By Thomas Gerbasi

It’s been said that no one is owed anything in this life, and most would agree with that adage. But then you hear stories like that of Monty Meza-Clay and while you don’t want to hand him anything, it would be nice to see him at least put in a position to shine.

That might very well be tonight, when the 33-year-old from Rankin, Pennsylvania takes on local rival Rod Salka in a bout that may just be for the minor WBC FECARBOX lightweight title, but which also could propel him into a position where he can challenge for a world title in 2015.

At 36-3 with 22 knockouts, you would have assumed that the 12-year veteran would have gotten that shot already, but despite getting oh so close, it’s never materialized. There was that 2006 loss to Edner Cherry, a TKO defeat to Jorge Solis in a 2009 IBF title eliminator, and a subsequent defeat to Fernando Beltran five months after the Solis bout.

Those were the inside the ring trials. Outside of it there were the legal issues early in his career stemming from an incident in which he was wrongfully assaulted by police officers when questioned about gunshots being fired. Meza-Clay had nothing to do with it, but was beaten anyway. He sued, eventually winning a settlement, but just days after the lawsuit was filed, he was charged with selling cocaine. Again, he was cleared of any wrongdoing, a victim of retaliation for suing the department.

Then there was the money stolen from his promoter at the time which led to them losing the purse bid for the Solis fight, and that’s not even the multiple injuries that hindered him during fights and eventually sidelined him. But he’s fought on, refusing to let it all weigh him down.

“It’s a little thing called faith,” he said quietly. “If you know what I know, you just keep pushing. That’s all I do. I just keep pushing. I got bitter many times, multiple times. I can’t even count the times. But all I do is keep pushing and I believe in God so much and it’s real. People try to tell you that it’s not real, and I’m no preacher, but I can only give you what I’ve experienced with the four, five different surgeries, a concussion, and the business. I had somebody steal from me, and I lost the purse bid that sent me out of the country, and I can go on and on. My name is Monty “My life’s a movie” Meza-Clay.”

After emotionally reliving his past, he chuckles, but he’s right. It is a tale worthy of the Hollywood treatment, but this story still needs a Hollywood ending, and the Meza-Clay movie got a Rocky-esque bout for it in August when he engaged in a Fight of the Year candidate against Alan Herrera, stopping his foe in the tenth round.

“I enjoy hard work,” he said. “That fight wasn’t hard, but it was good hard work.”

It was also work that got him a promotional deal with Mike Tyson’s Iron Mike Productions.

“That’s really huge for me,” Meza-Clay said. “Not only is he (Tyson) one of the greatest fighters of his era, but he’s one of the best fighters to ever put a pair of gloves on, so he’s someone I looked up to, and years later to sign a contract with this man, I had no idea I would ever cross paths with him. It’s definitely a dream come true.”

Now he gets the chance to prove Tyson’s faith in him was warranted, and while Meza-Clay has fought down to his level of competition at times over the years, against Salka he needs no extra motivation.

“It’s about respect, and I’m gonna establish a line of respect early with him,” he said. “I felt it was very disrespectful for him to come at me the way he did. Coming off his last fight (with Danny Garcia), his embarrassing loss, I guess he feels he now wants to use Meza-Clay so he can pump his chest and have a little pride because he can’t walk around with his head high right now. So he wants to beat me so he can at least walk around in this area, but that’s disrespectful and we’re not standing for it. He says on paper that he’s the bigger, stronger, younger fighter. He’s got it all wrong and he’s gonna lose this thing big because he’s looking at this thing on paper and I’m looking at it in reality.”

The fight at the CONSOL Energy Center in Pittsburgh almost got started early when the two nearly came to blows during a local television interview, and while Salka has been fairly cool leading up to the bout, for Meza-Clay, this is more than real when it comes to bad blood. But he’s going to save it for tonight, and when the bell rings, he’s not only planning on unleashing his fury at Salka, but at everything that has gone wrong for him over the years. That may not be the fighter you see in the gym, but you’re certainly going to see it when it counts.

“I work hard outside the fight night, but I’m not a great sparring partner,” he said. “I try to do my hardest and I give it everything I got, but you got some guys that come here and that’s where they try to give me the blues. But I’m practicing, I’m learning, and I know when to turn it on. When it’s time to go, it’s time to go. The gloves get smaller, the headgear comes off, the shirt comes off, I’ve done everything the right way, and what you’ve witnessed so far is only the beginning.”

So how does this all end on the Silver Screen?

“Definitely with a title,” he said. “This is bigger than what I’m even saying. I’ve weathered my storms. I know where I was at, I know where I’m at now, and I really understand where I’m headed.”