Junior Middleweight

Baltimore junior middleweight Ed Griffin survived a three-car collision on the way to the pre-fight weigh-in Wednesday night.But Griffin proved more fortunate at Martin's West last night when he won a majority decision over Derrick Coleman of Atlanta in the eight-round main event before 1,600.Coleman, a late substitute, piled up an early lead and appeared ready to finish Griffin in the second round when he trapped the Baltimorean on the ropes and landed at least a dozen unanswered punches.

CHICAGO -- Boxer Fernando Vargas, who once tested positive for the anabolic steroid stanozolol after a fight, will throw out the first pitch at Wrigley Field tomorrow when the Chicago Cubs play host to the St. Louis Cardinals. Vargas' throw, confirmed yesterday by Joe Rios, the Cubs' manager of entertainment, will take place one day after the Orioles' Rafael Palmeiro returns from his 10-day suspension for having tested positive for, it has been reported, stanozolol. Vargas (25-2, 22 knockouts)

It had been nine months since Ishmail Arvin had stepped into the ring for a professional fight, and during that time he"d grown tired of the questions about his resolve. When Arvin missed weight for a scheduled rematch with Anthony Ivory two months ago, his 40-year-old would-be opponent, having rocked Arvin in their earlier matchup, implied he was afraid. And earlier this month, rising Baltimore junior middleweight (154 pounds) Maxell Taylor, Arvin's longtime buddy, publicly challenged him, saying he's the man he next wants to fight.

Despite his early exit, Ahmed Kaddour was among the more popular fighters on the reality television boxing series The Contender. And tonight, at the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, Calif., Kaddour returns to television, ending a 10-month layoff since losing two straight bouts on the show. In a junior middleweight (154 pounds) bout against Edgewood's Maxell Taylor (12-1, five knockouts) to be televised on Showtime's Showbox: The Next Generation, Kaddour (18-2, nine KOs) will become the first fighter from the show to return to action.

Baltimore junior middleweight Vincent Pettway will get his first title shot on Feb. 19 when he battles Gilbert Baptist of San Diego for the vacant United States Boxing Association title.Stuart Satosky, who will promote the 12-round championship match at the Pikesville Armory, received official sanctioning yesterday from International Boxing Federation president Bob Lee.The IBF has Pettway (34-4, 25 KOs) ranked eighth in the world and Baptist (23-12, 8 KOs) rated No. 9 behind world champion Gianfanco Rosi of Italy.

Baltimore junior middleweight contender Vincent Pettway has signed to fight Juan Rondon of Miami at the Pikesville Armory on Oct. 9. But Pettway also is looking at a future title match with Chad Parker of Mississippi or a lucrative bout with former welterweight champion Mark Breland.Stuart Satosky will promote the Pettway-Rondon fight in conjunction with Leonard "Boogie" Weinglass, the millionaire clothing chain owner who is interested in furthering Pettway's ring career.Pettway (31-4) is ranked No. 10 in the junior middleweight class by the International Boxing Council.

Orazio Robinson turns 21 today. Last night, the junior middleweight (154 pounds) from Manassas, Va., gave himself an early birthday present by getting several licks in on his rival from Rocky Mountain, N.C. Working patiently behind a piston of a jab, Robinson attacked Willis Silver from the opening bell of their scheduled four-rounder. Before long, he had pinned his man along the ropes near a neutral corner, where Robinson landed a series of frightening blows, including uppercuts, hooks and right and left crosses.

From the opening bell, Edgewood's Maxell Taylor heard the taunts from the corner of his rival from Atlanta, Calvin Shakir. "He ain't got no power - you got the power." But midway through the second round of their scheduled eight-rounder at Michael's Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie, it was Shakir who was on one knee, dazed after being floored for the second time in the both the fight and the round. After sizing up Shakir in the first round with his range-finding right jab, the southpaw junior middleweight (154 pounds)

Baltimore's Ishmail Arvin is often at his best as an undercard fighter, stealing the thunder from the main event. Tonight, Arvin (12-0-1, seven knockouts) will return to Michael's Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie, where he is 8-0 with five knockouts. But this time, as the junior middleweight (154 pounds) main event, Arvin will be the one looking to make sure he's not upstaged. For in addition to Arvin, 29, tonight's card features Washington super middleweight (168) Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan (10-0, 10 KOs)

The fighting Fields brothers of Washington kept their unbeaten streaks intact in impressive fashion before a sellout crowd of 1,500 at Michael's Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie last night.Anthony Fields (11-0) had a tougher time of it against durable Anthony Perry, of Virginia Beach, before stopping him at 2: 06 of the sixth round of their junior middleweight feature bout.Fields landed lightning combinations almost at will before flooring Perry (8-6-2) with a straight left followed by three solid punches in the fifth round.

Baltimore electrician Tim Coleman Sr. was out of a job when he went looking for work in Las Vegas nearly six years ago. When he took his son, Tim Jr., with him, the father had no idea his loss would turn into the son's gain. "Tim never really played organized sports, but he was very athletic and looking for something physical to keep him busy," said Tim Sr. "We made some calls and wound up at a boxing gym run by Richard Steele." A natural in the ring, the younger Coleman, then 14, met and trained alongside such future world champions as Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Zab Judah.

Baltimore's Ishmail Arvin is often at his best as an undercard fighter, stealing the thunder from the main event. Tonight, Arvin (12-0-1, seven knockouts) will return to Michael's Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie, where he is 8-0 with five knockouts. But this time, as the junior middleweight (154 pounds) main event, Arvin will be the one looking to make sure he's not upstaged. For in addition to Arvin, 29, tonight's card features Washington super middleweight (168) Henry "Sugar Poo" Buchanan (10-0, 10 KOs)

The punching power of Orazio Robinson can make him hard to handle in the ring. Just ask Vance Garvey of Indianapolis, who held on for dear life to avoid being knocked senseless last night. "He had to hold on to me because he knew what was coming," said Robinson, a Manassas, Va., resident. "I don't care how the fight is stopped as long as it's not me who gets stopped." Robinson didn't get the knockout he wanted last night at the Wyndham Baltimore Inner Harbor Hotel, but when the referee waved an end to their junior middleweight (154 pounds)

It had been nine months since Ishmail Arvin had stepped into the ring for a professional fight, and during that time he"d grown tired of the questions about his resolve. When Arvin missed weight for a scheduled rematch with Anthony Ivory two months ago, his 40-year-old would-be opponent, having rocked Arvin in their earlier matchup, implied he was afraid. And earlier this month, rising Baltimore junior middleweight (154 pounds) Maxell Taylor, Arvin's longtime buddy, publicly challenged him, saying he's the man he next wants to fight.

Orazio Robinson turns 21 today. Last night, the junior middleweight (154 pounds) from Manassas, Va., gave himself an early birthday present by getting several licks in on his rival from Rocky Mountain, N.C. Working patiently behind a piston of a jab, Robinson attacked Willis Silver from the opening bell of their scheduled four-rounder. Before long, he had pinned his man along the ropes near a neutral corner, where Robinson landed a series of frightening blows, including uppercuts, hooks and right and left crosses.

From the opening bell, Edgewood's Maxell Taylor heard the taunts from the corner of his rival from Atlanta, Calvin Shakir. "He ain't got no power - you got the power." But midway through the second round of their scheduled eight-rounder at Michael's Eighth Avenue in Glen Burnie, it was Shakir who was on one knee, dazed after being floored for the second time in the both the fight and the round. After sizing up Shakir in the first round with his range-finding right jab, the southpaw junior middleweight (154 pounds)

Baltimore junior middleweight Vincent Pettway will get his first title shot on Feb. 19 when he battles Gilbert Baptist of San Diego for the vacant United States Boxing Association title.Stuart Satosky, who will promote the 12-round championship match at the Pikesville Armory, received the official sanctioning yesterday from International Boxing Federation president Bob Lee.The IBF has Pettway (34-4, 25 KOs) ranked eighth in the world and Baptist (23-12, 8 KOs) rated No. 9 behind champion Gianfanco Rosi, of Italy.

NEW YORK -- After his sixth-round knockout of Simon Brown at the USAir Arena in April, International Boxing Federation junior middleweight champion Vincent Pettway of Baltimore has become a star in promoter Don King's boxing orbit.King announced plans yesterday to match Pettway against unbeaten Paul Vaden (27-0, 11 KOs) of San Diego at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on Aug. 12. That is a week before the same hotel will host former heavyweight champion Mike Tyson's comeback bout against Peter McNeeley.

Mike Ricasa doesn't need boxing. "I'm financially stable, happily married and I'm on the verge of purchasing my own business this spring," said Ricasa, a successful automotive repair specialist at a service station in Columbia. "I've been married for 17 years to my lovely wife, Sandy, we have two kids who we can afford to send to private schools, and we believe that family is No. 1 in our lives." So why does this 39-year-old father of two girls - a man who overcame a life-threatening liver problem a few years back - get such a kick out of trading blows with adversaries who most often are a full decade his junior?

Behind an emotionless face and dark glasses, Cory Spinks ignored Ricardo Mayorga's reference to his late mother and slain brother during a news conference before their December 2003 matchup for the undisputed welterweight crown. "I will reunite you with your family upstairs," Mayorga told Spinks, who was born five days after his father, Leon, shocked the boxing world by defeating Muhammad Ali. But Spinks had heard similar talk before, having grown up in a St. Louis neighborhood where "it was basically about survival - killing here and killing there."