Boxing: Top-notch undercard for world title fight

By PETER JESSUP

Three bouts will precede the Lennox Lewis-David Tua world heavyweight title bout at the Mandalay Bay casino in Las Vegas next month.

In one, two-time world lightweight champion Jesse James Leija faces "Mighty" Ivan Robinson.

Leija has won 40 of his 47 bouts, with two draws and five losses.

His victories include twice taking titles from boxing legend Azumah Nelson, whose record is 29-1-1. Robinson is best remembered for a 1998 slugfest with Arturo Gatti which was labelled the fight of the year, and is ranked No 2 for the IBF.

In a second, Ben Tackie, with 21 wins from 22 bouts, including 13 knockouts, will meet John-John Molina (51-6, 33 knockouts), in the welterweight division.

Tackie has beaten WBA No 4 Freddie Pendleton (knockout, round one), WBA No 12 Roberto Garcia (tko, round 10) and WBA No 7 Golden Johnson (points win over 12 rounds) in his last three outings.

Molina, from Puerto Rica, is a four-time world champion but has not won a title at 63kg.

And in the third, unbeaten heavyweights Lawrence Cley-Bell and Clifford "The Black Rhino" Etienne meet over 10 rounds.

Cley-Bell is an Atlanta Olympian. His record as a professional is 12-0, with nine knockouts, his most recent bout being a sixth-round knockout of Mike Williams.

Etienne has a reputation for a big punch and is ranked ninth by the WBC.

The four-fight package is selling for $US44.95 on Home Box Office pay-per-view television, with 42 million American homes able to buy in.

As a measure of the hold that Mike Tyson has on the fans' fancy, his farce with Andrew Golota cost $US49.95.

Tua sparred for six rounds with new partner James Gaines yesterday.

The American is close to Lewis' height and has a similar right-hand-jab style.

He is faster than Tua's other sparring partner, Lee Alhassan, and, manager Kevin Barry believes, faster than Lewis.

"He gave Dave a good workout, we were really pleased," he said.

In the afternoon Tua ran on Mt Charleston behind his Prince Ranch camp. "His condition is great," Barry said.

The South Auckland fighter is fired up by comments attributed to Lewis in the United States on Tuesday.

The Briton is said to have called Tua slow, living in a dream world, and about to be punched into reality.

Tua was a plodder, a one-dimensional fighter who would not be able to get inside his reach, Lewis was reported to have said.

Barry said: "I love it when he does that because it riles Dave. It fires him up and focuses his energy and makes him work harder."

Tua had the Lewis style off pat, Barry said, and was not worried by the talk about reach advantage.