Felix Trinidad ended his retirement of nearly two years Tuesday, and Shane Mosley could be his first opponent.
"A lot of people told me we need you in boxing," Trinidad said in New York.
The 31-year-old, immensely popular in his home of Puerto Rico, earned tens of millions of dollars while winning titles as a welterweight, junior middleweight and middleweight.
Promoter Don King said a fight is set with Mosley, provided Mosley wins his March 13 bout with Winky Wright in Las Vegas.
Trinidad was 41-1 with 34 knockouts, and won 20 of his 21 title fights. In his last bout, in May 2002, Trinidad stopped journeyman Hacine Cherifi.
-- King is backing Andrew Golota in an April 17 bout at Madison Square Garden. The fight against IBF champion Chris Byrd could help clarify a heavyweight division left unsettled by Lennox Lewis' retirement.
The Golota-Byrd bout was one of several title fights announced in New York on a card billed as "The Next Era Begins." In the other heavyweight bout, WBA champion John Ruiz will meet Fres Oquendo..
Tennis /
Federer ousts Safin at Dubai Open
Top-ranked Roger Federer beat Marat Safin 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-4) at the Dubai Open in the United Arab Emirates in a rematch of the Australian Open final.
Federer next meets Tommy Robredo, who defeated Jonas Bjorkman 6-4, 6-4.
In other action, two seeded players lost: No. 2 Guillermo Coria and No. 4 David Nalbandian. Coria was eliminated by Mikhail Youzhny 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, and Nalbandian was beaten by Jarkko Nieminen 6-3, 6-4.
-- Andy Roddick was two points from victory against Dutchman John van Lottum in the first round of the Franklin Templeton Tennis Classic in Scottsdale, Ariz., when play was delayed by rain.
Roddick won the first set 6-3, was leading the second 6-5 and was tied in the 12th game 30-30 when play was halted..
Elsewhere /
FSU's Bowden defends Barnett
Florida State coach Bobby Bowden questioned the rape allegation made by a former female Colorado kicker and defended the character of Buffaloes coach Gary Barnett.
Bowden, who has been coaching for 51 seasons, spoke with reporters in Clemson, S.C., Monday before giving a lecture.
Katie Hnida said last month she was raped by a Colorado teammate in 2000.
"At the time, why don't you go report it? Bowden said. "It seems like you ought to report it right (away). So it makes me say, 'Well, did it really happen like that?' I just don't know. I know this. You can't get many men much better than ol' Gary Barnett."
-- Assault charges against Pittsburgh quarterback Rod Rutherford resulting from a Sept. 1 incident in Pittsburgh were dropped.
Motor sports: NASCAR suspended Busch series driver Kevin Grubb, 25, for violating its substance-abuse policy.
Horse racing: A near-record Pick Six carryover of $1,413,136 will be up for grabs on the third-through-eighth races today at Santa Anita, with the total pool perhaps tripling that figure. The record carryover is $1,830,146, set in 1991.
College basketball: Air Force, Navy, North Carolina and Michigan State are in talks about playing a doubleheader on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier in November.
The NCAA has given its approval and ESPN has agreed to televise the game, Air Force senior associate athletic director Mike Saks told the Gazette newspaper in Colorado Springs.
College baseball: Three San Jose State pitchers combined on a three- hitter as the Spartans (8-5-1) handed visiting Cal (7-10) its sixth straight loss, 8-0.
Jose Amaya gave up the three hits in five innings to pick up the win before Brad Kilby added three hitless innings and Matt Winck pitched the ninth.
-- Delaney Gallagher hit a grand slam, but it wasn't enough as St. Mary's (3-13) dropped a 13-11 decision at UC Davis (12-6).
Obituary: Oleksandr Beresh, 26, a two-time Olympic gymnastics medalist and former European champion, was killed when the car he was driving collided with a government car in Kiev, Ukraine.
Miscellany: Pete Rose, who participated in three Wrestlemania events from 1998-2000, will be inducted into World Wrestling Entertainment's Hall of Fame later this month.
http://sfgate.com
"A lot of people told me we need you in boxing," Trinidad said in New York.
The 31-year-old, immensely popular in his home of Puerto Rico, earned tens of millions of dollars while winning titles as a welterweight, junior middleweight and middleweight.
Promoter Don King said a fight is set with Mosley, provided Mosley wins his March 13 bout with Winky Wright in Las Vegas.
Trinidad was 41-1 with 34 knockouts, and won 20 of his 21 title fights. In his last bout, in May 2002, Trinidad stopped journeyman Hacine Cherifi.
-- King is backing Andrew Golota in an April 17 bout at Madison Square Garden. The fight against IBF champion Chris Byrd could help clarify a heavyweight division left unsettled by Lennox Lewis' retirement.
The Golota-Byrd bout was one of several title fights announced in New York on a card billed as "The Next Era Begins." In the other heavyweight bout, WBA champion John Ruiz will meet Fres Oquendo..
Tennis /
Federer ousts Safin at Dubai Open
Top-ranked Roger Federer beat Marat Safin 7-6 (7-2), 7-6 (7-4) at the Dubai Open in the United Arab Emirates in a rematch of the Australian Open final.
Federer next meets Tommy Robredo, who defeated Jonas Bjorkman 6-4, 6-4.
In other action, two seeded players lost: No. 2 Guillermo Coria and No. 4 David Nalbandian. Coria was eliminated by Mikhail Youzhny 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, and Nalbandian was beaten by Jarkko Nieminen 6-3, 6-4.
-- Andy Roddick was two points from victory against Dutchman John van Lottum in the first round of the Franklin Templeton Tennis Classic in Scottsdale, Ariz., when play was delayed by rain.
Roddick won the first set 6-3, was leading the second 6-5 and was tied in the 12th game 30-30 when play was halted..
Elsewhere /
FSU's Bowden defends Barnett
Florida State coach Bobby Bowden questioned the rape allegation made by a former female Colorado kicker and defended the character of Buffaloes coach Gary Barnett.
Bowden, who has been coaching for 51 seasons, spoke with reporters in Clemson, S.C., Monday before giving a lecture.
Katie Hnida said last month she was raped by a Colorado teammate in 2000.
"At the time, why don't you go report it? Bowden said. "It seems like you ought to report it right (away). So it makes me say, 'Well, did it really happen like that?' I just don't know. I know this. You can't get many men much better than ol' Gary Barnett."
-- Assault charges against Pittsburgh quarterback Rod Rutherford resulting from a Sept. 1 incident in Pittsburgh were dropped.
Motor sports: NASCAR suspended Busch series driver Kevin Grubb, 25, for violating its substance-abuse policy.
Horse racing: A near-record Pick Six carryover of $1,413,136 will be up for grabs on the third-through-eighth races today at Santa Anita, with the total pool perhaps tripling that figure. The record carryover is $1,830,146, set in 1991.
College basketball: Air Force, Navy, North Carolina and Michigan State are in talks about playing a doubleheader on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier in November.
The NCAA has given its approval and ESPN has agreed to televise the game, Air Force senior associate athletic director Mike Saks told the Gazette newspaper in Colorado Springs.
College baseball: Three San Jose State pitchers combined on a three- hitter as the Spartans (8-5-1) handed visiting Cal (7-10) its sixth straight loss, 8-0.
Jose Amaya gave up the three hits in five innings to pick up the win before Brad Kilby added three hitless innings and Matt Winck pitched the ninth.
-- Delaney Gallagher hit a grand slam, but it wasn't enough as St. Mary's (3-13) dropped a 13-11 decision at UC Davis (12-6).
Obituary: Oleksandr Beresh, 26, a two-time Olympic gymnastics medalist and former European champion, was killed when the car he was driving collided with a government car in Kiev, Ukraine.
Miscellany: Pete Rose, who participated in three Wrestlemania events from 1998-2000, will be inducted into World Wrestling Entertainment's Hall of Fame later this month.
http://sfgate.com
