Boxing

St. Petersburg boxer may see home bout

By JOHN C. COTEY
Published July 13, 2004

St. Petersburg's Jeff Lacy knows who he is fighting ( Syd Vanderpool), but does not yet know where or when.

The when will happen in the fall. That is sure, barring an injury to either of fighter.

And the where?

How about Tampa?

Promoter Gary Shaw said a local fight for Lacy's first major title fight remains a strong possibility, calling it "better than a good chance."

Lacy, who will fight for the IBF super middleweight title, has talked of wanting to fight in his home area. It would be a nice treat to local fans who have never seen Lacy or junior middleweight champ Winky Wright fight on their home turf as a pro.

Showtime, which will televise his title bout, did the China Smith- Saul Montana fight at the USF Sun Dome - a strong contender as a possible venue - in 2002.

But Shaw was noncommittal. Warriors Boxing promotes Vanderpool, and the fight could be in their backy ard in Miami. Shaw also mentioned various Indian casinos or Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas as possibilities.

"It would be nice but not a necessity (to fight in Tampa)," he said.

BAD LUCK, GOOD FIGHTS: One Punch Promotion's Terry Trekas' card at the DoubleTree Hotel in Tampa on Friday came off well, he said, despite some late adjustments.

There were only four fights on the card after two bouts had to be canceled because one fighter got into a head-on car accident on his way to Florida, and another just didn't show.

But Trekas said he was pleased with the four fights, including a draw between Tampa's Carlos Diaz and Backlin Medrano in the main event. Trekas said he would look for a rematch on his next card, scheduled for September.

Tarpon Springs middleweight Brian Chiary suffered an embarrassing defeat, getting unanimously outpointed by last-second fill-in Tony Sanza, who was 4-12 coming in and had been knocked out his three previous fights.

UP NEXT: ESPN2 will televise Starfight Productions' next card July 27 from the A La Carte Pavilion in Tampa.

Lightweight Edner Cherry, who has won 11 of his 15 fights in Tampa, takes on Antonio Ramirez in the main event.

Cherry (15-2-2, 6 KOs) captured the WBC Caribbean Boxing Federation (CABOFE) title in the biggest win of his career, and has won 12 straight. Ramirez is 21-8-6 with 15 KOs.

For tickets ranging from $25-$80 or more information, call (813) 876-9269 or visit www.starfightproductions.com

BOBBING AND WEAVING: Tampa's Olando Rivera beat Ray Berry on Sunday in Allentown, Pa., when Berry's corner threw in the towel to save its fighter from a fourth-round barrage. ... Muhammad Ali will assist in throwing out the first pitch at tonight's baseball All-Star Game. ... Go figure: A dozen people protested in front of the old Jefferson County Courthouse in Louisville, Ky., last week that city and state leaders "should promote Mike Tyson's heavyweight bout in Louisville this month, rather than shun him for his past behavior," the Louisville Courier-Journal reported.

[Last modified July 12, 2004, 23:52:20]