Foreman to keep Cotto waiting
Fight fans eager for boxing's return to Yankee Stadium will have to wait a little longer on Saturday night as Israeli world champion Yuri Foreman puts the Sabbath top of his priority list.
New York-based Foreman, 29, is set to make the first defence of his WBA light-middleweight title against three-time world champion Miguel Cotto (34-2, 27 KOs) at the newest incarnation of the legendary Bronx baseball stadium, which opened last year and saw the New York Yankees win its 27th World Series title last November.
It will be the first title fight since Muhammad Ali and Ken Norton met for the third time at the older venue across the street in 1976. Yet, as an orthodox Jew, Foreman (28-0, 8 KOs), is obliged to wait until the end of the Sabbath at sunset around 9:15pm on Saturday before he is able to travel from his hotel to the stadium, meaning the fight will not get under way until at least 11:15pm local time, once the champion has had his hands wrapped and warmed up.
Belarus-born Foreman, who settled in Israel as a child before moving to Brooklyn to further his boxing career, is also three years into his studies to become a rabbi but he admits the biggest fight of his career has seen his religious education slow down.
"My studies have been a little bit on hold right now because this is a priority," Foreman said.
"I'm about a year and a half away from ordination. It's going well but there's a lot of material to learn. One step at a time."
There will, however, be plenty of reminders of Foreman's heritage when the main event eventually gets going in a clash of two large New York cultures and communities which will see the rabbinical student meet the pride of Puerto Rico just days before the Big Apple's annual National Puerto Rican Day parade.
"My congregation will be behind me, many of them will be coming to the fight" said Foreman, who will be led into the ring immediately after the sounding of the shofar, a ram's horn used in Jewish religious ceremonies.
Date published :
04 Jun 2010 - 21:18:49
