The much-anticipated bout between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao is all but set for March 13, a source told Yahoo! Sports. Mayweather has agreed to terms and promoter Bob Arum is making a trip to Manila, Philippines, to finalize a deal with Pacquiao, the source said.
Las Vegas, Dallas and New Orleans are the front-runners to host the bout, which is expected to become the highest-grossing boxing match in the sport’s history.
Pacquiao is the top pound-for-pound fighter in nearly every major ranking, including Yahoo! Sports. Mayweather is No. 2 in most rankings and was No. 1 in nearly all of the polls before he briefly retired in June 2008.
Pacquiao is coming off a 12th-round stoppage of Miguel Cotto on Nov. 14 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, a bout in which he won the World Boxing Organization welterweight championship and erased fears that he is not a legitimate welterweight.
Cotto was a legitimate welterweight in his prime and Pacquiao dominated, knocking him down twice and cruising to the one-sided victory.
Mayweather routed Juan Manuel Marquez, who had previously been ranked No. 2 in the Yahoo! Sports poll, in a Sept. 19 fight at the MGM Grand.
The public demand for the fight has been enormous, putting pressure on Arum and Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer, who represents Mayweather, to get a deal done.
Promoters had targeted May 1 for the fight almost from the moment that Pacquiao stopped Cotto. But Pacquiao filed Tuesday to run for Congress in the Philippines and the election will be held on May 10.
Given that, the bout with Mayweather had to be moved up to March 13 or pushed back until September.
Though there were reports that Arum was considering matching Pacquiao with new WBO super welterweight champion Yuri Foreman on March 13 in Dallas, that was a diversionary move and was never serious, the source said.
A survey team from Top Rank will inspect Dallas Cowboys Stadium as a possible venue. The MGM Grand Garden Arena and the New Orleans Superdome are also in the running to host the mega-fight, the source said.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Pacquiao's Pushy Trainer Sued
Manny Pacquiao's trainer is being sued for something that's only legal in the ring -- assault, battery and infliction of emotional distress.
According to a lawsuit just filed in L.A. County Superior Court, Freddie Roach became enraged at Wildcard Gym Boxing Club in L.A., after coming face-to-face with Alex Vidal -- a boxing writer who penned a story titled, "Sick Roach Misses Conception's Last Workout."
Roach -- who suffers from Parkinson's disease -- allegedly challenged Vidal, claiming "he was not sick and that he only went to a clinic." Vidal says he apologized and said he was merely quoting a statement from boxer Bernabe Conception's manager.
Roach was unmoved, allegedly went on a tirade, pushing him "roughly" in the left shoulder, and yelled, "The next time you write about it, I will kill you."
Seems pretty tame in the boxing world, but Vidal is suing for all sorts of unspecified damages.
According to a lawsuit just filed in L.A. County Superior Court, Freddie Roach became enraged at Wildcard Gym Boxing Club in L.A., after coming face-to-face with Alex Vidal -- a boxing writer who penned a story titled, "Sick Roach Misses Conception's Last Workout."
Roach -- who suffers from Parkinson's disease -- allegedly challenged Vidal, claiming "he was not sick and that he only went to a clinic." Vidal says he apologized and said he was merely quoting a statement from boxer Bernabe Conception's manager.
Roach was unmoved, allegedly went on a tirade, pushing him "roughly" in the left shoulder, and yelled, "The next time you write about it, I will kill you."
Seems pretty tame in the boxing world, but Vidal is suing for all sorts of unspecified damages.
Laying down with dogs, Manny Pacquiao sure to get fleas
Perhaps I've gone off on a Pinoy political jag, I don't know.
Maybe I need something calming, like some vino and a New Haven or Rhode Island style clam pizza.
But, the more I ruminate on Manny Pacquiao's political thrusts, the more I see a good man, an honest man and a helper of the poor disenfranhised (from whence he came in GenSan) who is laying down with infested dogs and can only come away with fleas.
The old saw about power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely comes to mind when I chanced up Tuesday's New York Times and a stroy reported by Carlos H. Conde.
In it, Conde discussed Filipino president Gloria Macapagal Aorroyo as being "deeply unpopular" and reviewed her plans to now run for a seat in Congress next year.
I shoud have stopped reading there because what followed was a landslide of bad news about Pacquiao's friend:
"While she has survived several impeachment efforts, her administration has been embroiled in numerous scandals involving corruption and accused of involvement in the extrajudicial killing and abduction of hudnreds of activists. Her closest political allies in the southern Philippines were implicated last week in the massacre of 57 people, most of them journalists, in the country's worst case of election-related violence..."
I stopped there to catch my breath.
Hey, Manny, you want to meet and remeet a better class of people?
Stick to boxing because even our most odious boxing types, they don't roll like that.
They usually confine themselves to theft and other nonviolent treachery.
I repeat myself but maybe Pacman's ego and his genuine intererst in aiding the less fortunate has got the best of him.
His forays into Pinoy politics can only mix him up with the worst of them.
Maybe I need something calming, like some vino and a New Haven or Rhode Island style clam pizza.
But, the more I ruminate on Manny Pacquiao's political thrusts, the more I see a good man, an honest man and a helper of the poor disenfranhised (from whence he came in GenSan) who is laying down with infested dogs and can only come away with fleas.
The old saw about power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely comes to mind when I chanced up Tuesday's New York Times and a stroy reported by Carlos H. Conde.
In it, Conde discussed Filipino president Gloria Macapagal Aorroyo as being "deeply unpopular" and reviewed her plans to now run for a seat in Congress next year.
I shoud have stopped reading there because what followed was a landslide of bad news about Pacquiao's friend:
"While she has survived several impeachment efforts, her administration has been embroiled in numerous scandals involving corruption and accused of involvement in the extrajudicial killing and abduction of hudnreds of activists. Her closest political allies in the southern Philippines were implicated last week in the massacre of 57 people, most of them journalists, in the country's worst case of election-related violence..."
I stopped there to catch my breath.
Hey, Manny, you want to meet and remeet a better class of people?
Stick to boxing because even our most odious boxing types, they don't roll like that.
They usually confine themselves to theft and other nonviolent treachery.
I repeat myself but maybe Pacman's ego and his genuine intererst in aiding the less fortunate has got the best of him.
His forays into Pinoy politics can only mix him up with the worst of them.
Pacman Makes It Personal: Floyd Will Bear Brunt of Ire Over Sr.’s Steroid Allegations
Top Rank promoter Bob Arum is already reportedly on his way to the Philippines to personally deliver the contract for the proposed superfight against Floyd Mayweather Jr., for Manny Pacquiao’s signature.
For all the business and historical ramifications of the fight, this time the motivation may be personal for the Pacman.
Pacquiao-Mayweather or Mayweather-Pacquiao, however you may want to call it, makes so much sense business-wise that promoters on both sides were reportedly pleasantly surprised that negotiation went so smoothly with basically just the minor points in the promotion left to be ironed out in the weeks ahead. What was initially expected to be a tough clash of egos turned out to be a walk in the park as a simple 50/50 revenue-sharing proposition was already adequate to make both sides happy enough to clinch the deal. After all, it wouldn’t make sense either way if both camps allow a mere few percentage points get in the way of them making the biggest purses of their career even with just a 50/50 split: an expected take home pay in the vicinity of upwards of 40 million dollars for each, in a bout that is widely expected to top even the De La Hoya-Mayweather record-breaking numbers of 2007.
Read more in Boxing
« Manny Pacquiao: His Wealth, His Fame and How About His Name?Veteran sports journalist Ronnie Nathanielsz reported in an article posted in Philboxing.com that after just a week or so of formal negotiations with Golden Boy Promotions’ CEO Richard Schaefer who is negotiating in behalf of Mayweather Promotions, Top Rank’s Bob Arum is already on his way to the Philippines to personally deliver the contract for Pacquiao’s signature. The veteran promoter is expected to arrive in Manila by Thursday morning (Manila Time) although it wasn’t confirmed in the report if the Mayweather fight would be happening on March 13th or in September of next year. Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports and Ben Thompson of FightHype.com however reports that March 13 is the penciled date for the fight based on information provided to them by their inside sources.
Historical implications also abound in this fight as the victor will offer proof beyond reasonable doubt that he truly is the rightful owner of the mythical pound-for-pound title which both fighters are staking their claim right now. The winner would also be likely taking the best fighter of the decade honor and would make a very strong case for the best fighter of this era as well.
Green Monster Has Snowball Effect
Already among the most anticipated fight in decades, the super-hot match-up between unbeaten American Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather Jr. (40-0, 25 KOs) and Filipino fighting pride Manny ‘Pacman’ Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs) makes so much sense economically and historically that it’s almost unthinkable that another angle could give either fighter even more motivation going into the fight.
It can be remembered however that Floyd Mayweather Sr., in his attempt to explain the Pacman’s incredible success in climbing and beating fighters from the heavier weight divisions, first accused Pacquiao of using steroids in early October when Team Pacquiao was in the midst of their preparations for the upcoming match against Miguel Cotto.
Despite initial reports that Pacquiao would take Mayweather Sr. to court over that baseless accusation, he was apparently persuaded not to pursue that course as Freddie Roach claimed nobody listens to the Mayweathers anyway, and besides why bungle a potential blockbuster fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. down the line, which at that point was already a very real possibility if and when the Pacman hurdles Cotto. Cooler heads may have surmised over Manny: seal the fight, beat the hell out of Lil Floyd, get your biggest paycheck, and have the last laugh all the way to the bank. And if Mayweather Sr. still persists with his steroid allegations after the fight, then you can go ahead and sue his ass for several million dollars more. Sweet.
With Pacquiao’s impressive demolition job of Miguel Cotto in their fight last November 14 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Mayweather Sr. again dismisses the Pacman’s performance and once again brings out the issue of steroid use against the Filipino seven-division champion. Meantime, ever since this issue came out in early October a few boxers, such as light middleweight Kermit Cintron and light welterweight Paulie Malignaggi, have actually bought into this crap and offered their ‘personal’ take again without the benefit of any evidence to support their claim whatsoever.
Nevermind that the Nevada State Athletic Commission officially cleared the Pacman in his fight against Cotto or in his ten other fights held in Las Vegas. Nevermind if the other boxing commissions in the states of Texas and California where Pacquiao also fought before also cleared him against any doping charges. Nevermind if Pacquiao has never been tested positive for doping, not even once, by any boxing commission. You can’t reason with the green-headed monster called Envy that has clearly eaten this guys.
The steroid allegations has snowballed to such an absurd proportion that Sports Illustrated even reportedly preferred the squeaky-clean Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees as its Athlete of the Year over the much more impressive and most would claim historic body of work, with his unprecedented seventh title in seven divisions, done by Pacquiao this year due to the somewhat tainted reputation of the Pacman on the steroids issue, as speculated by Brad Cooney of 8countnews.com.
Business and History Aside, This One’s Personal
Business and historical significance aside, this fight appears to be personal more than anything else for Pacquiao as he recently admitted in a video aired over Philippine media outlet GMA that the constant trash talking of the Mayweathers especially the steroids allegation thrown at him by Floyd Mayweather Sr. has annoyed him enough to elicit ill-feelings towards the father-and-son tandem. Ill feelings which the Pacman hints, in a thinly-veiled threat, might come to fore during the fight, if and when it happens.
“If our fight happens… maybe he should warn his son that there will be some lingering ill-feelings there because of his accusations”, said Pacquiao, based on a translation of the same GMA video as reported by Dennis ‘dSource’ Guillermo of Examiner.com.
That’s a scary thought considering that the Pacman has been destroying, not just beating, but destroying his opponents in the last four fights. And these were supposedly bigger fighters which from all accounts he had no bad blood to begin with. Noting the various forms of pain and punishment that the Pacman administered on these supposedly friendly fighters, I shudder at the thought of how much damage he can possibly inflict on someone whom he is genuinely pissed off with. From that same article by Guillermo I quote and I agree, “truth be told, I would not want to be “Money” Mayweather when he faces the Pac Man in the ring whenever, wherever- if ever”.
Taking the issue into context, in the Philippines where even the most trivial of things can get you killed, besmirching someone’s name and reputation is definitely up there among the top reasons that you can invite harm, almost on the same level with land disputes, crimes of passion, or election-related violence.
Bob Arum is on his way to the Philippines to personally hand-carry the contract for Pacquiao’s signature.
Somewhere, Pacman is waiting and licking his chops, and I don’t mean the jack russel terrier.
For all the business and historical ramifications of the fight, this time the motivation may be personal for the Pacman.
Pacquiao-Mayweather or Mayweather-Pacquiao, however you may want to call it, makes so much sense business-wise that promoters on both sides were reportedly pleasantly surprised that negotiation went so smoothly with basically just the minor points in the promotion left to be ironed out in the weeks ahead. What was initially expected to be a tough clash of egos turned out to be a walk in the park as a simple 50/50 revenue-sharing proposition was already adequate to make both sides happy enough to clinch the deal. After all, it wouldn’t make sense either way if both camps allow a mere few percentage points get in the way of them making the biggest purses of their career even with just a 50/50 split: an expected take home pay in the vicinity of upwards of 40 million dollars for each, in a bout that is widely expected to top even the De La Hoya-Mayweather record-breaking numbers of 2007.
Read more in Boxing
« Manny Pacquiao: His Wealth, His Fame and How About His Name?Veteran sports journalist Ronnie Nathanielsz reported in an article posted in Philboxing.com that after just a week or so of formal negotiations with Golden Boy Promotions’ CEO Richard Schaefer who is negotiating in behalf of Mayweather Promotions, Top Rank’s Bob Arum is already on his way to the Philippines to personally deliver the contract for Pacquiao’s signature. The veteran promoter is expected to arrive in Manila by Thursday morning (Manila Time) although it wasn’t confirmed in the report if the Mayweather fight would be happening on March 13th or in September of next year. Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports and Ben Thompson of FightHype.com however reports that March 13 is the penciled date for the fight based on information provided to them by their inside sources.
Historical implications also abound in this fight as the victor will offer proof beyond reasonable doubt that he truly is the rightful owner of the mythical pound-for-pound title which both fighters are staking their claim right now. The winner would also be likely taking the best fighter of the decade honor and would make a very strong case for the best fighter of this era as well.
Green Monster Has Snowball Effect
Already among the most anticipated fight in decades, the super-hot match-up between unbeaten American Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather Jr. (40-0, 25 KOs) and Filipino fighting pride Manny ‘Pacman’ Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs) makes so much sense economically and historically that it’s almost unthinkable that another angle could give either fighter even more motivation going into the fight.
It can be remembered however that Floyd Mayweather Sr., in his attempt to explain the Pacman’s incredible success in climbing and beating fighters from the heavier weight divisions, first accused Pacquiao of using steroids in early October when Team Pacquiao was in the midst of their preparations for the upcoming match against Miguel Cotto.
Despite initial reports that Pacquiao would take Mayweather Sr. to court over that baseless accusation, he was apparently persuaded not to pursue that course as Freddie Roach claimed nobody listens to the Mayweathers anyway, and besides why bungle a potential blockbuster fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. down the line, which at that point was already a very real possibility if and when the Pacman hurdles Cotto. Cooler heads may have surmised over Manny: seal the fight, beat the hell out of Lil Floyd, get your biggest paycheck, and have the last laugh all the way to the bank. And if Mayweather Sr. still persists with his steroid allegations after the fight, then you can go ahead and sue his ass for several million dollars more. Sweet.
With Pacquiao’s impressive demolition job of Miguel Cotto in their fight last November 14 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Mayweather Sr. again dismisses the Pacman’s performance and once again brings out the issue of steroid use against the Filipino seven-division champion. Meantime, ever since this issue came out in early October a few boxers, such as light middleweight Kermit Cintron and light welterweight Paulie Malignaggi, have actually bought into this crap and offered their ‘personal’ take again without the benefit of any evidence to support their claim whatsoever.
Nevermind that the Nevada State Athletic Commission officially cleared the Pacman in his fight against Cotto or in his ten other fights held in Las Vegas. Nevermind if the other boxing commissions in the states of Texas and California where Pacquiao also fought before also cleared him against any doping charges. Nevermind if Pacquiao has never been tested positive for doping, not even once, by any boxing commission. You can’t reason with the green-headed monster called Envy that has clearly eaten this guys.
The steroid allegations has snowballed to such an absurd proportion that Sports Illustrated even reportedly preferred the squeaky-clean Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees as its Athlete of the Year over the much more impressive and most would claim historic body of work, with his unprecedented seventh title in seven divisions, done by Pacquiao this year due to the somewhat tainted reputation of the Pacman on the steroids issue, as speculated by Brad Cooney of 8countnews.com.
Business and History Aside, This One’s Personal
Business and historical significance aside, this fight appears to be personal more than anything else for Pacquiao as he recently admitted in a video aired over Philippine media outlet GMA that the constant trash talking of the Mayweathers especially the steroids allegation thrown at him by Floyd Mayweather Sr. has annoyed him enough to elicit ill-feelings towards the father-and-son tandem. Ill feelings which the Pacman hints, in a thinly-veiled threat, might come to fore during the fight, if and when it happens.
“If our fight happens… maybe he should warn his son that there will be some lingering ill-feelings there because of his accusations”, said Pacquiao, based on a translation of the same GMA video as reported by Dennis ‘dSource’ Guillermo of Examiner.com.
That’s a scary thought considering that the Pacman has been destroying, not just beating, but destroying his opponents in the last four fights. And these were supposedly bigger fighters which from all accounts he had no bad blood to begin with. Noting the various forms of pain and punishment that the Pacman administered on these supposedly friendly fighters, I shudder at the thought of how much damage he can possibly inflict on someone whom he is genuinely pissed off with. From that same article by Guillermo I quote and I agree, “truth be told, I would not want to be “Money” Mayweather when he faces the Pac Man in the ring whenever, wherever- if ever”.
Taking the issue into context, in the Philippines where even the most trivial of things can get you killed, besmirching someone’s name and reputation is definitely up there among the top reasons that you can invite harm, almost on the same level with land disputes, crimes of passion, or election-related violence.
Bob Arum is on his way to the Philippines to personally hand-carry the contract for Pacquiao’s signature.
Somewhere, Pacman is waiting and licking his chops, and I don’t mean the jack russel terrier.
Source: Pac-Man Vs. Floyd “Isn’t Gonna Happen”
One of the beauties about covering boxing is that most of the characters involved are directly and often brutally honest – and so a reporter frequently learns interesting and intriguing facts. But then sometimes the reporter discovers big news when he least expects it.
This is what happened to yours truly on Wednesday at the Paul Williams – Sergio Martinez press conference. At the end of the conference I wanted to ask one of the world’s best trainers, who was present due to his involvement on Saturday night, what his thoughts were on how Mayweather vs. Pacquoiao would play out and who would prevail?
“It isn’t gonna happen,” stated the source in a certain and matter of fact tone. Semi-surprised to hear such a revelation I pressed for more. “It isn’t gonna happen” is all he would say.
But it was the convincing and doubtless tone that was striking. And this source is directly connected to a key figure from Team Mayweather, by way of a mutual advisor. Now if anyone needs a bigger hint than that…
The source also added, “And do you know who Mayweather wants to fight next?” I answered as we both chuckled, Matthew Hatton.
The amazing thing about this more than credible revelation from a very connected source is that HBO may not even be aware of it. HBO’s head Ross Greenburg reiterated his position of firmly wanting to make Pacquiao vs. Mayweather a reality but added he wasn’t able to reveal anything about the negotiations as all parties have agreed to not speak to the media about it. Greenburg departed the press conference for another engagement before I could get his comment about the “It isn’t gonna happen” statement.
Boy oh boy, it sure is going to be interesting to see how HBO deals with Mayweather when he betrays the network that has earned him millions upon millions. HBO is going to be quite displeased if Mayweather refuses to meet Pacquiao next year, that you can be sure of.
Mayweather vs. Pacquiao…”It isn’t gonna happen.” If you believe the source who would have no reason or motive to mislead or deceive unlike one Leonard Ellerbe.
But is it any real surprise? We all know Mayweather ducked Margarito, Cotto and Mosley. Like he’s going to suudenly start now to fight the best? It doesn’t matter how much money is on the line.
All the money in the world could never erase how Roy Jones got knocked out by Antonio Tarver, Glen Johnson and now Danny Green. And for Floyd Mayweather, no amount of money is worth getting brutally and savagely knocked out by Manny Pacquiao.
This is what happened to yours truly on Wednesday at the Paul Williams – Sergio Martinez press conference. At the end of the conference I wanted to ask one of the world’s best trainers, who was present due to his involvement on Saturday night, what his thoughts were on how Mayweather vs. Pacquoiao would play out and who would prevail?
“It isn’t gonna happen,” stated the source in a certain and matter of fact tone. Semi-surprised to hear such a revelation I pressed for more. “It isn’t gonna happen” is all he would say.
But it was the convincing and doubtless tone that was striking. And this source is directly connected to a key figure from Team Mayweather, by way of a mutual advisor. Now if anyone needs a bigger hint than that…
The source also added, “And do you know who Mayweather wants to fight next?” I answered as we both chuckled, Matthew Hatton.
The amazing thing about this more than credible revelation from a very connected source is that HBO may not even be aware of it. HBO’s head Ross Greenburg reiterated his position of firmly wanting to make Pacquiao vs. Mayweather a reality but added he wasn’t able to reveal anything about the negotiations as all parties have agreed to not speak to the media about it. Greenburg departed the press conference for another engagement before I could get his comment about the “It isn’t gonna happen” statement.
Boy oh boy, it sure is going to be interesting to see how HBO deals with Mayweather when he betrays the network that has earned him millions upon millions. HBO is going to be quite displeased if Mayweather refuses to meet Pacquiao next year, that you can be sure of.
Mayweather vs. Pacquiao…”It isn’t gonna happen.” If you believe the source who would have no reason or motive to mislead or deceive unlike one Leonard Ellerbe.
But is it any real surprise? We all know Mayweather ducked Margarito, Cotto and Mosley. Like he’s going to suudenly start now to fight the best? It doesn’t matter how much money is on the line.
All the money in the world could never erase how Roy Jones got knocked out by Antonio Tarver, Glen Johnson and now Danny Green. And for Floyd Mayweather, no amount of money is worth getting brutally and savagely knocked out by Manny Pacquiao.
ARUM IN CRUCIAL MEETING WITH PACQUIAO TODAY
CEBU CITY -- Hall of Fame boxing promoter and Top Rank President Bob Arum, who arrived in the Philippines early Thursday morning from Las Vegas, will have a crucial meeting with pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao today in Manila. Arum is trying to close the highly anticipated Pacquiao-Mayweather fight by personally coming to the country. Pacquiao, who filed his certificate of candidacy Tuesday as a congressman in Sarangani for the May 10, 2010 elections, is currently in General Santos and will arrive Manila this afternoon (Thursday morning Pacific time).
Earlier reports indicate that Floyd Mayweather Jnr, who was represented by Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer in the negotiations, had agreed to terms to fight Pacquiao, a fight that is expected to set new pay-per-view records that the prospect of it being made had catapulted boxing back into the mainstream consciousness with a buzz never before seen since the Ali-Frazier-Norton-Foreman and the Leonard-Duran-Hearns-Hagler eras.
The parties in the negotiating table, according to reports, were looking at a May 1, 2010 fight date but with Pacquiao making good his promise to run in the May 10 Philippine elections, the fight had to be pushed earlier to March 13, 2010. Pacquiao's lawyer Jeng Gacal, however, had earlier issued a statement to Philippine Star, which he confirmed to Pacquiao confidante Wakee Salud this morning, that Pacquiao had said "there will be no fight" before the May 10 elections.
"If Pacquiao will not fight Mayweather in March or May, Mayweather will fight Shane Mosley next," Salud, who is with Arum at the Rennaisance Hotel in Manila today, told PhilBoxing.com. The Mayweather-Mosley fight of course will happen only if Mosley wins his fight with Andre Berto on Jan. 30 in Las Vegas. "And there's no guarantee that Mayweather will beat Mosley," Salud said.
"Suppose Mosley wins over Mayweather, a Pacquiao-Mosley fight is not as big as Pacquiao-Mayweather fight," Salud continued. "And everyone will miss the 'Fight of the Century'."
That leaves 77-year-old Arum, who had staged some of the biggest fights in boxing, to wave his magic on the political aspirant from Sarangani to agree to a deal to fight Floyd Mayweather Jnr before the May 10 Philippine elections in a crucial meeting later today in Manila.
Meanwhile the world is holding its breath.
Earlier reports indicate that Floyd Mayweather Jnr, who was represented by Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer in the negotiations, had agreed to terms to fight Pacquiao, a fight that is expected to set new pay-per-view records that the prospect of it being made had catapulted boxing back into the mainstream consciousness with a buzz never before seen since the Ali-Frazier-Norton-Foreman and the Leonard-Duran-Hearns-Hagler eras.
The parties in the negotiating table, according to reports, were looking at a May 1, 2010 fight date but with Pacquiao making good his promise to run in the May 10 Philippine elections, the fight had to be pushed earlier to March 13, 2010. Pacquiao's lawyer Jeng Gacal, however, had earlier issued a statement to Philippine Star, which he confirmed to Pacquiao confidante Wakee Salud this morning, that Pacquiao had said "there will be no fight" before the May 10 elections.
"If Pacquiao will not fight Mayweather in March or May, Mayweather will fight Shane Mosley next," Salud, who is with Arum at the Rennaisance Hotel in Manila today, told PhilBoxing.com. The Mayweather-Mosley fight of course will happen only if Mosley wins his fight with Andre Berto on Jan. 30 in Las Vegas. "And there's no guarantee that Mayweather will beat Mosley," Salud said.
"Suppose Mosley wins over Mayweather, a Pacquiao-Mosley fight is not as big as Pacquiao-Mayweather fight," Salud continued. "And everyone will miss the 'Fight of the Century'."
That leaves 77-year-old Arum, who had staged some of the biggest fights in boxing, to wave his magic on the political aspirant from Sarangani to agree to a deal to fight Floyd Mayweather Jnr before the May 10 Philippine elections in a crucial meeting later today in Manila.
Meanwhile the world is holding its breath.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
Manny Pacquiao has made a true believer out of us all
Will Pacquiao/Mayweather happen by May?- As much as I would love to say Yes to this question, my answer right now would have to be No. I feel that the Pac-Man is not done with breaking records. 7 titles in 7 weight divisions is way more than enough for most fighters daring to be great but 7 for the Pac-Man may not be enough. I have a feeling that Pac-Man may want to gobble up 8 titles in 8 weight divisions and may take on Yuri Foreman at a catch-weight of 150 pounds by mid-March or early April then will fight Money Mayweather in September. Is Yuri Foreman too big for Pacquiao? Maybe so, but I tell you what, Manny Pacquiao has proved me wrong two times, in my book that’s way too many times. I’m done with eating crow,Manny Pacquiao has made a true believer out of me. At this point, the next time someone tells me that Pacquiao will get beat by so and so, I will then respond by saying, I’ll believe it when I see it.
Shane Mosley Versus the Man In The Mirror- The more and more I think about Mosley facing Berto in late Jan., the more I am able to see Mosley getting ready to face his younger self. Both Mosley and Berto are both rapid explosive fighters that come to put it all on the line. So does that mean that the younger soul will step up and dethrone the older wise man? If I were pressed to answer now, I would have to say No. Let me put it this way, I wouldn’t be surprised if Mosley were to smash Berto and stop Berto in a thriller, but I would however be shocked if Berto were to stop Mosley. Berto has the energy and skill to press Mosley all night long, for that to happen, Berto will need to bring it for every second of every round to do just that. I feel that Berto should have taken on someone like a Zab Judah first, then moved on to face a lion like Mosley. Will Berto prove me wrong? I don’t know, but I can not wait to find out how right or wrong I shall be come January 30.
Miguel Cotto versus?- Lately I have been thinking of who I would like to see Cotto face next. Alot of names have come to mind, such as Jesus-Soto Karass, Kermit Cintron, Ricky Hatton, heck even for a second I even thought of Jose Luis Castillo. The one name that rings the most bells however is, Luis Collazo. Miguel Cotto versus Luis Collazo at Madison Square Garden would be big and bigger if it were to happen on the eve of the Puerto Rican Day Parade. My money is on the Puerto Rican.
Is the Itch back for Ricky Hatton?- Not sure if the itch is back for Ricky, but if it is back, Ricky better scratch it. Especially if the itch comes back in the form of Juan Manuel Marquez. Many may feel that it would be a dangerous fight for Marquez to take not only because Hatton is very aggressive, even more aggressive than Juan Diaz was, but especially when it would be Marquez who will be the one crossing the pond and going to Hatton Land. I feel that Hatton is still a good fighter, Hatton’s worst fear outside of Pacquiao’s punches, has always been himself. Ricky Hatton needs to stay away from the buffet lines and the pints. Hatton balloons up to 180-190 then comes down to 140 for a fight. The training camp at that time is mostly spent on losing the weight when it should be used on strategy. If Hatton does decide to scratch that itch, Hatton will need a real no BS kind of trainer in his corner, that man is Freddie Roach. Imagine this if you may, Hatton return, Hatton returns with Freddie Roach in his corner, Roach versus Nacho all over again, the saga continues. At first I was thinking that this fight belongs on regular HBO, but this fight needs a 24/7 series to get the momentum going. We can then at home participate and turn the 24/7 shows into a drinking game, how you ask? Funny you ask. We at home will have to take a shot of tequilla for everytime that Roach takes a drink out of his Starbucks coffee or each time that Nacho takes a drink out of his hot tea, or each time that Hatton takes a swig out of a pint of brew, or each time that we are forced to see Marquez gulp down that magical urine of his. By the time the 24/7 is done with we will all be signing up for alcoholics anonymous.
Shane Mosley Versus the Man In The Mirror- The more and more I think about Mosley facing Berto in late Jan., the more I am able to see Mosley getting ready to face his younger self. Both Mosley and Berto are both rapid explosive fighters that come to put it all on the line. So does that mean that the younger soul will step up and dethrone the older wise man? If I were pressed to answer now, I would have to say No. Let me put it this way, I wouldn’t be surprised if Mosley were to smash Berto and stop Berto in a thriller, but I would however be shocked if Berto were to stop Mosley. Berto has the energy and skill to press Mosley all night long, for that to happen, Berto will need to bring it for every second of every round to do just that. I feel that Berto should have taken on someone like a Zab Judah first, then moved on to face a lion like Mosley. Will Berto prove me wrong? I don’t know, but I can not wait to find out how right or wrong I shall be come January 30.
Miguel Cotto versus?- Lately I have been thinking of who I would like to see Cotto face next. Alot of names have come to mind, such as Jesus-Soto Karass, Kermit Cintron, Ricky Hatton, heck even for a second I even thought of Jose Luis Castillo. The one name that rings the most bells however is, Luis Collazo. Miguel Cotto versus Luis Collazo at Madison Square Garden would be big and bigger if it were to happen on the eve of the Puerto Rican Day Parade. My money is on the Puerto Rican.
Is the Itch back for Ricky Hatton?- Not sure if the itch is back for Ricky, but if it is back, Ricky better scratch it. Especially if the itch comes back in the form of Juan Manuel Marquez. Many may feel that it would be a dangerous fight for Marquez to take not only because Hatton is very aggressive, even more aggressive than Juan Diaz was, but especially when it would be Marquez who will be the one crossing the pond and going to Hatton Land. I feel that Hatton is still a good fighter, Hatton’s worst fear outside of Pacquiao’s punches, has always been himself. Ricky Hatton needs to stay away from the buffet lines and the pints. Hatton balloons up to 180-190 then comes down to 140 for a fight. The training camp at that time is mostly spent on losing the weight when it should be used on strategy. If Hatton does decide to scratch that itch, Hatton will need a real no BS kind of trainer in his corner, that man is Freddie Roach. Imagine this if you may, Hatton return, Hatton returns with Freddie Roach in his corner, Roach versus Nacho all over again, the saga continues. At first I was thinking that this fight belongs on regular HBO, but this fight needs a 24/7 series to get the momentum going. We can then at home participate and turn the 24/7 shows into a drinking game, how you ask? Funny you ask. We at home will have to take a shot of tequilla for everytime that Roach takes a drink out of his Starbucks coffee or each time that Nacho takes a drink out of his hot tea, or each time that Hatton takes a swig out of a pint of brew, or each time that we are forced to see Marquez gulp down that magical urine of his. By the time the 24/7 is done with we will all be signing up for alcoholics anonymous.
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