OKLAHOMA CITY -- In 1981, Sean O'Grady won a 15-round decision over Hilmer Kenty in Atlantic City, New Jersey, to win a lightweight world title in a fight promoted by Bob Arum of Top Rank.
The victory was historic, as O'Grady became the first boxer from Oklahoma City to win a world title. He retired two years later with a record of 81-5 with 70 knockouts and went on to become as famous for his role as an analyst for the long-running USA Network series "Tuesday Night Fights" as he was as a fighter.
O'Grady still lives in Oklahoma City, and he was reunited with Arum on Wednesday at a downtown hotel ballroom, where O'Grady was a special guest at the final news conference ahead of the fight between junior welterweight world titleholder Maurice Hooker and mandatory challenger Alex Saucedo, who will square off on the one-fight Top Rank Boxing on ESPN telecast on Friday night (midnight ET, ESPN, with the undercard streaming on ESPN+ beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET) at the Chesapeake Energy Arena.
Saucedo will attempt to join O'Grady as the city's second world titleholder. O'Grady has followed Saucedo's boxing progress for many years, and he would pleased to have some company in the club.
"I've kept my eye on Alex Saucedo since he was about 12 years old," O'Grady said. "And I can tell you right now, the kid can fight. He grew up in the amateurs. He was a great little fighter, even as a young man. At 12, 13, 14 years old, he was a great little fighter.
"I like Maurice Hooker. He's a wonderful fighter too. He too has a great background in the sport of boxing. This is going to be a terrific matchup."
Saucedo's popularity at home swelled in June thanks to his bloody slugfest against Lenny Zappavigna, whom he stopped in the seventh round of a fight of the year contender, also at Chesapeake Energy Arena, to secure the title shot.
Saucedo hopes to build off that performance by claiming a world title.
"It was a very tough fight. Everyone enjoyed it. I'm glad we're here at this fight now," Saucedo said of the June brawl. "That fight got me to this point. Like I said, I'm going to take advantage of this opportunity."
Saucedo was appreciative of O'Grady's presence on stage at the news conference. He knows O'Grady's history and how long it has been since their city has crowned a boxing champion.
"It would mean everything," Saucedo said. "I grew up just around the corner [from the arena], and I always had the dream to bring championship fights back to Oklahoma, and now it's here," said Saucedo, who shares trainer Abel Sanchez with middleweight star Gennady Golovkin. "I'm not going to let this opportunity go. I'm ready. We prepared ourselves in Big Bear [Lake, in Southern California] for a very good fight.
"Like I've said, I'm ready for anything Maurice brings that night. I'm going to take that belt from him."
The fighters, who used to spar with each other at the beginning of their careers, in 2011, were both dressed in sharp suits and on their best behavior on Wednesday. They didn't trash talk, and they continued to respect each other as they have since their fight was made.
But Hooker (24-0-3, 16 KOs), 29, who is from Dallas and expects to have fans in the house cheering for him, said he isn't about to let Saucedo (28-0, 18 KOs), 24, add to the history of Oklahoma City boxing by taking his title.
"I'm only focused on Alex Saucedo," said Hooker, who will be making the first defense of the vacant 140-pound belt that he won by split decision against Terry Flanagan on June 9 in Flanagan's hometown of Manchester, England. "I wake up thinking about Alex Saucedo. I eat my food, drink my water thinking about Alex Saucedo. And come Friday, I can finally put my hands on him."
The co-feature will pit undefeated welterweight punchers "Mean Machine" Egidijus Kavaliauskas (20-0, 16 KOs), 30, of Lithuania, and Roberto Arriaza (17-0, 13 KOs), 28, of Nicaragua, in a scheduled 12-round fight that could set up the winner for a shot at world titleholder Terence Crawford (34-0, 25 KOs).