Arum: Rubio bout rewards fans

By Joe Scalzo

Pavlik’s promoter is hoping a home bout will also rebuild his fighter’s confidence.

Kelly Pavlik’s promoter, Bob Arum, wants to accomplish two things with an upcoming fight in Youngstown — reward Pavlik’s fans and rebuild Pavlik’s confidence after his first professional loss.

“We promised Kelly’s people we’d do a title defense in Youngstown,” said Arum, the chairman of Top Rank Boxing. “We want Kelly to fight in his hometown and we feel like the local fans will show him support.

“I think this will get back his confidence and get him ready to go on with his next fights.”

Pavlik (34-1, 30 KOs) is scheduled to fight WBC No. 1 contender Marco Antonio Rubio in a middleweight title fight on Feb. 21 at the Chevrolet Centre.

“Rubio is not an easy fight,” Arum said. “He’s a good puncher and a very gutty, tough Mexican.

“It’s a good test for Kelly.”

Rubio had hoped to fight Pavlik this fall but Pavlik’s handlers instead opted for Bernard Hopkins, a well-known fighter who could bring in more money and interest. Rubio defeated Enrique Ornelas by split decision on the undercard of the Hopkins-Pavlik bout to earn a mandatory title shot.

Rubio (43-4-1, 37 KOs) had no hesitations about fighting in Pavlik’s hometown, Arum said.

“The ring is the same,” Arum said. “He’s a professional and the fans aren’t going to fight for Kelly. The officials are all appointed by the WBC, so that’s not going to be a problem.

“Only the morons in the sport say, ‘We’re not going into the guy’s hometown.’ That’s nonsense.”

It will be the second title defense for Pavlik, who knocked out the WBO’s No. 1 challenger, Gary Lockett, in the third round in June. If Pavlik beats Rubio, it could set up a fight with IBF middleweight champion Arthur Abraham, who successfully defended his title for the eighth time on Saturday. Abraham (28-0, 22 KOs) won by TKO against Raul Marquez in Germany.

Tickets for the Pavlik-Rubio bout would range from $50 to $300 and would be part of a two-site doubleheader on HBO, Arum said. HBO would also air a bout with Miguel Cotto in Atlantic City.

“In this economy, we’ve gotta be reasonable,” Arum said. “People are hurting and there’s a limit to what they can spend.”

Pavlik’s drawing power has also been diminished — at least temporarily — following his unanimous decision loss to Hopkins last month. Pavlik was less than 100 percent for that bout, due to an elbow injury he suffered in training camp and a bout with bronchitis during fight week that caused him to get a penicillin shot and take antibiotics in the days leading up to the fight.

When asked if he would have postponed the bout had he known of Pavlik’s condition, Arum said, “Absolutely, not even a question.”

Arum said he was told the shot was for WBO featherweight champion Steven Luevano, who fought on the undercard.

“When I saw Steven [before the fight], I said, ‘Steven, how are you feeling?’” said Arum. “He said, ‘What are you crazy? I’m fine.’

“I was [ticked] because they [Pavlik’s camp] lied to me.”

News and notes

In a strange development, ESPN.com reported that the WBC is threatening to strip Pavlik of his title if he doesn’t pay sanctioning fees on his non-title, non-middleweight bouts against Hopkins and Jermain Taylor in February. ... Speaking of Taylor, he will fight Jeff Lacy next weekend in his first bout since losing to Pavlik in February. ... Saturday’s light heavyweight bout between Roy Jones Jr. and Joe Calzaghe was not completed in time for this edition. Calzaghe had been mentioned as a possible opponent for Pavlik before the loss to Hopkins.

scalzo@vindy.com