Do Trainer's Legal Woes Delay Mayweather-Pacquiao? -- FanHouse

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

Although Manny Pacquiao has agreed in principle to put his WBO welterweight (147 pounds) belt on the line against Floyd Mayweather, and has given his unbeaten counterpart until July 15 to mid-July sign for their bout, Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, isn't sure that Mayweather's final decision will be that simple.

For if Mayweather agrees to face Pacquiao on the proposed date of Nov. 13, there is a chance that he would have to do so without his uncle and longtime trainer, Roger Mayweather, in his corner.

Roger Mayweather, goes to trial on Aug. 2 in the Clark County District Court in Nevada and faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted of allegedly choking and assaulting female boxer Melissa St. Vil while training her nearly a year ago in Las Vegas in August.

Needless to say, if convicted, Roger Mayweather could spend at least a few months, if not more time, behind bars.

"I'm just saying that I would think that a lot of the problem is Roger's status. I don't know for sure, and nobody's told me this," said Arum. "But I would believe that he's concerned about Roger's availability and what Roger's status would be."

The agreement between Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions reportedly contains conditions pertaining to Mayweather's demand for a random drug testing protocol and a tentative agreement on a 50-50 split of the purse.

Arum declined to discuss purse-split negotiations, but he told Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times that Pacquiao has agreed to submit to random pre-fight blood tests up to 14 days before a fight with Mayweather, a bout that is tentatively slated for Las Vegas.

"We don't care who's doing the test. They [United States Anti-Doping Agency] stopped taking blood 18 days before [Floyd Mayweather-Shane Mosley], so that shows they can do it and be fine," Arum told the Los Angeles Times.

"If there's information that emerges in the final 14 days, we can go to the [Nevada State Athletic] Commission and ask for more tests," said Arum. "We can work it out. No one's looking to pull any fast ones."

If Mayweather-Pacquiao is not made for the fall, said Arum, "we would go ahead and try to make a fight maybe in May" against Mayweather.

In the meantime, Arum said he would try to put Pacquiao in against either Antonio Margarito or Miguel Cotto, the latter being a rematch of Pacquiao's November, 12th-round knockout for the WBO welterweight (147 pounds) title.

"I know that Manny would have a problem fighting if [trainer] Freddie Roach were not available, so we're just waiting to see," said Arum. "That would be up to Floyd whether he wants to do the fight this year or next year."

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com