On the defensive
Despite holding the World Boxing Association's Fedecentro championship, Brian Minto remains unranked by the WBA.
The Butler heavyweight plans to change that on April 27.
Minto (29-2, 18 KOs) returns to the ring that day at the Mountaineer Casino Racetrack and Gaming Resort in Chester, W.Va., defending his title against Chad Van Sickle (22-7-3, 12 KOs) of Grove City, Ohio.
Minto signed the contract for the 10-round bout Friday.
"I thought I'd be ranked after winning that title, but the WBAwants one more fight, one more win,"Minto said. "I guess they want me at 30 wins. Sometimes you have to jump through their hoops."
Minto, 33, had arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow Jan. 8, 10 days after his first-round knockout of Byron Polley, to remove bone chips.
"That elbow had been bothering me for a while," Minto said. "I'd just been fighting through it, taking cortisone shots. A couple of MRI's didn't show anything. Finally, they just went in and cleaned it out.
"The surgery went well. I'm at 80 percent right now. That operation probably extended my career."
Van Sickle, 30, fought on the undercard of the Minto-Polley bout Dec. 30 and won a six-round split decision against Carlton Johnson (15-14). The win snapped a four-match losing streak for him.
Van Sickle's previous four opponents had a combined 99-7 won-loss record. He lost a six-round split decision to Chris Koval (23-3) and a 10-round split decision to Chauncey Welliver (30-4-4).
Before that, Van Sickle lost by knockout to unbeatens Jean Francois Bergeron (25-0) in Quebec and Alexander Dimitrenko (21-0) in Germany.
"He's got a good jab,"Minto said of Van Sickle. "He's not a world-class opponent, but he's credible and anything can happen in a boxing match.
"People ask me ... why do you have to keep fighting guys like that?Everyone expects me to take on a world-class opponent all the time. They don't realize boxing is a business, also. You have to be patient.
"All I know is, if I win this fight, I'll be 30-2, ranked and eligible for a world title fight. That's how I have to look at it,"Minto added.
Minto's status as an American heavyweight might have bumped up a notch with Eddie Chambers' (30-1)loss to Alexander Povetkin (14-0) last month in Germany.
"Eddie Chambers blew it,"Minto said. "I'm hoping to get in the back door now. Maybe I can sneak up on some people."
