By Brandon Desmond, Eastside Boxing
He’s brash, he’s talented, he’s flamboyant, and he is undefeated. His boxing skills are the stuff of legend, and he’ll tell you himself that he’s the best boxer in the world. In fact, he’ll tell you he’s one of the greatest of all time if you keep listening. And I will admit that there was a time when this writer bought into it. And now, in the wake of broken down negotiations for what would have potentially been the richest and most anticipated bout in Boxing history (against Manny Pacquiao), Floyd Mayweather Jr. will still claim that he is the number 1 pound-for-pound fighter on Earth, despite blowing yet another opportunity to prove it beyond a doubt. At this point, even Floyd’s loudest and most loyal supporters should be able to deduce what I have: He has absolutely no legitimate claim to that title.
Before I really make my case, I want to make sure we are all clear on the definition of “Pound-for-pound.” If a fighter is on the pound-for-pound list at all, he has proved that he has the heart, determination, and skills that it takes to defeat top fighters within reasonable (in some cases, beyond reasonable) vicinity of his own comfortable weight class. This means that the fighter has to be willing to move up and/or down, sometimes two or three divisions, to take on and defeat those divisions’ top fighters.. Furthermore, to be considered number 1 on the pound-for-pound list, that fighter must prove that he can do this better than anyone else in the world. Of course, everyone’s list is subjective as there is no true scientific measure of heart, determination, and skills. So any p4p list must be accompanied by solid arguments and explanations as to why each fighter made it on. In stead of giving you my list, I will present to you why I think Floyd Mayweather Jr. has a lot to accomplish before he can really call himself the true pound-for-pound king.
The Pacquiao fiasco is only the most recent and egregious example. Mayweather will tell you himself that in order to be the best, you must fight and beat the best. He has done nothing of the sort. What he has done is cherry-pick opponents who he knows would be overmatched in one way or another. To back up my point, here is a look at Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s last seven fights.
In 2005 he fought Arturo Gatti for the WBC Junior Welterweight title. I have the utmost respect for Arturo Gatti for the true warrior and ambassador for Boxing that he was. That being said, not only was he a shot fighter who was blown up from his strongest weight classes (junior lightweight and lightweight), pound-for-pound material he clearly has never been, and I think most would agree with me on that. Also, I just have to mention that Floyd broke down in an uncomfortable “emotional” scene and pretended to cry as if he’d won the Super bowl after this easy victory. “I’m going to Disneyland!”
In his next fight, it was Sharmba Mitchell. Now Mitchell was, at one time, a great fighter. At the time he fought Mayweather however, he was a blown up, old shell of his former self, and quite clearly not a pound-for-pounder. Mayweather demonstrated this by easily knocking him out with a straight right to the body.
Then comes the Zab Judah fight. Judah, it may be argued, is the best name on Mayweather’s resume after 2005. Zab showed this by handling himself very well in the early rounds of the fight. But still, at that point in Zab’s career, he was clearly on the downslide, and was coming off of a loss to journeyman Carlos Baldomir. Having beat only top fighters (and having lost to B-class fighters) at 140 and 147, if he was on your pound-for-pound list at the time, you were obviously trippin’.
Speaking of Baldomir, Mayweather easily outpointed him in November of 2006. Baldomir, who’s only notable victories since 1999 were, *uhem* Arturo Gatti and Zab Judah, was listed on zero pound-for-pound lists that this writer was aware of.
Then comes Oscar De La Hoya in May of ‘07. Mayweather had his most recent trouble in this fight. Held at the junior middleweight limit of 154, the deck was clearly stacked against Floyd in the contract for the bout. Oscar was given his choice of glove brand and size, ring size, and money split, among other things (which apparently Floyd learned a great deal from, more on that later). Despite this, Floyd eked out the close split decision in a fight that could easily have been scored a draw. With all that said, Oscar was clearly past his prime and hadn’t been anywhere near a pound-for-pound list since his gift decision win against Felix Sturm, followed by his embarrassing body-shot KO loss to Bernard Hopkins.
Of course, then he fought Ricky Hatton. On paper, this fight looked like it should have been more competitive. But if you looked a little deeper, Hatton struggled severely in his only previous 147 pound fight with Luis Collazo. Besides the weight class issue, Hatton’s face first style was tailor-made for Mayweather’s slick counterpunching style. Furthermore, I think many would agree that Ricky, although lovable and highly marketable, was a bit over-rated. Due to his inability to win convincingly at any weight class other than 140, his exclusion from pound-for-pound lists is a no-brainer.
Ah yes, the fight with Marquez. Juan Manuel was picked as an opponent for Floyd’s “comeback fight” for two reasons. 1)Not only was Marquez clearly way out of his wheelhouse (130-135 pounds), 2)but he also was in the unique position of having a claim that he won at least one of his fights with Manny Pacquiao, who at the time (and is currently) considered by most as the number 1 pound-for-pound fighter in the world. By this time, though, Floyd had mastered the art of winning a fight during the contract negotiations. Something he learned from Oscar De La Hoya. Marquez, in order to get the fight, had to come up two weight classes. In an attempt to counter Mayweather’s forcing him to come up, he requested that Floyd come down a whole three pounds to 144. Floyd agreed, promising to pay Marquez $300,000.00 for each pound over 144 if he came in above that weight. We all know now that Mayweather basically ignored the contract weight, coming in at a comfortable 146 pounds, effectively buying himself an even more intense weight advantage. Yes, Marquez was thoroughly dominated in a jaw-dropping performance by Mayweather, and yes, Floyd probably would have won the fight anyway. But the fact that he had to result to dirty tricks outside the ring means we will never know.
Back to the present. Regarding the Pacquiao/Mayweather negotiations, a couple of very important things need to be pointed out. From the beginning of “Blood testgate” Mayweather and his camp insisted that their motivation for such a demand (Olympic-style blood testing administered by the USADA) was to “level the playing field.” In this writer’s opinion, it is mind-numbingly obvious that their intention was, in fact, the exact opposite. In my opinion, Camp Mayweather never really wanted to make the fight. This is just the latest in a series of blunders on Mayweather’s part. While “Money May” has been loudly proclaiming his superiority, he has refused to fight any of the top fighters in his own division. He previously blew a perfectly good opportunity to prove his greatness when he turned down what would have been a career best payday of $8 million to fight a prime Antonio Margarito. Considering Margarito may have literally had “manos de piedra,” a decisive victory would have done more than enough to solidify Mayweather’s number 1 status. Shane Mosley has been calling Floyd out for years, another fight that would have at least justified Mayweather’s presence on a pound-for-pound list. Miguel Cotto, at any point in the last four years, would have been a tremendously anticipated event, and had the Pretty Boy made the fight and won, without iffy contract shenanigans, I would be singing his praises right now. But the fact is, all those guys have grown frustrated with Floyd and have been fighting each other for our entertainment.
With the most recent failure to make the fight with Manny Pacquiao, claiming that Manny should prove he’s clean by agreeing to more stringent tests than have ever been agreed to in a boxing contract. I find myself extremely angry with Floyd Mayweather, and the entire business side of boxing. Floyd hasn’t proved that he has a right to be making these types of demands. As a fight fan, I’m finding it increasingly difficult to understand how this was allowed to happen. We just got robbed of one of the most important fights in history, and we all should be mad about it. Floyd’s fans included.
Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been quoted saying “Legacy don’t pay the bills.” To that, Floyd, I say you are absolutely right. Real fights with real opponents are what pay the bills. Win or lose, if you fight the best, your bills will be paid. Legacy is just the icing on the cake. But the Pretty Boy’s cake has officially gone flat in the eyes of this fan of the fights.
Questions, comments, or admonishments? Direct them to my email: otpbrandon@yahoo.com
Source: eastsideboxing.com
Friday 8 January 2010
ARUM SLAMS MAYWEATHER’S LATEST 14 DAY BLOOD TEST PROPOSAL -- PhilBoxing
By Ronnie Nathanielsz, PhilBoxing.com
Top Rank promoter Bob Arum has slammed the latest proposal by Floyd Mayweather Jr asking pound-for-pound king and boxing hero Manny Pacquiao to agree to a blood test, 14 days before their planned March 13 mega fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Arum told www.insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports that “after the horses leave the barn and they rejected Manny’s 24 days offer he now comes up with the 14 days which is totally unacceptable” although Mayweather, in a statement on boxingscene.com claimed that “before the mediation my team proposed a 14 day, no blood-testing window leading up to the fight and it was rejected”
However, Team Pacquiao vehemently disputed Mayweather’s claim even as we learned that no such proposal was offered even during the mediation talks let alone before.
Mayweather said he is still proposing the 14-day window but that Pacquiao is still unwilling to agree to it, “even though this is obviously a fair compromise on my part as I wanted the testing to be up until the fight and he wanted a 30-day cut-off. The truth is he just doesn't want to take the tests.”
Here again Team Pacquiao said it was a falsehood since they had agreed to bring forward the cutoff date to 24 from the original 30 for the blood test proposed by the Mayweather camp.
Arum stressed that the Mayweather proposal was made after the mediation efforts of former federal judge Daniel Weinstein had failed to get the two sides to agree on a cutoff date and the blood testing procedure pointing out that “this is not a swap thing among a bunch of kids.”
Arum made it clear that the initial position of Pacquiao was that he would agree to a blood test one day before the kickoff press conference, a second test 30 days before the fight and a third in the dressing room immediately after the fight.
He said “we agreed to go to 24 days before the fight for the blood test but he rejected it and that’s it. It's over.”
Arum feels that since Mayweather has been getting a bad press where the majority are blaming him for the collapse of a fight that millions wanted to happen, he is trying to turn things around but that “it's not working.”
In typical fashion Mayweather in his statement said "First and foremost, not only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao, I want to whip his punk ass.”
Pacquiao’s adviser Michael Koncz branded the Mayweather statement as “both humorous and ludicrous all in one.” Koncz revealed it he had been told by experts that any performance enhancing drugs “will be in your blood 40 days before the fight or the day after the fight. Whatever is there is there for that time period. So what the hell does 14 days have to do with it? Nothing other than to irritate Manny knowing that he has whatever, a fear or a superstition of extracting blood less than 30 days.”
With Arum insisting that the fight is off and blaming Mayweather for the failure of the mediation efforts of retired federal judge Daniel Weinstein, Team Pacquiao is moving ahead to schedule a good, competitive fight either on March 13 or 20 in Las Vegas.
The original proposal for Pacquiao to go after an eighth world title against 154 pound champion Yuri Foreman has been turned down by Pacquiao himself simply because Foreman is much taller than him besides being much heavier. Australia’s Michael Katsidis was also ruled out as nothing more than a tune-up fight with no real value and would be hard to market.
Koncz said while a possible trilogy with Juan Manuel Marquez was “thrown into the mix” he had discussed it with Pacquiao Friday morning before they flew to Pacquiao’s hometown of General Santos City and they agreed that “the entertainment value I don’t think is there. Manny has nothing to prove by fighting Marquez because we beat him twice. If he fights him ten times, all ten fights will end in controversy because of the styles of the two fighters for some reason, they happen. There is no entertainment value there. They fought twice and couldn’t beat the 430,000 pay-per-view numbers.”
As for Paulie Malignaggi who has joined the Mayweather chorus in alleging that Pacquiao is on some performance enhancing drug Koncz said “the fans will boo throughout because he will jab and run.”
The top choice subject to Pacquiao’s approval, is Joshua Clottey who many people believe beat Miguel Cotto in their WBO title fight but lost the decision. Koncz told us that he doesn’t wish to emphasize that it's Clottey right now because no decisions have been made although he did admit that Clottey is “a good enough fighter and Manny and I both think he beat Cotto and I think he is marketable. But we have to work on the financial terms” even as he didn’t foresee a problem since Clottey is promoted by Top Rank.
Retired federal judge Daniel Weinstein who spent nine hours on Tuesday with representatives of Pacquiao and Mayweather in an effort to break the impasse over blood testing issued a statement to set the record straight in which he stated: a. Both parties participated in the mediation in good faith. Both parties participated in many hours of negotiation, with a number of proposals issued by each side and carefully considered by the parties and their representatives. b. The Mediator himself did not formulate, recommend or issue a Mediator's Proposal. The Mediator did not make an evaluation or finding that any one of the many proposals considered by the parties was the correct protocol. C. Any attempt to characterize the mediation process as an acceptance or rejection by any of the parties of a mediator's or an arbiter's proposal or of any specific proposal is false and d In the end, the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all.
Source: philboxing.com
Top Rank promoter Bob Arum has slammed the latest proposal by Floyd Mayweather Jr asking pound-for-pound king and boxing hero Manny Pacquiao to agree to a blood test, 14 days before their planned March 13 mega fight at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Arum told www.insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports that “after the horses leave the barn and they rejected Manny’s 24 days offer he now comes up with the 14 days which is totally unacceptable” although Mayweather, in a statement on boxingscene.com claimed that “before the mediation my team proposed a 14 day, no blood-testing window leading up to the fight and it was rejected”
However, Team Pacquiao vehemently disputed Mayweather’s claim even as we learned that no such proposal was offered even during the mediation talks let alone before.
Mayweather said he is still proposing the 14-day window but that Pacquiao is still unwilling to agree to it, “even though this is obviously a fair compromise on my part as I wanted the testing to be up until the fight and he wanted a 30-day cut-off. The truth is he just doesn't want to take the tests.”
Here again Team Pacquiao said it was a falsehood since they had agreed to bring forward the cutoff date to 24 from the original 30 for the blood test proposed by the Mayweather camp.
Arum stressed that the Mayweather proposal was made after the mediation efforts of former federal judge Daniel Weinstein had failed to get the two sides to agree on a cutoff date and the blood testing procedure pointing out that “this is not a swap thing among a bunch of kids.”
Arum made it clear that the initial position of Pacquiao was that he would agree to a blood test one day before the kickoff press conference, a second test 30 days before the fight and a third in the dressing room immediately after the fight.
He said “we agreed to go to 24 days before the fight for the blood test but he rejected it and that’s it. It's over.”
Arum feels that since Mayweather has been getting a bad press where the majority are blaming him for the collapse of a fight that millions wanted to happen, he is trying to turn things around but that “it's not working.”
In typical fashion Mayweather in his statement said "First and foremost, not only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao, I want to whip his punk ass.”
Pacquiao’s adviser Michael Koncz branded the Mayweather statement as “both humorous and ludicrous all in one.” Koncz revealed it he had been told by experts that any performance enhancing drugs “will be in your blood 40 days before the fight or the day after the fight. Whatever is there is there for that time period. So what the hell does 14 days have to do with it? Nothing other than to irritate Manny knowing that he has whatever, a fear or a superstition of extracting blood less than 30 days.”
With Arum insisting that the fight is off and blaming Mayweather for the failure of the mediation efforts of retired federal judge Daniel Weinstein, Team Pacquiao is moving ahead to schedule a good, competitive fight either on March 13 or 20 in Las Vegas.
The original proposal for Pacquiao to go after an eighth world title against 154 pound champion Yuri Foreman has been turned down by Pacquiao himself simply because Foreman is much taller than him besides being much heavier. Australia’s Michael Katsidis was also ruled out as nothing more than a tune-up fight with no real value and would be hard to market.
Koncz said while a possible trilogy with Juan Manuel Marquez was “thrown into the mix” he had discussed it with Pacquiao Friday morning before they flew to Pacquiao’s hometown of General Santos City and they agreed that “the entertainment value I don’t think is there. Manny has nothing to prove by fighting Marquez because we beat him twice. If he fights him ten times, all ten fights will end in controversy because of the styles of the two fighters for some reason, they happen. There is no entertainment value there. They fought twice and couldn’t beat the 430,000 pay-per-view numbers.”
As for Paulie Malignaggi who has joined the Mayweather chorus in alleging that Pacquiao is on some performance enhancing drug Koncz said “the fans will boo throughout because he will jab and run.”
The top choice subject to Pacquiao’s approval, is Joshua Clottey who many people believe beat Miguel Cotto in their WBO title fight but lost the decision. Koncz told us that he doesn’t wish to emphasize that it's Clottey right now because no decisions have been made although he did admit that Clottey is “a good enough fighter and Manny and I both think he beat Cotto and I think he is marketable. But we have to work on the financial terms” even as he didn’t foresee a problem since Clottey is promoted by Top Rank.
Retired federal judge Daniel Weinstein who spent nine hours on Tuesday with representatives of Pacquiao and Mayweather in an effort to break the impasse over blood testing issued a statement to set the record straight in which he stated: a. Both parties participated in the mediation in good faith. Both parties participated in many hours of negotiation, with a number of proposals issued by each side and carefully considered by the parties and their representatives. b. The Mediator himself did not formulate, recommend or issue a Mediator's Proposal. The Mediator did not make an evaluation or finding that any one of the many proposals considered by the parties was the correct protocol. C. Any attempt to characterize the mediation process as an acceptance or rejection by any of the parties of a mediator's or an arbiter's proposal or of any specific proposal is false and d In the end, the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all.
Source: philboxing.com
Pacquiao-Mayweather fight can't get past blood testing -- Los Angeles Times
By Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times
As a combined guarantee of at least $50 million vanishes from what was expected to be the most lucrative bout in boxing history, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao voiced their differences Thursday, a day after the fight was declared to be off by Pacquiao's promoter.
Mayweather released a statement pointing to Pacquiao as the one holding up the planned March 13 mega-fight and declaring, "I am ready to fight and sign the contract. Manny needs to stop making excuses, step up and fight."
Mayweather (40-0) said that during this week's mediation the breaking point was over a 10-day window regarding when to stop random blood tests for performance-enhancing drugs.
He said he has compromised on his original request and agreed to allow blood tests to stop 14 days before the fight. Pacquiao's camp said Wednesday the Filipino star agreed to submit to blood tests within 24 days before the welterweight title bout, instead of cutting off tests 30 days before the fight as he first proposed.
Pacquiao's camp said that Mayweather's representatives were willing to accept the 24-day cutoff at the negotiating table, but that Mayweather blocked the agreement. Mediator Daniel Weinstein confirmed in an announcement released Thursday by Mayweather's promoters that no deal was reached because "the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all."
"Throughout this whole process, I have remained patient, but at this point I am thoroughly disgusted that Pacquiao and his representatives are trying to blame me for the fight not happening when clearly the blame is on them," Mayweather said in his statement. "[N]ot only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao. I want to whip [him]. . . . The truth is he just doesn't want to take the [blood] tests."
Meanwhile, after the failed mediation Pacquiao played billiards and basketball in the Philippines, his U.S. business advisor Michael Koncz said. "He's disappointed, though. He wanted to entertain his fans," Koncz said.
Bob Arum, Pacquiao's promoter, continued to declare the fight off Thursday, and said Pacquiao is considering other opponents for a March bout. "It's not going to be resurrected," Arum said.
Koncz said Pacquiao remains "angered" by comments by Mayweather and his representatives as they pushed for a more stringent drug-testing procedure than the random urine tests required by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Pacquiao has sued Mayweather, alleging defamation. "They tarnished [Pacquiao's] reputation," Koncz said.
Koncz said Pacquiao is reluctant to give blood days before a fight because he has experienced "dizziness and other symptoms" when he did so before his last defeat, to Erik Morales. "It's a psychological thing," Koncz said.
"We believe whatever would be in your system 24 days before the fight would still be there after the fight, when we'll give blood again," Koncz said. "Floyd likes to be in charge and manipulate. . . . When we agreed to take this fight so quick, it caught him off guard, so he started figuring a way to get out of the fight."
Koncz said Pacquiao planned to start reviewing other opponents. One whom Arum pitched, junior-middleweight champ Yuri Foreman, apparently is out of the picture because Pacquiao's team doesn't like the idea of his fighting someone 5 1/2 inches taller. "It's a real honor the greatest pound-for-pound fighter in the world doesn't want to fight me," Foreman said.
Another possible opponent is world junior-welterweight champion Timothy Bradley of Palm Springs.
Mayweather advisor Leonard Ellerbe said late Thursday that "we're still hopeful we can make a deal. We're not talking about anyone but Manny Pacquiao."
lance.pugmire@latimes.com
twitter.com/latimespugmire
(Times staff writer Kevin Baxter contributed to this report.)
Copyright © 2010, The Los Angeles Times
Source: latimes.com
As a combined guarantee of at least $50 million vanishes from what was expected to be the most lucrative bout in boxing history, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao voiced their differences Thursday, a day after the fight was declared to be off by Pacquiao's promoter.
Mayweather released a statement pointing to Pacquiao as the one holding up the planned March 13 mega-fight and declaring, "I am ready to fight and sign the contract. Manny needs to stop making excuses, step up and fight."
Mayweather (40-0) said that during this week's mediation the breaking point was over a 10-day window regarding when to stop random blood tests for performance-enhancing drugs.
He said he has compromised on his original request and agreed to allow blood tests to stop 14 days before the fight. Pacquiao's camp said Wednesday the Filipino star agreed to submit to blood tests within 24 days before the welterweight title bout, instead of cutting off tests 30 days before the fight as he first proposed.
Pacquiao's camp said that Mayweather's representatives were willing to accept the 24-day cutoff at the negotiating table, but that Mayweather blocked the agreement. Mediator Daniel Weinstein confirmed in an announcement released Thursday by Mayweather's promoters that no deal was reached because "the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all."
"Throughout this whole process, I have remained patient, but at this point I am thoroughly disgusted that Pacquiao and his representatives are trying to blame me for the fight not happening when clearly the blame is on them," Mayweather said in his statement. "[N]ot only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao. I want to whip [him]. . . . The truth is he just doesn't want to take the [blood] tests."
Meanwhile, after the failed mediation Pacquiao played billiards and basketball in the Philippines, his U.S. business advisor Michael Koncz said. "He's disappointed, though. He wanted to entertain his fans," Koncz said.
Bob Arum, Pacquiao's promoter, continued to declare the fight off Thursday, and said Pacquiao is considering other opponents for a March bout. "It's not going to be resurrected," Arum said.
Koncz said Pacquiao remains "angered" by comments by Mayweather and his representatives as they pushed for a more stringent drug-testing procedure than the random urine tests required by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Pacquiao has sued Mayweather, alleging defamation. "They tarnished [Pacquiao's] reputation," Koncz said.
Koncz said Pacquiao is reluctant to give blood days before a fight because he has experienced "dizziness and other symptoms" when he did so before his last defeat, to Erik Morales. "It's a psychological thing," Koncz said.
"We believe whatever would be in your system 24 days before the fight would still be there after the fight, when we'll give blood again," Koncz said. "Floyd likes to be in charge and manipulate. . . . When we agreed to take this fight so quick, it caught him off guard, so he started figuring a way to get out of the fight."
Koncz said Pacquiao planned to start reviewing other opponents. One whom Arum pitched, junior-middleweight champ Yuri Foreman, apparently is out of the picture because Pacquiao's team doesn't like the idea of his fighting someone 5 1/2 inches taller. "It's a real honor the greatest pound-for-pound fighter in the world doesn't want to fight me," Foreman said.
Another possible opponent is world junior-welterweight champion Timothy Bradley of Palm Springs.
Mayweather advisor Leonard Ellerbe said late Thursday that "we're still hopeful we can make a deal. We're not talking about anyone but Manny Pacquiao."
lance.pugmire@latimes.com
twitter.com/latimespugmire
(Times staff writer Kevin Baxter contributed to this report.)
Copyright © 2010, The Los Angeles Times
Source: latimes.com
Once again, boxing knocks itself out -- Boston Herald
By Ron Borges, Boston Herald
Boxing’s ability to destroy its image rivals that of Tiger Woods. The only difference is boxing has more practice at it.
For the past decade or so, the men who run the sport have been on a constant campaign of self-immolation, finally doing to boxing what the Mafia could not when they controlled it. They made it irrelevant in the eyes of many sports fans and even more sports editors.
Yet as Bernard Hopkins once said, “As long as you got ghettos, you’ll have boxing,” and so boxing has survived relentless efforts to ruin itself. The past year saw the latest resurgence in interest led by Manny Pacquiao, the Filipino wunderkind who has won world titles in seven weight classes and, before his last fight, was the subject of major features in Time magazine and the New York Times [NYT] - two journalistic entities that long ago forgot the sport existed.
With interest again growing, record numbers were expected to pay to watch a March 13 showdown between Pacquiao and undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr., who was considered the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world until Pacquiao usurped him during Mayweather’s 21-month self-imposed ring exile.
But amid projections of $200 million in revenue, a record live gate at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas and the possibility of shattering the all-time pay-per-view record of 2.44 million buys set by Mayweather and Oscar De La Hoya two years ago, the fight collapsed yesterday. Not over greed, which is the usual culprit in boxing, but rather over Pacquiao’s refusal to submit to random drug testing insisted by Mayweather.
The final collapse came after a nine-hour mediation effort Tuesday in which Pacquiao agreed to be tested three times, including immediately after the fight and within 24 days of it. Only problem was the 24-day test is required by the Nevada Athletic Commission and most experts believe random testing is the only way to catch the use of performance-enhancers.
Mayweather refused the proposal, costing each fighter an estimated $30 million to $40 million and leading Pacquiao’s promoter, Bob Arum, to claim Mayweather never wanted the fight.
“Manny accepted what was on the table and Mayweather rejected it,” Arum told ESPN. “(Mayweather manager Al) Haymon and (Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard) Schaefer tried to convince Floyd and he wouldn’t agree to it. . . . He never wanted the fight.”
The mediator, retired judge Daniel Weinstein, issued a statement last night refuting some of Arum’s claims, saying he was forced to do so because both sides agreed to confidentiality and, if it was broken, Weinstein was to set the record straight.
“Various articles have appeared in the press purporting to characterize the substance and outcome of the Mayweather-Pacquiao mediation and the negotiations between the parties,” his statement read. “Many of the reports are incorrect. Any attempt to characterize the mediation process as an acceptance or rejection by any of the parties of a mediator’s or an arbiter’s proposal or of any specific proposal is false. In the end, the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all.”
Pacquiao filed a defamation lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court in Nevada against the Mayweather entourage claiming they accused him of using PEDs. Where that will lead no one knows, but if it leads where Roger Clemens ended up, Pacquiao may rue the day he was talked into it.
Mayweather, meanwhile, made his first public pronouncement last night, saying in a statement: “Throughout this whole process I have remained patient, but at this point I am thoroughly disgusted that Pacquiao and his representatives are trying to blame me for the fight not happening when clearly the blame is on them.
“First and foremost, not only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao, I want to whip his punk ass. Before the mediation, my team proposed a 14-day, no blood testing window leading up to the fight, but it was rejected even though this is obviously a fair compromise on my part as I wanted the testing to be up until the fight and he wanted a 30-day cutoff. The truth is he just doesn’t want to take the tests.”
A fight the world wanted has now become just another war of words that continued when Pacquiao issued a statement insisting it wasn’t his fault even though he’s the one refusing to be tested effectively.
In the wake of this, Arum has proposed Pacquiao fight 154-pound champion Yuri Foreman, while Mayweather may fight ex-140-pound champion Paulie Malignaggi.
To quote Bill Belichick, “Not what we’re looking for.”
rborges@bostonherald.com
Source: news.bostonherald.com
Boxing’s ability to destroy its image rivals that of Tiger Woods. The only difference is boxing has more practice at it.
For the past decade or so, the men who run the sport have been on a constant campaign of self-immolation, finally doing to boxing what the Mafia could not when they controlled it. They made it irrelevant in the eyes of many sports fans and even more sports editors.
Yet as Bernard Hopkins once said, “As long as you got ghettos, you’ll have boxing,” and so boxing has survived relentless efforts to ruin itself. The past year saw the latest resurgence in interest led by Manny Pacquiao, the Filipino wunderkind who has won world titles in seven weight classes and, before his last fight, was the subject of major features in Time magazine and the New York Times [NYT] - two journalistic entities that long ago forgot the sport existed.
With interest again growing, record numbers were expected to pay to watch a March 13 showdown between Pacquiao and undefeated Floyd Mayweather Jr., who was considered the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world until Pacquiao usurped him during Mayweather’s 21-month self-imposed ring exile.
But amid projections of $200 million in revenue, a record live gate at the MGM Grand Garden in Las Vegas and the possibility of shattering the all-time pay-per-view record of 2.44 million buys set by Mayweather and Oscar De La Hoya two years ago, the fight collapsed yesterday. Not over greed, which is the usual culprit in boxing, but rather over Pacquiao’s refusal to submit to random drug testing insisted by Mayweather.
The final collapse came after a nine-hour mediation effort Tuesday in which Pacquiao agreed to be tested three times, including immediately after the fight and within 24 days of it. Only problem was the 24-day test is required by the Nevada Athletic Commission and most experts believe random testing is the only way to catch the use of performance-enhancers.
Mayweather refused the proposal, costing each fighter an estimated $30 million to $40 million and leading Pacquiao’s promoter, Bob Arum, to claim Mayweather never wanted the fight.
“Manny accepted what was on the table and Mayweather rejected it,” Arum told ESPN. “(Mayweather manager Al) Haymon and (Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard) Schaefer tried to convince Floyd and he wouldn’t agree to it. . . . He never wanted the fight.”
The mediator, retired judge Daniel Weinstein, issued a statement last night refuting some of Arum’s claims, saying he was forced to do so because both sides agreed to confidentiality and, if it was broken, Weinstein was to set the record straight.
“Various articles have appeared in the press purporting to characterize the substance and outcome of the Mayweather-Pacquiao mediation and the negotiations between the parties,” his statement read. “Many of the reports are incorrect. Any attempt to characterize the mediation process as an acceptance or rejection by any of the parties of a mediator’s or an arbiter’s proposal or of any specific proposal is false. In the end, the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all.”
Pacquiao filed a defamation lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court in Nevada against the Mayweather entourage claiming they accused him of using PEDs. Where that will lead no one knows, but if it leads where Roger Clemens ended up, Pacquiao may rue the day he was talked into it.
Mayweather, meanwhile, made his first public pronouncement last night, saying in a statement: “Throughout this whole process I have remained patient, but at this point I am thoroughly disgusted that Pacquiao and his representatives are trying to blame me for the fight not happening when clearly the blame is on them.
“First and foremost, not only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao, I want to whip his punk ass. Before the mediation, my team proposed a 14-day, no blood testing window leading up to the fight, but it was rejected even though this is obviously a fair compromise on my part as I wanted the testing to be up until the fight and he wanted a 30-day cutoff. The truth is he just doesn’t want to take the tests.”
A fight the world wanted has now become just another war of words that continued when Pacquiao issued a statement insisting it wasn’t his fault even though he’s the one refusing to be tested effectively.
In the wake of this, Arum has proposed Pacquiao fight 154-pound champion Yuri Foreman, while Mayweather may fight ex-140-pound champion Paulie Malignaggi.
To quote Bill Belichick, “Not what we’re looking for.”
rborges@bostonherald.com
Source: news.bostonherald.com
Mayweather: I Want To Whip Pacquiao -- FOX 5 News
FOX 5 News
LAS VEGAS -- Las Vegas boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. angrily fired back at his one-time opponent Manny Pacquiao Thursday, blaming the boxer for ruining their scheduled mega-fight in March.
"First and foremost, not only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao, I want to whip his punk ass,” Mayweather said in a statement.
The two boxers and their representatives had been embroiled in a debate over drug testing before the fight, tentatively scheduled for March 13 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“The truth is he just doesn't want to take the tests,” Mayweather said of Pacquiao after proposing a 14-day, no blood testing window leading up to the fight.
Mayweather said his opponent rejected the proposal. Pacquiao’s promoter, Bob Arum, declared the fight officially dead Wednesday.
"In my opinion it is Manny Pacquiao and his team who are denying the people a chance to see the biggest fight ever,” Mayweather said. “I know the people will see through their smokescreens and lies. I am ready to fight and sign the contract. Manny needs to stop making his excuses, step up and fight."
Source: fox5vegas.com
LAS VEGAS -- Las Vegas boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. angrily fired back at his one-time opponent Manny Pacquiao Thursday, blaming the boxer for ruining their scheduled mega-fight in March.
"First and foremost, not only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao, I want to whip his punk ass,” Mayweather said in a statement.
The two boxers and their representatives had been embroiled in a debate over drug testing before the fight, tentatively scheduled for March 13 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“The truth is he just doesn't want to take the tests,” Mayweather said of Pacquiao after proposing a 14-day, no blood testing window leading up to the fight.
Mayweather said his opponent rejected the proposal. Pacquiao’s promoter, Bob Arum, declared the fight officially dead Wednesday.
"In my opinion it is Manny Pacquiao and his team who are denying the people a chance to see the biggest fight ever,” Mayweather said. “I know the people will see through their smokescreens and lies. I am ready to fight and sign the contract. Manny needs to stop making his excuses, step up and fight."
Source: fox5vegas.com
Floyd Mayweather Jr. talks, says he's 'ready to fight.' -- Los Angeles Times
By Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times
Floyd Mayweather Jr. just released a prepared statement from his publicist about the collapsing negotiations between him and Manny Pacquiao, who were to fight March 13 in Las Vegas.
Here's what Mayweather says:
“Throughout this whole process, I have remained patient, but at this point I am thoroughly disgusted that Pacquiao and his representatives are trying to blame me for the fight not happening when clearly the blame is on them.
“First and foremost, not only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao. I want to whip his punk [rear]. Before the mediation, my team proposed a 14-day, no-blood-testing window leading up to the fight. But it was rejected. I am still proposing the 14-day window, but he is still unwilling to agree to it, even though this is obviously a fair compromise on my part as I wanted the testing to be up until the fight and he wanted a 30-day cut-off. The truth is he just doesn’t want to take the tests.
‘In my opinion, it is Manny Pacquiao and his team who are denying the people a chance to see the biggest fight ever. I know the people will see through their smoke screens and lies. I am ready to fight and sign the contract. Manny needs to stop making his excuses, step up and fight.”
-- Lance Pugmire
Source: latimesblogs.latimes.com
Floyd Mayweather Jr. just released a prepared statement from his publicist about the collapsing negotiations between him and Manny Pacquiao, who were to fight March 13 in Las Vegas.
Here's what Mayweather says:
“Throughout this whole process, I have remained patient, but at this point I am thoroughly disgusted that Pacquiao and his representatives are trying to blame me for the fight not happening when clearly the blame is on them.
“First and foremost, not only do I want to fight Manny Pacquiao. I want to whip his punk [rear]. Before the mediation, my team proposed a 14-day, no-blood-testing window leading up to the fight. But it was rejected. I am still proposing the 14-day window, but he is still unwilling to agree to it, even though this is obviously a fair compromise on my part as I wanted the testing to be up until the fight and he wanted a 30-day cut-off. The truth is he just doesn’t want to take the tests.
‘In my opinion, it is Manny Pacquiao and his team who are denying the people a chance to see the biggest fight ever. I know the people will see through their smoke screens and lies. I am ready to fight and sign the contract. Manny needs to stop making his excuses, step up and fight.”
-- Lance Pugmire
Source: latimesblogs.latimes.com
Mayweather Blames Bout Collapse On Pacquiao -- CBS 13
GREG BEACHAM, AP Sports Writer
Floyd Mayweather Jr. has fired back at Manny Pacquiao, saying the Filipino star's refusal to compromise on drug testing concerns is the reason for the collapse of their prospective bout.
Mayweather made his first public comments about the negotiations in a written statement Thursday, one day after Pacquiao promoter Top Rank declared the March 13 bout dead due to an impasse in discussions over drug testing requirements.
Mayweather demanded repeated blood testing right up to the day of the fight, while Pacquiao asked for a 30-day cutoff before the bout. Mayweather now says he agreed to a 14-day cutoff compromise, but Pacquiao still won't accept the terms.
Mayweather also says he's still ready to sign a deal for the fight.
(© 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Source: cbs13.com
Floyd Mayweather Jr. has fired back at Manny Pacquiao, saying the Filipino star's refusal to compromise on drug testing concerns is the reason for the collapse of their prospective bout.
Mayweather made his first public comments about the negotiations in a written statement Thursday, one day after Pacquiao promoter Top Rank declared the March 13 bout dead due to an impasse in discussions over drug testing requirements.
Mayweather demanded repeated blood testing right up to the day of the fight, while Pacquiao asked for a 30-day cutoff before the bout. Mayweather now says he agreed to a 14-day cutoff compromise, but Pacquiao still won't accept the terms.
Mayweather also says he's still ready to sign a deal for the fight.
(© 2010 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
Source: cbs13.com
Pacquiao-Mayweather mediator attempts to clarify failed talks -- Los Angeles Times
By Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times
The mediator who worked to strike a deal between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao today attempted to set the record straight as to why negotiations fell apart and why Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, is saying the fight is off.
Mediator Daniel Weinstein, a retired federal judge who listened to the Pacquiao and Mayweather representatives all day Tuesday and continued talks Wednesday, said in a statement released by Mayweather's promoters that the fight unraveled because "the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all."
A statement by Mayweather is expected shortly, but Weinstein also noted in his statement that he wanted to correct some "erroneous" news reports of why the talks crashed.
Arum said Wednesday night that Mayweather ultimately didn't want to risk losing, with another source close to the negotiiations saying Pacquiao conceded to allow a blood test 24 days before the fight -- he previously would allow a blood draw only 30 days before the bout -- and sought an apology from Mayweather's team for implying the Filipino star has used performance-enhancing drugs.
Weinstein did not address specifics but made these points testifying to Mayweather's cooperativeness:
-- Both parties participated in the mediation in good faith. Both parties participated in many hours of negotiation, with a number of proposals issued by each side and carefully considered by the parties and their representatives."
-- The mediator himself did not formulate, recommend or issue a mediator's proposal. The mediator did not make an evaluation or finding that any one of the many proposals considered by the parties was the correct protocol.
-- Any attempt to characterize the mediation process as an acceptance or rejection by any of the parties of a mediator's or an arbiter's proposal or of any specific proposal is false.
Weinstein also scolded comments like those by Arum as "violations of the strict confidentiality to which the parties and their representatives agreed and which they authorized the mediator to enforce."
A person close to the negotiations told The Times today that Pacquiao's agreement to allow a blood draw 24 days before the fight fell short of the Mayweather camp's desire for Pacquiao to be tested 14 days before the super-fight that was scheduled for March 13 in Las Vegas.
-- Lance Pugmire
Source: latimesblogs.latimes.com
The mediator who worked to strike a deal between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao today attempted to set the record straight as to why negotiations fell apart and why Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, is saying the fight is off.
Mediator Daniel Weinstein, a retired federal judge who listened to the Pacquiao and Mayweather representatives all day Tuesday and continued talks Wednesday, said in a statement released by Mayweather's promoters that the fight unraveled because "the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all."
A statement by Mayweather is expected shortly, but Weinstein also noted in his statement that he wanted to correct some "erroneous" news reports of why the talks crashed.
Arum said Wednesday night that Mayweather ultimately didn't want to risk losing, with another source close to the negotiiations saying Pacquiao conceded to allow a blood test 24 days before the fight -- he previously would allow a blood draw only 30 days before the bout -- and sought an apology from Mayweather's team for implying the Filipino star has used performance-enhancing drugs.
Weinstein did not address specifics but made these points testifying to Mayweather's cooperativeness:
-- Both parties participated in the mediation in good faith. Both parties participated in many hours of negotiation, with a number of proposals issued by each side and carefully considered by the parties and their representatives."
-- The mediator himself did not formulate, recommend or issue a mediator's proposal. The mediator did not make an evaluation or finding that any one of the many proposals considered by the parties was the correct protocol.
-- Any attempt to characterize the mediation process as an acceptance or rejection by any of the parties of a mediator's or an arbiter's proposal or of any specific proposal is false.
Weinstein also scolded comments like those by Arum as "violations of the strict confidentiality to which the parties and their representatives agreed and which they authorized the mediator to enforce."
A person close to the negotiations told The Times today that Pacquiao's agreement to allow a blood draw 24 days before the fight fell short of the Mayweather camp's desire for Pacquiao to be tested 14 days before the super-fight that was scheduled for March 13 in Las Vegas.
-- Lance Pugmire
Source: latimesblogs.latimes.com
Mediator States The Facts and Covers His Own Ass Regarding Pacquiao v. Mayweather Fallout -- 411mania
By Raymundo Dioses, 411mania.com
Retired Judge Daniel Weinstein sets the record straight with an order finding. Same outcome: No fight...
Today Daniel Weinstein, a former federal court judge and mediator involved in the negotiations for the now failed Pacquiao v. Mayweather super fight, issued an order finding stating that Bob Arum and Top Rank falsely reported on the happenings of the mediation.
It is still the same result: no fight. Yet Weinstein wishes to clear his own name, stating that he, at no time, proposed a ‘mediators proposal'.
The order reads that both sides, in good faith, participated in a confidential meeting that included proposed from both sides.
The last line in the order finding is the heart breaker:
"In the end, the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all."
The order finding is pretty much a Judge peeved that one of the parties involved in the mediation spoke before he lifted his gag order in allowance for the promotional parties to speak publicly. Weinstein is making clear about the outcome as well as his part in the process.
Hey, if you know the law, you know the law. This is a man knowing the law and covering all his bases.
Source: 411mania.com
Retired Judge Daniel Weinstein sets the record straight with an order finding. Same outcome: No fight...
Today Daniel Weinstein, a former federal court judge and mediator involved in the negotiations for the now failed Pacquiao v. Mayweather super fight, issued an order finding stating that Bob Arum and Top Rank falsely reported on the happenings of the mediation.
It is still the same result: no fight. Yet Weinstein wishes to clear his own name, stating that he, at no time, proposed a ‘mediators proposal'.
The order reads that both sides, in good faith, participated in a confidential meeting that included proposed from both sides.
The last line in the order finding is the heart breaker:
"In the end, the parties could not agree on a testing protocol acceptable to all."
The order finding is pretty much a Judge peeved that one of the parties involved in the mediation spoke before he lifted his gag order in allowance for the promotional parties to speak publicly. Weinstein is making clear about the outcome as well as his part in the process.
Hey, if you know the law, you know the law. This is a man knowing the law and covering all his bases.
Source: 411mania.com
The Floyd Mayweather Motto: No Edge, No Fight -- BoxingNews24
By Gregory Shaw, BoxingNews24
Like the large majority of boxing fans I blame Floyd Mayweather for killing the fight that everyone wants. The most cited reason from fans, and something that has followed Mayweather for years, is that Mayweather picks and chooses his opponents carefully as to not risk losing his “O”. Let’s take a look at Money’s last 5 fights and see if an edge existed and if he would have that edge against Pac-Man.
4/8/2006 v. Zab Judah
Zab is among the fastest fighters there is. Leading up to the fight there were many boxing experts that believed Judah had a chance to match the speed of Floyd and could in fact win, although it would have been an upset. That being said, Judah was coming fresh off an upset loss to Carlos Baldomir and was 4-2 in his last 6. My hunch is that Floyd would have avoided Zab if he hadn’t been bested by Baldomir. Call it picking a good opponent at the perfect time to minimize risk. Pac-Man hasn’t lost a fight since 2005.
11/4/06 v. Carlos Baldomir
While the boxing world was clamoring for Floyd to fight the tough and game Antonio Margarito, he decided to take on the overrated, old and slow Baldomir. The only reason this fight passed the smell test at all is because Baldomir managed to upset Zab Judah and beat up a smaller and shot Arturo Gatti. This one is a no-brainer, Floyd wanted to add the WBC Welterweight Title to his collection against a fighter that he could beat with one hand tied behind his back – and I mean that literally. Pac-Man is, by all accounts, the #1 or at worst the #2 pound for pound fighter in the world.
5/5/07 v. Oscar De La Hoya
Floyd has to get some credit here. De La Hoya was bigger, stronger and more skilled than a lot of fighters Floyd could have fought at Welterweight yet he came up in weight (which flies in the face of what he has been accused of lately, namely fighting only smaller fighters) and took on Oscar. The argument here is that Oscar was too old and too far past his prime to manage Floyd’s speed. Pac-Man is 31 and clearly at the height of his prime right now.
12/8/07 v. Ricky Hatton
Boxing fans with clear heads knew going into this fight that Hatton was somewhat overrated and not as effective at 147lbs. since he was champion at 140lbs. Hatton, however, was undefeated, powerful and aggressive and it made for the classic boxer vs. puncher matchup. Pac-Man has already proven by pounding Miguel Cotto into submission that he is extremely effective and powerful at 147lbs.
9/19/09 v. Juan Manual Marquez
You will not find a bigger Marquez fan than me but in this case Floyd was taking on an older, slower and smaller fighter. Even assuming that Floyd and Marquez were at the same skill level, the age and size differences were not going to be overcome here. Pac-Man is smaller than Floyd, but as stated above he carries his big punch to 147lbs. Marquez was fighting for the first time at 147lbs. and he didn’t carry a big punch with him (at least it seems that way, he was too slow to land anything significant against Mayweather).
I see your game Floyd. You don’t take a fight unless you feel safe that you’re going to win. Pacquiao’s odds of winning a fight against you are too close to 50/50 for your liking and you can’t have it. Money is not your motivation. You could make $40 million for this fight and another $40 million or more should you happen to lose. Your motivation is protecting your undefeated record. No matter what criticism anyone throws your way you always have that as your emergency answer. No one can say that you aren’t the best if you have never lost, right? Wrong Floyd, dead wrong. You have ducked Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley, Antonio Margarito, Paul Williams and now Pacquiao. How can you call your O legitimate if you won’t put it up against any of the top guys of your era? You’ll probably end up fighting Pacquiao before you retire, but you’re going to wait until he fights Mosley and they rip each other apart. If Pacquiao survives that, then maybe you’ll fight him after you come off your farce of a fight against Matthew Hatton or Paulie Malinaggi – two guys that would have a hard time knocking out a lightweight. You tried to create an edge by making Pacquiao take blood tests when you know full well that he feels he lost the Erik Morales fight because having blood drawn so close to fight night weakened him. Realistic or not, you would have had the psychological edge you needed. Floyd as a boxing fan I implore you to change your mind and take the fight. Your fans know that the only edge you need is your boxing ability. When you realize that, maybe you’ll start taking on fighters that will help you cement your legacy. 20 years from now people will be debating how good you were and the issue of cherry picking will come up in every conversation. It will be too late to do anything about it then. Give the fans what they want – whether you realize or not, it’s what you need.
Source: boxingnews24.com
Like the large majority of boxing fans I blame Floyd Mayweather for killing the fight that everyone wants. The most cited reason from fans, and something that has followed Mayweather for years, is that Mayweather picks and chooses his opponents carefully as to not risk losing his “O”. Let’s take a look at Money’s last 5 fights and see if an edge existed and if he would have that edge against Pac-Man.
4/8/2006 v. Zab Judah
Zab is among the fastest fighters there is. Leading up to the fight there were many boxing experts that believed Judah had a chance to match the speed of Floyd and could in fact win, although it would have been an upset. That being said, Judah was coming fresh off an upset loss to Carlos Baldomir and was 4-2 in his last 6. My hunch is that Floyd would have avoided Zab if he hadn’t been bested by Baldomir. Call it picking a good opponent at the perfect time to minimize risk. Pac-Man hasn’t lost a fight since 2005.
11/4/06 v. Carlos Baldomir
While the boxing world was clamoring for Floyd to fight the tough and game Antonio Margarito, he decided to take on the overrated, old and slow Baldomir. The only reason this fight passed the smell test at all is because Baldomir managed to upset Zab Judah and beat up a smaller and shot Arturo Gatti. This one is a no-brainer, Floyd wanted to add the WBC Welterweight Title to his collection against a fighter that he could beat with one hand tied behind his back – and I mean that literally. Pac-Man is, by all accounts, the #1 or at worst the #2 pound for pound fighter in the world.
5/5/07 v. Oscar De La Hoya
Floyd has to get some credit here. De La Hoya was bigger, stronger and more skilled than a lot of fighters Floyd could have fought at Welterweight yet he came up in weight (which flies in the face of what he has been accused of lately, namely fighting only smaller fighters) and took on Oscar. The argument here is that Oscar was too old and too far past his prime to manage Floyd’s speed. Pac-Man is 31 and clearly at the height of his prime right now.
12/8/07 v. Ricky Hatton
Boxing fans with clear heads knew going into this fight that Hatton was somewhat overrated and not as effective at 147lbs. since he was champion at 140lbs. Hatton, however, was undefeated, powerful and aggressive and it made for the classic boxer vs. puncher matchup. Pac-Man has already proven by pounding Miguel Cotto into submission that he is extremely effective and powerful at 147lbs.
9/19/09 v. Juan Manual Marquez
You will not find a bigger Marquez fan than me but in this case Floyd was taking on an older, slower and smaller fighter. Even assuming that Floyd and Marquez were at the same skill level, the age and size differences were not going to be overcome here. Pac-Man is smaller than Floyd, but as stated above he carries his big punch to 147lbs. Marquez was fighting for the first time at 147lbs. and he didn’t carry a big punch with him (at least it seems that way, he was too slow to land anything significant against Mayweather).
I see your game Floyd. You don’t take a fight unless you feel safe that you’re going to win. Pacquiao’s odds of winning a fight against you are too close to 50/50 for your liking and you can’t have it. Money is not your motivation. You could make $40 million for this fight and another $40 million or more should you happen to lose. Your motivation is protecting your undefeated record. No matter what criticism anyone throws your way you always have that as your emergency answer. No one can say that you aren’t the best if you have never lost, right? Wrong Floyd, dead wrong. You have ducked Miguel Cotto, Shane Mosley, Antonio Margarito, Paul Williams and now Pacquiao. How can you call your O legitimate if you won’t put it up against any of the top guys of your era? You’ll probably end up fighting Pacquiao before you retire, but you’re going to wait until he fights Mosley and they rip each other apart. If Pacquiao survives that, then maybe you’ll fight him after you come off your farce of a fight against Matthew Hatton or Paulie Malinaggi – two guys that would have a hard time knocking out a lightweight. You tried to create an edge by making Pacquiao take blood tests when you know full well that he feels he lost the Erik Morales fight because having blood drawn so close to fight night weakened him. Realistic or not, you would have had the psychological edge you needed. Floyd as a boxing fan I implore you to change your mind and take the fight. Your fans know that the only edge you need is your boxing ability. When you realize that, maybe you’ll start taking on fighters that will help you cement your legacy. 20 years from now people will be debating how good you were and the issue of cherry picking will come up in every conversation. It will be too late to do anything about it then. Give the fans what they want – whether you realize or not, it’s what you need.
Source: boxingnews24.com
Pacquiao-Mayweather Canceled - What A Shock! -- The Sweet Science
By Frank Lotierzo, The Sweet Science
The news of the Pacquiao-Mayweather super-fight being canceled cannot come as a shock to anyone who closely follows professional boxing. When this fight was being put together as fast as it was, that was a dead give away. Super-fights just don't come together that quickly and that's ten-fold when Floyd Mayweather Jr. is one of the participants.
I believe Mayweather purposely jumped at fighting Pacquiao in order to make it look like he really wanted the fight - knowing inside Pacquiao would never become the subservient fighter and adhere to all of his BS regarding PEDs. It's typical Mayweather. Again, I don't think he fears that he can't beat Pacquiao, it's just that he's not sure enough to take the risk without somehow working the system to favor him inside the ring on fight night. Obviously Floyd found out that he doesn't have nearly the leverage over Pacquiao that he did Juan Manuel Marquez and therefore they'll be no fight between them, at least on March 13th, 2010.
Mayweather has succeeded in making Pacquiao look as if he fears submitting to any and all type of drug test - along with making himself look as if he's trying to get out of the fight and save face at the same time.
This hurts boxing because everybody including non-boxing fans were not only looking forward to seeing Pacquiao-Mayweather but were counting down the days to it. And sadly both fighters come out of this looking bad. It's been talked about and been on and off so much that it's almost refreshing to now know it's been officially canceled.
Here are some closing thoughts on both fighters and their future.
Mayweather:
Floyd is a greatly skilled fighter, however for the last time, he's not off the chart fast or skilled when compared to other past greats. His offense is more seize the moment intuition than anything else. His fundamentals and basics are terrific and he's great at making his opponent fight from their weakness. That said he's picked his spots since moving up from lightweight and has smartly chosen to participate in fights where he's held all the leverage, a fact that not even the most avid Mayweather fan can deny with a straight face if they're intellectually honest.
When looking over his record it's the names of the fighters that aren't listed on either side of the column that stands out more than the ones who are there. And that wasn't an accident. There's nothing wrong with a fighter trying to make the most money he can without taking a lot of punishment in turn. However, at some point if he's truly interested in going down as one of the greats he has to step up during his career and Floyd hasn't. Boxing is a business just like the NFL, NBA and MLB - but Mayweather has taken it too far to the extreme and on the wrong side.
At this time it's perfectly clear that Mayweather has no intention to fight Pacquiao in a legitimate fight. Unless he can mess with Pacquiao in some way mentally or physically before the bout it's not happening. With that being the case Floyd should retire with his perfect 40-0 record intact. Because he's so hellbent on protecting his 0 it's obvious he'll not fight an opponent who he doesn't hold all the advantages over in and out of the ring.
Right now in 2010 there's only one fight out there that anyone really cares about seeing Mayweather in - and that's against Pacquiao. But Manny has all the leverage and options and there's no way he'll ever let team Mayweather call the shots. Sure, Mayweather could try and fight Shane Mosley who's crowding 40 but Floyd wouldn't solidify his legacy by winning a decision over Mosley eight years after Vernon Forrest did it twice at the same weight.
With Floyd Mayweather trying to protect his undefeated record this is the perfect time for him to exit boxing since he can no longer be taken seriously as a fighter. Enough with ripping off the boxing public with bouts that everyone knows the result before they put their money out to see it. Goodbye Floyd Mayweather Jr. Seven days after you retire you'll be a week old ghost.
Pacquiao:
Manny has had a tremendous run winning seven world titles from flyweight to welterweight. He is a physical phenom. He throws hard punches with shocking power with both hands from every angle imaginable. He has a first tier chin and he never tires. He's also shown that he's willing to fight the best out there and is a certified all-time great.
As far as him taking any kind of HGH/PED no one knows for sure. He doesn't exhibit any outwardly characteristic of an athlete or fighter who's juicing. The Mayweather faction has put it out there so much that some are starting to believe it. Personally, I happen to believe that Pacquiao shouldn't submit to any drug test he's not required to take, but I realize there are differing opinions about this.
I can see the argument stating Pacquiao should agree to all kinds of testing just for the fight to be made. But on the other hand I hate seeing Mayweather call the shots and dictate the terms of the fight when his accusations right now are completely unfounded and just a form of diversion to hold up the fight. What's even more of a joke is there's never been a fighter who has been aided by using steroids or HGH. In fact it's been the opposite.
And if Pacquiao's fighting ability has been enhanced by some illegal substance - he's really making history because no other fighters have benefited by them including other Philippine fighters. And the fact that they've been able to keep it a secret so long is more impressive than what he's accomplished in the ring. See how far you have to go in order to make the case he's doing something under-handed? You better believe if there was some magic drug or vitamin out there that aided a fighters' ability in the ring to the extent Team Mayweather claims is the case with Pacquiao- everybody would know of it including them.
My problem with Pacquiao is his willingness to compile titles on a one fight and done basis. It's almost as if Mayweather has rubbed off on him in that regard. Then again Floyd learned how to mickey the system from Bob Arum and Manny's now learning it from the man who admits he was lying yesterday but is telling the truth today.
Unless you're a bigger fan of Manny Pacquiao than you are a boxing fan (and there's a plethora who fall into that category) is there really any doubt about whether he can and will beat another fighter (Yuri Foreman) promoted by Arum to pick up another title in a catch-weight bout? There isn't in my mind. Perhaps after he picks up his ninth title by bringing Kelly Pavlik down to 154 he can seek his tenth by bringing Andre Ward down to 158. Why stop there? Might as well lure Chad Dawson down to 162 and claim the light heavyweight title while he's at it.
I can't speak for anyone else - but I'm tired of catch-weight bouts and gimmicks. Pacquiao has done everything that can be asked of a fighter. Despite not liking the fact that he won the WBO welterweight title against Miguel Cotto at 145, I'll give him his due and have to believe he would've won the fight against Cotto at 147. But enough is enough.
Too much is placed on fighters winning titles in different weight divisions on the scale. Pacquiao's legacy would be much better enhanced if he defended the welterweight title against a few legitimate welterweights like the Mosley-Berto winner and Joshua Clottey without bringing them down to 145. Being that he won his first title at flyweight would make defending the welterweight title against the best available in the division an off the chart accomplishment for him.
I never believed Mayweather would fight Pacquiao without trying to win the fight first outside the ring - and that looks to be the case. Now that Pacquiao knows it he should move on and fight the best there is at 147 and clean out the division before looking to bring another title holder down in weight so he can claim an eighth title. Although I doubt that's what he'll do because the market and the money will be in him going for that eighth title.
Then again we live in a world where sizzle always wins out over substance.
Frank Lotierzo can be contacted at GlovedFist@Gmail.com
Source: thesweetscience.com
The news of the Pacquiao-Mayweather super-fight being canceled cannot come as a shock to anyone who closely follows professional boxing. When this fight was being put together as fast as it was, that was a dead give away. Super-fights just don't come together that quickly and that's ten-fold when Floyd Mayweather Jr. is one of the participants.
I believe Mayweather purposely jumped at fighting Pacquiao in order to make it look like he really wanted the fight - knowing inside Pacquiao would never become the subservient fighter and adhere to all of his BS regarding PEDs. It's typical Mayweather. Again, I don't think he fears that he can't beat Pacquiao, it's just that he's not sure enough to take the risk without somehow working the system to favor him inside the ring on fight night. Obviously Floyd found out that he doesn't have nearly the leverage over Pacquiao that he did Juan Manuel Marquez and therefore they'll be no fight between them, at least on March 13th, 2010.
Mayweather has succeeded in making Pacquiao look as if he fears submitting to any and all type of drug test - along with making himself look as if he's trying to get out of the fight and save face at the same time.
This hurts boxing because everybody including non-boxing fans were not only looking forward to seeing Pacquiao-Mayweather but were counting down the days to it. And sadly both fighters come out of this looking bad. It's been talked about and been on and off so much that it's almost refreshing to now know it's been officially canceled.
Here are some closing thoughts on both fighters and their future.
Mayweather:
Floyd is a greatly skilled fighter, however for the last time, he's not off the chart fast or skilled when compared to other past greats. His offense is more seize the moment intuition than anything else. His fundamentals and basics are terrific and he's great at making his opponent fight from their weakness. That said he's picked his spots since moving up from lightweight and has smartly chosen to participate in fights where he's held all the leverage, a fact that not even the most avid Mayweather fan can deny with a straight face if they're intellectually honest.
When looking over his record it's the names of the fighters that aren't listed on either side of the column that stands out more than the ones who are there. And that wasn't an accident. There's nothing wrong with a fighter trying to make the most money he can without taking a lot of punishment in turn. However, at some point if he's truly interested in going down as one of the greats he has to step up during his career and Floyd hasn't. Boxing is a business just like the NFL, NBA and MLB - but Mayweather has taken it too far to the extreme and on the wrong side.
At this time it's perfectly clear that Mayweather has no intention to fight Pacquiao in a legitimate fight. Unless he can mess with Pacquiao in some way mentally or physically before the bout it's not happening. With that being the case Floyd should retire with his perfect 40-0 record intact. Because he's so hellbent on protecting his 0 it's obvious he'll not fight an opponent who he doesn't hold all the advantages over in and out of the ring.
Right now in 2010 there's only one fight out there that anyone really cares about seeing Mayweather in - and that's against Pacquiao. But Manny has all the leverage and options and there's no way he'll ever let team Mayweather call the shots. Sure, Mayweather could try and fight Shane Mosley who's crowding 40 but Floyd wouldn't solidify his legacy by winning a decision over Mosley eight years after Vernon Forrest did it twice at the same weight.
With Floyd Mayweather trying to protect his undefeated record this is the perfect time for him to exit boxing since he can no longer be taken seriously as a fighter. Enough with ripping off the boxing public with bouts that everyone knows the result before they put their money out to see it. Goodbye Floyd Mayweather Jr. Seven days after you retire you'll be a week old ghost.
Pacquiao:
Manny has had a tremendous run winning seven world titles from flyweight to welterweight. He is a physical phenom. He throws hard punches with shocking power with both hands from every angle imaginable. He has a first tier chin and he never tires. He's also shown that he's willing to fight the best out there and is a certified all-time great.
As far as him taking any kind of HGH/PED no one knows for sure. He doesn't exhibit any outwardly characteristic of an athlete or fighter who's juicing. The Mayweather faction has put it out there so much that some are starting to believe it. Personally, I happen to believe that Pacquiao shouldn't submit to any drug test he's not required to take, but I realize there are differing opinions about this.
I can see the argument stating Pacquiao should agree to all kinds of testing just for the fight to be made. But on the other hand I hate seeing Mayweather call the shots and dictate the terms of the fight when his accusations right now are completely unfounded and just a form of diversion to hold up the fight. What's even more of a joke is there's never been a fighter who has been aided by using steroids or HGH. In fact it's been the opposite.
And if Pacquiao's fighting ability has been enhanced by some illegal substance - he's really making history because no other fighters have benefited by them including other Philippine fighters. And the fact that they've been able to keep it a secret so long is more impressive than what he's accomplished in the ring. See how far you have to go in order to make the case he's doing something under-handed? You better believe if there was some magic drug or vitamin out there that aided a fighters' ability in the ring to the extent Team Mayweather claims is the case with Pacquiao- everybody would know of it including them.
My problem with Pacquiao is his willingness to compile titles on a one fight and done basis. It's almost as if Mayweather has rubbed off on him in that regard. Then again Floyd learned how to mickey the system from Bob Arum and Manny's now learning it from the man who admits he was lying yesterday but is telling the truth today.
Unless you're a bigger fan of Manny Pacquiao than you are a boxing fan (and there's a plethora who fall into that category) is there really any doubt about whether he can and will beat another fighter (Yuri Foreman) promoted by Arum to pick up another title in a catch-weight bout? There isn't in my mind. Perhaps after he picks up his ninth title by bringing Kelly Pavlik down to 154 he can seek his tenth by bringing Andre Ward down to 158. Why stop there? Might as well lure Chad Dawson down to 162 and claim the light heavyweight title while he's at it.
I can't speak for anyone else - but I'm tired of catch-weight bouts and gimmicks. Pacquiao has done everything that can be asked of a fighter. Despite not liking the fact that he won the WBO welterweight title against Miguel Cotto at 145, I'll give him his due and have to believe he would've won the fight against Cotto at 147. But enough is enough.
Too much is placed on fighters winning titles in different weight divisions on the scale. Pacquiao's legacy would be much better enhanced if he defended the welterweight title against a few legitimate welterweights like the Mosley-Berto winner and Joshua Clottey without bringing them down to 145. Being that he won his first title at flyweight would make defending the welterweight title against the best available in the division an off the chart accomplishment for him.
I never believed Mayweather would fight Pacquiao without trying to win the fight first outside the ring - and that looks to be the case. Now that Pacquiao knows it he should move on and fight the best there is at 147 and clean out the division before looking to bring another title holder down in weight so he can claim an eighth title. Although I doubt that's what he'll do because the market and the money will be in him going for that eighth title.
Then again we live in a world where sizzle always wins out over substance.
Frank Lotierzo can be contacted at GlovedFist@Gmail.com
Source: thesweetscience.com
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