Columnist Dean Juipe: Reid goes from rascal to role model

Dean Juipe's boxing notebook appears Thursday. His sports column appears Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Reach him at 259-4084 or juipe@ lasvegassun.com

Despite appearances and the size of his bank account these days, David Reid traveled a rough road prior to winning an Olympic gold medal and later becoming the World Boxing Association junior middleweight champion.

Growing up in Philadelphia as the oldest of six children born into a one-parent family, Reid was habitually on the edge of trouble. There were lots of fights and plenty of petty thefts.

Yet by the age of 11 he had shed his reputation as a street punk and took a liking to a local gym. He not only went on to develop into a formidable fighter, he developed into a formidable man.

Wednesday at the Nevada Partners gym, Reid recounted his path and offered some advice for a group of youngsters who frequent the North Las Vegas training and activities center.

"There are three things I want to talk about," Reid said. "One is how hard life is. Another is the importance of staying in school. And the other is the necessity of listening to your parents or guardian.

"If you understand all three and follow them, you can become a champion in life at whatever you choose to do."

Reid, who is defending his WBA title Saturday at the Hard Rock against former champ Keith Mullings, takes easily to the duties of being an effective role model. He also speaks from a wide range of experiences, some that violated the law and some that have helped to make him a millionaire.

"He never got into any really serious trouble," his mother, Marie, once told a reporter. "But it was one fight after another and I was afraid he was going to get hurt. I told him if he liked fighting so much, great, just take it to the gym. I had no choice; I wanted him off the streets."

In the gym, Reid ran into Al Mitchell and their relationship sprawled beyond student and trainer to something approximating son and father. Mitchell remains at Reid's side and said perseverance is what made the 25-year-old the man he is today.

"Everybody thinks he had things easy," Mitchell said. "I'd say David has had things easier in the ring than outside of the ring.

"He wasn't even that good of a fighter when he first came to me, but he got a lot better because he was willing to sacrifice. I had other guys who were better fighters as youngsters but they didn't sacrifice and they didn't put in the time.

"He did and it wasn't easy."

Reid, who is also in the ESPN.com chat room today at 4 p.m., enjoys conversing with youngsters and finds himself being asked to do it fairly often.

"When you're young, you don't always know what you want to do," he said. "So I tell kids to always work hard and always be ready to overcome obstacles like I have with my droopy eyelid.

"I know there were times I didn't feel I had too much support, so you have to rely on yourself to sacrifice and make things happen."

Reid is 13-0 with seven knockouts as a professional fighter, and his status as a world champion figures to receive a fairly good test in Mullings. The ex-champ is 16-5-1 with 11 knockouts and is coming off a loss to Javier Castillejo that cost him the WBC 154-pound title.

"I've been fighting a lot of tough guys, so I'm ready for him," Reid said of Mullings. "I'm expecting a tough fight because it's kind of hard to beat somebody who's coming off a loss in a title fight.

"I think he'll be serious about fighting and wanting to win."

Also scheduled on Saturday's card: Monte Barrett, 20-0, vs. Lance Whitaker, 18-1, 10 rounds, heavyweights; Lawrence Clay-Bey, 9-0, vs. Dale Crowe, 15-0, 10 rounds, heavyweights; Jose Miguel Cotto, 15-0, vs. an opponent still to be determined, six rounds, featherweights; and an eight-round women's junior welterweight bout featuring Lucia Rijker, 13-0, vs. Diane Dutra, 5-3-1.

* McCULLOUGH CONCERNED: America Presents not only has a Saturday fight card at the Hard Rock, there is also another one Monday at the same site. Headlining the latter show is local super bantamweight Wayne McCullough in a televised main event with journeyman Len Martinez.

McCullough hasn't fought this year and last week signed to face WBC champion Erik Morales Oct. 22 in Detroit. On the one hand, he wants to go a few rounds with Martinez and sharpen his skills, while on the other hand he's under some pressure to be very cautious and stay in one piece for the fight with Morales.

Wednesday at Nevada Partners, McCullough said he was offered $20,000 to either skip the fight or reduce the scheduled rounds. As it is, however, he's taking $37,500 to put his 22-2 record up against the 17-5-1 Martinez in a 10-round bout at an over-the-limit 126 pounds.

"I'd rather have a fight but HBO (which is televising his fight with Morales) doesn't want me to," McCullough said. "What this is doing is messing with my head. I need to have 100 percent focus on Monday night and this isn't helping."

McCullough said the status of his Monday fight "has changed every day," but that he wants to go through with it as he has been sparring for four weeks. "But even if I didn't, Ike Quartey was off 15 months before he fought Oscar De La Hoya and it didn't seem to hurt him."

He said he will go accordingly against Martinez.

"I don't want to get cut, that's all," McCullough said.

Also scheduled on Monday's card: Hector Camacho Jr., 23-0, vs. Simon Gonzalez, 24-7-2, 10 rounds, junior welterweights; Derrick Harmon, 18-1, vs. Earl Butler, 19-8-2, eight rounds, light heavyweights; Rudy Martinez, 9-0, vs. Edgar Garcia, 9-9-1, six rounds, super bantamweights; and Mario Ajuiniga, 3-0, and Daniel Rodriguez, 18-1-2, in separate featherweight fights against opponents still to be determined.

* IT'S FOR REAL: There was a reference last month in this space to former world champion Eddie Mustafa Muhammad possibly getting a fight with longtime heavyweight champ Larry Holmes, who still occasionally fights at the age of 49. While it seemed a bit farfetched at the time, that proposed fight may actually be moving toward a November reality.

"They called me Monday about it," Muhammad said. "I'm good with the money they offered and I'd love to fight him. I guarantee it will be Holmes' last fight."

Muhammad, a former light heavyweight world champion, is 47 years old and has not fought since 1990. Currently at 225 pounds, he said he would get down to 215 to fight -- and defeat -- Holmes, whom he saw take a TKO-8 win over Bonecrusher Smith June 18 in Fayetteville, N.C.

"I told Larry after his fight with Bonecrusher that I'd knock him out," Muhammad said. "His legs are gone and he's shot. I saw him drinking after the fight (with Smith) and I looked at the man and said to myself: 'How could he beat me?' I'll murder him if we get in there and I told him so."

Muhammad said a lack of desire (despite being ranked No. 1 as a cruiserweight) led him to retire in '90, "but that desire is back" now that Holmes may be in front of him.

"I know where this leads," Muhammad said. "After I beat Holmes I expect to hear from George Foreman. But what these guys don't realize is that I'm in the gym every day working out. Plus, these guys are older than me.

"They don't know what they're in for."

* QUICK HITS: Local lightweight James Crayton, coming off a short-notice loss at the hands of John John Molina July 16 in Atlantic City, gets back into the ring Sept. 3 in Cherokee, N.C., with Teddy Reid providing the opposition. "I need to do my job and get back on track," Crayton said. ... Former light heavyweight world champ Montell Griffin worked out in Las Vegas prior to leaving for his Friday fight in Germany with Dariusz Michalczewski, and his assistant trainer believes he has what it takes to post an upset win. "Montell is a good, hard worker with natural ability who has learned to do what it takes in the ring," said Hedgemon Lewis, who will rejoin Griffin today and work in his corner Friday night. "From what I've seen, he still wants to be a force in the division." As for the notion Griffin has not been the same since losing his title via first-ro und knockout Aug. 7, 1997 to Roy Jones, Lewis said "maybe he hasn't, yet I know he still wants to be a head above. I think he can win."

No sooner had Top Rank matched Alain Bonnamie with WBO super middleweight champ Joe Calzaghe this week and Calzaghe was forced to pull out of the fight with a bad left elbow. They were to have fought on the Oscar De La Hoya vs. Felix Trinidad undercard Sept. 18 at Mandalay Bay, but, instead, IBF cruiserweight champ Vassily Jirov has been recruited to defend his title. The likely opponent is former Las Vegan Dale Brown, ranked No. 3 by the organization. ... De La Hoya continues to work out in Big Bear, Calif., and has closed his camp to all outsiders. He's said to be going 10 rounds a day with a group of sparring partners that includes David Kamau, Ron Weaver, J.C. Candelo and Alex Bunema and that his weight is currently 149 for a fight that will be at 147. De La Hoya will appear on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno Sept. 14 in Los Angeles and then come up to Las Vegas. ... Trinidad remains in Puerto Rico through Sept. 4 and will then fly here to stay and work out at the Las Vegas Hilton beginning Sept. 6. He's said to weigh 152.

An Oct. 2 card that has Ricardo Lopez and Julio Cesar Chavez in separate events may land at the MGM in Las Vegas. ... Melinda Cooper, 13 years old and 95 pounds, has become the first female from Nevada to win a Junior Golden Gloves national championship. ... The All-American SportPark's Sept. 17 card has a female of note taking part on the undercard. Nina Ahlin, a mere 100 pounds, is 4-0-1 and doubles as a cheerleader for the NFL's Atlanta Falcons. ... Former lightweight world champion Cesar Bazan, 34-3-1, has pulled out of his scheduled fight on that Sept. 17 card. Junior welterweights Antonio Diaz and Emanuel Burton will headline, with heavyweight Lamon Brewster in a featured role. While his opponent hasn't been selected, Las Vegan Cliff Couser wishes it were him. "I was told Brewster turned me down though," Couser said dejectedly. "Nobody seems to want to fight me. Maybe they're all scared." ... The Orleans looks to get back in the boxing business with a Sept. 24 card.

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