Big-Time boxing is back in The Bronx. Yuri Foreman will defend his junior middleweight championship against Miguel Cotto at the new Yankee Stadium on Saturday night. HBO play-by-play man Jim Lampley talks about the significance of calling the first fight at a Yankee Stadium since 1976 and the importance of the fight for both Foreman and Cotto.
Q: First thing you that comes to mind when you think of Yankee Stadium and boxing.
A: Joe Louis vs. Max Schmeling II. It was surely one of the four or five most socially significant boxing matches in history — some would argue the most because of the political implications. That is so far and away the most important moment of boxing at Yankee Stadium that it dramatically outdistances any other boxing event that happened there.
Q: Are you excited to be doing the play-by-play for the first fight at a Yankee Stadium since 1976?
A: The first fight in 34 years and one of the reasons for that is because the last event to take place there was Ali-Norton III (and it) took place against a troubled backdrop. There was a police strike at the time, there was violence outside the Stadium both before and after the fight. And I think that was one the reasons it’s been so long since we’ve been there for a boxing match. To be ringside for a return to that important a venue after this long of an absence is very significant.
Q: What does this fight mean to Foreman?
A: Foreman hasn’t faced a marquee opponent, so he is utterly unproven at this level of the sport. Miguel Cotto is one of the five biggest boxing stars in the past seven or eight years, and Foreman has a chance to face him in a situation where you are going to have an exceptionally large live gate, a venue of enormous star importance and a chance to beat a proven stalwart.
Q: And Cotto?
A: Cotto takes a step forward from the massive disappointment that were his losses to (Antonio) Margarito and (Manny) Pacquiao and re- establishes himself in a new weight class, expands his following and continues on as one of the most important fighters in the sport.
Q: Are you confident Foreman can compete at this level?
A: He can compete at this level, but I don’t know if he can win at this level. The one attribute he is lacking, punching power, is highly significant to both your offense and your defense. . . . The one thing that Foreman has to prove in this fight is that he can earn Cotto’s respect.
