Trading Shots
by Dave Maciolek
Think of a hurricane…a howling tempest of wind, surf and rain.
Wind that can snap trees like twigs, surf that can sweep homes
off their foundations, rain that can submerge cities. Now think
of undefeated WBA Super Welterweight Champion Felix
Trinidad--a boxing superstar from Puerto Rico, an island
positioned in the Atlantic’s cyclonic wheelhouse.
Think of an earthquake…a titanic shift of rock and land mass. A
seismic shockwave that can crack buildings, buckle bridges,
and literally move mountains. Now think of undefeated IBF
Junior Middleweight Champion Fernando Vargas—a sensational
Mexican brawler from California, home of The Big ‘Quake.
Hurricanes. Earthquakes. Two natural unstoppable Forces of
Destruction. You could say the same for Felix Trinidad and
Fernando Vargas. These are two fighters who are so good, you
can’t imagine them losing. Unless of course they were fighting
each other…
Which we’re happy to say, boxing fans, they are, in what looks
like a Fight of the Year-caliber brawl. It’s representative of a
recent trend in boxing—the best match-ups are actually being
made. After Lennox Lewis settled his score with Holyfield for
the world title, he immediately lined up fights against the two
best heavyweight contenders, Michael Grant and David Tua.
We’ve had the welterweight showdowns between Oscar De La
Hoya and Trinidad, then Oscar and Shane Mosley. Erik Morales
went toe-to-toe with Marco Antonio Barrera, Johnny Tapia drew
his line in the sand against Paulie Ayala, Fernando Vargas went
to war with Ike Quartey, Trinidad moved up a weight class and,
without further ado, squared off with David Reid. Whew! That’s
a lot of talent putting it all on the line. And this match-up,
Trinidad vs. Vargas, might be the most talent-rich, and riskiest,
bout of them all.
Sometimes, records are deceiving. Not Trinidad’s. His is a
sparkling 38-0, 31 of those wins by knockout. Trinidad is from a
land where boxing skills are revered. Puerto Ricans positively
beam with pride when legends like Wilfredo Gomez and Wilfredo
Benitez are brought up. And they feel the same way about the
man they call "Tito".
Trinidad’s been fighting since he was 12. The most surprising
thing about his amateur career was that he only had 12 KOs in
57 bouts. Trinidad was determined to build himself into a
knockout artist. Think his determination paid off? After 36 pro
fights, he had one of the highest knockout percentages (85%)
of any fighter in boxing history!
Trinidad got his first title shot in 1993, against two-time world
champion Maurice Blocker. "Tito" took care of business in less
than two rounds. Since then, Trinidad has blown away a long
line of champions: Oscar De La Hoya, Hector "Macho" Camacho,
Yory Boy Campas, Freddie Pendleton, Pernell Whitaker, and
David Reid. He’s made great fighters look vulnerable and
ordinary. He’s done it with a stifling attack, a resilient chin, and
frightening power in both fists.
Felix Trinidad is on a roll that looks unstoppable. But there’s a
man who feels he’s the one who’ll bring this runaway hurricane
to a crashing halt. "Ferocious" Fernando Vargas has earned his
nickname. He fights with a fury that no opponent’s been able to
match. Vargas burst into the pro ranks with a vengeance in
1997. His first five fights were over before the third round. The
carnage continued until Vargas got his first title shot on
December 12, 1998.
At 21 years and 5 days old, Vargas entered the ring against a
real pro with a heavy-hitting reputation. Yory Boy Campas
looked across the ring and saw a kid. Who was this "kid" who
thought he could beat a man with Campas’ ring experience? By
the end of round seven, bleeding from his mouth, his right eye
swollen shut, Campas surrendered, beaten. Vargas became the
youngest junior middleweight champion in boxing history.
Vargas made history again in ’99. In his 17th pro fight, he
battered former junior middleweight champ Raul Marquez for 11
rounds to retain his title. 17 fights, 17 knockouts. With that,
Vargas tied the record set by Roy Jones, Jr., for most
consecutive knockout wins to begin a champion’s career. Since
then, Vargas has dominated tough Ike Quartey and two other
opponents to arrive at 20-0, with 18 KOs (a 90% knockout
percentage if you’re keeping score at home).
Trinidad and Vargas will both come to the ring with incredible
momentum. Two careers with controls set on
Pedal-To-The-Metal, Full-Speed-Ahead. Trinidad has a plan. It
began to take shape when he beat Oscar De La Hoya. Securing
his record as the best of the welterweights, Trinidad was finally
able to move up to super welterweight. He dispatched David
Reid. Vargas is next. Then Trinidad wants to solidify his legend
as a middleweight, and possibly tangle with light heavyweight
champion Roy Jones, Jr. at around 164 pounds.
Trinidad knows not to look past Vargas. Vargas is no minor
bump in the road. And he could very well be a roadblock. While
Trinidad has hit the canvas early in a couple of his fights, he has
always been able to come back and repay the favor many times
over. He’ll have to come out sharp against Vargas from the
opening bell. Fighters who hit the canvas after Vargas tags
them, usually stay down.
Vargas will be fighting an hombre with much more ring
experience. Trinidad has fought several times with a title on the
line; Vargas just a few. There are no apparent weaknesses in
Trinidad’s game for Vargas to exploit. But you get the feeling
that Vargas can’t be awed or intimidated. Here’s a young
fighter brash enough to approach and taunt Oscar De La Hoya
near The Golden Boy’s own training facility. It seems unlikely,
that even a night of this magnitude will have any effect on a
fighter as supremely self-confident as Fernando Vargas.
Puerto Rico’s raging hurricane…California’s ferocious
‘quake…two unstoppable Forces of Destruction on a collision
course. It’s the last great showdown of the year 2000, a
spectacularly competitive year for boxing. If you venture
outside before the fight on the night of December 2nd, and the
wind begins to howl, and the earth seems to shake under your
feet, you’ll know why. |
