Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

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

To: LPS5 who wrote (2247)	3/21/2001 9:30:46 PM
From: LPS5	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 10489

Failure vs. Lewis makes Tua 'hungrier' for Nicholson bout Winner will become No. 1 contender in IBF Wednesday, March 21, 2001 Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal By ROYCE FEOUR REVIEW-JOURNAL Heavyweight David Tua said his poor showing against Lennox Lewis on Nov. 11 has given him more motivation as he tries to bounce back against Danell Nicholson on Friday at Texas Station. Tua, of New Zealand, will meet Nicholson, of Chicago, in a 12-round elimination fight to be televised by Showtime. The winner will become the International Boxing Federation's No. 1 contender. "It is like when you study for a test," Tua said. "When you have done all you can possibly do to prepare for an exam -- you know you know it -- and when you don't pass, it devastates you and frustrates you and only makes you hungrier to come back and pass it. It is the same thing with me." Tua said his disappointing performance against Lewis in his bid for Lewis' World Boxing Council and IBF heavyweight belts at Mandalay Bay was not because of a lack of good intentions. "I knew in my heart I could win it, and I didn't," Tua said. "It makes me hungrier and more motivated than ever." Tua, a native of Western Samoa, said he felt bad about his poor showing against Lewis. "All I can say is I was very disappointed, as most of the fans were," Tua said. "There isn't anything I can say. I am not going to sit here and make excuses." Tua said he worked day in and day out during training on his plan to get inside against the taller Lewis, but the plan didn't work. "There was no plan B," Tua said. He said some of the distractions of his first championship fight also got to him. "I am not the sort of person who sits around and blames everything on what happened," Tua said. "To be totally honest, I believe in my case it was more than the game plan, it was a bunch of little things adding on to the final product. I think some (distractions) had an effect on me mentally." Tua, 37-2, is ranked No. 5 by the IBF, and Nicholson, 39-3, is rated No. 3. Kevin Barry, Tua's co-manager, said there have been fewer outside pressures for Friday's bout than there were for the Lewis fight. "We have been all business and no hype for this camp," Barry said. "We have stayed away from functions, and we have done very little media. This is a very important fight. After the setbacks in the November fight, we wanted to allow David as much time as we could to concentrate on training and new trainer Joe Goossen." Goossen, who replaced Ronnie Shields as Tua's trainer after the Lewis fight, said he has seen a big improvement in Tua in the seven weeks they have worked together. "Without a doubt," Goossen said, "there has been a quantum leap in terms of where we started and where we are now. In terms of taking the most basic idea, which is conditioning, it is like night and day right now. In terms of technique, we have worked very hard on that to add some additional things to his repertoire." Tua said his goal this year was to get his weight below 240 pounds. He said he didn't think he would make that goal for Friday's fight, but hoped to be in the low 240s. He weighed 245 pounds for the Lewis fight. "It is going to be a different 240," Tua said. "It is going to be a lot leaner and stronger and quicker as well as well-conditioned. For this fight, I worked hard. I know I didn't cheat regardless of what I weigh." Goossen said: "That is a totally restructured 240. He has prepared himself. We had considerable work to do losing the initial weight. This camp went exceptionally well. David really accepted whatever I was telling him. He pushed himself very hard. He knows he turned over every rock in training camp. We did at least 110 rounds of sparring. We did probably 1,000 rounds on the floor and sparring combined."