David Tua

Tua (51-3-1, 43 KOs) was once a popular draw in Atlantic City. He owns a 13-0 record on the Boardwalk, including 12 wins via knockout or TKO.

In his last appearance there, he notched a second-round knockout over Russell Chastain at Trump Taj Mahal Casino Resort on Nov. 30, 2002. Three months earlier, he scored a first-round knockout over former champion Michael Moorer in the same arena. Tua, who is ranked No. 2 by the WBO, also owns wins over former champs Oleg Maskaev, Hasim Rahman and John Ruiz.

He hasn't fought a lot lately, however. Tua took a 25-month layoff before staging a pair of fights in New Zealand. In his most recent outing, he earned a 12-round, unanimous decision over Friday Ahunanya last March 10.

Barrett (34-9, 20 KOs), who lives in New York, has struggled lately. He is 3-6 in his last nine fights and has lost three in a row. In his last bout, he dropped a 12-round decision to Alexander Ustinov in Switzerland on Dec. 12, 2009.

Six years have passed since his biggest victory, a split decision over then-unbeaten Dominick Guinn.

Like Tua, Barrett has fared well in Atlantic City, but has not fought in town in a while. He posted a ninth-round TKO over Mario Cawley at the Taj Mahal on Jan. 27, 2001 to run his record on the Boardwalk to 7-0 with five knockouts.

Tickets for Tua-Barrett are priced at $30, $50 and $100. They are available at Tropicana's box office, all Ticketmaster outlets or through Star Boxing (, www.starboxing.com).

Tua-Barrett is among several cards scheduled for Atlantic City over the next few months. On June 4, Vineland promoter Diane Lee Fischer will stage a show at the Tropicana headlined by Wildwood light-heavyweight Chuck Mussachio (15-0-2, 5 KOs) against Philadelphia prospect Anthony Ferrante (9-0, 4 KOs).

On July 9, Philadelphia welterweight Mike Jones (21-0, 17 KOs) and New York contender Antwone Smith (18-1-1, 10 KOs) will fight in separate bouts at Boardwalk Hall's Adrian Phillips Ballroom and on Showtime.

Punchlines: LaJuan Bright, representing the Atlantic City Police Athletic League, won the 11-12-year-old division of the Junior Olympics in Philadelphia earlier this month. Bright, who also won the Golden Gloves this year, defeated JaeShawn Rush, of Lancaster, Pa., in the final.

- Courtsey of Atlantic City press (C)