BARRERA TAKING NOTHING FOR GRANTED.

Byline: ROBERT MORALES Boxing

Marco Antonio Barrera has been around a long time. He turned professional Nov. 22, 1989 at the age of 15 and stopped David Felix in the second round in Mexico City.

Barrera on March 31 celebrated the 10th anniversary of his first world championship, and has gone 17-3 in title fights while fighting to an overall record of 59-4 with 41 knockouts.

Barrera, 31, didn't do all that by being stupid. Thus, he took nothing for granted after he signed to fight Mzonke Fana, a relative unknown from South Africa, in a mandatory defense of his World Boxing Council super featherweight belt.

They will square off Saturday in El Paso, Texas. The card - at Don Haskins Center - will be available on pay-per-view for $39.95.

``This has been a long training camp,'' Barrera said last week from his base in Big Bear. ``It has been one of the longest because we don't want no surprises.

``It's two weeks longer than usual because we don't know much about (Fana). When you don't know much about an opponent, that makes him dangerous.''

Barrera spent the past 10 weeks in Big Bear trying to pump himself up for Fana, 31, who is 22-2 with only eight knockouts. Of his 24 fights, 23 have been in South Africa, one in England. A look at his ring record reveals no recognizable opponents.

Barrera has seen film of Fana's most recent fight, last May 28 in South Africa. It was a title-elimination fight against another fighter with questionable credentials, Randy Suico of the Philippines. The winner was to earn a shot at Barrera.

Fana was decked twice, but still managed to pull out a split, if not hometown, decision.

Yet, Barrera says of Fana, ``He's a very strong fighter.''

Smart fighter, that Barrera. He has a growing legacy to protect, and a few more big-money fights.

``I want fans to remember me as a great fighter who left a great taste in people's mouths,'' Barrera said.

Barrera has achieved those goals. He has gone 2-1 against rival Erik Morales in three epic fights. Prior to the beginning of that trilogy, however, Barrera had established himself as the best to ever fight under the Forum Boxing Inc. banner.

He called his 12th-round technical knockout of Kennedy McKinney in February 1996 at the Forum his most incredible victory in a long line. Barrera decked McKinney four times on the way to retaining his World Boxing Organization super bantamweight belt.

Still, people are going to want to see him in a fourth fight against Morales. It was suggested to Barrera that Staples Center would be a tremendous place to hold his next fight with Morales, with whom he has had a volatile relationship.

``L.A. is like my second home,'' said Barrera, of Mexico City. ``Even for him (Morales), it is close to his home in Tijuana. But I have to first fight Fana.

``After (Saturday), we can think about a fourth fight with Morales.''

--Anchondo vs. Barrios: Michael Anchondo of La Puente on Friday will try to give fans a heck of a prelude to Barrera-Fana by defending his World Boxing Organization super featherweight title against Jorge Barrios of Argentina.

ESPN2 will televise from Miami.

Anchondo, who will be 23 on April 15, is 25-0 with 18 knockouts. He won the vacant title July 15 with a unanimous decision over Julio Pablo Chacon in Dallas.

Anchondo was fighting for Golden Boy Promotions at the time, the same company for which Barrera fights. But Anchondo and Golden Boy CEO Richard Shaefer could not come to terms on a new contract, and Anchondo signed with Team Freedom out of Miami.

Should he get past Barrios, Anchondo said he would love to fight Barrera in a title-unification bout.

``I want Barrera,'' Anchondo said. ``Why not? Give the people what they want, the champions fighting against each other.''

Barrios, 28, is 42-2-1 with 30 knockouts.

--Bowe fight on tap: Riddick Bowe, former two-time heavyweight champion, on Thursday will fight for the second time since coming out of a near eight-year retirement last September.

Bowe will take on Billy Zumbrun of Ogden, Utah, in the main event at Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula. It will be televised on Fox Sports Net's ``Best Damn Sports Show Period.''

Bowe's last two fights before retiring came in 1996 against Andrew Golota. Golota was doling out a thrashing to Bowe both times, but was disqualified in both fights for landing several low blows.

During a recent interview, Bowe had two telling comments about Golota. First, he said Golota had to be on steroids in their fights. Bowe said Golota was extremely strong, and that he had lumpy acne all over his back, a tell-tale sign of steroid use.

Bowe also believes Golota purposely was hitting him low.

``When the referee tells you that if you hit low one more time, you are disqualified, then you go do it, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out,'' Bowe said.

Bowe, 37, is from Brooklyn. He is 41-1 with 33 knockouts. Zumbrun, 32, is 17-5-1 with nine knockouts.

Goossen Tutor of Sherman Oaks is promoting.

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Marco Antonio Barrera will take on Mzonke Fana of South Africa on Saturday in El Paso, Texas.

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