De La Hoya camp gets new trainer

      Jesus Rivero is out and Emanuel Steward is in as the trainer for Oscar De La Hoya, Top Rank Inc. promoter Bob Arum confirmed.
      "What the media doesn't understand, nobody gets fired," Arum said. "They aren't hired on a permanent basis."
      Steward, one of the most prominent trainers in the world, ends Rivero's two-year association with De Le Hoya. Rivera, of Mexico, had trained De La Hoya for seven fights, starting with the stoppage of Rafael Ruelas on May 6, 1995, at Caesars Palace.
      Rivero was in De La Hoya's corner for the unanimous decision over Pernell Whitaker to capture Whitaker's World Boxing Council welterweight championship on April 12 at the Thomas & Mack Center. Rivero
      "Emanuel is the chief trainer, but Robert Alcazar is back again," Arum said.
      Alcazar had been De La Hoya's chief trainer since De La Hoya was an amateur until Rivero was lured out of retirement by Arum in 1995.
      Alcazar had never been entirely out of the picture but he had been relegated to working with the sparring partners in De La Hoya's camp and with running De La Hoya's gym in East Los Angeles.
      "The question with Oscar is who he needs at the moment. Emanuel feels Oscar can be the best fighter who ever lived and he wants to be part of it," Arum said.
      Arum said Rivero helped make De La Hoya a much better defensive fighter.
      "Now we need Emanuel to work on the offense and bring the offense and defense together," Arum said.
      "Nobody fired the guy (Rivero). Nothing against Rivero."
      The move is not a total surprise. Rivero said last year that he expected to train De La Hoya for "about" another year.
      Arum said that De La Hoya may have an opponent in the future where Rivero's skills are needed and Rivero would be brought back to camp.
      Steward rose to prominence as the founder of the Kronk Gym in Detroit and as the trainer of former champion Thomas Hearns. He has also worked with Evander Holyfield, Julio Cesar Chavez and Lennox Lewis.
      Steward will work with De La Hoya for the first time in preparation for his June 14 fight against David Kamau in San Antonio. Top Rank plans on De La Hoya then fighting Hector Camacho on Sept. 13 in Las Vegas. A site for that fight has not been finalized although Arum has been talking with Caesars Palace officials.
      -- HILTON SELLOUT -- The Las Vegas Hilton is calling the Johnny Tapia-Danny Romero junior bantamweight unification title fight for July 18 a sellout, at least for now.
      The Las Vegas Hilton initially set the fight up for 6,300 seats in the indoor Hilton Center. Some tickets could become available if tickets sold in blocks are returned.
      Also, a Top Rank spokesman said the Las Vegas Hilton was going to increase the seating to about 6,550 and also offer closed-circuit television seating in the Las Vegas Hilton property.
      At the news conference kicking off the promotion, Arum said the HBO blackout in Las Vegas would be lifted when the fight was an official sellout.
      A Top Rank spokesman said all Southwest flights from Albuquerque to Las Vegas from Wednesday to Friday the week of the fight have been booked.
      Danny Chavez, a spokesman for Tapia, said Tapia has ordered 11 charter buses from Albuquerque for the fight between the two Albuquerque natives who have become bitter rivals.
      -- FIRST THINGS FIRST -- Undefeated featherweight Augie Sanchez of Las Vegas turned down a radio show interview Saturday night.
      The reason? Sanchez, who improved to 8-0 with a second-round knockout on Friday night at The Orleans, went to a prom at Cheyenne High School. Sanchez is a senior at Cheyenne.
      "He was all decked out. He looked really sharp," said Juan Sanchez, Augie's father and manager-trainer.
     
      Royce Feour's boxing notes are published Sunday. He can be reached by phone at 383-0354, by fax at 383-4676 or by e-mail at Royce_Feour@lvrj.com.