WHITAKER HAS GOLDEN OPPONENT : COMING UP.

Byline: Michael Rosenthal

He has impeccable skills. He has loads of experience. He has a gold medal. He has won five world titles. He has a bead on the Hall of Fame.

And, finally, he has a decent (to say the least) opponent.

Barring any major upsets in the meantime, Pernell Whitaker will meet Oscar De La Hoya in May for Whitaker's World Boxing Council welterweight title, the champion's first serious challenge since he drew with Julio Cesar Chavez in 1993.

The deal is ``99 percent done,'' according to Dino Duva, Whitaker's promoter. And it will come none to soon for Whitaker, who turns 33 in January.

Long considered among the best pound-for-pound fighters - if not the best - in the world, Whitaker has lost favor for lack of competition and, even against inferior opposition, a string of mediocre performances and precious few knockouts.

The names of fighters such as Roy Jones Jr., Felix Trinidad and De La Hoya are heard more and more in pound-for-pound talk and Whitaker's less and less.

He and his handlers insist he has nothing to prove and cling to the notion that he remains on top of the game, that his experience and the fact no one has beaten him in almost nine years is irrefutable evidence of his preeminence.

When asked whether his fighter has to beat De La Hoya to regain lost credibility, Duva responded: ``Absolutely not. He's been fighting for 12 years. Even if he loses, Pernell has proven himself over the years. He's made his mark on history. This (victory) will just make it that much better.''

In fact, Whitaker does have to prove himself all over again in this fight if he wants any consideration for the unofficial pound-for-pound title.

Understandably, Whitaker doesn't want to talk about De La Hoya, preferring to focus on his next opponent - Cuban defector Diobelis Hurtado on Jan. 24 - a fight he must win to face De La Hoya.

However, it's clear he understands the ramifications of the May bout.

If he wins, all the less-than-spectacular performances will be forgotten, all the doubts will disappear, much as they did for Evander Holyfield when he knocked out Mike Tyson.

And, like the 34-year-old Holyfield, only Whitaker's age can be construed as a liability.

``Then I'll go down in history,'' he said, referring to the prospect of what would be a monumental victory.

Actually, the fight is a much bigger risk for De La Hoya.

If Whitaker wins, great. He's back on top. If he loses, you say, `Hey, the man's 33, he's had a great career and he lost to a great, 23-year-old fighter.' It might be comparable to Sugar Ray Leonard's 12-round decision over Terry Norris in Leonard's last fight. No one will be overly critical.

Meanwhile, De La Hoya, assuming he beats Miguel Angel Gonzalez on Jan. 18, will be fighting a slick, quick, resourceful boxer who is very difficult to catch. On paper, this is by no means a one-sided fight.

If De La Hoya wins, you say, `Hey, what'd you expect?' If he loses, much of the mystique surrounding the ``Golden Boy'' is gone - along with some of his market value - and he must begin to rebuild.

The only sure winners here are the fans, who don't see enough of such matchups.

Rabbit punches:Last week, about two weeks before fight time, Riddick Bowe said he was down to fighting weight for his rematch with Andrew Golota on Saturday in Atlantic City.

Bowe weighed 243 pounds, nine less than he weighed for the first fight. Rock Newman, Bowe's trainer, said this is proof his fighter is dead serious after a dismal performance in July.

``He's never been even close to fighting weight this far before the fight,'' Newman said. . . .

Bowe has dubbed Golota ``Tito.''

It has nothing to do with any confusion over former socialist countries. (Golota is from Poland, Tito once ruled Yugoslavia). Bowe's referring to Tito Jackson of the singing Jackson family, whose father, Joe Jackson, reportedly knocked his kids around once in a while.

``I'm going to give him a good, old-fashioned Joe Jackson whooping,'' Bowe said. . . .

Julio Cesar Chavez reportedly has left promoter Bob Arum and returned to Don King, with whom he once seemed to sever all ties.

Apparently, Chavez, well aware that his big-money days are waning at this point in his career, believed Arum was ignoring him in favor of other fighters, most notably De La Hoya.

As a result of the move, the prospect of a De La Hoya-Chavez rematch will be that much more difficult to make. . . .

Strawweight stud Ricardo Lopez, one of the world's great talents, must fight Michael Carbajal if he hopes to break into mainstream consciousness. . . .

Former contender Ruben Castillo, 39, has pulled out of his fight with Juan Lazcano on Dec. 19 at the Country Club in Reseda because of an injury.

Instead, Lazcano will face Danny Lujan for the lightly regarded World Boxing Federation lightweight championship.

Also on that card, Jeremy Williams will face Louis Monaco in a 10-round heavyweight bout. Monaco, a foil for boxing buffoons, knocked out Peter McNeeley but was stopped by Eric ``Butterbean'' Esch.

In a four-round heavyweight bout, Lance Whitaker of Van Nuys faces Marco Dixon.

Today: Hector Quiroz faces John West in a 10-round junior welterweight bout at the Forum.

Tuesday: On USA television, Michael Carbajal takes on Tomas Cordoba in a 10-round junior flyweight bout in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Saturday: On pay-per-view, Riddick Bowe faces Andrew Golota in a 10-round heavyweight bout in Atlantic City. In another 10-round heavyweight matchup, Ray Mercer fights Tim Witherspoon.

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Box

Box: COMING UP (see text)