On This Scale, Weigh-Ins Are a Burden That Should Be Shed

While Pernell Whita- ker was standing on the scale a couple of weeks ago at Madison Square Garden, weighing in for his International Boxing Federation welterweight title fight, champion Felix Trinidad was running around on the streets outside the building in three layers of sweat clothes.

Why? To lose three pounds.

What a joke. In a sport riddled with shams, the weigh-in has become one of the biggest.

Trinidad, who has become more comfortable at 154 pounds, was desperately trying to get down to 147, the maximum allowed in the welterweight division.

Did he make it? Barely. Did it matter? Not at all.

Because by the time the fight was held nearly 31 hours later, Trinidad had replenished his body and returned to his natural weight, which is about 10 pounds more than the welterweight limit.

Boxers have been known to gain as many as 16 pounds between the weigh-in and the fight.

Weigh-ins meant something in the days when boxers were actually checked on the day of their fight. But today the weigh-in has become a show in and of itself.

If the fighters have no trouble making weight, or if the weight is not an issue because heavyweights are involved, there is nothing more boring than a weigh-in. The fighters arrive, complete with their entourages, strip to their underwear, step up, hear their weight shouted out, then put their clothes back on and are gone.

But promoters, salivating at the thought of another day of coverage of their event, have lured cable networks like ESPN into showing the weigh-in live on the day before the fight.

And the live telecast seems to lure viewers, perhaps hoping the fighters, in their final face-to-face meeting before their bout, might start throwing punches early.

It never happens, but the weigh-in remains a separate event.

Fighters like Trinidad take advantage of the situation to go on crash diets at the end, knowing that they can put those precious pounds back on before the bell. That can’t be healthy for a fighter.

The logical thing would be to make fighters weigh in the day of the match. That would force them to be more diligent in their training, knowing that they have lost the option of starving themselves at the last minute.

Or making a quick run around the block.

But don’t spend time waiting for a sensible weigh-in schedule. Remember, this is boxing.

TITLE SHOT OR SHOT DOWN AGAIN?

John Jackson, Forum Boxing vice president, figured he finally had a World Boxing Organization title shot for his star featherweight, Juan Manuel Marquez. WBO President Francisco Valcarcel ruled that champion Naseem Hamed must fight Marquez within 90 days of his April 10 title defense against Paul Ingle in Manchester, England, assuming Hamed wins.

That seems only fair since this will be Hamed’s fourth title defense since Marquez was made the mandatory challenger.

But Jackson, nervous since he has heard rumblings out of England that Hamed has other plans under new promoter Barry Hearn, is hoping that Valcarcel will reiterate in an announcement Monday that Hamed must fight Marquez next.

“I absolutely feel,” Jackson said, “that Hamed does not want to fight Juan Manuel Marquez.”

The question is, does Valcarcel want to fight with Hamed if necessary?

SHORT JABS

Dwain “Tyger” Williams (15-2, 11 knockouts ) and Tito Mendoza (14-2, 12 knockouts) will battle for the vacant North American Boxing Organization junior-middleweight title in the main event on Monday night’s card at the Arrowhead Pond.

Also on the card will be a 10-round bantamweight match between Rafael Marquez (15-1, 13 knockouts), younger brother of Juan Manuel, and Guadalupe Gastelum (15-4-2, 12 knockouts).

First bell is at 7:15 p.m.