By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse
WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao would agree to unlimited urinalysis and blood-testing for the proposed March 13 megabout with Floyd Mayweather at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, but only if the procedures are executed by the Nevada State Athletic Commission, Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, said on Sunday.
The Nevada Commission uses urinalysis testing before and after fights to detect illegal and performance-enhancing drugs, but other than requiring bloodwork to earn a one-year license, the NSAC has never used blood-testing to determine drug use, the organization's executive director, Keith Kizer, said on Saturday.
"We are prepared to advise the Nevada Athletic Commission that we only want them involved, and that Manny will take a random urinalysis test at any time on any date as long as it was ordered by the Nevada State Athletic Commission," Arum told FanHouse, saying that Monday is his deadline for finalizing the matchup before moving on to other options for the 31-year-old Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 knockouts).
"No. 2, we would agree to take the blood test in January within 30 days of the fight and any other random blood tests that the Nevada State Athletic Commission elected to do without a timeline," said Arum. "We're so confident that the Nevada Commission would do the right thing that we don't have to put a timeline in there."
Reached on Saturday, Kizer said that he had not yet discussed the prospect of blood-testing with either Mayweather's or Pacquiao's camps.
"They haven't talked to me about blood tests, but they've both talked to me about urine tests, and we can do as many urine tests as they want. But we don't do blood tests, though," said Kizer, adding that the prospect of inaugural blood-testing for drug use would be "something that I would have to take up with the chairman of the commission," Pat Lundvall.
"They [Mayweather and Pacquiao] can reach a prior agreement between themselves to do their own blood tests, like they were trying to reach" with the United States Anti-Doping Agency's Olympic-style drug-testing, said Kizer, whose organization requires bloodwork to be submitted by fighters before they receive a one-year license.
That bloodwork, taken before the athlete's first bout of the year in Nevada, is tested for AIDS and other blood-borne diseases.
"We have things in place to do the urine tests, and we could do one every day until the day of the fight if they wanted to. But blood-testing is nothing we do," said Kizer. "So I doubt that it's something that we would do. But again, that would have to be something that the commission would have to look at."
The ongoing disagreement concerning the random blood-testing is "a deal-breaker," said Leonard Ellerbe, the 32-year-old Mayweather's adviser.
"The only way that this fight will not get made is if Manny Pacquiao is not willing to be randomly blood-tested," said Ellerbe. "As far as Floyd Mayweather, he is more than ready, willing and able to be randomly tested."
Pacquiao himself addressed the issue of steroid use in a column he writes regularly on his Web site.
"The truth is taking blood out of my body does not seem natural to me, and, mentally, I feel it will weaken me if blood is taken from me just days before the fight. That does not make sense to me why anyone would do that," said Pacquiao.
"These accusations of me using any performance-enhancing supplements are totally unwarranted and unjustified," said Pacquiao. "To all of my fans I want to say thank you very much for all your support and understanding. I always give honor to God first and I would never cheat. I would never cheat God, I would never cheat myself, and I would never cheat my country and my fans."
At issue originally was this: Mayweather's camp first wanted both fighters to be randomly tested by the United States Anti-Doping Agency, using urinalysis and blood samples throughout the fight's buildup -- including training -- even if the procedure was executed on the day before, the day of, and/or the day after the fight.
USADA chief Travis Tygart has insisted that both urine and blood tests are required to determine if an athlete is clean, specifically saying that urinalysis alone does not detect performance-enhancers such as human growth hormone.
Pacqiuao's camp had originally stated that the seven-division titlist would agree to urinalysis at any time, but to only be blood-tested three times: Once in January, once 30 days before the fight, and once in the locker room following the fight.
But Tygart said that scheduled notification, such as that proposed by Pacquiao's side, could allow a fighter to cheat around the testing.
Mayweather's side has softened its position as of late, and seems no longer wedded to any one organization administering the blood tests as long as they are done randomly. Similarly, Arum seems to have eased up on the notion of random blood-testing, as long as it is done by the NSAC.
"We're prepared to live with whatever decision is made by the Nevada Commission. If they said that they wanted to test them within a time closer than the 30 days, then we would go along with it. We have confidence, as we always have -- and so does Manny -- to do what they have to do," Arum said of Pacquiao, who has fought 11 times in Las Vegas and tested cleanly each time.
"We would only agree to this, period," said Arum. "We don't want any outside agency involved, and we don't want anybody telling the commission how to do this."
It is, however, still unclear whether random blood-testing can or will be done by the NSAC.
"That's something I've talked about with Mr. Ellerbe about on a few occasions, and I've talked to Mr. Bob Arum on a few occasions about with this fight," said Kizer.
"For any fight, we're always willing to work with the fighters and work with the promoters or both," said Kizer. "We've always been a fighter-friendly, promoter-friendly, fan-friendly commission, I believe. But, really, it's [random blood-testing] a matter for them to resolve between themselves."
Arum said that his stepson, Top Rank president Todd duBoef, was discussing the matter on Sunday with Golden Boy Promotions' Bruce Binkow, who is representing Mayweather's side.
"This offer will be made to them," said Arum. "And if they don't accept this offer, it will demonstrate completely that they don't want the fight."
If that's the case, Arum said that he is prepared to pursue matchups with 140-pound junior welterweight star Paulie Malignaggi (27-3, five KOs) or unbeaten WBO junior welterweight titlist Tim Bradley (25-0, 11 KOs) if a deal can't be struck with Mayweather (40-0, 25 KOs), a five-time champion who, like Pacquiao, stands to make a record $40 million if they were to meet.
"If Floyd Mayweather Jr. does not accept these terms [then] my promoter will find me another fight for March 13. Again, I will fight anyone at any time. I would always like to be known for my honor and my integrity," said Pacquiao.
"I will always be known for my courage and my willingness to face any man at anytime in my career," said Pacquiao. "If Floyd Mayweather Jr. truly ever wanted to fight me, and he is not really scared, he would accept these terms I am willing to give him as they are above and beyond what the commission demands."
In the meantime, Pacquiao still has tentative plans to go ahead with a lawsuit against Golden Boy Promotions, Mayweather and his father, Floyd Mayweather Sr., the latter of whom publicly leveled steroid accusations at Pacquiao in September.
"Specifically, Mayweather Sr. has accused Manny of taking steroids. So Manny's reputation has been tarnished and damaged because this is now something that everyone is talking about and it's cast a doubt on Manny as far as the possibility that he is using performance-enhancing drugs," said Winchell Campos, a close friend and biographer to Pacquiao.
"I know that Bob and Manny are going to meet the first thing in 2010, and I know for a fact that Bob has called up some high-powered attorneys in Los Angeles to discuss representing Manny in court," said Campos.
"I don't know the extent of damage the accusations have done to Manny's character, but that's something that the lawyers will have to tell Manny," said Campos "I don't know if a public apology from [Golden Boy Promotions' CEO Richard] Schaefer and the Mayweathers would suffice, but knowing Manny, who is a forgiving person, he would probably bury the hatchet and move on. But that's just my opinion."
Source: boxing.fanhouse.com
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