Terry Norris Fight Again Postponed : Boxing: Pay-per-view event loses out because of conflict with HBO show scheduled the same night.

The Dec. 5 pay-per-view boxing tripleheader at Las Vegas featuring Julio Cesar Chavez and Terry Norris has been postponed indefinitely, promoters announced Wednesday.

Showtime Event Television (SET), the pay-per-view arm of Showtime, and promoter Don King, were locked in a stare-down with HBO, which had previously scheduled a Dec. 5 show of its own, featuring James Toney, Iran Barkley and Roy Jones.

On Wednesday, SET blinked.

“The show will not be rescheduled for December,” SET said in an announcement sent to U.S. cable operators. “But hopefully (it can be rescheduled) for another date in early 1993.”

Joe Sayatovich, Norris’ manager, said Showtime has told that him the card would be rescheduled for Dec. 11 or Jan. 15. Sayatovich said the site would probably be Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

Two reasons were given for the postponement--HBO’s refusal to give up its Dec. 5 date, and the existence of another December pay-per-view boxing show, a Dec. 12 Bob Arum show at Phoenix.

Originally, Norris was scheduled to fight on HBO, but Sayatovich was offered “way more money” for the SET/King show.

“HBO’s being vindictive,” Sayatovich said. “(HBO) was trying to put us in with (Vinnie) Pazienza, but there wasn’t enough money for us. They said there was not another dime in the budget for us.”

The SET/King show had included Julio Cesar Chavez vs. Greg Haugen, Terry Norris vs. Simon Brown and Michael Nunn vs. Victor Cordoba.

“Clearly the Showtime show was better,” Sayatovich said. “We had three title fights. But once I saw there were two cards on the same date, I knew one of them had to go.”

HBO’s Dec. 5 offering includes James Toney vs. Doug DeWitt, Iran Barkley vs. Tyrone Frazier, and Roy Jones vs. Percy Harris.

For Norris, it marked the second straight postponement of his match with Brown. The two were to meet Sept. 26 in Las Vegas, but Brown was hospitalized on the day of the match with chest pains and vertigo and the bout was postponed.

Norris has not fought since he scored a technical knockover over Meldrick Taylor in Las Vegas on May 9. If his Brown bout is delayed until January, the seven-month layoff would be Norris’ longest since early in his career when he broke his wrist.

Sayatovich said Norris is getting antsy.

“He wants to fight every three months,” Sayatovich said.