Boxing: King's grin lights up a result that has Tua in his sights

By PETER JESSUP

The over-riding image of the David Tua-Hasim Rahman rematch is of the gleamingly polished teeth of Don King whitening the background of a shady result.

How can one judge go 116-112 to Tua and another have it the exact same score but to Rahman, then the third come in 114-114?

Only the Don knows. Only in America, as he would say.

He and the bookies will be laughing all the way to the inevitable rematch.

It was a good fight. It was about even. But Tua was the aggressor, he was the one who landed the power blows, and as the No 3-three-ranked fighter for the IBF eliminator to decide who fights champ Chris Byrd, he should have scrapped home to a points decision.

Instead it all goes into limbo.

Undisputed heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis has no need to fight anyone. Undisputed lightweight Corrie Sanders, who holds the WBO title, will have to wait because everyone will get a bigger payday from Tua-Rahman III.

So will Byrd unless he wants to risk Mike Tyson, and the chances of that are as slim as they are of King giving up the chase for Tua's signture. Rounds one and two were even. By three, Rahman was getting confident because he had kept Tua away and was puffing his face with his jab.

By round four, Tua had landed a couple of scary blows and Rahman was wary. But the punch he was wary of didn't come.

In round five, both were tired. Tua kept hitting air, but his shots looked by far the more dangerous.

In round six, Tua hurt Rahman, took him off his toes and took away his reach advantage. He should have hammered his advantage home.

He won round seven by virtue of the stunned-mullet reaction from Rahman.

After making Rahman watch for his hurting left hook he landed a huge right. Rahman was fuzzy and should have been finished. Tua had never made it so far and been ahead on points.

The New Zealander rested through rounds eight and nine and allowed the fight to return to even points-wise. Both leant and held through round 10.

Trainer Kevin Barry repeatedly told his fighter to "put the punches together," but Tua was too tired. The round ended with Rahman on the ropes, head down to a too-late flurry of punches and coming up to complain about blows after the bell.

"You can't let him hold," Barry said to his charge as he went into the 12th and final round. But it happened. Tua was too tired. He had fired at least 20 power-packed deliveries that would have stopped anyone else in the division, but Rahman stood them all. Another 30 went to air.

Tua was better than he was against Lennox Lewis and Chris Byrd, but not as active as he should have been.

He should have ended it.

"It looked like I had him gone and then I stood back and admired my work," he said.

Never a truer word spoken.

The rest was all boxing-speak.

It was all hugs and respect for the opposition in the City of Brotherly Love.

The line was: "He's tough but I'll beat him next time."

Very Rocky resonant. Don King might have written the script - with one exception. He would have had both fighters signed.

Watch out David Tua. King is coming to tell you how you can be smiling all the way to his bank.