Bob Arum on Antonio Margarito, Floyd Mayweather, Negotiations -- FanHouse

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

In this Q&A, Top Rank Promotions' Bob Arum responded to a recent statement by HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg that supported Arum's own assertion that negotiations took place for a mega-bout between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather.

Mayweather's camp -- Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe, Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer and Golden Boy Promotions president Oscar De La Hoya -- has stated there were no negotiations.

Arum also defended the right of Antonio Margarito to face Pacquiao for the WBC junior middleweight (154 pounds) title potentially outside of the United States even though Margarito is not licensed to fight in America stemming from a hand-wrapping scandal. Margarito served a year-long suspension handed down by the California State Athletic Commission.

In a new development, Arum said that he is "considering Nevada, Texas and New Jersey as well as Monterrey, Mex." for the Nov. 13 Pacquiao-Margarito fight, adding, "we're going to weigh everything by the end of the week and decide where we're going."

"In New Jersey, we would have it at Boardwalk Hall. In Texas, we would consider the Dallas Cowboys Stadium, and in Las Vegas, it would be the MGM Grand Arena," said Arum. "I'm optimistic in all three states."

Abu Dhabi still is an outside consideration as well, although Arum said, "that doesn't appear to me at this point in time as being something reasonably that will happen."


What do you have to say about Ross Greenburg's statement?

Ross Greenburg's statement reflects exactly what I went through and what I talked about at the midnight conference call. That's exactly what I said. You remember that I said that I negotiated through Ross Greenburg, and Al Haymon was on the other side. We were negotiating through Greenburg and that's what Greenburg said.

Now, it's as simple as that. And for these people to deny anything ever took place is ludicrous. You don't see Haymon denying anything. Richard Schaefer, I think, has demonstrated that he is not to be trusted. He plays fast and loose with the truth.


What are your thoughts on Oscar De La Hoya initially saying that the deal was close to being done in one interview, and then, saying the negotiations never took place in another?

Oscar is an advertisement for this movie that's coming out this Friday night that's called, 'Dinner for Schmucks.' Oscar is not the brightest penny on the block. Anybody who pays any mind to what Oscar De La Hoya says is not very bright either.

So that's why you have Oscar De La Hoya once summarizing the negotiations for Mexican television like he did at first. And I thought that he did a pretty good job. That was my understanding of where the negotiations were.

And then for him to say, 'Well, I just said those things to get somebody off my back,' and 'there were no negotiations.' I mean, what are you saying? Why did you go through this situation where you had such an elaborate answer to describe the negotiations, and then you tossed it off and said there were no negotiations. I mean, that's a lie.


Do you think that after all of this that a Mayweather-Pacquiao matchup can ever be negotiated and that the fight will ever be made?

We'd have to find some other way. This way did not work. We'd have to find some other way which has a better opportunity to work. Right now, I don't know what that better way is. But between now and next year, maybe something will occur to me.


How much do you think that Floyd Mayweather's past with you as his former promoter has to do with the way the negotiations went?

I don't think that it has anything to do with it. I really don't. I think that Floyd didn't want to fight and the people around him wanted him to fight. You know, it didn't have anything to do with Bob Arum.

Switching to Pacquiao-Margarito, that fight, reportedly, would be at a catch weight of 150 pounds?

That's correct.



What do you tell people, including Oscar De La Hoya, who might be saying that Antonio Margarito should not be licensed and does not deserve this opportunity against Manny Pacquiao?

Let me tell you something, these are people who don't know any of the facts. They should read the record of the California State Athletic Commission, which shows clearly that Margarito didn't know what was happening, and that these pads that were inserted into his hand wraps were not something that he would naturally catch.

The idea that these pads were Plaster of Paris inserts is absolutely bull****. They're making that up, and that appears nowhere in the record. There is all of this misinformation out there that people like Oscar De La Hoya eagerly cling to because he's a man who has no discernment.

I mean, he doesn't read and he doesn't study. And anybody who has studied that record can not say that Antonio Margarito was complicit in what happened. You can not say that from the record. That being said, California applied the standard of 'he's the boxer, and he's the captain of his ship,' and therefore his license should be revoked.

That was the wrong standard in California, although it is the standard in Nevada. That's a technicality. But he served his time. This was never meant to be a life sentence.


I understand that what could delay a California hearing and potentially keep Antonio Margarito from being licensed there is his lawsuit claiming lack of due process. Is there any chance that he'll drop his lawsuit against California?

I talked to the lawyers about that. That's not a decision that I would make. And the lawyers are not advising him to drop it because when you read the appellate papers, he is the favorite to win and reverse that case.

In other words, I can see the judge throwing out the fact that his license was revoked and showing that there is no blemish on his record. They shouldn't be able to deprive him of that [hearing]. He's not suing anybody for monetary damages.

I mean, this is America, and you have a right to be heard.

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com

Naked Floyd Mayweather: Tide's gone out on Manny Pacquiao fight -- Examiner

By Michael Marley, Examiner.com

It would be appropriate if the vacationing Floyd Mayweather was splashing in the aquamarine waters off Puerto Rico right now because the bombshell revelation from HBO Tuesday made me think of a beachy quote.

I think it was business genius/billionaire Warren Buffet who said it best when he said:

“You only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out.”

The email HBO chieftain Ross Greenburg sent to The Los Angeles Times has brought us to the low tide situation which reveals, beyond all doubt, that Mayweather and his acolytes have been swimming without their trunks.

I've taken my foot off the pedal in slamming Mayweather in recent weeks but now my hand is forced. And my feet also.

Time to put the pedal to the metal.

Mayweather, who portrays himself as boxing's Emperor, has no clothes.

There can be no excuses now that veteran broadcasting exeuctive Greenburg has backed up Manny Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum's persistent stance that those representing the Pinoy Idol made every effort to make the Super Bout for Nov. 13.

In his terse but telling statement, Greenburg concedes there will be no Manny-Floyd fight at least in this calendar year.

So now it is, to switch to tennis parlance, game, set and match in Pacman's favor.

We still don't know, although Greenburg implies that he began trying to bring the two parties together on May 2, the day after L'il Floyd scored his little victory over old man Sugar Shane Mosley, whether there was any sort of meaningful response to the Pacquiao demands.

But, know this and know it well, Greenburg would have loved to have delivered the blockbuster for his employer.

The flimsy excuses, such as the one about Mayweather fearing that his uncle-trainer Roger might be serving prison time at fight time, don't wash, either.

A fighter who calls himself “Money” wouldn't let his crazy uncle's absence stand between him and a $40 million cash bonanza.

So what are we left with?

Pacquiao now cannot be blamed for moving on to Antonio Margarito and neither can Arum.

HBO is off the hook on the basis on having made more than a good faith effort to bring the parties to contract.

Golden Boy still can't explain why Oscar de la Hoya said on national TV the fight was “very close” to being made into a reality or why Richard Schaefer was like a broken record refusing all public comment and making reference to a gag order.

Maybe Oscar should be bound and Richard should be gagged. But I don't want to get either hinky or kinky here.

There will be no comment from Mayweather puppet master Al Haymon and, by now, you can bet that Floyd's sidekick Leonard Ellerbe has had duct tape placed over his mouth.

It was Ellerbe who prodded Greenburg into public comment by questioning the prime cable network sports president's veracity in the first place.

Bad move, Laughing Lenny, bad move.

Where will Mayweather go next?

I might suggest a nudist colony where trunks are verboten and not optional.

Mayweather could not be any more exposed now if he strolled nude through Times Square at high noon.

He's the self-styled Emperor of Boxing, all right. And he's got no clothes.

(mlcmarley@aol.com)

Source: examiner.com

Pacquiao v Margarito. Please Don't Reward a Scoundrel! -- Huffington Post

By Johnny Benjamin, Huffington Post

Manny Pacquiao is without a doubt one of the greatest fighters in the history of professional boxing. His talent in the ring may only be surpassed by his enormous generosity and love of the people of his native Philippine Islands. Many people can learn something very valuable from Manny Pacquiao

He fights all comers and always without question gives the fans their monies worth. To this I say -- Thank you and much respect, Sir.

But his team's decision to fight Antonio Margarito on Nov. 13th has me scratching my head.

A fight with Manny Pacquiao is a gift from heaven. The opportunity, media exposure and financial win-fall are life altering and truly the chance of a lifetime. With rare exception win, lose or draw the guaranteed pay day is usually more than most fighters will make in their entire career... not to mention a single fight.

For all but one fighter on the planet Manny is doing a great favor to any fighter by presenting them with a contract to fight him. He is truly blessing them... and the entire boxing world (including that fighter) knows it.

Why... Why... Why would Manny Pacquiao bless a fighter like Antonio Margarito?

Margarito was exposed, before the Mosley fight, loading his hand wraps with plaster of Paris, the white stuff that orthopedic surgeons (like me) have traditionally used to make those heavy casts. This was not merely a violation of the rules but potentially placed his opponent in a life-threatening or altering situation.

Can you imagine a professionally trained fighter beating someone with two plaster casts?

He was suspended from boxing in the US for one-year but continued to fight internationally as if he did nothing wrong.

This is the same man (and I use that word begrudgingly) that pummeled Miguel Cotto into bloody submission with what many now suspect were similarly tainted hand wraps.

Why Team Pacquiao would now bless such a scoundrel can only be reasonably explained by greed and should be considered an embarrassment to his proud family name.

Manny Pacquiao you are a better man than that! Please don't let your honorable legacy be tainted by rewarding Antonio Margarito.

Source: huffingtonpost.com

Like Sugar Ray Leonard, Manny Pacquiao bullies foes before fight -- Examiner.com

By Michael Marley, Examiner.com

Is Manny Pacquiao a boxing bully with his demands, both quickly acquiesced to by first Miguel Cotto and now Antonio Margarito, for a catch weight requirement to fight the Pinoy Idol?

Now that he's fully installed and acting as the Congressmanny from poverty stricken but scenic Sarangani, you might say that it is legislative privilege for Pacman to extra such weight concessions from opponents.

Or you might analyze it as yet another example of the rich and powerful lording it over the relatively weak and economically deprived.

I see all viewpoints, really, and there is no denying that, as the world's most popular fighter (Floyd Mayweather being the most notorious), Pacquiao and his cohorts are simply exercising the Golden Rule in getting the disgraced Mexican fighter to agree to a 150 pound weight limit.

I should add that is four pounds less than the limit for the vacant WBC super welterweight crown they will be contesting in Las Vegas or Monterrey, Mexico.

It should not be overlooked that, with a weigh in at 4 pm on a Friday and then a bout Saturday night at about 8 pm, “Margocheato” will have ample opportunity to bulk up and figures to enter the ring massively outsizing Pacquiao.

Margarito enjoys a nearly six inch height advantage and has a five inch reach edge over the betting favorite from General Santos City. I figure the Robert Garcia-trained Margarito to go into the ring weighing close to 160 pounds, thus making him a middleweight and a tall, muscular middleweight to boot.

If anyone can smile at Pacy's demands, it would be my old friend Sugar Ray Leonard.

Born Ray Charles Leonard, this American ring hero has already predicted that Pacman will win this bout and added that he like, the rest of us, is savoring a Manny-Floyd confrontation.

But it was Leonard and his cagey lawyer/de facto manager Mike Trainer who wrote the book on using the Golden Rule—meaning he who brings the gold makes the rules—to put foes at various disadvantages.

Classic example of that was when wrestling impresario Vince McMahon Jr. tried his hand at boxing promotion.

“Mr. McMahon” cut a deal with the Leonard camp for a PPV bout at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas in one of the many Leonard comeback bouts.

The handpicked opponent was, quite literally, a fair-haired Canadian boy named Donny Lalonde.

Adroitly managed by author-boxing guy Dave Wolf, Lalonde's record was built on bums of all descriptions.

In fact, back when ESPN voice Teddy Atlas trained him, a no hoper foe did not show up for a bout off TV in Kentucky.

Thinking quickly, the wily Wolf substituted a Lalonde pal, who had never had a single amateur or pro bout, as the new opponent. Needless to say, Lalonde was compassionate, stopping his bosom buddy in one round.

It really happened and the proof is in Lalonde's record on Boxrec.

This was Aug. 12, 1986, at the Ashland Armory and Frank "Candy Man" Walters, with zero ring time on his resume, was also outweighed 10 pounds by Lalonde.

Lalonde's pal ring career began and ended with that single round or portion thereof. This was the emergency beginning and end of the Minot, South Dakota, guy's career.

Let's not say this "fight" was fixed, let's be nice and say it was "prearranged."

It wasn't Atlas' idea, he didn't like it but he went along with the program.

Atlas would later split with Wolf and Lalonde and was not in the Winnipeg Bomber's corner or in his pocket (Lalonde earned $5 millon) when he fought superstar Leonard.

A disgruntled Atlas told me, and I quoted him in The New York Post, that manager and fighter phonies and cited their respective coiffures.

At the time, Wolf wore an awful hairpiece while Lalonde was a shimmering blond.

Only Donny's hairdresser knew for sure but you didn't have to be a carpet expert to see that Wolf was wearing a rug.

“One dyes it and the other one buys it,” Atlas chortled.

But I digress as is so customary in this column.

Lalonde seemed to be a perfect patsy for Leonard especially after he won the WBA light heavyweight title by knocking out New Yorker Eddie Davis in Trinidad.

The stage was set for Leonard to add not one but two weight class crowns to his collection.

But Lalonde may not have read the script because he almost ruined the party.

One thing the Leonard camp glossed over was that Lalonde, a fitness and nutrition freak, packed a hure punch which could make you lose your lunch.

I know, I was there at ringisde.

Next: Blond Bomber Lalonde Shocks The World.

(mlcmarley@aol.com)

Source: examiner.com

Floyd Mayweather Jr. camp responds to HBO, Arum comments -- Los Angeles Times

By Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times

Hours after the president of HBO Sports said he had negotiated with both sides in an effort to make a Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. mega-fight on Nov. 13, Mayweather's lead adviser again denied the claim.

"Floyd is his own boss, calling his own shots," Leonard Ellerbe told The Times on Monday night.

HBO Sports President Ross Greenburg said in a prepared statement earlier Monday that he indeed had discussed the fight with representatives of both Pacquiao and Mayweather in an effort to make a bout that would match the repeat fighter of the year from the Philippines with unbeaten Mayweather.

The mediation failed, and Pacquiao proceeded to a replacement fight against Antonio Margarito on Nov. 13 at a site to be determined. The bout will be for the vacant WBS super-welterweight title, possibly Pacquiao's record eighth weight-division world title.

Ellerbe has said someone, either Arum or Greenburg, is "lying" if they believe Mayweather has participated in negotiations to fight. That point was effectively repeated Monday by Richard Schaefer, the Golden Boy Promotions executive who had been called upon in the past to assist Mayweather in fight negotiations.

Ellerbe said neither Mayweather nor his representatives ever entered into anything beyond cursory conversation with Greenburg. Ellerbe said Mayweather was doing what he had been since defeating Shane Mosley on May 1: taking time off to enjoy his life, his family and participate in other personal functions, as he said in this independent video June 2.

"This whole thing is getting blown out of proportion," Ellerbe said. "Floyd made it clear what his intentions were, after the fight ... and again in an interview last week. He's on vacation.

"Obviously, the parties making these statements need to understand what the term 'negotiation' really means. Calling to ask Floyd what he's thinking about doing is not a negotiation. How ... can you have a negotiation when the principal has made it clear he's not interested in doing anything at this time."

That certainly doesn't sit well with the boxing public, which has clamored for Mayweather-Pacquiao, but it should be noted "Money" earned about $65 million in two fights, in the September 2009 bout against Juan Manuel Marquez and the Mosley bout.

Ellerbe said he wasn't worried about Arum's claims that it's "unpardonable" to "lie to the press," as he said Ellerbe had done in previously insisting there were no negotiations. There's no love lost between Mayweather and his former promoter.

"I pay absolutely no attention to what Arum says," Ellerbe said. "He's just bitter because Floyd left him to become his own boss and has gone on to make $125 million since."

So when will Mayweather fight again? Apparently, whenever he wakes up one day and decides to. "When the time is right, it'll be right," Ellerbe said. "It'll be very simple."

That'll be something to see, after one prior collapsed negotiation in January and now this month's failed whatever-you-want-to-call-it.

Source: latimesblogs.latimes.com