NO VENOM IN THE VIPER
www.insideboxing.com

By Blackbull

Inside Boxing Writer/Columnist

(IB-January 27, 2003) - It's too late. You can’t retrieve all the awards, accolades and praise you have given Vernon Forrest. After Forrest defeated Shane Mosley twice, the media went wild: God's gift to boxing, pound-for-pound the best, indestructible, the man that beat the man that beat the man.

Yes, the Forrest bandwagon was very obese to say the least.

I’m not convinced Forrest is on the same level with Oscar De La Hoya. I wasn’t convinced before the fight against Ricardo Mayorga and I’m less convinced now that Mayorga easily knocked Forrest out.

In the first round of the fight, Mayorga wins big, connecting and scoring. The round becomes a two-point round for Mayorga after Forrest hits the canvas. Granted, not a power shot but none the less, without the blow, Forrest never hits the canvas.

Forrest may have done enough in the second round to win the round. He was aggressive and landed good shots while Mayorga was wilder with his hooks.

The third round had no controversy. Mayorga landed the better shots, landed power shots and puts Forrest out with a shot to the head. While Forrest gets up, there was no question the man was out of contact with Earth. The referee asks Forrest a question while moving his fingers in front of his eyes and when Forrest doesn’t acknowledge either one, the referee quickly stops the fight.

What bothered me more than anything leading to this fight was the disrespect Forrest and HBO showed toward the Latino fighter. As far as they were concerned, Mayorga didn’t even belong in the same ring with Forrest. The fight poster was all about Forrest and a pair of snake skinned boxing gloves, no picture of the WBA world champion. The only reason they even bothered to put Mayorga’s name on the poster is because they had to!

The Forrest bandwagon may still be rolling but I’m sure it’s a lot lighter now.

So where does Forrest go now?

Take a few days to evaluate what happened, and then do a little house cleaning. Ron Shields… Gone. Al Mitchell… Reprimanded or gone. After all, it’s up to these guys to keep Forrest sharp and ready. And above everything else, they should have made sure Forrest didn't take his opponent for granted.

If household changes are not made, his camp will surely become stale and his bandwagon will fade into the sunset.

Forrest now needs to take control of his boxing career.

So where does Mayorga go from here?

He can start by sending HBO an 8X10 glossy. In the event there is a rematch, HBO will have no excuse to leave him out of the poster.

If there was no rematch clause in the fight contract (and I doubt there was) then Mayorga needs to look toward a mega contest against Oscar De La Hoya. A mega million-dollar fight which can be billed as “Latin Kings in the Ring”.

All Vernon Forrest can do is watch.

Moncayo Blackbull can be reached at blackbull@insideboxing.com