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Boxing

Winky won't let bug interfere with bout

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UNCASVILLE, Conn. - Winky Wright was feeling under the weather at Thursday's final news conference at the Mohegan Sun Arena, trying to shake off a cold he caught earlier in the week as he prepares for Saturday's fight with Sam Soliman. Wright sounded noticeably congested, but said the fight will go on.
"People wanted me to pull out," Wright (49-3 with 25 knockouts) said. "I'm already only fighting once every seven months, so if I pull out I won't get another fight for seven months?
"I'm fighting, trying to get it out of my system. I don't know what it is. It's just a cold. Got a stuffed up chest, stuffed nose, but hey, I'm here. It don't matter what it is, I'm here and I'm fighting."
Promoter Gary Shaw said Wright went to a doctor in St. Petersburg Monday for chest X-rays before leaving for Uncasville, which has had overnight temperatures in the teens all week. He said he has cleared all of Wright's medications with the boxing commission to avoid any potential problems with the postfight drug test.
"As long as Winky feels good enough to fight, he'll fight," Shaw said. "If he said, "I can't go 12 rounds, I can't breathe,' then we'll pull out of the fight. But he trained hard Wednesday and hit the bag hard."
Trainer Dan Birmingham said Wright, 34, is fine, and that he sparred six rounds against hand mitts Thursday with no problem.
NO RESPECT: No one is paying any attention to Soliman, despite his 18-fight winning streak and No. 1 ranking in the IBF.
That's all right by him.
"The best thing about being the underdog is it takes all the pressure off and makes the win that much sweeter," said the 31-7 fighter.
They may not even pay much attention back in Australia, since super-middleweights Danny Green and Anthony Mundine are fighting separate bouts on a card Sunday at Challenge Stadium in Perth.
SECRET WEAPON: Soliman, 32, says his secret weapon might be his mother, Mary, who made the trip with him to Uncasville and has been doing his cooking.
"Best cook ever," Soliman said.
Soliman's wife will not attend, however, as her sister is getting married Saturday, four hours before Soliman takes on Wright.
HALF FULL ... OR EMPTY: Roughly 3,800 tickets have been sold for the fight, which already makes it one of the biggest held at the Mohegan Sun Arena. The biggest fight, the first of three between Arturo Gatti and Micky Ward, drew 5,500 in 2002.
The arena drew 8,000 for a Beach Boys concert Wednesday night, and seats 10,500.