The Russians aren't coming. They already here and people are being playful about how Russian fighters are going to control the heavyweight division. You might think we were going back to
the bad, old days when Nikita Khruschev was banging his shoe on the table at the United Nations, to the era of the Cold War, Gary U-2 Powers, spies and spy planes and the battle between our astronauts and the Soviet Union's cosmonauts for supremacy in outer space.

Fact: Wladimir Klitchscko is the IBF champ at least until Nov. 11, when Shannon Briggs vows to snatch that crown.
Suleiman Kerimov

 

Fact: Sergei Liakhovich, the "White Wolf," completed dismantled hard-puncher Lamon Brewster to corral the WB) heavyweight title.

Fact: Sauerland Events in Germany is now co-promoting King Kongish (is that a word in any language?) WBA champ, the 7-foot-tall, 320 pound Nickolay Valuev. Valuev will probably fight challenger Monte "Three Card" Barrett Oct. 7 at the Garden.

Fact: The only non-Russian (OK, Liakhovich is actually from Belarus, same thing) world heavyweight champ extant is American and WBC king Hasim Rahman and, on Aug. 12, he defends in Vegas against Russian Oleg Maskaev, who already owns a KO victory over him.

Fallacy: That any of these Russian ring behemoths pose a real threat to American hedgemony or heavyweight supremacy. But there is a Russian billionaire who has plans to take over not only the heavyweight thrones, but the entire sport/business.

Ladies and gentlemen, in this corner let Comrade Michael Marley introduce you to the man who would be King, and I don't mean just the new Don King, of All Boxing and All World Titles.

His name is Suleiman Kerimov and Forbes magazine, which ranks rich people like The Ring ranks fighters, has listed him as the 72ND RICHEST PERSON IN THE WHOLE WORD WITH AN ESTIMATED NET WOTH OF--HOLD YOUR BREATH--SEVEN POINT ONE BILLION DOLLARS. That 's. 7.1 BILLION BUCKS.

Forbes also said this year that Kerimov owned or does own Vnukovo Airlines; Murmansk Airport; Avtobank; Nosta metal plant and Ingosstrakh Insurance Company, as well as a huge stake in preferred shares in Transneft, the oil-transportation monopoly. That, since 2004, Kerimov has gobbled up shares in Gazprom, world's largest natural gas producer and Sberbank (biggest retail bank in Russia) which form the core of his wealth.

Let's be clear, the man behind heavyweight contender Sultan Ibragimov, manager Boris Grinberg and Golden Grain Promotions is a straight up capitalist. He is no follower of Marx, either Groucho or Karl, and he could buy and sell you, or at least me.

He could at least rent King, Bob Arum and Golden Boy Oscar de la Hoya. No wonder trainer Carlos "Panama" Lewis, who trains Sultan and Timur Ibragimov, is sporting fresh, sparkling bling bling.

He's about 40-years-old. Forbes, in 2004, rated his net worth at about FIVE HUNDRED AND SIXTY MILLION DOLLARS (what's that in rubles?). His fortune comes from the oil business and an affiliated company named FK Kapital. He was elected to and serves in the Russian parliament.

And you thought Al "Man Behind The HBO Curtain" Haymon was mysterious. Kerimov has totally eluded the boxing limelight. Until this column, anyway.
As you know, Sultan fights "Rain Man" Ray Austin on ESPN 2 Friday night at the Seminole Hard Rock in Florida with the winner getting a mandatory contender position for Klitschko's crown.

The IBF conducted its typical purse bid to decide who would promote this fight. As we also know, fighters on the cheap ESPN 2 cards, where the promoter usually gets a check of less than $20,000 as a fee from the network, typically make $7,500 to $10,000 for fighting in the main event.

Ibragimov-Austin is a little different because Don King Promotions was the losing bidder with a $100,000 offering.

Then Neon Leon Margules and Warriors Boxing, fronting for Kerimov and Golden Grain, handed his little envelope over to IBF officials.

Eyes bugged out as the winning bid was $850,000 or $750,000 more than King bid. Some people thought Margules or his Seminole employers had gone temporarily insane, perhaps from the constant jingle-jangle of the slot machines.

But all that money comes from Kerimov's coffers. And so on Friday night, Austin's purse is 75 percent of that, about $625,000 minus of course the majority share which Uncle Don will be quick to subtract, while Iggy gets the balance or about 25 percent. (Austin had the higher ranking.)

The Russian Rasputin isn't coming to boxing. Suleiman Kerimov is here already and he means business, serious business.

I wonder if Joe Tessitore, Theodore Atlas and Brian Kenny will allot some time for the story behind the story and explain how Kerimov and his Golden Grain outfit (Sampson Lewkowicz, ace adviser) strictly follow boxing's Golden Rule.
Kerimov's got the oil which is liquid gold which gets him real gold and, thus should Sultan win and become another Russian world heavyweight champion, the billionaire (inflation since 2004, you know) will start making the rules. Perhaps all of the rules and who is going to be disputing this Ring Rasputin?
If Kerimov says nyet, then nyet it is, comrades. I say, chill the vodka and welcome Kerimov to the fistic fray. I like rich people. I really do, especially reformed Commies.

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Notes on the back of a battered performer's scorecard or, in the alternative, names make the boxing news:

B Hop, or Bernard Hopkins if you prefer, has done a lot of lousy things during his boxing career and I concede that lousy things have been done to him by various promoters. But I think the worst thing the Hopster ever did was calling Manny Steward an "Uncle Tom Sammy Davis Jr." motherbleeper. Who has done more for boxing? it says here Steward by a Motown mile. Is Emmanuel a "Tom" because he works for HBO? That is absurd as saying B Hop is Tomming it up by working for Golden Boy.

Or should I say Tio Tomasing it up? Of all the insults he has uttered in his various volcanic spews--Hopkins erupts more often Old Faithful at Yellowstone--that is the one Bernard should fully apologize for and completely refute. Btw, belated props to sidekick Larry Merchant who showed his "eggs" by standing up for his braodcast colleague. Btw, I know this is old news. I must've been in suburban Slobbovia when it happened. The case can be made for Steward as boxing's best all-time trainer but we can address that later...Forget that report about Phoenix, Shannon Briggs has chosen Vero Beach as his training base for the Klitschko challenge. Maybe Briggs will call Steve Brener to bring Tom Lasorda as a motivator. Oops, ace publicist Brener and his main man, John "Downtown Beirut" Beyrooty are working for Team Klitschko so no can do...Getting back to Sammy Davis Jr., baby, if you want to laugh yourself into unconsciousness dig up his unique version of the "Theme From Shaft."...

Good news about the internet is that any fistic fool can grab a byline or write a headline. And any fistic fool can write complete nonsense. That's the bad news about the internet. One bad example which caught my roving eye the other came from a site that is usually informative and literate, sweetscience.com.

That's the DaVinci Code site, backed by Vegas character Dino Da Vinci's money and edited by Robert Ecksel. They are still are running a story penned by someone named Luca De Franco about Manny Siaca, Jr. In the story and the glaring headline, it refers to Siaca "following the steps of Puerto Rican greats." Quick, pass me the barf bag.

You telling me to place Siaca alongside Alfredo Escalera, Jose Torres, Wilfredo "Bazooka" Gomez, Fleix Trinidad and Wilfred Benitez? That's five but I can name about 12 more (Miguel Cotto will wind up in that classy company if he keeps succeeding) Boricua boxing stars, real stars, who Siaca could not carry the gym bag for. No offense to Manny Siaca, Sr., my pal, who worked alongside Esteban DeJesus and others and was a fighter himself. But Luca De Franco either that was shoeshine job or you are smoking illegal substances.

Now I am spewing like B Hop but the hot molten lava needs to fly because Siaca's record is 20-5. Mikkel Kessler won every minute of every round in stopping him in eight rounds. Byron Mitchell beat him on points twice and he lost to Bruno Girard. This is an all-time Puerto Rican ring great? Is Mitchell an all-time Philly ring great or Girard an all-time French boxing superstar?

Now I just went back and read the piece which has a brief, reasonable intro and then becomes a short Q and A. Luca, I was wrong about you. It is the headline which is moronic, not your little interview. OK, Escksel spring into action against the offender even if it is you.

Proper headline: SIACA FOLLOWING STEPS OF PUERTO RICAN RING GREATS...HE'S ABOUT NINE MILES BEHIND THEM AND FADING FAST. Now I can get to making corrections on my own site, lol...

To the gentleman who inquired about former MSG publicist Tom Kenville, Tommy K is in the Ring Up Above if you know what I mean. Back in 70s, before cell phones, ESPN, ATMs and all that, Kenville's wife took phone messages at their home from guys named Chi Chi, Cha Cha and Chu Chu, Mrs. K insisted her husband open up and tell her what line of work he was really in. The boxing callers were promoter John "Cha Cha" Ciarcia, trainer/matchmaker "Chi Chi" Torres and boxer/actor Edwin "Chu Chu" Malave. Mrs. K thought hubby was involved with some Colombian cartel action...

Sal Musumeci made inquiries about an intriguing heavyweight prospect matchup between former Boston College football player Derek Rossy and also unbeaten JD Chapman but Team Chapman brain trust, manager Scott Hirsch and trainer Jazzy Jeff Mayweather, want another six months to polish their green as grass hopeful.

Note, please, that they like the style matchup and this might become an early 2007 showdown...Speaking of Manny Steward, he may have the most to easy to imitate voice in boxing. In Boston, the Celtics used to have Johnny Most soundalike contest in which fans would compete to see who could talk the most like the I-gargle-with-razor-blades announcer. Let's do a Mannython on HBO and see who can sound the most like Manny Being Manny.

My first two entries are Boston writer Don Stradley and Detroit/Vegas boxing and real estate maven, John "D-12" Lepak. Merchant and Harold Lederman can be the judges and no ring generalship will be required...Memo to Mayor Bloomberg: promoter Cedric Kushner may be trying to get on to the NYC payroll. "There is no better city than New York for media exposure for boxers," Kushner said. "My show (tonight) at the Manhattan Center is written up in today's Daily News, The Post and the AM free newspaper. You don't coverage like that in East Baumfog."...

Boxing makes strange bedfellows, indeed. Unbeaten WBA super middleweight king Mikkel Kessler's best boxing buddy in the USA is Famoso Hernandez...Before I forget, give an Ivy League high five to bar owner-cutman-gentleman Jimmy Glenn who is glowing with pride as one of his sons, ka-ching, was just admitted to Harvard...

Boston Globe fight and football scribe Ron Borges scriibles without fear or favor and has long done so. He is one of the very few "boss scribes: to ever give Don King a fair shake. Of course, he has also given DK many a kick in the editorial posterior as well. I have a bone to pick with Borges. He must have forgot I am a Globe alumnus (copyboy and coffee-getter, Class of '67 and '68). He recently labeled me as a guy long "on the fringes of boxing." Let's see, I was the greatest boxing writer ever at the NY Post; VP publicity for King, Mike Tyson, JC Chavez, etc., for five long years; co-managed or managed world champs Shannon Briggs, Terry Norris, Orlin Norris and Robert Garcia, and now advise several world champions and/or their managers.

I mean I was Ali's guest at the Lewiston bout with Liston, the Chuvalo bout in Toronto and at "The Fight" 3/8/71 with Joe Fray-zuh at the Garden. Where was Borges then, digging clams on Martha's Vineyard? Searching out quahogs on the shores of Vineyard Sound?

I say Borges, who covers the Patriots, has long been "on the fringes" of pro football. But, please, don't tell that to Coach Belichick. Borges keeps this up and I will start writing about the legend and lore of his crosstown rival, Golfing George Kimball...I figured out my problem finally. I am too modest and self-effacing...Speaking of football, congrats to the great Lesley Visser, ex-BC cheerleader, upon her enshrinement as a journalist in the Hall Of Fame in Canton, Ohio. Showing her media genius, Lesley always steered clear of boxing. Now can she get Borges enshrined in Canton, Ohio?...

They say the brightest students usually have the best teachers. GBP matchmaker Eric Gomez has long been under the tutelage of Don "War A Week" Chargin, a well-paid GBP consultant. But it was OLDH himself (is it okay not to capitalize Himself?) who came up the with the idea of hiring the sagacious Chargin. Joel de la Hoya didn't raise any fools, did he?...Warning to Greater Sacramento: The Contenders honcho Jeff Wald is coming to the state capital August 25 where his guy "Latin Snake" Sergio Mora is fighting Eric Regan. Adjust your volume controls because the bombastic Wald really did learn how to, ssh, ssh, whisper in a saw mill. When he gets to Sacramento, you will be able to hear him in Ukiah, trust me..

Speaking of high rollers, Butch Lewis popped up as Shannon Briggs and retinue popped out the Palm West in midtown after dinner the other evening. Former bossman of BLP and Svengali to Michael Spinks, Lewis is thin and trim and sporting a grey-flecked slight beard.

His pal, Denzel Washington, says Lewis is a wolf, not a lamb. Lewis recently broke bread with his former adviser, Don "Bring Back Bernardo Mercado" Majeski, and Lewis said he is not done with the fight game yet. Temps were in high 80s and some folks did not recognize Butch without his no-shirt tuxedo of nights of yore...Funniest scene at ringside ever was hot summer night at Caesars when Butch and one of his sons, then about six years old, BOTH wore their no shirt tuxedos. Btw, Butch still hobnobs with ex-BET owner, now boss of NBA Bobcats and regular billionaire mogul, Bob Johnson...

For More Of Michael Marley's work be sure to check out www.fightnightnews.com

M

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