bruno, for the WBC crown in England. Bowe and Lewis, assuming they are the winners, meet each other to unify the crown. Otherwise, it's probably Bowe vs. Lewis sometime in the spring. And that could prove to be an even better fight than the exciting display Holyfield and Bowe put on Friday night. Lewis, who beat Bowe in the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, is Bowe's equal in size, at 6 feet 5 and about 225 pounds (Bowe weighed in for Friday night's fight at 235 pounds) and is considered by many to be his equal in boxing skill. It would be a difficult first defense for the newly crowned champion. This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM