Welterweight king Ricardo Mayorga is so confident that he will drop Vernon Forrest by the second round that he is willing to put up $100,000 against any doubters.

During a national conference call last Wednesday afternoon to promote his WBA/WBC welterweight title rematch with Forrest broadcast by HBO on July 12 at The Orleans Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Mayorga was his usual brash self, guaranteeing a result similar to his stunning third-round stoppage of Forrest in January.

"I can put $100,000 on the table to anybody that thinks any different," Mayorga said through his trainer and interpreter Hector Perez about his prediction for the rematch. "I will knock him out."

This is how Mayorga lives his life inside and outside of the ring -- a brash in-your-face style that isn't pretty but always yields results.

In his first fight with Forrest in January at the Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, Calif., "El Matador" was more like a bull charging at Forrest with flailing fists. This clearly caught Forrest off guard and instead of adjusting his game plan and trying to move away from the awkward and often chaotic style of Mayorga, decided to stand and brawl.

Forrest was down in the first round and again in the third when referee Marty Denkin stepped between the two fighters, saving Forrest whose legs were splayed out under him as he grabbed on the ropes for support.

"I didn't deliver a clean shot -- I hit him on the top of the head," Mayorga said. "Wait until I hit him with a clean shot then people will believe who I am."

Of course, after the fight Mayorga celebrated with his customary beer and cigarette. Mayorga's pre- and post-fight antics are slowly becoming legendary in boxing circles. Many times during the official weigh-in Mayorga will eat a slice of pizza or an apple on the scale and usually come in a couple of pounds under the 147-pound limit.

Away from boxing, Mayorga is just as unpredictable. He's part thrill seeker, part philanthropist.

According to Perez, the best way for him to deal with the 29-year-old Nicaraguan is to just roll with the punches.

"Sometimes when I'm driving he throws a towel over my face," Perez said. "When we are shopping, he'll put a plastic bag over my head, just kidding around. I never get mad."

Perez added that Mayorga can often go several days without sleeping, taking only a short catnaps and getting right back in the swing of things.

In April Mayorga was charged by police in his hometown of Managua on charges of reckless endangerment, racing illegally, and endangering the life of a law enforcement officer after he was stopped for racing his car.

Johnny Ortiz, a Los Angeles radio personality and former owner of the Main Street Gym in LA describes Mayorga as simply crazy.

"He's crazy," Ortiz said. "He's crazy like a fox."

You'd have to be a little crazy in order to drive your car 112 miles-per-hour.

While his outrageous behavior is what is seen the most by people, he also is extremely giving to the people of his war-torn country.

Mayorga grew up in a large family with four girls and two boys. His father Eddy was a baker and his mother Mirian stayed home to raise the children. He attended military school growing up in Managua.

He was a rough kid who didn't participate in other sports, so a teacher suggested he try boxing. He took the teacher's advice and went on to become the Central American Golden Gloves champ.

"I come from a country where everything is war," Mayorga said. "Even the women are tough. In Nicaragua, the women give birth wherever, in the middle of the street, in the countryside, with no medical attention. You see that and it puts a totally different perspective on things."

Recently a neighbor down the street from Mayorga's mother died from diabetes. Mayorga was unable to fly home to attend the funeral, but did send money to the family for food and other necessities and even paid for the funeral.

Mayorga said after his fight with Forrest, he would donate $100,000 to a village in Nicaragua that does not have lights. He is also opening up a drag strip in Managua that will hopefully make his penchant for burning rubber a little safer for the community at large.

"I am opening a drag strip to get racing off the streets and into the race track," Mayorga said. "This isn't just because of my bad habit, but for the bad habits of others. I want to get people from driving on the streets at a fast pace."

While he is doing things right in his community, many believe the only reason he beat Forrest the first time around was because Forrest did more things wrong that Mayorga did right.

"People who think that Forrest is going to win need to make sure they buy him a pair of skates," Mayorga said. "He's going to need them when I start beating on his body.

"I am going to give him a whipping for those two rounds and not even his dog or his father will recognize him when he goes home."

So far Mayorga has made good on his predictions for stopping his opponents.

According to Perez, Mayorga told him that he would drop Forrest by the fourth. He also predicted that he'd stop Andrew "Six Heads" Lewis in March 2002 within six rounds, and he stopped him in the fifth. Now, Perez said, "He's talked the talk, it's time for him to walk the walk."

That's no problem for the impetuous Mayorga

"A lot of people want to see me fight more rounds," he said. "If HBO wants it they can put two sparring partners in there so everyone can see me go 12 rounds.

"I am what the people are waiting for. I'm a fighter and that's all. I do it for the public."