FOR FIGHTING FOREMAN, FAR EAST IS JUST FINE.Byline: Bernard Fernandez Philadelphia Daily News The Philadelphia Daily News is a tabloid newspaper that began publishing on March 31, 1925, under founding editor Lee Ellmaker. In its early years, it was dominated by crime stories, sports and sensationalism. By 1930, daily circulation of the morning paper exceeded 200,000. This time, George Foreman George Edward Foreman (born January 10, 1949) is an American two-time World Heavyweight Boxing Champion. He is the oldest man ever to win the heavyweight title, and also has been named one of the 25 greatest fighters of all time by Ring magazine. is going to take the time to smell the hot green tea. ``I met some nice people there,'' the two-time former heavyweight champion said of his first trip to Japan, where he stopped Joe ``King'' Roman in one round on Sept. 1, 1973. He will return to Tokyo Nov. 2 to fight Crawford Grimsley. ``But I never used my eyes. I was looking at things, but I didn't see. Too bad I was young and stupid and didn't know anything. ``I'm going to see more of the country this time. I plan to go there a week, 10 days before the fight and stay maybe a week afterward. I'm going to be, you know, like a tourist. ``When I was there before, I stayed 10 days and never went anywhere. All I did was sit up in my room and be mad. I wanted to beat up Joe Roman. I wanted to beat up the world.'' Besides his enhanced appreciation for sightseeing, there is one other major difference between the cheerful, 47-year-old Foreman who will visit the Land of the Rising Sun in 1996 and the surly kid who showed up 23 years ago. ``I fought Joe Roman for $250,000 when I was the heavyweight champion of the world,'' Foreman recalled. ``That was a lot of money back then. ``I'm getting more than $3 million this time and it doesn't seem like that much, the economics of boxing being what they are now. But this isn't about money. It's about leaving the sport on my terms. I have a plan for the way I want to do this.'' Foreman plans to fight three more times. After his likely blowout of the justifiably unknown Grimsley (20-0, 18 KOs), Big George (74-4, 68 KOs) will combine business and tourism with another overseas bout, possibly in Indonesia or Australia, before finishing up his 27-year professional ring career with a date in his hometown of Houston. ``I made up my mind if I was going to box again, it was going to be something exotic,'' said Foreman, who, in his previous ring appearance, April 22, 1995, at the MGM MGM in full Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. U.S. corporation and film studio. It was formed when the film distributor Marcus Loew, who bought Metro Pictures in 1920, merged it with the Goldwyn production company in 1924 and with Louis B. Mayer Pictures in 1925. Grand in Las Vegas Las Vegas (läs vā`gəs), city (1990 pop. 258,295), seat of Clark co., S Nev.; inc. 1911. It is the largest city in Nevada and the center of one of the fastest-growing urban areas in the United States. , defended his International Boxing Federation “IBF” redirects here. For other uses, see IBF (disambiguation). The International Boxing Federation, or IBF, is one of three major organizations recognized by IBHOF which sanction world championship boxing bouts, alongside the WBA, WBC. heavyweight title on a highly disputed majority decision over lightly regarded German challenger Axel Schulz Axel Schulz, born 9 November 1968 in Bad Saarow, Germany is a former German boxer. Amateur career From 1982 Schulz boxed for the army sports club Vorwärts in Frankfurt (Oder), later becoming the East German youth champion. . Call me a cynic cyn·ic n. 1. A person who believes all people are motivated by selfishness. 2. A person whose outlook is scornfully and often habitually negative. 3. , but I don't believe Foreman is taking his act on the road because he wants to collect a few snapshots and memories. No American venue is apt to pay premium prices to stage a Foreman bout against the flotsam A name for the goods that float upon the sea when cast overboard for the safety of the ship or when a ship is sunk. Distinguished from jetsam (goods deliberately thrown over to lighten ship) and ligan (goods cast into the sea attached to a buoy). of the heavyweight division, but history is full of big-name U.S. fighters who have been overpaid o·ver·pay v. o·ver·paid , o·ver·pay·ing, o·ver·pays v.tr. 1. To pay (a party) too much. 2. To pay an amount in excess of (a sum due). v.intr. To pay too much. to perform before foreign audiences who figure they're getting a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see a legend. Foreman, of course, denies any suggestion that he is running on empty or that his plan and Tokyo opponent are as fake as a ``Godzilla'' movie. ``I went into my last fight with Axel Schulz and people were calling him Axl Rose and all that,'' Foreman recalled. ``But he fought like he knew what he was doing, didn't he? ``I'd like to fight one of the top guys, but you know what the deal is. None of them wants to take a chance of losing to the old man. I had a verbal agreement to fight Evander Holyfield Evander "The Real Deal" Holyfield (born October 19, 1962 in Atmore, Alabama) is a professional boxer from the United States and a multiple world champion in both the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions. . We were ready to sign on the dotted line when Don King called and offered Holyfield the (Mike) Tyson fight for $5 million more.'' Charity pitch: Bobby Czyz, the two-time former world champion who serves as a boxing commentator for Showtime, believes heavyweight Tommy Morrison could find a better way to raise money for HIV-infected children than by resuming his career. ``None of the big boxing states is going to allow him to fight, and I rather doubt television is going to want to be a part of this,' Czyz said of the recent announcement by Morrison, who has HIV HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus), either of two closely related retroviruses that invade T-helper lymphocytes and are responsible for AIDS. There are two types of HIV: HIV-1 and HIV-2. HIV-1 is responsible for the vast majority of AIDS in the United States. , to lace up the gloves one more time. ``Any money he would be able to generate would be minimal, at best. ``If he's truly serious about doing something to help, it seems to me he could get Sylvester Stallone (who cast Morrison in ``Rocky V'') and some of his movie friends to take part in a celebrity golf tournament. I bet a lot of corporate executives would pay big bucks to be a part of something like that. Maybe they could make it an annual thing.'' Czyz said this was one fight he would rather not see. ``I know the odds are thousands to one against the disease being transmitted in the ring,'' Czyz said. ``But a slight chance is not the same as no chance. Why would anyone want to be in the AIDS lottery?'' Punch lines: Now that International Boxing Federation junior-welterweight champion Oscar De La Hoya Oscar de la Hoya (IPA pronunciation: [ˈɑs.kɛɹ dɛ.lɑ.ˈhɔɪ.jɑ][1]) (born February 4, 1973) — nicknamed the Golden Boy has withdrawn from his Oct. 12 bout with Miguel Angel Gonzalez because of tendinitis in his left shoulder, the remainder of the card has been moved from Caesars Palace in Las Vegas to The Pond in Anaheim, Calif. The new main event is a 10-rounder between the man De La Hoya dethroned, super lightweight Julio Cesar Chavez (97-2-1, 79 KOs), and Joey Gamache (45-2, 29 KOs). ... Philadelphia Olympian Zahir Raheem will make his pro debut Oct. 11 in Las Vegas as a bantamweight ban·tam·weight n. 1. A weight division in professional boxing having an upper limit of 118 pounds (53.1 kilograms), between junior bantamweight and junior flyweight. 2. A boxer competing in this weight division. 3. , against an opponent to be named. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: Last time George Foreman fought in Japan he didn't b other to sight see. This time will be different. Daily News File Photo |
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