TV’s Mario Lopez going to do Canastota

Television personality Mario Lopez will be the grand marshal of the 2006 International Boxing Hall of Fame’s Parade of Champions on June 11.

Lopez currently has a role as a doctor on the soap opera “The Bold and the Beautiful,” but is best-known for his role as high school jock A.C. Slater in the sitcom “Saved By the Bell,” which ran from 1989-1993.

Lopez has sparred in Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, and impressed the noted trainer with his diligence.

Twelve new members are to be inducted this year, including junior flyweight rivals Michael Carbajal and Humberto “Chiquita” Gonzalez, as well as boxing historian Hank Kaplan.

Past grand marshals have included other movie and TV celebrities, including Ryan O’Neal, Bo Derek, Danny Aiello, Mr. T and Sherman Hemsley.

In case you were wondering or confused, it was Lopez’s “Saved” castmate Dustin Diamond (aka Screech) who appeared on Fox’s “Celebrity Boxing on May 22, 2002. He kicked Horshack’s butt…

(Email news tips to Michael Woods at Fightwrite@gmail.com)