Hasim Rahman wrapped himself in the American flag while cameras clicked and his camp cheered.
Saturday's WBC title fight against Oleg Maskaev has been turned into a warmed-up Cold War chestnut, and Rahman, the two-time champion, loves his role.
As the only American still holding a title at this high-profile, low-esteem division, Rahman sees it as his duty to safeguard a heavyweight belt for the nation that produced the world's most charismatic and unforgettable fighters at that weight. Promoter Bob Arum labeled Rahman as "America's Last Line of Defense," and the fighter believes it.
"I need to hold it down for my country," Rahman said. "If I lose this fight, I let me down, my family down, my team down and my country down. I never before have I felt like I put my country on my back."
It's exciting rhetoric — the type that pushes $49.95 pay-per-view buys and generates enthusiasm for yet another heavyweight fight lacking much charisma.
But it isn't accurate: Maskaev lives in Staten Island with his wife and four children, embracing the American dream as a U.S. citizen.
"I would say I'm a proud Russian-American," said Maskaev, a former Russian Army officer who got his citizenship two years ago after living here since 1995. "I have four kids now, and the last of them, she's an American, too. She was born here. Whoever wins the championship, he is an American."
If only the general public knew his name.
The heavyweight division is splintered, with three Eastern European champions — Wladimir Klitschko (IBF), Nicolai Valuev (WBA) and Sergei Lyakhovich (WBO) — and Rahman atop a cluttered, nondescript field.
But Saturday night's meeting at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas still has the ingredients for a memorable heavyweight bout: Two motivated veteran fighters with good attitudes, solid punching power — and glass jaws, as evidenced by the knockout defeats on their otherwise impressive records.
Rahman (41-5-2) is a solid favorite of Maskaev (32-5), and he hopes a win will be a springboard to a match against Klitschko early next year for both fighters' belts.