Yankee Stadium also a star in Foreman-Cotto bout

WBA super-welterweight champion Yuri Foreman and challenger Miguel Cotto are playing the lead roles in the "Stadium Slugfest," which is the title of the first-ever fight scheduled Saturday night at new Yankee Stadium. But it's not a stretch to say the real star of the show is the Stadium itself.

"Yeah, I think it's definitely a supporting character," HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg said Wednesday at the final news conference. "That's why we're here and why you put a little extra into it and why we have Larry Merchant doing a special commentary essay on the history of boxing at Yankee Stadium. You want to showcase Yankee Stadium in the broadcast."

The last fight held at old Yankee Stadium matched heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali against Ken Norton on Sept. 28, 1976. The "House That Ruth Built" now lies in ruins across 161st Street from the new incarnation of Yankee Stadium. That fight was promoted by Bob Arum, who also is the promoter of the "Stadium Slugfest."

Recalling those days, the 78-year-old promoter turned to Yankees CEO Lonn Trost and said, "We were younger then." Arum recalled the glorious history of boxing at Yankee Stadium, most famously as the sight of the Joe Louis-Max Schmeling rematch on June 22, 1938 when Louis won by knockout at 2:04 of the first round.

That was a fight that shook the world as Nazi Germany was on the march in Europe. Foreman-Cotto doesn't hold the same worldwide interest, but it certainly should reverberate in New York's ethnic neighborhoods, where Cotto draws support from his Puerto Rican countrymen and Foreman, an Orthodox Jew studying to be a rabbi in Brooklyn, has his fans.

If Arum and Greenburg have their way, this is an event that could help grow the sport of boxing in general. Arum recently put the Manny Pacquiao-Joshua Clottey bout at new Cowboys Stadium in Dallas, he's planning a card at the Alamodome in San Antonio and he has talked about putting future bouts at New Meadowlands Stadium and Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

"I want to do fights in as many large stadiums as I can," Arum said. "That is my way of bringing boxing back to the mainstream."

A crowd of 20,000 is projected for Foreman-Cotto, but the arena configuration around the ring in rightfield can accommodate up to 29,000 fans, and tickets are available in all price ranges from $50 to $400. Trost emphasized the opportunity to witness history at the first bout in new Yankee Stadium as a selling point, and Greenburg said HBO's telecast will focus on "beauty shots" of the Stadium with dramatic camera locations in the arena and a helicopter hovering overhead.

"It's a big deal," said Greenburg, who was approached by Trost months ago to facilitate the connection with Arum.

"We want people countrywide to come back to boxing. They deserted us for a couple years. This will show how intriguing the sport can be. When you plant it at Yankee Stadium, it's an e-mail blast to the country that says, 'Come back to boxing.' "