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RAY MERCER UNLOADS ON ELMER RAY...
...WITH AN ASSIST FROM JAMES REYNOLDS

Wednesday 13 March 2002

Being that he is a sports journalist, the range of topics that James Reynolds covers in his daily New York Age columns is quite varied, and obviously not just limited to boxing. The Brooklyn-born scribe is a veteran of over thirty years in the sports news profession, and in that time he has extensively covered Major League Baseball, the NFL, tennis and the NBA. But his first love has always been boxing. Considering this, it seems a shame that for most of Reynolds life, there has never been a viable professional boxing league that was able to elevate it above third tier status in the universe that is sports in America.

The recent, unprecedented emergence of the Heavyweight Boxing Federation has solved that problem and rekindled Reynolds' love for the sport, but it has also, in the opinion of many (including some of his closest friends), exposed a surly, petty side of the man. The sole root of this is a 17 year-old Florida fighter named Elmer Ray. Back in early January in Japan, Ray caused controversy with abusive behaviour that was directed towards his debut bout opponent, Buddy Baer. Ever since, Reynolds has been running a concerted campaign to have the young man kicked out of the federation. In the two months since Japan, Ray has toned down his attitude, but his outgoing personality, sense of showmanship and skill in the boxing ring have all contributed to him becoming one of the most popular competitors in the Heavyweight Boxing Federation.

In synch with Ray's rise in popularity, Reynold's disapproval of the Hastings-born slugger has grown. It seems that the journalist does not and will never have a good word to say about Ray. He sees him as a troublemaker, an instigator and a braggart with an inflated ego, and it appears that there is little chance that Reynold's opinion will change any time soon.

Reynolds has caused some controversy himself during the past month, following a story he penned that was published in the February 13 edition of the Age that told of a possible expansion of the Heavyweight Boxing Federation. The story has since led to tension between Reynolds and a man who he has been friends with for many a year, HBF President Michael Vincennes. Reynolds insists that he still considers Vincennes a friend and it's the federation president's attitude that has led to the unease in their relationship. Vincennes vehemently criticised the Reynolds article from the outset, but said on SportsCenter last week that he had pushed the topic from his mind. It's been rumoured that in the month since the story was published, the two men have not spoken.

There has been no news on the boxing expansion front for almost three weeks, not since Olympic Gold Medallists Michael Spinks and Ray Leonard confirmed that they had spoken with the same "unnamed businessmen" who had sparked the whole situation when they approached Vincennes. Reynolds himself has had nothing to say on the topic lately, leading to some speculating that he concocted the entire story. But actually, Reynolds has not had much to say about boxing in general lately, either. Besides a column covering Jack Johnson's wild third round knockout of Pat Valentino on March 2, Reynolds has steered clear of the sport.

That is ... until today.

In an article that is sure to cause a fresh round of controversy, the New York Age today published an interview that Reynolds held with Ray Mercer, the Jacksonville, Florida native and #21 seed in the Heavyweight Boxing Federation's World Championship tournament. In the interview, Mercer openly criticised Elmer Ray over his revelation in Australia on Monday concerning the "alliance" that he and cousin Terone Haynes have formed with fellow Florida fighters Oliver McCall and Tommy Gomez. And Reynolds seemed to encourage Mercer during the interview, not once coming to Elmer Ray's defense.

"This ain't a team sport," Mercer said. "It's every man for himself. Everyone competing in these tournaments knows that. This kid, this 17 year-old kid, he's just running scared. He's like a tough guy who talks big, but then when it's time for action he backs off and hides behind his boys. I can't believe that he had the nerve to call me up and ask if I wanted to train with him. Me, Ray Mercer! A lot of people seem to have forgotten that I won a gold medal back in '92. No one mentions it. It's almost like it never happened. No one said anything about it even back in October and November, back when this thing was starting up. They preferred to go on about Riddick Bowe and the silver medal that he won when Lennox Lewis knocked him out. This Elmer Ray kid, he was six years old then, man! I was over there in Spain takin' care of business, and he was probably back home playing in his yard! And now, he's asking me if I want to train with him? That's just ridiculous."

"Just the whole idea of an alliance with other boxers is crazy," Mercer continued. "You know, I'm 28 years-old. One of the oldest fellas in these tournaments. I waited a long time for something like the HBF to come along. I kept on fighting as an amateur, because I hoped that one day, something like what we've got with the HBF would come along. Over 300 amateur bouts. These young guys, they don't know what that's like. They've just come in, had everything given to them on a platter. I'm realistic. I know that these kids are gonna outlast me. So I don't have time to be messing around, making friends with my competitors. This thing is deadly serious, I tell you. Why the hell would I train with someone who I'm going to be fighting in a few months? He's got that Tommy Gomez kid training with him. I'll be fighting that guy in three months! You can't train with your opponent, that's just crazy!"

Reynolds made a number of comments about the behaviour of Elmer Ray during the past two months, and Mercer did not hesitate to agree with him.

"I think he's got a lot of people fooled," Mercer said. "All that fancy stuff ... the rapping, the entourage, it's all just a smokescreen. He's just a kid playing a man's game and the HBF should have realised that when he auditioned."

One can only wonder how Mercer's words will be accepted, not just by Elmer Ray himself, but also by President Vincennes, members of "The Florida Alliance", fans of the sport and other federation fighters.

It could be that Ray Mercer is not aware of the popularity of Elmer Ray. He may have made a big mistake, one that won't score him any points with the boxing public...