HBO to honor Steward

The life of Hall of Famer and two-time Trainer of The Year, Emanuel "Manny" Steward, a father-figure who turned  young fighters into champions such as Thomas "The Hit-Man" Hearns,  will be the subject of an HBO-televised video on Saturday night at 10:15 p.m. ET/PT, the network announced on Friday.

Steward, 68, died on Thursday.

"Emanuel Steward was like the father I never had. To me, that's what he was, because my father was never there for me. He never spent any time with me. I never really knew my father, but I knew Emanuel," said Hearns during an exclusive RingTV.com interview of Steward, who was the propreitor of Detroit's famous Kronk Gym.

"I first met Emanuel probably when I was 13. He was someone who was very, very dear to me, when you're talking about Emanuel. Emanuel Steward to me, he was a man that changed my life. He helped me to become the man that I've become today."

Saturday night's tribute to Steward will precede a main event featuring Puerto Rican welterweight Thomas Dulorme (16-0, 12 knockouts) in his most difficult challenge opposite Luis Carlos Abregu (33-1, 27 KOs) as part of a triple-header from The Turning Stone Resort and Casino in Verona, N.Y.

Another bout will feature a clash of Mexican lightweights as Miguel Vazquez (31-3, 13 KOs) defends his IBF belt opposite Marvin Quintero (25-3, 21 KOs).

Also on the card is San Francisco junior welterweight Karim Mayfield (16-0-1, 10 KOs), a 31-year-old whose opponent, Mauricio Herrera (18-2, 7 KOs), of Lake Elsinore, Calif., is coming off April's tough, unanimous decision loss to Mike Alvarado that ended his five-bout winning streak.

In another clash, welterweight knockout artist Javier Flores (7-0, 7 KOs) will take on Alberto Herrera (8-7-1, 5 KOs), who has lost four straight fights.

Lem Satterfield can be reached at lemuel.satterfield@gmail.com