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By David Kolb (May 11, 2006) Photo © HoganPhotos.com
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As Steve Kim astutely pointed out in his last piece, “You can never count out DK (Don King), but it's been a tough stretch for Mr. Only in America. He came up empty with Zab Judah and Ricardo Mayorga in recent weeks (in promotions where he basically just brought the opponent and played a ceremonial role in collecting his own checks).”
This Saturday night at TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, most observers will believe Don King will once again play that same role as the runner-up’s promoter, as heavy favorite Ricky Hatton challenges Luis Collazo for his WBA 147 pound belt.
However, those that know Luis Collazo believe differently.
Collazo learned his craft at the Starrett City Boxing Club in Brooklyn, N.Y. under the tutelage of Nirmal Lorick. Lorick has been Collazo’s trainer since Collazo was 12 years of age. In other words, Collazo has been trained by the same guy for more than half the 25 year old’s life.
So what’s the big deal?
Collazo is not your typical Brooklyn boxer. He is not the flamboyant, ostentatious type that we have grown accustomed to by witnessing Mike Tyson and Zab Judah, amongst others that believe reigning from Brooklyn is a license to travel with a posse and to be a thug in and out of the ring. Collazo has an aura of calmness and stability that few Brooklyn pugilists possess.
Collazo has been groomed for this upcoming opportunity for years. His team from Brooklyn believes that Collazo was ready for this moment for at least three years.
Collazo credits his surroundings in the Starrett City Boxing Club for aiding his comfort level in his upcoming opportunity.
“Guys like Monte Barrett, Shannon Briggs, the "Chin Checkers" (Curtis Stevens and Jaidon Codrington); Gary Starks, who will be a champion in the featherweight division, Sechew Powell and Dmitriy Salita have all helped me along the way. I mean there are so many of us, and there are more to come. Starrett City has always been a gym enriched with tradition, now it’s my time.”
Lorick said, "Everything is set up for Ricky, and that's ok, we've got nothing bad to say about Hatton and if HBO want to make it about Ricky before the fight that's ok. But after the fight, it will not be about Ricky, it will be about Louie Collazo winning what we expect to be the Fight of 2006.”
"I know all the money is going on Ricky, so this will be the upset of the year as well as the fight of the year."
HBO bluntly sees this fight as a showcase of Ricky Hatton, as the promotional posters and the HBO boxing website feature only one fighter - Ricky Hatton.
So how does Collazo upset Ricky Hatton? How can Collazo beat this overwhelming favorite? There are quite a few factors that can play a role in Hatton demise.
The first is obvious. Hatton is moving up in weight class to 147 from 140. While Hatton claims that it’s no big deal, fact is that Collazo has always been a welterweight, while Hatton has always been a junior welterweight.
Collazo commented, "140 is 140, 147 is where the big boys are. He isn't going to bully me the same way he did to all of those other dudes at junior welterweight."
Hatton has not fought once at 147, not even a set up fight for this upcoming fight (maybe because he views this as the setup fight for an Antonio Margarito or Floyd Mayweather fight at 147).
“My main focus is on him. I am bringing my "A" game. Hatton's main focus is on Floyd Mayweather. He is overlooking me. Come the 13th I will be 110%."
Second, this will be Hatton’s first fight outside of England since June of 2000. While a reported 4,000 English fans will be in Boston to cheer him on, it won’t be the 10,000 plus he is accustomed to, nor will it be the hour he is used to, as the fight will take place early Sunday morning English time (although he will have a week to adjust to the time in Boston).
Possibly the biggest obstacle Hatton will have to overcome is the fact that all eyes are on him. He opened eyes with his Kostya Tszyu win, and continued to impress versus Carlos Maussa (although Hatton was cut terribly in that bout), but the pressure to impress may hinder the ‘Hitman’s’ performance.
The confident Lorick said, "Hatton could go for it early and we’re prepared for that, or he can start slow… he can start the fight however he likes, but Louie will finish the fight as he wants to."
Lorick continued, “Ricky will never know when Louie is gonna fight him and when he's going to box him. Ricky's made his money; we're taking the short end of the purse to get to the point where it’s Louie who’s the star of the show next time."
Next, a quick examination of Hatton’s opponents doesn’t quite yield the type of resume that a 40-0 fighter with all the hoopla should have going into his first welterweight fight as a landslide favorite.
But the truth of the matter is that Collazo’s blotter is no better, although it might have strengthened a smidgen last Saturday night as Jose Antonio Rivera, the guy who Collazo took the WBA welterweight belt from, moved up in weight class and proceeded to destroy Alejandro Garcia to win the WBA junior middleweight title.
Collazo said, "If I beat the reigning junior middleweight champion of the world, I'll have no problems fighting the junior welterweight champion of the world. Ricky is a good fighter, but this is totally different at 147 pounds. He doesn't know how different it will be."
Junior welterweight Dmitriy Salita, who has trained with Collazo since he was 13, says that Collazo is always prepared and believes that Collazo has a good shot of winning.
“He beat Rivera with two weeks notice. There aren’t many boxers that can do that.”
Collazo said, "I took the Rivera fight on two weeks notice, and I had only been in the gym for a week when I got the call. I had only two weeks of hard training but the fight was more of a mental thing. I couldn't even think about the physical side because I could only be at 75% with just two weeks notice. But, mentally, I prepared myself 100%. I decided that I would leave everything in the ring.”
“I stopped the Rivera Show, now I'll stop the Ricky Show."
