BOXING NOTES : Compared to the Competition, Ray Mercer Had Good Weekend

Well, at least Ray Mercer had a good weekend.

That’s what boxing cynics -- is that a redundancy? -- are saying after a weekend in which the heavyweight champion had a struggle with a 42-year-old preacher, one young prospect got knocked out by a sparring partner, another got a gift decision over a washed-up former champ and a third had to rally to beat a Soviet fighter who was about to be exiled to Chernobyl by his own people. Mercer, who had the week off, looked great by comparison.

So much for all the promise in boxing’s elite division. Stock in Bruce Seldon, Riddick Bowe and Tommy Morrison plunged worse than the food stocks at the Mirage Hotel when Buster Douglas left the buffet table in October. Seldon -- as in “seldon in the gym” -- collapsed like a house of jokers against perpetual sparring partner Oliver “Atomic Bull” McCall last Thursday and got knocked out in the ninth round. It came as no surprise to Seldon’s camp, because the young heavyweight spends more time in nightclubs than in the gym. In the days before the McCall fight, Seldon was seen signing autographs in a casino at 3 a.m.

“The success went to his head, apparently,” trainer Carmen Graziano said. “This hurt us considerably, but it could be a blessing in disguise. Maybe he’ll learn from this.”

Then on Friday, it was Morrison’s turn to do a near flameout against Yuri Vaulin, a Soviet living in White Plains and training in Queens under Tommy Gallagher. Morrison, who appears to have gotten overmuscled since his appearance in “Rocky V” -- Sly’s influence, no doubt -- was nearly dropped twice by the light-hitting Vaulin, whose handlers were feeding him to Morrison to get rid of him. The reason why was obvious when Vaulin quit after being hit in the ribs by Morrison’s left hook, leaving Gallagher aghast and abashed.

Later that night, Holyfield’s reputation was not enhanced in going the distance with Foreman, especially when it became obvious in the late rounds that the undisputed champion was playing it safer than a barroom eight-ball shooter with a bad lie. He even admitted such on Monday night’s “Arsenio Hall” show: “The crowd was booing when I held him, but I wasn’t going to let Foreman luck up on me. I’m not gonna lose the fight because they’re booing.”

Fair enough. Then it was Bowe’s turn to be exposed by Tony Tubbs, who hardly fights often enough to pay his food bill, let alone his other bad habits. But the former champion, who failed a test for cocaine after beating Orlin Norris two years ago, lit up all of Bowe’s flaws -- his indecisiveness, his mechanical movements, the predictability of his offense -- and should have won the decision. But he is not the fighter the networks and cable TV outfits have decided has “a future,” so of course, he did not. Still, it was not a good outing for Bowe.

“Riddick fell for a lot of his stunts,” trainer Eddie Futch said. “That is what I consider a major learning experience. We’ll study that tape a lot.”

Now, Morrison, who was supposed to fight Holyfield, will fight Mercer instead, on Aug. 9. That fight probably will wind up in Atlantic City, although promoter Bob Arum said he has “a huge offer” from TV Globo, a Brazilian network that wants the fight in Sao Paolo. “They’re the people who make all those steamy soap operas,” Arum said.

But there’s a hitch. Bill Cayton, Morrison’s manager, is reluctant to hold the fight in Brazil because of a cholera outbreak. Arum, no fan of Atlantic City, consulted the doctor of his ladyfriend, Lovey duBoeuf, to find out the real risk. “Lovey’s doctor told me as long as you drink bottled water and don’t eat salads,” Arum said, “you’re OK.”

As for Seldon and Bowe, Top Rank is trying to match the two for sometime this summer. And bingo, just like that four “prospects” get whittled down to two contenders and two suspects.

“We’ll just recycle ‘em,” Top Rank matchmaker Ron Katz said. “Maybe then, these guys will stop reading their press clippings and start fighting again.”

The boxing future of George Foreman is in the hands of his wife, Joan. Foreman said the only way he would come back is if the fifth Mrs. Foreman gives her approval -- and then only if he can get another shot at Evander Holyfield.

“The only fight I’d take is a rematch,” said Foreman at Wednesday night’s HBO delayed broadcast of Friday’s fight. “But my wife would have to make the decision. She’s in charge totally. She’s the dictator.”

Foreman said if he gets another chance at the title, the next time there would be a lot less of him. “I’d want to weigh about 235,” said Foreman, who weighed 257 against Holyfield. “I had good strength, but getting that right hand in, I was about two inches away. I think I’d have a swifter right hand at 235.”

Foreman denied a published report he would fight Alex Garcia in August. “I don’t want to campaign like that again,” he said.

He did not rule out, however, a fight with Mike Tyson if Tyson beats Holyfield before a rematch can be made. “I’d like to fight for the title again,” Foreman said. “If Tyson wins the title, then I want to fight him. If I had won the title Friday night, I would have fought Tyson instantly.”

If Mrs. Foreman says ,Mr. Foreman has a series of lucrative outside-the-ring offers, including books, a movie and the job of HBO boxing analyst. “I really can’t get too excited about that other stuff,” Foreman said. “I really like boxing.”

Muhammad Ali will be the guest of honor at this year’s Boxing Writers Association of America awards dinner, June 7 at the Grand Hyatt in New York, along with other honorees Holyfield, George Benton, Shelly Finkel, Jay Edson, Burt Sugar and Ross Greenburg.

Would-be fight commentators Kevin Rooney, Bobby Czyz and Vinny Pazienza might consider a racial discrimination lawsuit against Time Warner, which owns HBO and TVKO. Seems they had the wrong complexion to make a connection when HBO went shopping to replace ousted Sugar Ray Leonard. A respected New York boxing writer (not this one, but then, you knew that) was asked by an HBO honcho to submit a list of “black and Hispanic candidates” for the job, which went to Foreman. A good choice -- for the wrong reason.

Newsday and Don King have entered a new era of camaraderie, without bitterness, vituperation, or the poisonous venom of hatred, as DK likes to say. In that spirit, here, presented without mockery or treachery or trickeration, is what King Don had to say when asked why he did not hold off on making a Tyson-Razor Ruddock rematch until after Tyson fought Holyfield for the world title. Judge it for what it’s worth.

“That would be self-serving and just going for the money. That would be wrong. We’re just doing what the public demands when there’s a controversy. Let the Duvas deal in devious and wicked ways. We’re trying to bring integrity back to the sport of boxing.”

Ahem, brother.