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Published: Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Alleged hand injury at the core of Pavlik lawsuit

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VINDICATOR STAFF REPORT

YOUNGSTOWN — Kelly Pavlik's lawsuit is a defensive move against a former manager's push for a contract extension — one that would include his Sept. 29 WBC middleweight championship fight that could earn the boxer more than $1 million.

Cameron Dunkin, Pavlik's Las Vegas-based manager, says the contract claim by Anthony Scandy of Poland is invalid.

Pavlik, of Youngstown, a world championship contender nicknamed "The Ghost," filed the lawsuit Friday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court, and the case is assigned to Judge John M. Durkin.

No hearing date is set.

"Kelly's got to protect himself," said Dunkin, alleging that Scandy has threatened a lawsuit.

Pavlik seeks to prevent Scandy from bringing any action for any claimed obligations beyond the May 12, 2007, expiration of Pavlik's three-year contract with Scandy.

Fighter's next purse

Pavlik is scheduled to fight Jermain Taylor, the WBC middleweight champion, Sept. 29 in Atlantic City, N.J. Dunkin confirmed that Pavlik is guaranteed at least $1 million in compensation for that fight.

Pavlik's suit does not seek any money. Instead, it asks Judge Durkin to declare that Pavlik has no obligation to Scandy relative to any fights after May 12, and to declare that Scandy has no claim on any income Pavlik receives from the Sept. 29 bout.

Dunkin said Scandy has threatened to sue Pavlik claiming their contract should extend for 290 days beyond May 12, 2007, because Pavlik suffered a hand injury in 2005, which impaired him for 290 days.

Dunkin, however, said Scandy's assertion concerning Pavlik's injury is inaccurate, an opinion echoed by Pavlik's trainer, Jack Loew.

"Kelly was never injured," said Loew. "He's always had hand problems. But he was never injured."

According to Loew, Pavlik's promoters, Top Rank Boxing, canceled a fight after Pavlik was charged with felony assault of an off-duty sheriff's deputy at Shenanigan's Bar in December 2005. Pavlik later pleaded no contest to a reduced assault charge.

Return to good graces

"After he got in trouble, they [Top Rank] canceled his next fight, which was supposed to be in January," said Loew. "We called Top Rank at the end of January or February because we wanted to get the kid back in the ring. But they told us they weren't going to give us an insignificant fight."

Pavlik's next fight came in June 2006 against Bronco McKart.

Scandy, however, says Pavlik missed a fight against Edison Miranda on Jan. 21, 2006 due to a hand injury during a sparring session in late December. A story in The Vindicator on Jan. 11, 2006 supports this claim.

If Pavlik had suffered an injury during the contract term, which temporarily prevented him from competing in scheduled bouts, the contract was to be extended by a time equivalent to the length of Pavlik's disability, according to a clause in the contract, which was attached to the lawsuit.

"That tells you everything you need to know right there," said Scandy.

However, the agreement also stipulates that if such an injury occurred, Pavlik and his managers were to agree in writing as to the date of the injury, the day Pavlik recovered, and the new contract termination date, the agreement said.

Both sides agree this didn't happen.

"They neglected to sign the amendment," said Scandy. "That's where the breach of contract comes in."

Jody Riley was a co-manager with Scandy in the Pavlik contract, but is not a defendant in Pavlik's lawsuit.

Agreement basics

Under the agreement, Scandy and Riley were to pay Pavlik a starting lump sum of $12,200 and $650 a month during the first year of the agreement and provide Pavlik with a cellular phone during the first year. The managers were also to provide Pavlik with a car and pay his training expenses.

In return, Pavlik was to pay the managers 13 percent of his winnings. Loew confirmed Monday that Scandy and Riley were paid in full through the end of the contract. Scandy said he did not receive any payment for the May 19 fight against Edison Miranda.

Pavlik's suit was filed by Youngstown lawyers Matthew D. Gurbach and Carmen V. Codjoe. Gurbach referred inquiries about the suit to Dunkin.

Scandy is a former local Golden Gloves boxer, who previously said he became a believer in Pavlik when he sparred with Pavlik at the Southside Boxing Club, where Pavlik trains. When he entered into the management contract with Pavlik, Scandy said Pavlik's career was likely to be "one of the best in professional boxing today."

'Here when Pavlik was a nobody'

"I don't want to cause any problems," Scandy said. "I love Kelly like a son. I'd do anything for him. He's getting pulled in a lot of directions and I think he's getting some bad information now.

"I feel like I've been stabbed in the back."

Scandy said it's unlikely the two sides will come to an agreement before next month's fight.

"It'll work its way through the court system," said Scandy, who said he is represented by Scott R. Cochran. "My attorney has a folder full of evidence."

"We were here when Kelly Pavlik was a nobody," he added. "We allowed him to work out and dedicate his life to boxing instead of having to do something like cut grass for a living.

"We helped enable him to get where he's at. Don't forget about us now."

Wednesday, August 29, 2007