Philippine media BANNED from interviewing Floyd Mayweather Jr. at LA Press Con -- The Examiner

By Dennis "dSource" Guillermo, Examiner.com

According to our highly respected and longtime sportscaster friend Chino Trinidad, who is currently in LA covering Manny Pacquiao's training camp for the GMA network in the Philippines, Philippine media was banned from interviewing Floyd Mayweather Jr. during his press conference at the Nokia Theater in LA to promote his May 1 fight against Shane Mosley.

Maybe Floyd thinks the Filipino media is on A-Side meth or steroids too that's why he's ducking them like he is ducking Pacquiao.

According to Chino, he waited in line together with another Filipino media personnel to be taken up the stage from the back by the publicists. He wondered why it was only he and fellow Pinoy Jason Pimentel remaining when Floyd and Shane were almost done.

Finally when Chino got up the stage, he looked for Floyd immediately but was told by a lady named Kelly Swanson that he can't interview Floyd because he refuses to talk about Pacquiao close to the fight. Chino was baffled at the incident and that some people were crying out racism. He also told me that this was the first time in his many years of covering sports, from the NBA to the Olympics to all the many big events he has participated in, that he has ever been denied to interview somebody and is still in shock regarding the incident.

First of all, my take on that is that it's a load of BS. Floyd has been saying so much crap abut Manny Pacquiao on a regular basis. How can they turn away a group of media men based on their ethnicity? I guess there's a reason people call him KFC. He ducks even media now too. I wonder if he gets nightmares of Pacquiao and Filipinos as he tries to shoot em ala Scarface with his machine gun only to watch the bullets (in Roger's words) "bounce off their azzes".

I truly wonder why Floyd doesn't want to field questions from the Philippine media.

Is it because he is afraid to answer their questions? Maybe he is avoiding the truth? Or perhaps he simply can dish it out but he can't take it himself (I'm talking about questioning other people).

Regardless though, to me, this is a SLAP IN THE FACE to all Filipinos. Not only has this guy repeatedly disrespected Filipinos by his ridiculous insinuations on top of his statements encouraging America to alienate themselves from the alien from the Philippines simply because he is not an American citizen.

It takes me back to my experience trying to interview Floyd Mayweather Sr. wherein the guy said some rude things to me on the phone then hung up. If you want to know what exactly he told me, it sounded something like, "Oh it's the jokester! I don't do interviews with haroogah-buga- hawbruga- wabrooboo!" then he hung up. No he wasn't speaking an alien or foreign language, but you know how that guy talks like he's on some drugs or something. I simply could not understand 70% of whatever he is trying to say. Then again, it's probably for the best as he hardly makes sense when he does anyway.

Why won't you want to talk to the Filipino media Floyd? Are you saying Filipino Par-Per-View buys don't matter to you? What's the matter Money Mayweather?

Source: examiner.com

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Joshua Clottey Working His Butt Off For 'A Miracle' Against Manny Pacquiao -- FanHouse

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

A native of Ghana who is preparing for a March 13 challenge for the WBO welterweight (147 pounds) crown held by seven-division champion, Manny Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs), Joshua Clottey (35-3, 20 knockouts) of the Bronx, N.Y., spoke to FanHouse recently from his sleeping quarters near his training facility at Fort Lauderdale's Contender Gym in Florida.

This is the third of four diaries for Clottey that will appear regularly on FanHouse as the 32-year-old Clottey enters the most lucrative and biggest fight of his career, one that will be aired live on HBO pay per view.

Diary No. 1

Diary No. 2

Training videos

Fight of Joshua Clottey's Life

Bad things just kept happening to one of boxing's good guys.

The initial thing was Joshua Clottey's first major fight against future world champion, Carlos Baldomir, in November of 10 years ago, when he was disqualified for head-butting in the 11th-round of a matchup he needed only to stay on his feet to win.

Clottey, to this day, believes he was the victim of foul play against Baldomir, but he never thought that it would be the story of his career.

"That was a very, very, big frustration for me. We were dealing with two promoters. Frank Maloney, he was the one who had the money. The other promoter, Panos Eliadis, loved us African guys. Too much for Maloney's tastes, in seemed like.

So Maloney was jealous because we always surprised him by winning. He didn't like that," said Clottey, who is 32.

"The day of the fight, I went to the bathroom, and I saw Maloney, and Baldomir's managers and trainers talking. Then and there, I thought to myself, 'Something bad's going to happen,'" said Clottey. "I think they did something to the referee, because he was all over me. You know, everything that I'd do, he warned me too much. It was painful to me."

Next up was his December, 2006 loss to Antonio Margarito, during which he led early before his two, injured hands betrayed him over the course of a unanimous decision loss and his bid to win the vacant WBO welterweight (147 pounds) title.

"I had planned out a good gameplan for Margarito, and it was working so perfectly. You could see the surprise in the place and in his face when I was winning, because nobody knew me. They didn't know me as a big fish. They were like,

'Wow,' where is this guy from?" recalled Clottey.

"But the first hand, my left, one, just went out on me. The knuckle in my left hand was experiencing a sharp pain," said Clottey. "And then I started to throw the right hand, and I was really trying to throw, but the pain was just too much in that one also."

Clottey rebounded, however, earning the IBF crown over southpaw, former world champion, Zab Judah via ninth-round technical decision stoppage in August of 2008.

Clottey was then informed that he would get a break against WBO king, Miguel Cotto, but the IBF would force him to give up the belt if he took the challenge rather than facing an organization mandatory.

With Cotto being his largest, career pay day, and a shot at seemingly endless possibilities in victory, Clottey bit the bullet and bagged the IBF crown.

Then, Clottey lost June's disputed, split-decision to Cotto (34-2, 27 KOs), against whom he suffered a flash knockdown from a first-round left hook.

"After the fight with Cotto, I was shocked, and I was so, so, so sad. Because I felt like what they did to me was something," said Clottey. "I thought that I won the fight, and that they just took the fight away from me. I was really
tired of these things happening to me in championship fights."

But it only got worse after the fight, when Clottey split with trainer, Kwame Assante, over money.

"On Sunday or Monday, I was having a discussion with the trainer [Assante,] and he just came out and started talking and telling me things [about paying him] that I don't even know anything about," said Clottey. "It's great in that he's the trainer, and that he's going to make so much money. But now, it's not going to go to him, because of his selfishness. Now, he's gone."

Adding to the problems, however, was the fact that two successive opportunities -- one against WBA welterweight super champion, Shane Mosley, and another opposite former titlist, Carlos Quintana -- fell through.

"You know, about that, there was yet another very big frustration. But I kept thinking to myself, 'One thing about life is that good things always come to good people,'" said Clottey.

"All of those fights that we talked about where they said I lost, and the fights that fell through, I figured that it had to end sometime. You never know what is going to happen," said Clottey.

"When they called off the fights, I just kept on training, and was continuing to think about the next option," said Clottey. "I'm patient, I'm very respectful to everybody, I'm very nice to everybody. I push myself. So, you know, I thought, 'Good things happen to good people."

This time, Clottey was right.

For in early January, things began to look up for a dejected Clottey, who received an offer from Top Rank Promotions' CEO, Bob Arum, to face seven-division champion, Manny Pacquiao, for anotther chance to earn the WBO crown.

More than that, the 31-year-old Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 knockouts) represented the largest career payday for Clottey (35-3, 20 KOs), who arrived from his Ghana in New York in mid-January and informed FanHouse that he had signed the contract for the fight an hour earlier.

Nicknamed, "The Grand Master," Clottey's purse will surpass $1 million for the first time, with an upside to the pay-per-view.

But there still would be hurdles for Clottey, who was in need of a new trainer.

Clottey thought that for sure that he had had the perfect one in Godwin Nii Dzanie Kotey, a legendary father figure to his fighters who had worked with Clottey's countryman and former welterweight star, Ike Quartey.

But Clottey would receive yet another blow when Kotey was denied a work Visa to the U.S.

"That was very disappointing," said Clottey, who wept openly about the decision, "because I have my trainer in Ghana, and he doesn't get a Visa to come, that was unexpected."

Manager, Vinnie Scolpino, suggested Lenny DeJesus, who had worked as Clottey's cut man and an assistant to Assante during Clottey's loss to Cotto.

They had known of each other from John's Gym in the Bronx, where Clottey has trained, and DeJesus, worked with other fighters.

"That's why I chose Lenny. The training is going fine, because it's easy with me to connect with anybody. Lenny, he's a nice person. He talks to me. Lenny talks to me about boxing. Whenever your manager or your trainer feels for you, it's good. It's not like they just want money," said Clottey.

"Lenny's the guy who in it for me. So I love it that he's there for me, because I can go into the ring and fight. I'm okay with him, I'm nice with him," said Clottey.

"Lenny can tell me things like, 'Go into the ring, go to his body.' If I go to the body, and it doesn't work, I have to change my whole plan in the ring," said Clottey. "So sometimes, the trainers talk, and they work good the way they're talking, they become heroes."

Clottey said that he and DeJesus are on the same page.

"Everything is fine with me and Lenny," said Clottey. "We're nice, we're cool. I'm so happy with him."

And since he first received the call from Top Rank offering the bout with Pacquiao, Clottey has been looking for, and, finding positive signs.

The first one, said Clottey, is the fact that Pacquiao did not request a catchweight of 145 pounds, something that is a big help since Clottey has fought several times at weights higher than 147.

"They never talked about me moving to a catchweight. We're fighting at the welterwelterweight limit, so it's like, a miracle," said Clottey, who can concentrate more on technique than simply wearing himself down cutting weight.

"But you can't just be there and pray to God, 'Oh, God, I want money to buy food and eat,' and God will come from heaven and give you money," said Clottey. "No, have got to continue to work your a** off and go to work. So I know that I'm going to go there and that I'm going to be in a fight."

In Pacquiao, Clottey is facing a man who simply seems to have forgotten how to lose, and whose focus is unflappable.

He is running for congress, has made a movie, been the focus of features in major, crossover magazines, and even delivered food to his native Filipinos during a typhoon -- a move that briefly interrupted his training only days prior, but, nevertheless, did not affect his performance in his 12th-round knockout of that dethroned Puerto Rico's Cotto as WBO champ.

Pacquiao has been named Fighter Of The Year for the past three, and was recently honored as The Fighter Of The Decade, owing largely to an 11-0 record that includes eight knockouts since a March, 2005 loss to Erik Morales at super featherweight (130 pounds).

Pacquiao is in his 22nd, consecutive bout under Freddie Roach, who has been named a Four-Time Trainer Of The Year, and under whom Pacquiao is is 19-1-1, with 15 knockouts since June of 2001.

But for Clottey, there are just too many things that are positive for the Grand Master not to believe that this is not part of the grand, master plan.

"I never expected for me to be fighting on pay per view this early, and I never expected to be fighting with Manny Pacquiao this early, and I never expected to be fighting in March this early in the year," said Clottey.

"And you know one thing, I don't like any thing being around me when I'm training. That's the only thing I think about is the training. Nothing makes me happier now than thinking about the training and the fight, and believe me, I've trained so, so, so, so hard," said Clottey.

"When I'm in the gym, that's the time I fight more. My mind has always told me that "Everything is going to be fine,' and it might not work out the way that I want it to," said Clottey. "But I never expected to be in such a huge fight like this, which is the biggest pay day of the year. It's like a miracle, like something is being worked out. It's like a miracle, something is coming, and I'm so happy."

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com

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FanHouse Television: Quick Witted Floyd Mayweather Chides Shane Mosley

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- On May 1, 33-year-old Floyd Mayweather will will put his unbeaten record on the line against 38-year-old, WBA welterweight (147 pounds) titlist, Shane Mosley at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

On Wednesday, at the Lincoln Theatre in Washington D.C., Mayweather (40-0, 25-0 knockouts) was the obvious favorite among the 1500 or so fans who packed into the venue, even as he wore a black and blue warmup suit over a black, hooded jacket that was in sharp contrast to the sharply dressed Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs) at a promotional press conference.

Mayweather was as quick with his verbal barbs against Mosley, as he plans to be in the ring when they meet for their historic clash.



Source: boxing.fanhouse.com

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FanHouse Television: Shane Mosley's Sharp Attack On Floyd Mayweather

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- On May 1, 38-year-old Shane Mosley will put his WBA welterweight (147 pounds) title on the line against 33-year-old, undefeated, Floyd Mayweather at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

On Wednesday, at the Lincoln Theatre in Washington D.C., Mosley (46-5, 39 knockouts) was as sharply dressed at a promotional press conference as his skills are sharp in the ring, and he was equally sharp with his toungue concerning what he plans to do to Mayweather (40-0, 25 KOs) when they enter the fight.

Even though he will have been out of the ring for 16 months by the time that he faces Mayweather, Mosley has demonstrated an ageless ability in the ring, as evidenced by a January, 2009, ninth-round knockout of Antonio Margarito.



Source: boxing.fanhouse.com

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One for the Fans: Manny Pacquiao’s Interesting Choice -- Ringside Report

By Jeff Stoyanoff, Ringside Report

One of the perks of being a superstar in boxing is that you no longer have to take fights against the likes of Joshua Clottey. Floyd Mayweather, JR., is well aware of the rule no doubt. It is beyond unlikely that Mayweather would ever choose to fight Clottey. Not because Mayweather doesn’t believe he would win, one can be sure he does. But rather because Clottey is the ultimate high risk/ low reward opponent. Pacquiao has clearly ascended beyond the point where he needs to take on a Clottey, realistically it could easily be argued that Pac could fight anyone he wanted up to and including a walkover and it would still be hard to question his willingness to meet the best in the ring. So, why fight Joshua Clottey? And, why do it now when the stakes are still so very high?

The potential fight between Pacquiao and Mayweather turned into a savage PR war with Mayweather openly calling into question the legitimacy of Pacquiao’s recent wins and Pacquiao responding with legal action himself. Perhaps the choice of Clottey was a PR punch by team Pacquiao. After all, fair or not, there are many out there who now wonder if Pacquiao has something to hide in the wake of his refusal to submit to random blood test any time up until two weeks before their proposed fight. As has been covered Ad nausea, Pacquiao is not required to undergo such testing and has never tested positive, but that won’t stop those who question his motivation in refusing the terms offered and walking away from tens of millions of dollars. The reality is, Pacquiao couldn’t take on just any fighter; he needed an opponent that left no doubt of his continued willingness to meet literally anybody in the ring. If ever there was a fighter who fit under that banner, it’s Joshua Clottey.

The Dangers of Clottey

Clottey has a long, heavy jab and he uses it relentlessly as he presses forward behind a solid defense. Moreover, Clottey certainly seems to take a punch well. The flash knockdown he suffered in the first round with Miguel Cotto was the first of his outstanding career. Clottey is not possessed of sensational power; his knockout percentage of just 51% aptly demonstrates his relatively average power. Yet, the KO percentage only tells part of the story. What Clottey does have is sufficient power to slow opponents down and earn their respect and that is often all one needs. Despite his excellent jab, Clottey appears to prefer fighting at a fairly measured pace. Clottey often dominated the action against Cotto when he took the time to engage. However, all too often, Clottey seem to take time off and wait on Cotto. That was just the opening that Cotto needed to steal that fight. Yet, Clottey is a solid fighter, with an excellent chin and an outstanding jab. And, he is fighting a smaller man whose one weakness, it would seem, is that he is not a defensive wizard. All in all, Clottey has to like his position as he attempts what would have to be considered a titanic upset.

Amazingly, the news gets better for Clottey. Pacquiao has forced himself into a quick turnaround after dispatching Cotto only last November. Freddie Roach has suggested that the quick turnaround will be good for Pacquiao as down time is generally bad for a fighter. Still, it was a physical fight against a tough opponent and now another durable and talented opponent follows right behind. But, the situation is potentially even more dangerous. Pacquiao was close to getting THE mega fight with Floyd Mayweather JR.; the fight that was to represent the pinnacle of his career. Instead, he gets Clottey; a letdown has to be considered a possibility. Of course Pac will arrive in great shape and ready to fight, but what if he is just the tiniest bit flat? This seems like exactly the kind of scenario that produces major upsets; a hungry and talented underdog and a huge talent whose mind just might be somewhere else. It is hard to envision that Pacquiao can lose right now, but some of the ingredients for an unexpected result are present and that should make for high drama on March 13th.

Story and Opportunity

It would appear that Clottey was a risky and therefore bad choice for Pacquiao, but that would be missing what might just be a great decision. Clottey comes into this fight with only three losses on his ledger. Clottey suffered his first loss losing by 11th round DQ against Carlos Baldomir in 1999; it was a fight that he was winning fairly easily. Clottey took his second loss against Antonio Margarito in 2006. Clottey came out fast and won the first few rounds against Margarito before encountering hand problems on his way to eventually dropping a unanimous decision. Whether Clottey hurt his hands or whether he was bedeviled by his own complacency in the ring is hard to ever know definitively. However, his punch output did taper off in the fight and that did allow Margarito to step up his offense and take the fight. Although, even in losing, Clottey was certainly not overmatched that night. Rather, he demonstrated quite clearly that he was a worthy opponent for any welterweight.

Clottey’s only other loss came in June of 2009 against Miguel Cotto. Once again, Clottey acquitted himself quite well in the fight. Despite going down in the first round, it was Clottey who controlled much of the action in the fight consistently landing shots on an all too often beleaguered Miguel Cotto. Of course Cotto is a tremendous fighter with a heart that is every bit the equal of his unquestionable acumen. As such, Cotto was able to fight on relatively even terms for much of the bout. Yet, one had the distinct feeling that when Clottey set his mind to fighting, it was Cotto who was struggling to keep pace. Going into the final round it was an extraordinarily close fight; the type of fight in which a single point seemed destined to make the difference. Inexplicably, Clottey came out passively and simply allowed the incredibly game Cotto to take the final round and a split decision victory. As it turned out, Clottey would have needed to score at least a knockdown in the last round to secure even a draw, but there simply would have been no way to know that before the cards were read. At the time, it appeared as though the 12th and final round could have easily determined the winner of the fight. Cotto fought as if it did; for whatever reason, Clottey did not.

It was only at this point perhaps that an ethos for the career of Clottey finally began to materialize; Clottey as an unquestionably talented fighter who somehow finds a way to come up just the tiniest bit short in the biggest fights of his life. Where the hand problems slowed him down against Margarito, the fall and subsequent knee problems perhaps derailed him against Cotto always something keeping him from the victory he seemed so destined to obtain. Or, perhaps the answer is not so easy to define. Clottey came out fast against Margarito and then seemed to take a step back and let Margarito back into the fight. Similarly, he came out fast with Cotto and then seemed to find a way to allow Cotto to do just enough to win. Clottey appears to have solid endurance, so one is left to wonder why he has been unable to close the deal in what have often appeared to be imminently winnable fights. Clottey is the boxing equivalent of the athlete in any sport that is clearly talented enough, but has yet to find a way to win the big one. Until he does, that will be the story of his career.

On the other hand, there is a definite positive aspect to the career of Joshua Clottey; even including the losses. While he has yet to capture his white whale, he has also never been overmatched. Even in his three losses; Clottey not only wasn’t clearly defeated, he left viewers with the unmistakable sensation that the better fighter lost. If the mysterious inability to capture a career defining win encapsulates the ring saga of Joshua Clottey than the inability of any opponent to dominate him in the ring nonetheless represents a seminal truth. Every vice becomes a virtue; did his hands betray him against Margarito? It doesn’t matter because we all saw that Clottey could more than handle himself in the fight. What was behind his inability to sustain his effort against Cotto? It doesn’t matter as he shocked audiences once again by demonstrating for much of that fight that it was Cotto who had to find a way to deal with him. His losses in those fights only seem to underscore how good he is as we wonder to ourselves over and over, how did he let it get away? In this dynamic wins and losses are no longer significant. Setting a ring record aside, to date no fighter has ever been able to reduce Clottey to being just an opponent; and that is where Pacquiao comes in.

The genius of Pacquiao

The differences between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather are readily apparent. Ring styles and personalities aside, there is one difference that is perhaps most telling. Pacquiao seems to capture the imagination of fight fans to a much greater degree than Floyd Mayweather. Make no mistake, they are both outstanding fighters and Floyd Mayweather is a colorful personality who brings far more excitement to the fight game than he is often given credit for. Still, the difference in the feeling one has when they watch either man fight is palpable. Mayweather’s genius is subtle as he methodically stifles his opponent slowly constricting his man until his opportunity to finish things invariably appears. Conversely, Pacquiao strikes from the outset with an awe inspiring fury. The level of genius is comparable, but one leaves you feeling almost sedate as you appreciate the brilliance, while in the other case a dumbstruck feeling washes over you as you ponder how anyone can withstand such a precise and vicious assault. There can be no difference greater between the two than how they are often perceived by those who watch them in the ring.

Oddly enough, Clottey is an ideal choice as an opponent for Manny Pacquiao. Not because he matches up in a particular way or because the timing is somehow right for this or that to take place. Clottey is the perfect choice for the opportunities that are woven into this fight. Perhaps Clottey can find a way to secure one of the biggest upsets in recent boxing history. It would complete a story that sports fans have seen many times before as a talented man finally finds a way to accomplish that which he always seemed destined to do. Clottey has been close and now he faces another great fighter, perhaps the tiniest bit distracted and perhaps not completely ready for the grueling twelve rounds that Clottey has always delivered…regardless of opponent.

On the other hand, the genius might just have another object lesson in store for his voracious audience. If Pacquiao is able to dominate Clottey and perhaps even knock him out he will have continued constructing his own tale of shocking brilliance in the ring. What Pacquiao is able to deliver, unlike even many other great fighters, is the sensation that you can’t believe what you just saw. Nobody has ever been able to dominate Joshua Clottey in the ring and that is the challenge that awaits Pacquiao. If he can go out and do just that he will once again invoke the sense of awe that has come to define the rapidly hardening ring legacy of Manny Pacquiao. Who would have thought that a tough and talented Joshua Clottey; a man nobody wanted to fight, would have ever represented the perfect opponent?

Best Round by Round Coverage of Manny Pacquiao – Joshua Clottey PPV: Only at RSR

March 13th, Manny Pacquiao and Joshua Clottey will collide for the WBO Welterweight Title. For those of you not getting the Pay Per View, tune into RSR for the round by round coverage, including the fights leading up to the main event. The fans have demanded it and we are happy to oblige. Don’t miss the round by round coverage on March 13th of the Manny Pacquiao-Joshua Clottey Pay Per View!

Source: ringsidereport.com

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Shane Mosley has something to prove against Floyd Mayweather Jr. -- Los Angeles Times

By Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times

The odds aren't the only thing against Shane Mosley. He is 38, hasn't fought for more than a year, and he's fighting a skilled tactician who's never lost.

All of this, Mosley and his veteran cornerman insist, is an advantage.

"I rise to the level of my competition," said Mosley, the WBA welterweight champion, when he appeared Thursday with his May 1 opponent Floyd Mayweather Jr. at a public, pro-Mosley news conference crowd at downtown's LA Live.

"This is the chance for me to shine, to show I'm the greatest welterweight of this era."

Mosley's veteran trainer, Naazim Richardson, similarly pointed to his fighter's showdown with an elite foe, Mayweather, 33, at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas as a major element in projecting how this bout will play out.

Mosley (46-5, 39 knockouts) has been at his best when he has the most to prove. In 2000, he upset Oscar De La Hoya in a split decision at Staples Center. Three years later, in an effort stained by his admitted use of performance-enhancing drugs, Mosley beat De La Hoya again in a close decision. And, on the heels of some lackluster efforts, amid talk that age had caught up him, Mosley in January 2009 pounded Antonio Margarito to claim a ninth-round technical knockout.

Richardson explains he's more confident in Mosley fighting Mayweather than he was before facing Margarito, and far more than he was for Mosley's canceled January bout against lesser-known Andre Berto.

"You have to keep a guy like this at his level, that's how he performs best. If not, it can be like asking Baryshnikov to go win a dance contest on the street," Richardson said.

But Mayweather (40-0, 25 KOs) pointed to what he perceives as the reasons why Las Vegas bookmakers have installed him as a 3-to-1 favorite over Mosley.

"Age has to be a factor, he thinks he's a young 38," Mayweather said. "He hasn't been in there in so long. I've already shook off the cobwebs from my [21-month] layoff. I'm active, agile. Shane is basing everything on power … he doesn't use his jab. I think I'm a very smart fighter."

Smarter than Mosley? "I make the extraordinary fighter look ordinary," Mayweather said. "I just want my due. I haven't taken the abuse. Look at Shane: his face, he's slurring [words]."

Mayweather and Mosley have been considered possible opponents for more than a decade. When Mayweather's talks with Manny Pacquiao crashed earlier this year, however, the next best matchup in boxing was created.

"You're going to see two experienced, seasoned guys. Now, this is about who's the best fighter," said Mayweather's trainer and uncle, Roger Mayweather.

lance.pugmire@latimes.com

Source: articles.latimes.com

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Mayweather continues to confound opponent -- OC Register

By MARK WHICKER, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

LOS ANGELES - When Shane Mosley swaps knuckles with Floyd Mayweather on May 1, he'll be trying to pull a Neil Armstrong or a Zac Sunderland.

What does moon soil feel like underneath your boots? Nobody knew.

There is an increasing number of boxing types who believe Mosley can win, based on overall skill, maturity (he's 38), the facebreaking punching power he showed Antonio Margarito, and athletic ability.

"Shane can knock out anything that's 147 pounds, I don't care if it's a farm animal," said Naazim Richardson, his trainer, as the Pretty-Sugar media tour hit downtown L.A. on Thursday.

"I don't care about those 40 guys that Floyd beat. He wasn't fighting Shane Mosley."

But Mayweather hasn't found anyone who can beat him.

You can sniff at his choices. You can point to the 15 guys he didn't knock out.

You can't find the blueprint for defeating an undefeated man, and that is why Mayweather is the book favorite for what probably will be the most heralded fight of 2010.

Oscar De La Hoya is a good place to start, because he's 0-3 against these contestants. Of course, Mosley works with him at Golden Boy Promotions, and Oscar told the surprisingly large crowd at L.A. Live that he already knew what would happen, "and it's not going to be Pretty

In the lobby of a nearby restaurant, De La Hoya talked of Mayweather's deception and difficulty. There have been few boxers who have put together such a winning streak without sowing fear.

"The key is that you can't go in there thinking it's going to be easy," De La Hoya said. "Because it looks easy on TV. He can offset your punches, he's a master at that. He's a master at the roll-shoulder defense. But the great thing is that Mosley can match all that. They have a perfect game plan but they have to stick with it."

Which a certain East L.A. heavyweight and current skyscraper owner did not do, back in 2007.

"You have to throw the jab, and I quit throwing the jab," De La Hoya said, thinking of his loss by decision, in the fight that set the record for pay-per-views. "It was easy. I thought it was easy, for half the fight."

He was asked how many of Mayweather's victims went back to the hotel room and beat up the pillow, regretting the chance they blew.

"I'm one of them," he said.

Mayweather's defensive sophistication and hand speed are not fully appreciated because of his many-faceted larynx and quicksilver mouth. His skill at irritating opponents right out of their character is unmatched among today's fighters. Don't think Mosley is immune because he has experienced so much. De La Hoya's fight with Mayweather was his 43rd.

"I was so angry with him, I wanted to knock him out so bad," De La Hoya said. "He wants you to go into the ring like that. Then you fall into his trap and he makes you pay."

Richardson thinks Mosley is "too mature" for that. "You can't get caught in this rah-rah-rah," he said. "Mayweather's gonna play to the barbershops. The young, hip-hop guys.

"But what could happen is this stuff could get you motivated in the wrong direction. You can't let Floyd win all these little battles. Because Floyd lives in Floyd's world. And in Floyd's world, if he pulls you into an argument here, or at the press conference, or at the weigh-in ... well, in Floyd's world, he's already 3-0 against you. Now you get in the ring, and he's comfortable. He says if I beat you three times I can beat you the fourth time. And that's a mental, relaxed state he puts himself in.

"You gotta let him know, you're dealing with a real dragon here. If you're great, you're gonna find out how great you are tonight. You're going to be getting up off that canvas, to prove you're great."

Actually Mayweather was fairly diplomatic Thursday, talking up Mosley's credentials, saying that he likes glamour fights because they "test my skills."

It was Mosley who said that "May first" would be "May's first," as in first loss.

Roger Mayweather, Floyd's uncle and normally outspoken trainer, was quiet, too. Someone asked him how training was going and he shrugged.

"We've done it so long," he said. "It's like it always is. Floyd's the same. He can do anything he needs to do. It's going to be easier because Shane is going to come to him. But if Floyd had to go get him, he could do that."

No, Mayweather is not unbeatable. We just haven't seen any indisputable visual evidence.

mwhicker@ocregister.com

Source: ocregister.com

***

Mayweather, Mosley tout May Day bout -- AFP

AFP

LOS ANGELES — Shane Mosley vowed to hand Floyd Mayweather jnr his first professional defeat as the two fighters touted their May 1 welterweight showdown in Hollywood style.

"This fight is going to be on May 1st, but it's also going to be May's first (defeat)," said Mosley as the fighters wrapped up their cross-country publicity tour in the sunshine of downtown Los Angeles on Thursday.

After the obligatory nose-to-nose stare-down, each fighter reiterated his respect for the other - a contrast to some of the trash-talking that marked their earlier press conferences.

"Shane is out of character in this whole thing," Mayweather said of their previous acrimonious exchanges, including a shoving match in New York.

"He doesn't talk trash. That's not like him to call out somebody. I think Bernard Hopkins (Mosley's business partner) put a battery in his back and pumped him up to say those things."

Mawyeather, who returned from near two-year layoff with a dominant victory over Juan Manuel Marquez last September, brings a record of 40-0 with 25 knockouts to the bout.

He had been expected to take on Filipino hero Manny Pacquiao on March 13, but negotiations unravelled over the American's demands for unprecedented pre-fight blood testing for performance enhancing drugs.

Enter Mosley, who owns a record of 46-5 with 39 knockouts and was supposed to face Andre Berto in a unification bout in January before Berto withdrew to focus on family in Haiti in the wake of the earthquake there.

Golden Boy promotions chief executive Richard Schaefer insists Mayweather-Mosley can sell three million pay-per-view buys, which would make it the biggest pay-per-view fight in history.

Mayweather has sold about 4.5 million buys for his last three fights against Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton and Marquez, making him the sport's top pay-per-view draw.

Mosley's trainer Naazim Richardson said Mosley has the ability to stop Mayweather.

"Shane Mosley can knock out anything that weighs 147 pounds," said Richardson. "If a farm animal weighed that, Shane could knock him out. We're going to have to convince this man that he has to learn how to lose. He can forget it after us, but he's going to have to learn."

Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved.

Source: google.com

***

Floyd Mayweather: 'I'm the King of The Throne' -- FanHouse

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Floyd Mayweather was in his true glory on Wednesday at the Lincoln Theatre, entertaining his partisan fans during a press conference that included future ring rival, Shane Mosley, on the second of a three-day, promotional tour.

A day earlier, the 33-year-old Mayweather (40-0, 25 knockouts) and the 38-year-old Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs) had nearly come to blows during a face-to-face stare-down.

But they wisely decided to save their fists for their May 1, million dollar clash at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, where Mosley will defend his WBA welterweight (147 pounds) super championship and earn his largest career pay day.

Between telling jokes, mocking members of the rival camp, and receiving cheers at the expense of Mosley, Mayweather spoke with FanHouse concerning his crusade to implement Olympic-style drug-testing in boxing, and his bout with Mosley, among other things.


FanHouse: How does Shane Mosley rank among the greatest fights in your career?

Floyd Mayweather: You know, I just do what I do, man. All that I do is just do me, man. And be the best that I can be in the sport of boxing. But I'm going to stop his a**.

I just make it and do what I do, man. When a fighters' facing me, they're facing the best. When I'm facing them, I'm just facing fighters.


FH: On Tuesday, when things got a little testy between yourself and Shane Mosley, can you explain what happened?

Mayweather: Well, the thing yesterday, well, basically what happened yesterday was that me and Mosley came face-to-face. And then he came close to where our noses touched.

I'm not really tripping on that. But like I said before, I only like to kiss females. But then if you go back and look at it, he touched me twice. I told him, don't put his hands on me. 'Whatever you do, just don't put your hands on me.'

And then, that was it, basically.


FH: How much of what happened yesterday do you think had its origins from the in-the-ring, post-fight after you beat Juan Manuel Marquez in September, and Shane entered the ring and interrupted your interview with Max Kellerman by challenging you to be his next fight?

Mayweather: I'm not worried about that. You know, you've got to realize, that comes with the territory. Jealousy comes with the territory. You've got to realize this. I've been trying to fight this guy since 1998, and, 1999, and this guy's been ducking and dodging.

And then I tried to fight him again, and he said that he had a toothache. And all of a sudden, now, he's 38, 39 years old, and his career's coming to an end, and he needs a big pay day.

And like I said before, 'All roads lead to Floyd Mayweather.' If you do your homework, and you check all of these fighters, they get their most money when they face me.

Oscar De La Hoya. Shane Mosley. Zab Judah. And the list goes on and on. They make the most money when they fight me. So like I said, 'All roads lead to Floyd Mayweather.' And I pick and chose who I want to fight, because I'm king of the thrown.

I'm not depending on any of those guys, I do what I want to do.


FH: Floyd, I spoke to former Las Vegas ringside doctor, Margaret Goodman, former BALCO founder, Victor Conte, and USADA chief, Travis Tygart, and they all said that you deserve credit for your stance on Olympic-Style drug testing. How does that make you feel?

Mayweather: The thing is this, like I said before, I've got to fight everybody. That's why I dont' even go to the internet, and I don't have to read none of that bulls***.

Because my fans tell me every day, when I go inside a stadium or somewhere, my fans are like, 'Floyd, don't listen to the media.' So that's how I know that they be writing a bunch of bulls***.

But the thing is this, it's like this, I'm a strong-minded person. The only thing that I think about is what my mother tells me every day.

She says 'the world can be against you, but as long as God's on your side, you will always rise.' So that's I take with me every time.

Just because you have one man who that will say, 'Well, I may win, I don't know if I'll win.' But deep in his heart, he knows that he's going to win.

With me, though, all that I'm saying is that 'I know that I'm going to win.' And so they say that 'it's cocky,' or they that 'it's arrogance.' But it ain't cocky or arrogant if you're backing it up.


FH: But if boxing ever decides to toughen its policies on drug testing, do you believe, as do some others, that you should be given some credit for pioneering the effort?

Mayweather: Okay, like I said before. They need to make the changes. I'd change everything in the sport of boxing. They need to make the changes.

All that I'm trying to do is show the world that my sport is clean. I'm trying to seperate the ordinary from the good, from the great.

I never said nothing about Manny Paquiao, but I've never known a man who didn't want to take a drug test and risk losing $25 million. And now, he's making $6 million [to defend his title against Joshua Clottey on March 13.]

The thing is this, you've got people who, even in Mosley's career. They talk about how Mosley beat all of these guys. You know, we don't know, when he got all of these knockouts at lightweight [135 pounds,] we don't know what he was taking.

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com

***

MANNY PACQUIAO OR JOSHUA CLOTTEY? BOXING EXPERTS WEIGH IN

Boxing News World

Seven-division boxing champion and current pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao defends his WBO welterweight title against Ghana’s Joshua Clottey on March 13 at the mammoth Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

After superbly finishing the previous year with sensational knockout victories over England’s Ricky Hatton and Puerto Rico’s Miguel Cotto, the 31-yr old Filipino ring icon (50-3-2, 38 KOs) is going to be in the position to add another feather to his already well-adorned cap by becoming the first boxer to stop the durable former IBF welterweight champion Clottey (35-3, 20 KOs).

I sought the opinions of some boxing experts for their prediction on the 147-pound matchup. Check out what they had to say.

Adam Pollack, Cyber Boxing Zone
Much tougher fight for Pac than folks may realize. Clottey has an iron jaw, solid punch, is a true physically strong welterweight, comes forward the entire fight, and will fight right up to the final bell. He beat the hell out of Corrales and gave Margarito a very tough time of it. That said, I think Josh loses a decision to Pacquiao because Pacman is so much faster, has enough in and out footwork that he can build up points and win rounds. Even though Pac will have some trouble with Clottey's strengths, overall, Clottey does not exert enough fast pressure or nonstop punching to really get the job done. Still, this is no easy walk in the park and will be Pacquiao's toughest fight at welterweight. Clottey is actually the sturdiest welter Pacquiao has yet faced, despite his lack of marquee value name. He isn't going to fall apart as the rounds progress like the others did. So Pacquaio had better be in good shape to go 12 solid rounds.

Bill Dwyre, Los Angeles Times
Pacquiao… I think the Vegas book already has him close to 5-1.

Geoff Poundes, Ringside Report
Pacquiao, narrowly on points. I actually think Clottey will give him one of his toughest nights, but that Manny will be just marginally too quick for him.

Mark Whicker, Orange County Register
Pacquiao, knockout, 9th.

Graham Houston, FightWriter
Pacquiao by decision or even a late-rounds TKO.

Frank Lotierzo, The Sweet Science
Pacquiao by decision.

Amy Green, BoxingInLasVegas
Pacquiao defeats Clottey by unanimous decision.

Tony Nobbs, Eastside Boxing
Pacquaio wins by decision or late TKO.

Matthew Goldstein, Boxing Talk
I like Clottey by UD. Pacquiao has never faced a big, skilled welterweight who can box. Clottey might be one of the best boxers in the world. For the money, I'm betting Clottey at +350.

Chris Ackerman, Doghouse Boxing
It's pretty hard to go against Pacquiao these days... continuing to go after these bigger welters means at some point he will bite off more than he can chew from a pure size standpoint. Where's the limit? Imagine Manny in there against Paul Williams. For now, it's all about the speed so I will go with Pacman.

Michael Rosenthal, Ring Magazine
Pacquiao by middle-round KO if Clottey fights him; one-sided decision if he retreats..

TP Walker, Eastside Boxing
After watching the sensational job that Pac did against Hatton, ODLH and Cotto it is hard to argue that he isn't a legitimate welter. Did he demand certain things that gave him advantages in each fight? Sure but that's the game. Against ODLH he demanded the fight at 147, a weight Oscar hadn't boxed at in a long time. Against Cotto he demanded a catch weight something that I believe depleted Cotto a little. Would the result have been the same if Cotto didn't have to cut the extra weight? Who knows but it is a reality. Having said that Joshua is about as tough as they come and I have been a fan of his for years. Clottey will give him hell but I think Manny wins.

Ramon Aranda, 411mania
Gotta go with Manny via decision. Clottey is like a brick wall and I don't envision him going anywhere. In fact, he'll be in Pacquiao's face but the speed advantage that Pacquiao will have is going to be the deciding factor in this fight. Clottey is game but will be outworked over 12 rounds.

Brandon Estrict, Doghouse Boxing
Pacquiao will be way too much. If I had to bet on KO or decision, I'd say the decision is the safe pick. Manny may be able to get him out of there late though.

Tony Penecale Jr, Fight News Unlimited
I am picking Pacquiao to win by unanimous decision or possibly late-round stoppage. Clottey is a very tough and durable fighter with good skills. But Pacquiao's speed will be the difference. Clottey has a chance due to his physical style and solid chin.

Jim Amato, DM Boxing
Although I feel Clottey will be the strongest opponent Manny has ever met. I look for Manny to outbox him and win a comfortable decision.

Springs Toledo, The Sweet Science
Pacquiao's style, specifically his speed, angles, precision and power is a foil for Clottey. Clottey's style has been described as negative. He throws relatively few punches behind a wall designed to make things difficult for his opponent. The problem is that he will be under constant siege here. Pacquiao will find holes. If Clottey opens up, he will be found and nailed. Picture a man hiding behind a shield facing three archers in range; that is the position Clottey will be in against Pacquiao unless he has a sound strategy. He's never been stopped but his odd tendency to look for a way out may force one. Roach will be wary of Clottey's head and the potential for butts so he will have Pacquiao fighting at angles , stepping in and out at both sides, and punching and sliding as Clottey moves in. Watch for Pacquiao's hooks sneaking in around Clottey's guard. However, Clottey has a chance. He is physically far stronger than Pacquiao and if he can rally himself to fight aggressively, move the smaller man off balance and fight rough, he can cut him as he has several others and/or take over. Pacquiao can get upset in there and Clottey is good at creating frustration. I see Pacquiao beginning well with the Roach plan described above, but Clottey will make things rough, butt him, and temporarily take him out of his game. It will get dangerous. Pacquiao will have to be calmed down by Roach and will either stop Clottey late or take a decision.

Ronan Keenan, The Sweet Science
Pacquiao by wide points victory - too fast for methodical, but resilient Ghanaian.

Don Stewart, Reading Eagle
This could potentially spoil our hopes at a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight as I feel Clottey has an excellent chance to pull the upset, especially if Manny is looking too far ahead. Either way, I expect a very tough, brutal fight. It won't be easy for him, but I see Manny pulling out a close decision.

Michel Joseph, Boxing Talk
Pacquiao wins this fight, the only intriguing question is whether or not he can take Clottey out, or whether or not he has to fight for 12 rounds. Pacquiao is the superior athlete, and the superior fighter in every way - what Clottey brings to the table is a great chin, and sheer toughness. If Pacquiao needed 12 rounds to take Cotto out, facing a fighter who has a better chin than Cotto and who's roughly the same size doesn't help his chances of scoring a knockout. The call here is Pacquiao by unanimous decision, and if he can get Clottey out of there, than that's a feather in his cap - I should state here I wouldn't be surprised if he does, given his ability to exceed expectations now in almost every fight he's had for the last two to three years.

Paul H. Burbridge, Eastside Boxing
I’ve written about this fight (Pacquiao vs Clottey: Set Up OR Sacrificial Lamb?) and think it offers some interesting possibilities early. I just think that Manny has too much of everything for Joshua. Clottey is a good fighter but Manny is a great fighter and the only thing that could tip the scale is if Manny fights below his capacity which I don’t think is possible at this point. I made this statement in my recent article on this fight but the old timers have a saying for fighters like Clottey, “he fights just hard enough to lose!” There’s a lot I like about Joshua as a person but there’s not much I like about him as a fighter. When the best thing that people can say about you is that you have a good defense then there’s a problem. What people are really saying is that you only have 1 of the 2 required elements to be a level 1 successful boxer. He simply doesn’t let his hands go enough and his stamina is questionable. Pacquiao has it all and the only way he loses is if he gets careless.

Manny by UD!

David Greisman, BoxingScene
Clottey can't be discounted. He's a tough out for any welterweight. But I learned long ago not to pick against Pacquiao. Some things are just meant to be.

Igor Frank, Burbank Times
Clottey presents a very formidable challenge to pound for pound king, Manny Pacquiao. He is a very strong welterweight, fast, durable with excellent boxing skills and he has the ability to hurt Pacquiao. Clottey has a high guard defense which is hard to penetrate and he has never been hurt in a fight; Cotto has dropped him with a jab, but it was an off-balance knockdown. However, Clottey lacks killer instinct - evidenced in the bout with Cotto which he had won but allowed it to slip away in the final rounds - and he is not busy enough to outpoint the champion. Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s trainer, feels that they should have no problems with the high guard defense. So unless Clottey knocks out the champion, which is highly unlikely, I predict that Pacquiao will win a twelve round unanimous decision by wide margins.

Charles White, Eastside Boxing
Pacquiao by UD, possibly SD. Clottey, while a good fighter, is simply too mechanical and slow to beat Pacquiao in my humble opinion. He also tends to not be active enough in fights, and that simply won't work against a very active fighter like Pacquiao.

Vikram Birring, Doghouse Boxing
Pacquiao will beat up Clottey and stop him. I believe this because Pacquiao's confidence is at an all time high. Clottey has a chance but he does not throw enough and sometimes gives up on himself like the end of the Cotto fight. He had the fight won but stopped throwing punches the last two questions.

- My gratitude extends to all the above experts for sharing their thoughts - Marshall N. B., marx7204@lycos.com

***

Clottey motivated by Pacquiao trainer's knockout forecast -- Reuters

By Larry Fine, Reuters

NEW YORK (Reuters) - When Joshua Clottey steps into the ring against WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao on March 13 the Ghanaian will imagine he is fighting someone else.

The 32-year-old said Thursday he had a world of respect for Filipino Pacquiao and liked him personally and so would be fixing his mind on another target as motivation.

"I'm going to fight because of somebody," Clottey told a small cluster of reporters as he ran on a treadmill at Kingsway Gym a few blocks south of the Empire State Building.

"I'm fighting Pacquiao, but I'm fighting somebody else outside the ring. Nobody knows. I'll let everybody know after the fight. It's my secret."

Clottey moved from the treadmill to the ring for some punching practice against a sparring partner.

Looking on from the side, his manager Vinnie Scolpino might have let the cat out of the bag.

"He wants to beat (Pacquiao's trainer) Freddie Roach. That's his motivation," Scolpino said. "He wants to put him in his place. He beats Pacquiao, he puts Freddie in his place, too. Roach says he (Pacquiao) is going to knock him out.

Scolpino said Clottey was offended by the prediction.

BEST SHAPE

The lean yet muscular Clottey worked up a healthy sweat as he moved from the ring to the heavy bag and speed bag before finishing with some calisthenics and stretching.

"I'm in the best shape of my life," said Clottey, a former IBF welterweight champion who will carry a 35-3 record into the bout, including a controversial split decision loss to Miguel Cotto in his last fight.

Pacquiao, named Fighter of the Year in the last two years and Fighter of the Decade by the Boxing Writers Association of America, stopped Cotto in the 12th round in his last fight.

Clottey's big payday clash with Pacquiao (50-3-2) came about when the Filipino's mega-fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr fell through over arguments about dope testing protocols.

The million-dollar-plus purse will be Clottey's biggest.

"This fight is like a miracle," said the Ghanaian, adding that his defensive skills would be a crucial factor in the bout.

"We all know Manny Pacquiao. When he comes, he starts throwing. I'm just ready. My body can take it.

"When he throws on me, I will block him and that will confuse him. He'll throw 30, and I'll throw four. The four will connect. The 30, I'll block most.

"I will wear him down. For sure."

(Editing by Ken Ferris)

Source: ca.reuters.com

***

Bob Arum: Site 'Deal Done' for Yankees Stadium to Host Foreman-Cotto -- FanHouse

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

Top Rank CEO Bob Arum has just completed the deal with Yankees Stadium to hold WBA junior middleweight (154 pounds) champion, Yuri Foreman's June 5 defense of his title against Puerto Rican former three-time world champion, Miguel Cotto, at the venue.

"The deal is done, and we're looking forward to a great event at Yankees Stadium. It's of historic significance, which, of course, is well-known. Hopefully, this will start a new era for boxing at Yankees Stadium," said Arum, 78. "I think it's a great thing for boxing, and I'm very, very happy about it."

(From left to right, Cotto, Felix Trinidad and Foreman are pictured at right above).

Arum has been working out the details with Yankees' chief operating officer Lonn Trost, and, head HBO sports officials such as Ross Greenburg and Kerry Davis.

"I'm not sure when tickets will go on sale, but certainly not until the end of March. We have to get the whole campaign in order," said Arum. "But it will be scaled from $50 to $400."

Arum already has secured the March 13 WBO welterweight (147 pounds) clash between seven-division king Manny Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs) and Joshua Clottey (35-3, KOs) at Dallas Cowboys' Stadium in Arlington, Tex.

Boxing's future, said Arum, lies in outdoor stadium bouts such as Foreman-Cotto and Pacquiao-Clottey.

"I think that outdoor stadiums are the way to go. Oversees, they've been doing it for a while," said Arum, who promoted the last boxing match at the old Yankees Stadium in 1976, when Muhammad Ali earned a 15-round decision over Ken Norton against the backdrop of a police strike.

"I really think that putting boxing in venues is the way to go," Arum said, "because I think that it elevates the sport, and that it elevates interest in the sport, and I'm happy that I'm bringing it back."

The Foreman-Cotto bout will share the evening with a bar mitzvah party which initially threatened the fight being held there.

But accommodations were worked out with the family of the boy, Scott Ballan, to hold the party and the fight on the same night for the first time in the stadium's history.

About 150 guests for the bar mitzvah party for the son of Yankees' lead bond lawyer Jon Ballan will be given tickets that will allow them to spend the evening celebrating the boy as well as watching Foreman-Cotto.

Foreman is studying to be a rabbi along with being the first Israeli to win a professional boxing title, a feat with November's 12-round unanimous decision over Puerto Rico's Daniel Santos.

Cotto has been a big draw at Madison Square Garden due to the large Puerto Rican population in the area, and is 6-0 at Madison Square Garden, where he has decisioned Clottey, Shane Mosley, and Paulie Malignaggi, and knocked out Zab Judah.

"In Yankees Stadium, you have the Puerto Rican icon, Miguel Cotto, who is struggling to get back into the mix. And he's going up against this orthodox Jewish champion, who is extremely unique in the sport," said Arum.

"There's a tremendous Puerto Rican population in the New York-Metropolitan area, and there are more Jewish people in New York then there are in Tel Aviv," said Arum. "So it's a very, very major city for Jews, and we expect that both the Puerto Ricans and the Jews will come out, as well as other people, to support this event."

Pacquiao-Clottey represents the first boxing match to be held at the Cowboys Stadium, whose domed facility seats 80,000, but is expandable enough so that it can hold up to 111,000.

The stadium's major feature, a gargantuan, high-definition screen known as "Jerry-Tron," after stadium owner, Jerry Jones, which is believed to be the largest in the world.

Arum watched the Cowboys defeat the Eagles, 34-14, in a January, first- round, playoff game from Jones' luxurious box suite along with Top Rank president Todd duBoef.

"As far as Pacquiao-Clottey, it's a legitimate, welterweight fight, and it features the most recognizable and most popular fighter in the world today, Manny Pacquiao, who people know has never been in a dull fight," said Arum.

"Every one of Pacquiao's fights is exciting, they're interesting, and they're experiences that, when you see them, you remember them for the rest of you life," said Arum. "And people want to witness a Pacquiao fight in person. Particularly a competitive Pacquiao fight, which, the fight with Clottey is. And that's what you have to have in a place like a Cowboys' Stadium."

Cowboys Stadium has a retractable ceiling that protects against rain, and boasts over 3,000 Sony LCD displays throughout the luxury suites, concourses, concession areas and more.

The setup allows fans the ability to watch the action beyond just the field as most, if not all of the displays, will be operating on fight night, according to Jones.

Arum said that even though Cowboys Stadium has been set up to seat 45,000, it is likely to expand due to an expected sellout.

"At Cowboys Stadium, we have under 7,000 tickets left to sell," said Arum. "So when we sell those 7,000, which we expect to do, we'll have an absolute sellout."

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com

***

Two Nice Consolation Prizes -- The Sweet Science

By Bernard Fernandez, The Sweet Science

It is the age-old question, one that has puzzled mankind for what seems like forever.

All right, so maybe the foremost such puzzler is “Why did the chicken cross the road?,” but right behind it is the little matter of whether ’tis better to have a bird in the hand or two in the bush.

Boxers, their managers and promoters have contemplated that perplexing choice ever since men first determined that they could earn a living by tugging on padded gloves and punching one another for fame and profit. You’d think by now that some sort of pattern would have emerged, but every year someone in the pugilistic arts is required to determine a course of action that could severely affect their bottom line, in addition to satisfying or thwarting the cravings of a public that is notoriously impatient when its will is circumvented.

Not so very long ago, fight fans had a bird in the hand, and it was ostrich-sized and as majestic as a bald eagle in flight. Welterweight superstars Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr., generally acknowledged to be the top two pound-for-pound boxers on the planet, had agreed to a megabout that almost certainly would have been the sport’s highest-grossing showdown. Each combatant would have earned in excess of $25 million, with some estimates topping out in the $40 million range. Cleveland Cavaliers icon LeBron James would have to play back-to-back, 82-game NBA seasons to earn a comparable bonanza.

With such a ridiculous amount money on the line, and with a rare opportunity to steer boxing back into the mainstream, it seemed impossible that the powers-that-be would do anything to unravel what initially appeared to be a done deal. But boxing being what it is, the opposing sides found a sticking point upon which they could agree to disagree, transforming the Fight of the Century into still another war or words, with each camp claiming to hold the moral high ground.

In short order, the fight that would have had the whole world buzzing with anticipation had split into a couple of still-attractive but lesser events, with the headline attractions digging in for a possible court fight instead of the one we all wanted to see in the ring.

When in doubt, call in the lawyers.

“It causes chaos and it’s wrong for one fighter to try to impose his own rules and regulations on the sport and on another fighter,” Top Rank founder and CEO Bob Arum, who has paired Filipino national hero Pacquiao (50-3-2, 38 KOs), the WBO 147-pound champion, with Ghana’s Joshua Clottey (35-3, 20 KOs) on March 13 in Cowboys Stadium, said of Mayweather’s demands that “Pac-Man” consent to random, Olympic-style blood-testing as a prerequisite for their matchup to be made. “It’s as silly as, say, Alex Rodriguez getting struck out four times by a Boston Red Sox pitcher and saying he’s not going to face him again until the pitcher takes a blood test.

“We have commissions to (make rules). You can make any request you want of a commission and if the commission feels there’s any validity to what’s being petitioned, it will then dictates what it feels is best. The proper procedure for Mayweather, if he wanted extra testing, was to go before the Nevada commission and request it. He didn’t do that.

“For Mayweather to try to bully another fighter into additional testing simply because he demanded it is preposterous. The Nevada commission has in place random testing, and that’s urinalysis. Nobody (with Team Pacquiao) is against random testing. But urinalysis is not invasive; blood-testing is.

“You don’t have to be a genius to figure out what (Mayweather) is trying to do. It’s an attempt to get into Manny’s head, to get him completely discombobulated so he would be easy pickings for Mayweather. But Manny didn’t put up with the bullying, so Mayweather is getting his wish to not have to fight him. Mayweather vs. Manny is a no-contest. Manny would wipe up the ring with Floyd Mayweather.”

Arum’s indignant protestations represent one side of the dispute, and they are reasonably compelling when viewed a certain way. If Pacquiao-Mayweather was to take place in Nevada, as was originally scheduled, the NSAC’s current rules and regulations should be the standard, right?

But Mayweather and Golden Boy Promotions, which is working in concert with Mayweather Promotions to stage the May 1 matchup of WBA welterweight champion “Sugar” Shane Mosley (46-5, 39 KOs) and Mayweather (40-0, 25 KOs) at Las Vegas’ MGM Grand, take the position that rules fraught with loopholes through which a drug cheat could wiggle is as bad as no rules at all, and that “Money” is a crusading knight whose noble quest for a more even playing field should be enacted forthwith.

“Floyd feels very strongly about bringing Olympic-type testing to boxing,” said Richard Schaefer, Golden Boy CEO. “I don’t think Floyd’s position on this is to be belittled or criticized. To the contrary, I think it is something to be applauded.”

Mayweather, at a Tuesday press conference at the Nokia Theater in New York to hype his scrap with Mosley, alternated between the roles of boxing’s would-be cleanup man and character assassin.

“I want to show the world that my sport is clean,” Mayweather said with the earnestness of Jimmy Stewart’s Mr. Smith going to Washington. “I think we should take a stand in all sports to show that. We have to separate the average from the good from the great.”

But although Mayweather said “I never said Pacquiao was on nothing,” he soon turned from the suggestion of impropriety to something that sounded more like outright accusations that Pacquiao’s rapid rise has been something less than all-natural.

“I never seen a fighter go from ordinary once he reached, like, 25 to extraordinary,” Mayweather said in taking another verbal jab at Pacquiao. “It just don’t work like that. I don’t like to throw no nails, but they all cheaters.”

Among the rules-benders and rules-breakers, Mayweather continued, is Mosley, who admitted to a grand jury that he had once taken performance-enhancing drugs on the suggestion of an employee, but that he did not know the substances were controlled and illegal.

“Mayweather just blurts things out he really doesn’t know about,” Mosley said, seemingly bemused by his upcoming opponent’s latest tirade. “That can be dangerous. People have filed lawsuits over that kind of stuff.”

Arum and Pacquiao, in fact, already have taken legal action against Mayweather, his father Floyd Sr., adviser Leonard Ellerbee, Schaefer and Golden Boy front man Oscar De La Hoya for defamation of Pacquiao’s character. Pacquiao has never failed a drug test, although those he has taken and passed are not as stringent as those preferred by Mayweather and insisted upon by the International Olympic Committee.

When asked if he still thought his fighter would someday mix it up with Mayweather, Freddie Roach, Pacquiao’s trainer, said, “Manny really wants to fight Floyd in the future, and he will knock him out.” Arum, who also was participating in the conference court, immediately chimed in that “We’ll knock him out in the court, too.”

Somewhat obfuscated amid the intrigue is the fact that the two consolation-prize bouts that arose from the ashes of Pacquiao-Mayweater are, upon closer inspection, fairly attractive as stand-alone events.

Pacquaio is the crossover star and reason Cowboys Stadium, scaled to a capacity of nearly 42,000, should sell out before the opening bell. Clottey is simply the other guy, the opponent, and someone few believe has much chance of pulling off the upset, but insiders know that he is tough, resilient and the naturally larger man. No, Pacquiao-Clottey isn’t the “Super Bowl of boxing,” as Roach boldly stated, but it ain’t chopped liver, either.

“People were looking forward to a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight, that’s clear,” Arum conceded. “But Manny Pacquiao has a huge, huge fan base now. He’s crossed over. Every sports fan knows Manny Pacquiao.

“You cannot say there’s two household names fighting on March 13. That would be ridiculous. But there’s excitement in Dallas. It should be a great show.”

Also lending substance to Pacquiao-Clottey is the fact that Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, who offered a record $25 million site fee for Cowboys Stadium to host Pacquiao-Mayweather (which Schaefer rejected out of hand), has made it clear that he wants his new, $1.2 billion stadium to be the Southwest’s answer to Madison Square Garden, a Mecca for boxing with a Tex-Mex flavor. If the pay-per-view buy rate is anywhere near as impressive as what figures to be a sellout crowd at the live venue, Jones could emerge as a latter-day Donald J. Trump, reminiscent of a time when The Donald was pouring millions into his Atlantic City fight operation, with Pacquiao the sort of draw that Mike Tyson once was on the boardwalk.

Schaefer, De La Hoya, Ellerbee and those involved in putting on Mayweather-Mosley figure their fight will do better than Pacquiao-Clottey, both aesthetically and financially, because it figures to be much more competitive. In The Ring magazine’s end-of-2009 issue, a panel of experts had Mayweather and Mosley at Nos. 2 and 3 in the pound-for-pound ratings, behind Pacquiao.

“I have no doubt that our fight is going to do substantially better (than Pacquiao-Clottey),” said Schaefer, who boldly predicted a record 3 million PPV buys for Mayweather-Mosley.

So the battle lines are drawn. Pacquiao-Clottey and Mayweather-Mosley are distinctly different, separate and perhaps unequal tests of obstinant men’s wills as well as of the fighters’ skills. By May 2, someone might have emerged as the possible claimant of the all-in pot in the fight game’s version of the World Series of Poker.

It’s a major gamble for all involved. What happens if Clottey shocks Pacquiao? Or if Mosley gets past Mayweather in a fight that, on paper at least, figures to be more closely contested than the one that takes place 19 days earlier in Arlington, Texas? Does everyone’s dream of Pacquiao-Mayweather go by the boards in the same manner of other alluring bouts that never came off, like Riddick Bowe-Lennox Lewis and Tyson-George Foreman?

The guy who has the best chance of holding a winning lottery ticket when all is said and done is Mosley, who has not fought since, as an underdog, he dominated and stopped Antonio Margarito in nine rounds on Jan. 24, 2008. Mosley had been preparing for a unification fight with WBC titlist Andre Berto when Mayweather-Pacquiao fell through, again thrusting him into the conversation regarding boxing’s No. 1 performer.

“It’s been a long time since I had a chance to show the world that I’m the best fighter,” said the 38-year-old Mosley. “But then Mayweather’s fight with Pacquiao fell out and mine with Berto fell out (because Berto, who is of Haitian descent, was too emotionally spent to fight after the earthquake that devastated that country). God works in mysterious ways.

“Really, this is the best fight that can be made, unless either one of us is fighting Pacquiao. We three are the best, and we have to figure out which one of us is the very best. But that will be revealed in due time. God has a plan.”

Mosley, who has agreed to the Olympic-style blood-testing demanded by Mayweather, clearly is hoping that he can ride the momentum of a victory over his supremely confident and somewhat arrogant foe into a clear-the-decks throwdown with Pac-Man.

But if the favorites clear their respective hurdles, what then? Can Pacquiao and Mayweather find enough common ground to resurrect the big fight that came tumbling down like a house of cards?

Schaefer isn’t so sure. “I feel both sides are entrenched,” he said. “Floyd feels very strongly about bringing Olympic-style drug-testing to boxing. He’s at the forefront of that. There’s a lot of pressure on sports in the United States to rise to that standard.”

You have to wonder, though, if Pacquiao and Mayweather will wake up one morning, after they’re retired, having never faced each other, and wonder how the hell they could have botched the multimillion-dollar equivalent of a two-inch putt or an uncontested layup. Standing on principle is one thing, but collecting principal on a $40 million payday is quite another.

Other fighters regrettably have been down this what-if road before. In Four Kings, author George Kimball notes that Sugar Ray Leonard and Thomas Hearns were nearly paired early in their professional careers, before Hearns had established himself as a legitimate threat to 1976 Olympic hero Leonard. Their first meeting years later was elevated to legendary status because the correct decision was made for them to develop into something much more than interesting prospects.

But every two-birds-in-a-bush risk taken and rewarded is countered by the failure of someone to strike when the iron is hot. Ivan Robinson’s manager, Eddie Woods, once turned down a fight with De La Hoya because he determined his man “wasn’t ready for it just yet,” a decision that cost Robinson a handsome payday and needed exposure. In boxing, when the train leaves the station, there’s a good chance it’s never coming back. Just ask Mexican-American heavyweight Alex Garcia, whose management passed on a $1 million shot at second-time-around champ George Foreman in the mistaken belief that, by waiting, $5 million would be offered for Garcia to tangle with Big George later on. Garcia promptly went out and lost to journeyman Mike Dixon, a bout for which he was paid $15,000.

Source: thesweetscience.com

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