Fighters show class, promoters clash at the Castillo-Corrales postfight press conference

report & photos by Chris Cozzone

The subjects of pounds not lost, bets that cost, and rematch clauses; all served to stir up a steamy setting at last night’s post-fight press conference.

Jose Luis Castillo called his win “vindication.”

Diego Corrales said it was a “stupid mistake,” one he “should’ve learned the first time,” that caused him to be counted out on the canvas before an estimated 16,000 people at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas. Yet, he still had no problem praising his victor.

Nor did Castillo have a bad thing to say about Corrales.

The mud-slinging was left, mainly, to the promoters.

A grinning Castillo was already at the podium when Corrales & Co. joined him on the raised dais.

“I am very happy, but sad also,” he said to the media. “I’m happy I won the fight—but sad because I couldn’t make weight yesterday . . . I let the people down—but today was vindication, knocking out Corrales.

“The promoter for Corrales [Gary Shaw] made me mad when they made me weigh in today at 147. It helped me focus more.”

Prior to his arrival, Arum had mentioned the rib injury that had inhibited Castillo’s training, making it difficult to drop the weight in a timely manner. Castillo added to it by saying he’d been unable to spar for nearly two weeks; that his training had been limited to shadowboxing.

When asked how much he’d weighed before the weigh-in, Castillo responded with, “Are we in court—do I have to say the truth-and-nothing-but-the-truth?” before admitting to being 142.

“After not making weight yesterday, I knew I needed to give Bob Arum something back. He was very disappointed. The knockout was a gift.”

Despite hurting Corrales in the 2nd, Castillo said he was wary of going in for a quick finish.

“He’s a very dangerous fighter when he’s hurt,” he said. “To be very honest, I find him very strong.

“But I knew that he was going to fight me on the inside. We’re a pair of bulls and I knew what type of fight to expect. I was very prepared for this fight.”

Castillo said he’d been disappointed about not being able to fight for the WBC/WBO belts still held by Corrales, but that Corrales “should still be recognized as the champion.

“The WBC and WBO don’t consider me the champion, but, at least, I know my little boys at home see me as the champ.”

Before leaving the podium, Castillo glanced over at Shaw, then spoke:

“I’d like to say something before I go. I love Diego Corrales but, unfortunately, people like Shaw and Prince [Corrales’ manager] f*** up boxing. They try to humiliate their opponents. But I congratulate Diego.”

With that, Corrales left the stage—and that set off Shaw, who took the mic.

“When Diego won the title from Castillo, we stayed here on the dais the whole time. This is total disrespect.”

Arum, too, left the scene, trading expletives with Shaw as he passed by. Then it was Shaw’s stage.

“We are going to invoke the rematch clause,” he told the press. “We’ll notify it in writing.”

Shaw reminded the media that although Corrales would “make no excuses” when it was his turn for the mic, he was “the only one who made the required weight.”

“That takes something out of someone.”

When a reporter shouted to Corrales what he would’ve done had he been the overweight one, ‘Chico’ responded with “I would die trying to the make the weight.”

And that’s as close to criticism as Corrales was willing to go.

“I’m not going to muck up his win,” he said, taking the stand. “I’m not going to even entertain that there was an unfair advantage tonight. I’m not going to destroy what this man worked for. “He went out there, did a good job and I congratulate Jose Luis Castillo. I give him his due. I didn’t want my win destroyed last time, I won’t destroy his.

“As for me, I’m very disappointed. I am heartbroken for you guys. I made a silly mistake, dropped my left hand and paid for it.”

Shaw preferred to keep the blame on Castillo, the controversial weigh-in—and himself.

“They tried to cheat. They tried to put their foot under the scale and they tried to cheat. That’s the story that should not be swept under the table. That’s not sportsmanship. Diego doesn’t want to say it, but I will say it . . .

“As for me? I question myself by allowing this fight to happen. I wouldn’t do it again. It was unfair to Diego Corrales.”

Shaw and trainer Joe Goossen had been reluctant for a rematch so soon after such a punishing fight five months ago, but, in the end, had conceded to Corrales’ wishes.

“Right after the fight tonight, I asked Diego if he wanted me to invoke the rematch clause. His answer? ‘Immediately—I demand you invoke the rematch clause immediately.’”

Corrales repeated Shaw’s words, saying he would be back in the gym a.s.a.p. and that, according to the contract, Castillo will have to face him again in his next fight.

“For what I want to fight for, you can’t put a belt around it,” Corrales said in reference to a question on whether he felt keeping his two belts was a consolation despite his kayo loss.

“Am I heartbroke? Yes. I’m a little let down. I made the same mistakes twice. It’s no consolation at all.”

As for the weight in the rubber match?

“Next time, if the weight is 135, we don’t unless he’s 135,” said trainer Goossen. “Period.”

“Or we go home,” added Shaw. “If he doesn’t want to fight at 135, then be man enough to say you can’t make the weight . . . I promise you, this will not happen again.”

Corrales closed the show with a poignant speech that brought everything back into rightful perspective:

“This is why we can’t get the respect [in boxing], the respect that football and baseball players get. I love my game, I love my sport and I love my job. I fight to have honor in my job. I don’t break the rules, I don’t bend the rules . . . this is about pride.

“When he didn’t make the weight, I had options. Option No. 1 was, I don’t fight the fight. Option No. 2: To accept the fight at another weight. I chose to accept the fight because of my pride and my sport . . . people deserve to see a fighter do his job. If this didn’t happen, it would’ve been bad for the sport. And the last thing I want to hear is people wanting to abolish boxing.

“Let’s preserve the sport.”

. . . . .

While it might’ve been ¡Viva Mexico! kind of night, El Salvador did not get to partake in the celebration.

Bobby Pacquiao got no further than the obligatory thank-God-promoter-and-network speech before a reporter asked him if he’d thought he’d deserved his highly-booed, controversial split decision over Salvadoran Carlos “Famoso” Hernandez.

Pacquiao was unable to answer, for it was at that moment that Jose Luis Castillo entered the press room, followed by hootin’ and hollerin’ Mexican entourage—momentum quickly changed hands.

Carlos “Famoso” Hernandez had his say, showing up in dark sunglasses to air his discontent at having lost to the less-famous Pacquiao.

“I thank God no one was hurt,” he began from the podium. “But I think I was . . .

“I was robbed. The people know who the winner was. The people know it was me.”

Arum, Hernandez’s promoter, had his fighter winning eight rounds to two.

“After the fight, I told the Mexicans not to rely on judges on Las Vegas,” he told the media. “You’re gonna have to knock your guys out.”

Which is exactly what Jorge Arce did in his rematch against Hussein “Hussy” Hussein.

Arce, smiling his Chucky-doll grin, held his hands out to the press.

“I don’t know about these hands,” he said. “As soon as I hit someone with them, they go down.”

With compadre Jose Luis Castillo waiting his turn, Arce was brief—almost as brief as he’d been stopping Hussein. He called out Rosendo Alvarez, said, “I am ready for anyone . . . for anyone at 112,” then turned his attention to Castillo.

“I told everyone that Castillo would knock out Corrales, he said, then turned to promoter Gary Shaw:

“Show me the money,” he poked, referring to the $100,000 bet Castillo had made with Shaw earlier that day that the fight would end in a knockout for the vengeance-set Mexican.