Fans Rally Behind Trinidad, Vargas

There were flags flying, signs waving, bands playing, speakers droning on and police watching as some onlookers yelled their approval while others bellowed their outrage in front of an elevated platform in downtown Los Angeles on Sunday afternoon.

Yet another rally in the presidential election?

No, this rally was for an event whose outcome should be a lot easier to determine: A championship fight.

On stage at the Pueblo de L.A. Plaza were Felix Trinidad and Fernando Vargas, two unbeaten 154-pound champions who will put their titles on the line Saturday in a pay-per-view match at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay Events Center. Trinidad is the World Boxing Assn. titleholder, Vargas the International Boxing Federation champion.

This is not a town known for large turnouts for boxing rallies--or even for boxing events, for that matter--but approximately 2,500, according to a police department estimate, showed up.

While there were naturally more Mexican flags and vocal support for Vargas, who is of Mexican descent, there were also plenty of Puerto Ricans waving their flags in support of Trinidad, their native son.

The peaceful rally lasted two hours, a good portion of that time eaten up by promoter Don King’s familiar diatribe.

Is this fight big?

“Mike Tyson, eat your heart out,” King told the crowd. “Lennox Lewis, eat your heart out. Oscar De La Hoya, eat your heart out, because this is the grand fight of the day, of the year, of the decade, of the millennium.”

No wonder so many showed up.