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Pastimes : Boxing: The Sweet Science -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: LPS5 who wrote (1259)	11/17/2000 7:37:05 PM
From: LPS5	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 10489

WBA Approves Holyfield-Ruiz II By Scott Shaffer The WBA has reportedly approved a rematch between Evander Holyfield and John Ruiz for its heavyweight title. An article posted to in Spanish on the WBA’s website states that the WBA championship committee made its decision at the WBA convention, which is currently being held in Tenerife on the Canary Islands. Ruiz’ attorney, Anthony Cardinale, was aware of the report but had not yet received direct notification from the WBA. According to the Puerto Rican newspaper El Nuevo Dia, Bobby Goodman, an employee of Don King Productions, has confirmed the WBA’s ruling. Holyfield and Ruiz fought for the vacant title in August after Holyfield’s conqueror, Lennox Lewis, abandoned the belt in order to fight Michael Grant. Holyfield won a close decision that some observers felt should have gone to Ruiz. The Chelsea, Massachusetts native will now get his chance to avenge that decision. Last week, Cardinale sent a letter to the WBA on behalf of Ruiz asking for a rematch under WBA rule 7.3, which states “if a championship match ends in a tie or if such match is extremely close and one of the contenders receives a controversial decision regarding the other, the World Championships Committee, at its discretion, may recommend that the two (2) boxers be ordered to fight again for the Championship, within a period to be set by the Committee itself.” “I’m glad we’re getting the opportunity to do it again. I hope the boxing public supports it,” said Cardinale. Referring to Lewis’ unexciting title fights against Holyfield (twice), David Tua and Zelko Mavrovic, as well as Holyfield vs. Vaughn Bean, Cardinale insisted that “the only guy who has really fought for the heavyweight championship lately has been John Ruiz. The rest have been jokes.” The article did not address earlier reports of an elimination bout between Kirk Johnson and Larry Donald. The WBA continues to display a message on its website that Johnson and Donald have been ordered to face each other for the number one position in its heavyweight rankings. Today’s announcement comes as a blow to Johnson’s championship aspirations. Following a knockout of Oleg Maskaev, he had hoped to schedule a fight against Holyfield. If the WBA allows Holyfield to count a Ruiz rematch as his mandatory defense, Johnson will have to wait up to a year for a mandatory WBA shot and will probably never get the opportunity to fight the aging Holyfield. Johnson is considered a secondary option for Lewis, the nearly-universally recognized champion, who would prefer a more lucrative matchup against Mike Tyson. -Alessandro Ferrarini contributed to this story.