Sean Sherk had the gall to go on a national television show and brag about his training routine when he knew it was all fake.

Hermes Franca had the temerity to ask those he perpetrated a fraud upon for forgiveness.

They should, and will, be punished severely for testing positive for anabolic steroids following their July 7 match for the UFC lightweight title in Sacramento, Calif.

The California Athletic Commission released the results of tests on Thursday that showed Sherk tested positive for nandrolone and Franca tested positive for Drostanolone after their title match at ARCO Arena, in which Sherk retained his title via unanimous decision.

The commission fined each man $2,500 and suspended them both until July 5, 2008. The Fight Network reported that Sherk will appeal the findings.

The issue, though, is much bigger than the fighters. Nearly every mixed martial arts card, it seems, has at least one fighter who fails a test for steroids.

The sport is dirty. And don't be surprised to

LAS VEGAS – Someone with a sense of humor in the International Fight League office had to have made sure that Alex Schoenauer wound up competing for the Los Angeles Anacondas.

How else could it be that the guy who hunts rattlesnakes in his spare time wound up fighting for a team named after a large snake?

Unlike the anaconda, though, which is a solitary and ornery being, Schoenauer is an engaging and inquisitive guy who tried mixed martial arts on a whim and says he gets an adrenaline rush from being surrounded by dozens of noisy, angry and, yep, poisonous rattlers.

Schoenauer, who gets a chance to avenge a Feb. 2 loss when he meets Mike Ciesnolevicz of the Quad Cities Silverbacks on Aug. 2 in the IFL semifinals at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, N.J., doesn't see the fuss about seeking out a deadly foe.

Sure, the light heavyweight concedes, most people shiver at the mere thought of a snake and usually run in the opposite direction at the sight of one, but what is life

True: Winky Wright's face was once on a gambling chip at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

False: It was done because Wright's frequent stops at the craps table helped the casino fund a new tower.

True: Wright is one of boxing's most accomplished fighters and so thoroughly dominated former middleweight champion Felix Trinidad that he won every minute of every round.

False: Wright was hailed for his brilliance in taking apart the power-punching Trinidad.

In fact, Wright was roundly criticized for not trying to knock Trinidad out when it appeared the Puerto Rican was ready to be taken.

Wright, who takes on light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins on Saturday on HBO Pay-Per-View at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, tries to act the epitome of cool.

Clearly, though, he has heard the critics. And so, it was a different Wright who in his last two outings fought middleweight champion Jermain Taylor to a controversial draw and wiped out one-time welterweight champ Ike Quartey.

"I'm an offensive fighter,"

Golden Boy Promotions chief executive officer Richard Schaefer is a former banker who frequently fields queries from family, friends and acquaintances about the best way to handle their money.

Schaefer has a standard pitch, but he usually gets a standard response: Most of those who approach him for advice listen carefully, are too intimidated to ask any significant questions and then never wind up implementing his suggestions.

And so Schaefer, a one-time executive at Swiss bank UBS Warburg, was not particularly shocked when he was asked for financial help by Bernard Hopkins.

The boxer is a partner in Golden Boy and has made enough money over the years that he needs a comprehensive plan to maximize it.

Schaefer talked to Hopkins about asset allocation and diversification. He explained stocks and bonds and expected to receive his usual response.

Instead, Schaefer was shocked when Hopkins began to pepper him with questions.

"He asked me a lot of very good questions, which were very

CARSON, Calif. – The landscape in boxing's welterweight division may be about to change, which is bad news for Paul Williams.

And it's even worse news for Antonio Margarito.

Williams lifted the WBO welterweight title from Williams in a frolicking affair that often had the sellout crowd at the Home Depot Center’s tennis stadium on its feet.

With the likes of Floyd Mayweather Jr., Sugar Shane Mosley and Miguel Cotto populating the 147-pound class, there are a number of delicious possibilities.

But on Saturday, Oscar De La Hoya leaked word that he is mulling a return to welterweight, a move which would have a ripple effect on what is quickly becoming the sport's deepest division.

HBO analyst Larry Merchant first reported Saturday that De La Hoya is considering a return to welterweight, where he hasn't fought since 2001, to take on super lightweight champion Ricky Hatton.

Richard Schaefer, the chief executive officer of De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions, said De La Hoya walks around at

Herb Dean is one of the most recognizable faces in mixed martial arts. He's one of the world's elite referees and says he's worked more MMA fights than anyone in the sport's young history.

Those who follow the sport closely may do a double take, then, when watching the Cage Rage card on Saturday at Wembley Stadium in London.

That will be Herb Dean in the cage, but it won't be as the referee. Dean is also an active fighter – for the time being – and will fight Dave Legeno on Saturday's card in a heavyweight bout.

Dean loves the competition, but it will be the last time he gets a taste of it. He's going to voluntarily retire after the bout to focus on his officiating career.

Dean and John McCarthy are the most recognizable referees in the U.S. And so, to avoid even the appearance of impropriety, he's planning to quit fighting after his bout with Legeno.

"I love to compete, which is why I got into it," said Dean, who is 2-2. "But it's not going to be difficult to quit. The sport has

You might call Antonio Margarito a yes man.

But he's the kind of yes man who boxing fans love.

Would he be willing to fight Oscar De La Hoya?

Yes.

How about taking on pound-for-pound kingpin Floyd Mayweather Jr.?

Yes.

Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley or Ricky Hatton?

Yes, yes and yes. Talk to him for a few minutes and you quickly get the impression he'd take on a hungry grizzly bear if you paid him and a few folks were interested in watching.

Margarito is a man of few words, but he understands the one word he needs to know.

Now, if only a few of the other fighters in his division also understood the word, we might have something.

It's a word that Margarito, who defends his WBO welterweight title on Saturday in Carson, Calif., against unbeaten knockout artist Paul Williams, laments is missing from the vocabulary of many of his would-be opponents.

"Some of these guys, they call themselves fighters," Margarito said, almost sneering.

"Hah. If you're a fighter, you should be willing to fight.

Antonio Margarito and Paul Williams have each been chasing a big fight for years. Now they have one, against each other, for Margarito's WBO welterweight title, on Saturday at the Home Depot Center in Carson, Calif. Here is what each man must do to win: