By Steve Ninvalle
The opponent for Andrew `Sixhead' Lewis' mandatory title defence has been labelled a "dangerous individual".
Stabroek News
June 25, 2001
Twenty seven year old Ricardo Mayorga will test the World Boxing Association welterweight champion in a mandatory bout on July 28 in Los Angeles, California.
"Mayorga is fighting for his life and future versus Andrew Lewis. That alone makes him a very dangerous individual. He is without doubt a strong and capable number one opponent and we expect a very strong challenge from him," Fernandez told Stabroek Sport.
But Fernandez added that the champion has the tools to deal with whatever the challenger brings into the ring.
"He (Mayorga) is fighting Andrew Lewis, the very best welterweight in the world. He has done a set of trash talking about how he is going to knockout `Six' in three rounds. He will look very foolish lying there on the canvas after so much talking," warned Lewis' manager.
Mayorga earned the right to fight Lewis after he secured the number one position on the WBA welterweight ratings.
"After this fight I will try again to hold off a World Title fight defence and try and bring Andrew to Guyana for a 10-round fight against a world class fighter."
That fight Fernandez claimed would be in the latter part of September. Should that bout not materialise Fernandez said that Top Rank Inc. has offered to have `The Albouystown Cyclone' defend in October.
Top Rank Inc. which promotes the champion, has offered Lewis a October 13 date for another defence. His opponent will be WBA number four ranked Chantel Stanciel.
Lewis left yesterday for the Fernwood Resort in the Poconos Mountain in Philadelphia. He will commence sparring on Saturday.
"We have been working with a few more combinations that `Six' will unleash on his mandatory challenger. It's a combination we call "Timmy". Instead of us calling out punches from the corner we'll be calling out names, that means something in our combination package. Timmy will do the job this fight. Don't ask me what it is because then only 800,000 will know the combination as well."
Born in Nicaragua on October 3, 1973, the heavy punching Mayorga, has lost three times in 26 fights. He has one drawn bout. Twenty of twenty two victories have come through the knockout route.
Last year the Central American was excessively busy securing eight victories within the 12 months period with seven wins by knockout. Mayorga has only fought once this year when he knocked out Elias Cruz in the third round on February 3 in Las Vegas. Lewis, undefeated in 22 fights, will make US$312,000 for the bout while his Nicaraguan opponent receives US$104,000