Clearest Head May Prevail in Title Bout

It’s a confrontation between a man who fired his father and another accused of beating his pregnant wife.

An episode of Jerry Springer?

No, just business as usual in boxing, where anyone who manages to stay out of jail qualifies as a solid citizen.

How solid Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Diego Corrales are outside the ring is up for discussion, but they have solid ring credentials, meaning tonight’s World Boxing Council super-featherweight title fight at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand Hotel could be tremendous if they can put aside their distractions.

Both are undefeated. Mayweather (24-0, 18 knockouts), the product of a fighting family, once seemed destined to be the best of them all. His father, Floyd Sr., was a welterweight whose highlight was a 1978 fight against Sugar Ray Leonard. Floyd Sr. was knocked out. Floyd, Sr.’s brother, Roger, is a former junior-lightweight and super-lightweight champion. And a third brother, Jeff, was also a professional fighter.

“When I was in the crib, I was already throwing punches,” said the youngest Mayweather, who became a champion at 21 when he beat Genaro Hernandez on an eighth-round TKO in 1998.

Before that fight, many so-called experts had questioned whether Mayweather was ready, after only 17 fights, to take on a veteran like Hernandez.

Doubts rose again when Mayweather agreed to defend his title two months later against Angel Manfredy. Mayweather seemed to convince the skeptics, though, when he stopped Manfredy in two rounds.

That elicited the old cliche that the only one who could beat Mayweather was Mayweather himself.

Lately, he has been doing a pretty good job of it. He hired rap music producer James Prince to replace Floyd Sr. as his manager, turned down a six-fight, $12.75-million offer from HBO, terming the money “slave wages,” then replaced his father again, this time as trainer with Uncle Roger.

Mayweather has fought only once in the last 22 months, beating little-known Emanuel Burton on a ninth-round TKO last October.

And that was no cinch. Mayweather absorbed more punishment from Burton than he has in any previous fight.

“He’s young,” Corrales said of Mayweather. “That was rust, but he’ll shed that real fast. All he needed was that one fight.”

Said Mayweather, “Getting hit was a learning experience. But the important thing was that I came back like a true champion.”

The important thing according to Floyd Sr., is that his brother is not teaching Floyd Jr. the defensive skills he needs.

“[Roger] don’t know nothing about defense,” Floyd Sr. said. “All he knows is to throw a large volume of punches. He thinks as long as you hit the other guy, he don’t hit you. That’s . . . .”

Corrales, of course, brings his own baggage to the fight. He will be in a Sacramento courtroom next month, facing charges that he assaulted his wife, Maria.

Mayweather, inflaming the situation, has said that he will win on behalf of women everywhere.

Corrales refuses to talk about the incident.

“What I’ve done is to completely focus on the fight,” he said. “Things will be told people don’t know about. Then the whole story will come out. I ask people to save their judgment until then.”

The judgment of the oddsmakers is that Mayweather will win. They have made him a 13-10 favorite. It’s Mayweather’s speed against Corrales’ power and height advantage. Corrales stands an even 6 feet, Mayweather 5-7 1/2.

“I’m picking Corrales,” said veteran trainer Angelo Dundee, who figures the distractions will affect Mayweather more than Corrales.

“The outside things take your mind off what you want to do to be a fighter,” Dundee said. “The changing of the guard, like Mayweather has done in his corner, is a no-no.

“This is his most dangerous fight. The other guy has height, strength and maturity. You don’t want to give away all three of those things. You try to hold it to one. I wouldn’t have taken the fight, if it was my decision, because you’re giving away too many things.

“Corrales will stop the kid in the sixth, seventh, eighth round. It will happen.”

Adding to the controversy is a recent ugly incident.

Mayweather’s entourage surrounded Corrales at a hotel restaurant after a fight and threatened him.

Others interceded and there was no violence but then the fighters nearly came to blows Tuesday at a news conference in downtown Los Angeles and threats were made by Mayweather’s supporters against an onlooker who dared to cheer for Corrales.

Taking no chances, organizers of Thursday’s final news conference at the MGM Grand had 26 security personnel on hand.

Again, there was no violence, but Prince still managed to bring Thursday’s event down to the classless level of much of the pre-fight buildup by saying he was going to offer a front-row seat to Maria Corrales so she could watch someone else doing to Corrales what he had done to her.

Eat your heart out, Jerry Springer.

QUICK JABS

Also on tonight’s card, WBC lightweight champion Joe Luis Castillo (41-4-1, 37 knockouts) will defend against Cesar Bazan (38-3-1, 26).

Two Southern California fixtures, each of whom has spent half a century in boxing, are being honored. Marty Denkin will be inducted tonight into the Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in West Hills, and promoter Don Chargin will be inducted June 10 into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in Canastota, N.Y.

Denkin began as a fighter and has since served as a trainer, manager, promoter, referee and a member of the California State Athletic Commission. He has been third man in the ring for 141 title fights.

Also being honored tonight are Dodger outfielder Shawn Green, swimmer Lenny Krayzelburg and, posthumously, team owner Harry Ornest.