The Iron Man

Inside the ring, Ronald “Winky” Wright sees punches coming in slow motion like a pro baseball infielder waiting for the short hop of a blistering drive. It comes easy for the Florida prizefighter maybe because at one time he was a baseball player.

“In baseball I played shortstop, second base, catcher, pitcher. Living in Washington D.C. it was something we always did,” said Wright, 31, who moved to Florida in his early teens and to his own chagrin stopped playing baseball. “I didn’t know baseball players made that much money.”

Whether it’s baseball or boxing, Wright zeroes in fast moving objects with his radar-like reflexes and a defensive mindset that has taken him to the IBF junior middleweight title. His next defense will be on Nov. 8 against tough Angel Hernandez (26-4, 16 KOs) at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. The fight will be the co-feature to the Jones-Tarver fight and shown on HBO pay-per-view.

He also has something to prove to Las Vegas.

“This time I’ll be a little bit more adapted and give the fans more of what they like,” said Wright (45-3, 25 KOs), who is excited about fighting under the Las Vegas lights for only the second time. His last Las Vegas fight was a close decision victory against J.C. Candelo last March. “The first time it was awkward.”

It was awkward because in front of him was a long-armed Colombian boxer-puncher who never tried to out-slick the slickster, but instead tried to force Wright to tax his defense. It worked at times but not enough to convince the judges.

“People didn’t know he was that tough,” said Wright of Candelo. “He was a competitive fighter, not a body just standing there.”

Wright won the IBF title two years ago at the Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio, California against Robert Frazier. Since winning the title he’s made three successful title defenses that have not garnered the cheers or riches that the other junior middleweight champion has accrued.

“I don’t know I’m just frustrated with the whole thing,” said Wright about the inability to land a high profile fight with the million dollar boys in the 154-pound division: Shane Mosley, Oscar De La Hoya or Fernando Vargas. “I wish I were the man and they wanted to fight. I’d fight them. I’m not afraid of losing.”

Knowing his chances of fighting the other junior middleweight marquee fighters are slim, Wright has targeted a future showdown with the monster of the middleweights Bernard Hopkins. But he’d still like a fight with the other junior middleweights just to see where he belongs talent-wise.

Wright wants to match wits with the speed of Mosley and the power of Vargas. What’s the use of having cat-like reflexes and defensive handwork like Bruce Lee, picking off punches like a 21st Century master, unless it can be used against similar talent? Time is running out.

When Wright won the title back in Oct. 12, 2001, he was offered to defend his title against Mosley, who at the time was the reigning welterweight champion. But something blocked that fight.

“Money happened, not enough of it,” said Wright about the proposed fight with Mosley. Now the Pomona, California fighter is the reigning WBA and WBC 154-pound champion and Wright would love to let punches fly, not words.

Vargas, who owns a close victory over Wright and is the number-one contender in the WBC rankings, is scheduled to fight Tony Marshall in early December.

Wright is puzzled by Vargas’s choice of opponents considering that a decade ago he beat Marshall, who was recently knocked out by Carlos Bojorquez earlier this year.

“If he stopped being scared maybe we could fight. But he’s talking the talk but not walking the walk,” Wright said of Vargas whom he fought almost four years ago. “Fernando don’t want to fight nobody no more.”

Of course the dream fight for Wright is with the Golden Boy, but he realizes De La Hoya is the most sought after opponent in boxing and the chances are minimal. But he can dream can’t he?

“I’d love to fight Oscar, he is a good fighter,” said Wright who relishes a showdown with the multi-division world champion and riddles through his brain on how a fight between them would result in the ring. “I can’t just say how I would fight him, I’d just come in shape and just be prepared for anything. He’s the type of fighter that can change his style and fight you with his speed or his power.”

Wright won’t berate De La Hoya because he feels the East Los Angeles fighter has continually fought the best. But he would still love to see if he could beat him then retire.

“He does fight a lot of people but I feel I deserve my chance,” Wright said of De La Hoya. “It ain’t even about the title no more. I just want to fight the best and I can call it quits. I’m trying to prove I am one of the best, then it's a wrap for me. They can have boxing.”

Before he calls it quits, Wright will face Hernandez whose brute force and tenacity provide a sincere test.

"He’s not one of the fake contenders,” said Wright who looks forward to the contest. “Nobody else wants to fight guys like Angel Hernandez and Candelo nor me, so they make me fight them. But that’s alright.”

Wright’s not going for the home run, he’s going for the no-hitter.