ONE could be excused for thinking opponents of boxer Mark de Mori are running scared.
For the second time in five months, de Mori’s scheduled opponent has pulled out of a fight with the Scarborough heavyweight. In the latest of a long line of frustrations for “The Dominator”, American Matt “The Hurricane” Hicks will be a no-show on Sunday. According to PerthNow, Hicks had to withdraw because of passport and visa issues.
In June, his scheduled bout with Ibrahim Marshall was cancelled at late notice because the Ghanian failed a blood test.
But De Mori’s preparations for what was going to be one of the biggest challenges of his boxing career against former NFL player Hicks will not be in vain, because American Dominique “Diamond” Alexander was lined up as a replacement, pending any last-minute hiccups with Hicks.
Currently fighting out of Don King’s stable and without a fight since July, 2009, de Mori (16 wins, 1 loss, 2 draws) was convinced leading into the Hicks fight that if he lost, King would de-list him. But the 29-year-old said that was what helped motivate him.
“They’re not the best at keeping me busy, but I’m not really a high priority, so the fact I got signed with them in the first place is huge,” he said.
De Mori said the change in opponent did not bother him, although Alexander would force a change to his plan of attack.
“Hicks or Alexander, it doesn’t matter,” he told PerthNow.
“As long as there is a large American heavyweight coming to try and knock me out in my home town, I’m excited.”
He urged WA sports fans to get behind him on November 20 at the Cockburn Basketball Centre.