Boxing

An identity crisis Fred Mitchell, Chicago Tribune The face of boxing today is a tattooed police mug shot. Former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson no longer fights in a sanctioned ring, yet his criminal reputation and name recognition resonate throughout the world - whether he is involved in an airport scuffle with a photographer, as he was this week in Los Angeles, or appearing on Oprah's show, revealing his sensitive side....

Greater than the risk of being accused of criminality in the three scandals now gripping the Obama administration is the peril that the president's substantive agenda is being hopelessly knocked off track. The liberal Illinois senator who entered the White House four years ago determined to change Washington's ways of doing business still finds himself striving to overcome barriers constructed by the opposition party in Congress. In his first term, congressional Republicans embraced partisanship straightaway, particularly in the House after they gained a majority there, openly declaring their intent to block his every initiative.

Ravens safety Tom Zbikowski had his 45-game suspension from boxing lifted Thursday, his lawyer said. Zbikowski was disciplined by Chickasaw Nation Boxing Commission when he tested positive for Tetrahydrocannabinol, the main substance in marijuana, after Saturday's fight. To resolve the matter, Zbikowski sent a negative result from a self-described "more in-depth test" on Tuesday. He learned that the suspended was over when he received a certified letter from the boxing commission around 4 p.m. Thursday.

Liz Williams from Newton, N.C., wanted help finding a recipe for making baked lasagna that she had lost. She said the recipe came from a box of pasta she was using probably around 20 years ago, and it was the best lasagna ever. Back-of-the-box recipes are always popular and reliably good. I received quite a few of them from readers for baked lasagna from several different pasta brands. I decided to test the one Kay Sauvageot from Joppa shared that she said she came from a box of Mueller's lasagna noodles, circa 1980.

Saturday's Maryland-North Carolinamen's lacrosse showdown in Chapel Hill, N.C., was a fight to the finish - right up to the point where it actually became one. The two teams didn't shed their lacrosse gloves for boxing gloves as a bench-clearing brawl began in the final minute of the Tar Heels' 11-10 win , but that certainly didn't stop the fisticuffs before a national television audience. As you can see in the video below, in a matter of seconds, Tar Heels attackman Greg McBride goes from lying on the Fetzer Field grass to on the attack.

Outside the building's doors, he is Tom Zbikowski, NFL football player. Inside, he is "fresh meat. " This is Kronk Gym, legendary for turning out stellar boxing champions like Tommy Hearns and Oscar De La Hoya from threadbare surroundings. It is a proud legacy for the fighters who train here on a sagging practice ring seemingly held together by duct tape, and one that they will protect from the wannabes who have lifted a few weights or seen a few too many Hollywood renderings of their sport.

Fresh off three impressive wins in the ring, Tom Zbikowski has shut down his would-be boxing career again to refocus on football and the Ravens. Despite unresolved labor issues that have brought the NFL to a standstill, the veteran safety said he decided two weeks ago to resume preparations for training camp in late July or August. "I accomplished what I needed to accomplish and saw where I was in the boxing ring," Zbikowski said Tuesday from his family home near Chicago. "I wasn't going to be world champion in a year.

ANNAPOLIS -- Brigade boxing champions from as far back as 1944 will return for the 50th anniversary celebration of the competition at the Naval Academy tomorrow (noon) at Hubbard Hall.The 1991 brigade champions will be crowned during a tournament tonight (7:30) at Halsey Field House.Among the 70 ex-champions who will attend is Lee Bramlett, captain of the 1946 football team who later ran for governor of Mississippi and made a fortune in the sugar business."Another guy coming back is Rod McKeon, a three-time champion at 165 pounds," said Tony Rubino, the academy's boxing coach from 1948-64.

Maybe it was the banners advertising a hair-growth medicine hanging around the Hyatt Regency ballroom, or the fact that most of the 600 people there were men. But testosterone filled the air for the third annual "Fight" to Save-A-Heart boxing event. The mostly masculine mob was served a three-course dinner, followed by four bouts of boxing in a ring set up in the middle of the room. Among the fight fans: Mitchell Paige, Save-A-Heart president; Jeff Pritzker, past president; Morry Zolet, Save-A-Heart board chair; Marla Shuman, Ira K. Himmel and Sam Winik, board trustees; Marty Schwartz, president of Precision Tune Auto Care; Tom Paullin, executive director, Union Memorial Hospital Foundation; Chuck McGeehan, ESPN sportswriter; Steve Rouse, WQSR radio morning man; Darric Boyd, Legg Mason financial adviser; Eric Becker, chairman of Sterling Capital Ltd.; Steve Adelsberg and Elio Casalena, sales leaders for Tom James Co. clothier; and Dr. Jeff Quartner, Sinai Hospital director of cardiology.

The NFL labor fight has led Ravens safety Tom Zbikowski to put on his boxing gloves. As football's impending work stoppage draws nearer, Zbikowski has decided to fight in a professional boxing match on March 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. It will mark his second pro fight and first since 2006. Zbikowski said it's not about the money. He estimates that he'll make $100 profit. He isn't motivated by the notoriety, either. Zbikowski is fighting on the undercard against an undetermined opponent.

Pimlico Race Course Press box renamed to honor former Sun reporter Kelly Before Sunday's first race, the Pimlico Race Course press box was renamed to include Joe Kelly , who covered horse racing for nearly 70 years before his death in November at age 94. Kelly began his career at The Baltimore Sun in the 1940s, then moved in 1955 to The Washington Star, where he spent the next 26 years. After retiring, he became the publicity director for the Maryland Million and was Pimlico's historical consultant until his death.

Charles Curlett paid $2,000 Saturday night for a Cartier watch worth $5,600. "And for a good cause," said the attorney from Oakenshawe. But Curlett won't have the unisex watch all to himself. "We're going to share it," said his wife, Christina. Curlett was among more than 200 people who packed Gutierrez Studios in Woodberry for the third annual "Hats Off to Hampden Family Center," a gala fundraiser featuring silent and live auctions and live music. The Hampden Family Center provides everything from after-school enrichment and tutoring for area schoolchildren to lunches for senior citizens and assistance to families in applying for food stamps and other social services.

Anthony "A.J. " Williams works in science by day and in the sweet science by night. He's accustomed to the good-natured verbal jabs he takes about his pursuit of a boxing career. "They actually just make jokes about it all day every day," the 26-year-old fighter said of his colleagues at Parexel International, a bio/pharmaceutical services organization, where he works as a research technician in Baltimore. "When I was an amateur, I had to be clean-shaved. So I came into work with a pencil mustache looking like I was someone's father.

One potential byproduct of the new rules in men's college lacrosse this season: more disparity in offensive efficiency, a stat that looks at goals per offensive possession and adjusts for strength of schedule. In data from Brian Coughlin , a stats expert who has done analysis for Division I programs and contributes to Inside Lacrosse, Denver has the league's highest adjusted offensive efficiency. The Pioneers score at 51 percent (numbers adjusted for strength of schedule). That's markedly higher than last season's best, Massachusetts' 42 percent.

Students at Youth's Benefit Elementary School in Fallston received a big surprise Thursday morning when they learned their school was the grand prize winner of $25,000 in the Scott Shared Values Box Tops for Education Sweepstakes. Scott Brand and General Mills, two companies that have made supporting education a key element of their businesses, announced the prize during a special assembly at the school. Youth's Benefit will be awarded 250,000 eBoxTops valued at $25,000 to be used toward educational needs.

The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is launching a Music Box Series, designed for the 6-month- to 3-year-old set. BSO vice president of education Carol Bogash calls the project “the final piece in the BSO's educational framework” and cites a McMaster University study indicating that “early musical training benefits children even before they can walk or talk.” The series will feature actress, dancer, storyteller and Baltimore School for...

Tom Zbikowski sported white trunks with purple trim at his most recent fight, an obvious nod to the Ravens. His ring entrance music came from a local rapper. Zbikowski certainly brought Baltimore to Atlantic City, N.J., where he won a hard-fought unanimous decision over Caleb Grummet on Saturday night. So, when will the Ravens safety bring one of his professional boxing matches to Baltimore? "I'm trying to," Zbikowski said after he improved his record to 3-0. "I'll do whatever I can to get a fight there.

What -- Women's and men's boxing at Martin's West in Woodlawn Time -- 8 Tickets -- $40, $50, $100. Call 410-675-6900 or 410-375-9175. Who -- Franchon Crews (20-2), Baltimore, vs. Hilary Jones (14-2), Philadelphia, in a three-round amateur light-heavyweight fight; Cory Cummings (15-0, 12 KOs), Baltimore, vs. Berry Butler (20-12, 18 KOs), Greenville, S.C., in a 10-round light-heavyweight main event. Skinny -- Crews, 19, a two-time winner of the National Golden Gloves and U.S. amateur championships, has secured a berth on the U.S. national team that will compete at the November women's world championships in New Delhi, India.

Move over, Zumba. There's a new fitness craze in town. Piloxing, which is a fusion of Pilates and boxing, debuted in Columbia last fall and continues to grow in popularity. Piloxing's blend of the cardiovascular benefits of boxing and the muscle toning of Pilates makes for a well-rounded and challenging workout, says Megan Cooperman, a group fitness supervisor for the Columbia Association, which hosts classes at local gyms. “You work your upper body and develop strength from boxing,” she says.

Boxing Taylor will box Cayo on 'Friday Night Fights' Emmanuel "The Tranzforma" Taylor of Edgewood Arsenal will fight Victor Cayo in the main event on ESPN's "Friday Night Fights" this week in Atlantic City, N.J. This will be Taylor's second appearance on national television; the first came Jan. 25, when he stopped Ray Serrano (18-1) in the sixth round in Huntington, N.Y., on "ShoBox. " Taylor, 22, a junior welterweight trained by David Sewell , is 16-1-0 with 11 knockouts as a professional and was 186-26 as an amateur.