NEW YORK, 2 October 2004 — Puerto Rico’s Felix Trinidad returns to boxing after a 29-month layoff here today in a 12-round welterweight showdown against Nicaraguan Ricardo Mayorga.
Trinidad, 41-1 with 34 knockouts, is coming out of retirement in his first fight since losing to undisputed middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins here three years ago.
“I’m going to win. I’m well prepared to win by knockout or by decision if that’s the way it comes,” Trinidad said. “I’ve been training so hard for this fight. It has been very hard. But I feel OK. I feel ready for this fight.
“I’m so calm and confident in my victory. I have my mind set for victory.”
Mayorga, 27-4 with one draw and 23 knockouts, has talked tough about making Trinidad’s return a brief one.
“Trinidad will wish he never came out of retirement after he fights me,” Mayorga said. “I will send him back to Puerto Rico on a stretcher.”
Trinidad intends to make Mayorga pay with punches for mouthing off. “He has been talking too much but it doesn’t bother me at all. I like boxers like that,” Trinidad said.
Mayorga faces rape charges in his homeland which at one point seemed set to jeopardize the fight, but Trinidad said he was confident it would happen.
Asked about taking a tuneup fight before facing a top rival like Mayorga, Trinidad replied,
“I never thought about a tuneup fight. Fate goes against you when you do tuneups. I’ve always believed in going straight to the main fight.”
