[kenyan_cheena]

THE FLORIDA ALLIANCE

Monday 11 March 2002

Story by David Gomez for espn.com

It's been three days since Terone Haynes and his bloated entourage of cousins, trainers and others arrived here in Melbourne, Australia.

To say that they've caused a commotion Down Under would be, quite frankly, an understatement. But that doesn't mean that they've ruffled feathers. On the contrary, what they have done is stir up some extremely positive publicity for the federation. Needless to say - as was emphasised when tickets for the Thursday night Rod Laver Arena fight card that Haynes will headline sold out in three hours - Australian fight fans are already well aware of the hype and hysteria surrounding "The Hastings Express". The Australian arrival of Terone Haynes, Elmer Ray and co. has been an eagerly awaited event, and no expense has been spared in showing the Florida natives the utmost hospitality.

"Jus' been incredible, the reception we receive here," Haynes said. "Can't say how much we been made to feel at home, man. I really can't wait for Thursday night, man. I'm jus' so pumped, y'all, jus' ready to explode, 'n' give the Australian public somethin' they ain't gon' forget."

Haynes' cousin Elmer Ray, never one to shy away from the spotlight, has been uncharacteristically in the background so far. Even his 17th Birthday - which the Hastings entourage celebrated in a low-key fashion here yesterday - has taken on secondary importance compared to his cousin's upcoming fight.

"Y'all, this ain't 'bout me, man," Ray said. "We over here for ma cuz, see? He the one y'all should be lookin' at. Look at him, man? He just awesome. In even better shape now than when he debuted las' month."

I must admit that, travelling with "The Hastings Express", it's been a pretty crazy 72 hours since the plane set down at Melbourne Airport on Friday afternoon. It seems to have been just an endless precession of media interviews - radio, television, newspapers - but Terone Haynes has taken it all in his stride. He's been nothing short of courteous, even when asked the same question fifteen times in a day.

One aspect of this trip that most Australians might not be aware of, and which will cause quite a buzz back in the States, is the identity of two of the members of the Hastings entourage. Numbered amongst their group are fellow Florida-born fighters and HBF competitors Oliver McCall of Fort Lauderdale and Tommy Gomez of Tampa. Curious about their presence, I questioned Elmer Ray on the matter.

"It ain't nothin' but an alliance, y'all," Ray said. "An' I gotta say, you media fellas, you give me the idea. You know, y'all gave ma cousin and I that nickname, man, "Hastings Express." Now that's cool, see, but it got me thinkin' about our hometown. And then, I think when we was watchin' the Montreal card, I see Tommy G. jus' take out that New York cat Jackson in the fifth round, and it got me thinkin', man. I'm thinkin' 'bout how we ain't jus' doin' this thing for Hastings, we doin' it for all o' Florida, man. So when I see another Florida fighter kickin' it in the tournament, I should be happy for him, man. But I'm thinkin' that feelin' happy for the brother ain't really enough. I sit down with Terone and I say to him, "We gotsta do whatever it take to make Florida the best in this sport, cuz." And I'm emphasizin' Florida, man, not Hastings. So we talkin', and the next day, we call up Tommy G., O-Mack, even Ray Mercer, man, and ask 'em if they wanna come to Hastings 'n' train, see. We jus' call those brothers up and lay it all down for 'em, man."

I made the observation that Ray Mercer didn't appear to be here in Melbourne.

Elmer Ray smiled and laughed. "Naw, man. He turn us down, see? He decline our offer. But that was cool, you know? I got a lot o' respect for Ray, man. He gonna do some damage in the tournament. But he prefer to do things his own way, and that's cool. We behind him all the way, man. I hope the brother can finish on top, hope he can get past Chuvalo, y'all. Now, the thing is, he in the same group as Tommy G., so we gonna have to be cheerin' 'gainst Ray for one night, at leas'."

I mentioned another Florida fighter, Tony Alongi, who hails from the same town as Oliver McCall, Fort Lauderdale. Alongi, the 82nd seed in the World Championship tournament, has made a great start to his career, defeating two higher seeded fighters and currently sitting in second place in Group Fifteen. His next bout will be against the group's top seed, Boston's Jack Sharkey.

"That's true, man," said Ray. "Alongi, he just a hard dude, man. He tough. Seeded down at #82, but he gettin' it done. He jus' makin' Florida proud, like the rest of us, man."

To the possibility of Alongi joining "The Florida Alliance", Elmer Ray was open.

"Why not, man? I mean, he seem to be doin' jus' fine how he is now. But we gonna talk to him, sho nuff, man. When we back home, he be gettin' a call."

Without a doubt, it is an impressive - and undefeated - quartet of fighters. Between them, Elmer Ray, Terone Haynes, Tommy Gomez and Oliver McCall are 7-0(4), with that more than likely to improve to 8-0 on Thursday night when Haynes steps into the ring. If Alongi came into the fold, it would be a quintet of undefeated Florida fighters all training together for mutual success.

"The cool thing 'bout it is we all in different groups, y'all," Ray said. "You know, I be in Group Sixteen, Terone's in Asia, Oliver in 1st Defense and Tommy G.'s in Group Twelve. So ain't no chance for us to be fightin' each other for some time, man. That's a nice situation."

On Thursday night, Terone Haynes fights Ghana's Robert Ado. Sent to the canvas five times on debut, many fear that Haynes will tear the African fighter to pieces. Haynes himself sees it as just another step on a journey that will eventually bring the Heavyweight Boxing Federation's World Championship to Florida, and a little town called Hastings...