ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍËÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» º ÛßßßÛ ÛßßßÛ ÛßßßÛ ÛßßßÛ ßßÛßß ÛßßßÛ ÛßßßÜ Ûßßßß ÛßßßÛ ßßÛßß º Issue VIII º º ÛÜÜÜÜ ÛÜÜÜÛ Û Û ÛÜÜÜÛ Û ÛÜÜÜÜ ÛÜÜÜß ÛÜÜÜ ÛÜÜÜÛ Û º May 1994 º º Ü Û Û Û Û Û ßÜ Û Ü Û Û Û Û Û Û Û º Written by º º ßßßßß ß ßßßßß ß ß ß ßßßßß ßßßß ßßßßß ß ß ß º D.P. McIntire º ÌÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÊÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ͹ º SPORTSBEAT is a magazine distributed via the shareware marketing concept. º º If you find it worthy, please send a registration of $ 3.00 to: D.P. º º McIntire ù P.O. Box 52084 ù Raleigh, NC 27612-2084. º º º º SPORTSBEAT may be freely distributed via CBBS, the Internet, FidoNet, or º º similar networks. CBBS operators may place it online as a bulletin or door º º or other means. SPORTSBEAT may also be distributed via CD-ROM diskette. º º All other methods of distribution are considered violations of copyrights º º and will be prosecuted accordingly. º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» º TABLE OF CONTENTS. º º (1) Did I nail the Heavyweight boxing situation on the head or what? º º (2) What is going on in the American League West? º º (3) Anyone wanna buy a hockey team? º º (4) I hate to break it to you... but Pro Wrestling isn't a sport. º º (5) A really, really short issue. º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» º DID I NAIL THE HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING SITUATION ON THE HEAD OR WHAT? º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ "Right now in my opinion, Michael Moorer appears to be the best of the heavyweight class. The former WBO champion has his eyes on the WBA and IBF titles, as he will fight Evander Holyfield in a mandatory bout later this year. I expect Moorer to defeat Holyfield, probably in a decision. Another reason I like Moorer is that he has already said that if he wins the title, his first priority will be to re-unify the title by fighting Lennox Lewis. I admire that. Should he beat Holyfield a rematch could be worth millions, but a unified title to him is more important - and it is to me as well." The above quote, ahem, is from yours truly, exactly as written in the March, 1994 issue of SPORTSBEAT, with relation to the Heavyweight boxing scene. I think it pretty much speaks for itself. Moorer's decision win over Evander Holyfield in 12 rounds wasn't a really big upset, as Moorer had won 34 bouts prior to beating Holyfield. The sudden retirement of Evander Holyfield less than a week after the fight, apparently due to heart problems, however, was a surprise. This means the multi-million dollar rematch won't take place after all, and the Heavyweight division is struggling worse than ever. The Heavyweight division in boxing is a three-headed monster, and I don't mean the WBA, WBC, and IBF alphabet boys for once. The three heads I refer to now are our new WBA/IBF Champion Michael Moorer, WBC Champion Lennox "I don't wanna fight anywhere but Britain but I guess I have to" Lewis, and the last undisputed champion (remember when there was nothing else but?) Riddick "Big Daddy" Bowe. The odds of a Moorer-Bowe matchup are intriguing, but I think Bowe would pound out Moorer in a matter of eight or nine rounds. How about Lennox Lewis in a unification bout? I'd love to see it, but now it appears as if that won't come about - I personally think Lewis would take the titles. The ultimate irony? Bowe-Lewis. Should it come off, and it really does need to in the next year or so, Bowe would be fighting for the WBC version of the Heavyweight crown - Bowe previously held the WBC belt, only to throw it in a trash can, relinquishing his title. The WBC picked it out of the can, brushed off the coffee grounds, and gave it to Lewis, whose held it ever since. Sadly, the one man who was planning to unify the Heavyweight crown has retired, and the one man truly capable of doing it - Mike Tyson - is housed in an Indiana state prison until 1995. Until Tyson comes out and takes his title back (Buster Douglas has obviously proved to be an abberation), the state of the Heavyweights is in disarray indeed. ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» º WHAT IS GOING ON IN THE AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST? º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ The American League West in 1994 has become the nightmare that baseball owners wished would never come. As I write this on April 27th, nearly a month into the season, none of the four clubs in the division: The Oakland A's, Seattle Mariners, California Angels, or Texas Rangers, are above .500 - none are really that close, either. This produces the very real possibility (although I don't think it will happen this year) of a team finishing 80-82 and making baseball's new and improved (yeah, right - I'll agree to expanded) playoffs. Last year, the San Francisco Giants won 100-plus games and sat home in October by comparison. The game of baseball, long entrusted to those people worthy of being the custodian of our national pastime, has been turned over to a bunch of damned charlatains whose sole purpose is making a buck as quickly as possible... and to hell with the consequences. Makes me wanna gag. ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» º ANYONE WANNA BUY A HOCKEY TEAM? º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ Financial World magazine recently came out with its annual sports franchise issue, where it lists the estimated value of franchises in Major League Baseball, the NFL, NBA, and NHL. The Dallas Cowboys were ranked first overall at around $ 165,000,000, with the New York Yankees fourth and several NBA clubs not far behind them. Of the four sports, hockey is the cheapest buy in teams - no hockey club is estimated at more than $ 104 million (Detroit Red Wings), with the median value being lower still. Alas, the lowly Winnipeg Jets are once again the most worthless teams in sports... well, at least according to FW. The Jets are worth a paltry $ 35 million (we're not sure if that's American or Canadian, but either way it's a steal), and they haven't budged much the past three years. Surprisingly, the Tampa Lightning of the NHL aren't much farther ahead, somewhere losing over $ 10 million in value from the $ 50 million price tag owners ponied up for the club a few years ago. I've got a suggestion: let's buy the Jets! I'll put up a few bucks that I'd normally spend to buy a beer at a Carolina Mudcats baseball game, y'all can come up with the rest, and we'll buy the Jets and move 'em to Raleigh, North Carolina - the largest city and television market in the United States without a major league sports franchise. We'll rename the team the Raleigh Rebels, and have neat shows between periods - the Battle of Bull Run could be portrayed in miniature, with the Zamboni guy adding an extra element of surprise... bikini clad Southern belles riding the Zamboni as it patrols the ice. Organ players who set fire to the music sheet of Lady of Spain - you name it. Well, I can muster up about $ 5,000 for this... if someone can come up with the other $ 34,995,000, maybe we can make an offer! ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» º I HATE TO BREAK IT TO YOU... BUT PRO WRESTLING ISN'T A SPORT. º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ Jay Hidell of Shreveport, Louisiana, wrote me a few weeks ago asking why I didn't cover Pro Wrestling in SPORTSBEAT. Well, Jay, I don't cover ice skating either - neither one, in my opinion, is a sport. In Pro Boxing for example, with a few exceptions you know the names of the two fighters participating... the one recent example I can think of boxers trying to throw you a curve with their names is when "Sugar" Ray Leonard met "Marvelous" Marvin Hagler for the Middleweight title six years ago. However, in Pro Wrestling, there have been such names as "Macho Man" Randy Savage (the odds of someone with the last name Savage alone gotta be something like 100 to 1), "Bam Bam" Bigelow (who, by the way, was wrestling, or so I'm told, under some other name a few years before becoming "Bam Bam"), Sergeant Slaughter (gimme a break), and so forth. Any event where someone can't tell you their real names is definitely not a sport. Second, Pro Wrestling is not a sport simply due to the fact that so-called title contests are often held every month or so. The so-called Heavyweight champion of the world (or the Intercontinental champion, or the Television champion, etc. - that's one area where Boxing and Wrestling are alike - too damned many titles to be held) can wrestle April 2nd, again on the 17th, and yet again on the 30th. Ever see a Heavyweight boxing champion fight three times in a month? Hell no! Why? Because boxing is a sport requiring tons of physical exertion and mental toughness - wrestling isn't a sport because wrestlers don't exert themselves, and it's fake anyway. If you can't tell it by this second fact alone, you need to get a clue. Strike Two. Finally, Wrestling isn't a sport because it is entertainment. I grant you that Boxing is also entertainment, as is baseball, football, hockey, jai-alai or any other legitimate sport. But in Wrestling, the WWF and WCW champions will never meet in a "title unification" bout, because the WWF and WCW aren't real organizations - their fronts for their owning companies (WWF is owned by their chief broadcaster Jim McMahon, I think Ted Turner owns at least a part of the WCW). In boxing, if the IBF champion wants to meet the WBA champ to unify their two titles, it can be arranged. Not so in wrestling. Strike three... wrestling is out. ÉÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍ» º A REALLY, REALLY SHORT ISSUE... º ÈÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍÍͼ Unfortunately, with my relocation to Raleigh, North Carolina, I am finding less time to devote to the publications (SPORTSBEAT, RANDOM THOUGHTS, and AMERIBOARDS) each month, so this issue comes to an abrupt, screeching end. Hopefully I'll find more time next month to churn out a bigger, better issue. - end -