By Barry Mcguigan, Mirror.co.uk
The only detail to be decided in the match between Manny Pacquiao and Antonio Margarito is the location.
It won't be a concern for Pacquiao. Just tell him where and when and he will turn up. He doesn't even need to know who he is fighting, because he will take on all-comers.
That's why people love him and why some, including me, get so frustrated with Floyd Mayweather Jnr.
Everybody knows they will fight. And they also know that it is they who should be squaring up on November 13, not the Pacman and Margarito.
We may have to wait another 12 months for the richest fight in history, by which time Pacquiao will be one fight and one year older.
That might not seem much. It might not mean much. But then again, it could be all the difference in the world.
That calculation takes you right into the thinking and attitude of Mayweather, who will do everything within his power to ensure that if there is an advantage to be had, he gets it.
All that bluster about blood tests that forced the cancellation of the March date was set aside by Pacquaio agreeing to Mayweather's testing demands for the proposed November date.
What do we get from Mayweather? Prevarication and obfuscation, smoke and mirrors, contradicting messages designed to confuse.
The truth is if he had wanted to take the fight in November, he could have done. He flunked the challenge in my view. All you want from your heroes is for them to take a chance on level terms, not to fight with a stacked deck.
Mayweather fights only against opponents he knows he can beat. Pacquiao took huge risks against Oscar de la Hoya, Ricky Hatton and Miguel Cotto.
He made those decisions look ridiculously simple when the result was known. I would have lost my house on the Cotto fight.
That was the bout I thought was a step too far. What he did to Cotto staggered me in a way I did not think possible.
Mayweather may well be the most gifted technician of his generation, but the one thing he will never do is shock you.
And that is because he refuses to take a risk, to put his reputation on the line.
What is the point of schooling Juan Manuel Marquez, who fights Juan Diaz tonight at lightweight, which is arguably a division above his best? Mayweather weighed in at 146 against Marquez, who scaled 142. Ridiculous. The Pacman fought him six years ago at featherweight. They both tipped the scales at 125lbs.
The result was a proper contest and a brilliant fight.
The Margarito fight is at a catchweight 150lbs but still for the WBC light-middleweight title.
If Mayweather is hoping that Pacquiao gets caught up in a war, I'm not sure he will get his wish.
At 32, Margarito (left) is not the boxer who beat Cotto two years ago. He was well beaten by Shane Mosley subsequently and then was hit with a ban for taping his hands illegally.
The evidence points to Pacquiao, who is still fighting at a formidable level.
One thing is certain - any sign of decline will have Mayweather's people on the phone the next day.
He'll be ready to make the fight then, that's for sure.
Source: mirror.co.uk
Saturday 31 July 2010
Pacquiao-Margarito fight not coming to Las Vegas -- Las Vegas Review-Journal
By STEVE CARP, Las Vegas Review-Journal
Manny Pacquiao's next fight will not be in Las Vegas after all.
Citing an inability to get Antonio Margarito licensed in Nevada in a timely fashion, Top Rank chairman Bob Arum decided Friday to withdraw his request to have Margarito apply for a boxing license on the Aug. 9 agenda of the Nevada Athletic Commission. Arum was hoping to have Pacquiao face Margarito on Nov. 13 at the MGM Grand Garden.
The fight now appears headed to Cowboys Stadium
in Texas.
But first, Margarito will appear before the California State Athletic Commission at a special hearing on Aug. 18 in an attempt to work things out with that state after it revoked his license and suspended him for one year after hard inserts were found inside his hand wraps prior to his Jan. 24, 2009 fight with Shane Mosley in Los Angeles.
When Margarito appeared before the NAC on July 9, his request for a license was tabled by a 4-1 vote, with chairperson Pat Lundvall the lone dissenting vote.
Those who voted to table the request told Margarito to go back to California, where his suspension had expired on Feb. 10, and take care of business there. Then he would be welcome to return to Nevada to seek a license.
"Because time is running out, we can't wait for Nevada to make a decision so we have to think about moving the fight elsewhere," Arum, who promotes both fighters, said Friday. "The commission, other than Pat, have other views. We decided we can't engage them in trying to change their views, so we're taking it elsewhere."
After talking to Arum and learning of his decision, NAC executive director Keith Kizer sent an e-mail to the commissioners indicating Arum's intentions.
"He said he didn't want to wait," Kizer said. "That's his call. Obviously, you have to have both fighters licensed to fight here and I don't know that the commission would have put (Margarito) on the (Aug. 9) agenda."
Lundvall said: "I'm very disappointed that the state of Nevada didn't have the opportunity to bring a fight of this magnitude and this caliber to Las Vegas. Las Vegas is where this fight should have been held."
Economically, the loss of Pacquiao-Margarito will be a missed opportunity for the city, which thrives on these kind of big events that bring in high-rollers as well as fight fans from around the world. Millions of dollars in potential gaming and nongaming revenue will not be realized with the loss of the fight.
MGM officials would not comment on Arum's decision to move the fight from Las Vegas.
The likely place for the fight to land is Cowboys Stadium. The facility, which played host to Pacquiao's most recent fight on March 13 when he soundly defeated Joshua Clottey in front of more 50,000 fans, is available. The Cowboys play at the New York Giants on Nov. 14, the day after the fight.
Arum said Cowboys Stadium is in the mix and he has talked to owner Jerry Jones. However, he also said other venues have expressed interest.
"New York wants it. New Jersey wants it. Seattle wants it," Arum said. "But let's see what happens in California first."
According to Arum, the Association of Boxing Commissions will announce on Aug. 19, the day after Margarito's California hearing, whether other states can move forward and license him.
"It's a unique situation," Kizer said. "Obviously, the incident in California was a very serious one and the commission treated it as such. And if and when Mr. Margarito comes before the (NAC) again, I'm sure it will be a very serious hearing and they'll have to make a decision as to what to do.
"What happened in California was horrible, regardless of who was to blame for it -- whether it's one guy, two guys, or more than both guys -- it's a horrible situation. That's why he got the stiffest penalty possible by the California commission. This isn't something that's going to go away. This is going to haunt him the rest of his career -- as it should. Whether he can meet his burden is a different story."
However, Kizer said he understood Arum's position.
"Some of these big fights take months and months of preparation and promotion to happen, especially with a fighter who hasn't won a fight of significance in nearly two years," Kizer said, referring to Margarito. "I think most promoters, if not all promoters, would say their No. 1 choice is Las Vegas. We've certainly seen that over the last 20 years. But sometimes things don't go their way and they have to go to Plan B or Plan C."
Arum said he has plans to hold a fight card on Dec. 4 that would feature Miguel Cotto facing Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in the main event. He would like to have that fight in Las Vegas but he said he has not made an offer to MGM officials.
"We don't have (Pacquiao-Margarito) for Nevada, so we have to think about another fight," Arum said.
Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.
Source: lvrj.com
Manny Pacquiao's next fight will not be in Las Vegas after all.
Citing an inability to get Antonio Margarito licensed in Nevada in a timely fashion, Top Rank chairman Bob Arum decided Friday to withdraw his request to have Margarito apply for a boxing license on the Aug. 9 agenda of the Nevada Athletic Commission. Arum was hoping to have Pacquiao face Margarito on Nov. 13 at the MGM Grand Garden.
The fight now appears headed to Cowboys Stadium in Texas.When Margarito appeared before the NAC on July 9, his request for a license was tabled by a 4-1 vote, with chairperson Pat Lundvall the lone dissenting vote.
Those who voted to table the request told Margarito to go back to California, where his suspension had expired on Feb. 10, and take care of business there. Then he would be welcome to return to Nevada to seek a license.
"Because time is running out, we can't wait for Nevada to make a decision so we have to think about moving the fight elsewhere," Arum, who promotes both fighters, said Friday. "The commission, other than Pat, have other views. We decided we can't engage them in trying to change their views, so we're taking it elsewhere."
After talking to Arum and learning of his decision, NAC executive director Keith Kizer sent an e-mail to the commissioners indicating Arum's intentions.
"He said he didn't want to wait," Kizer said. "That's his call. Obviously, you have to have both fighters licensed to fight here and I don't know that the commission would have put (Margarito) on the (Aug. 9) agenda."
Lundvall said: "I'm very disappointed that the state of Nevada didn't have the opportunity to bring a fight of this magnitude and this caliber to Las Vegas. Las Vegas is where this fight should have been held."
Economically, the loss of Pacquiao-Margarito will be a missed opportunity for the city, which thrives on these kind of big events that bring in high-rollers as well as fight fans from around the world. Millions of dollars in potential gaming and nongaming revenue will not be realized with the loss of the fight.
MGM officials would not comment on Arum's decision to move the fight from Las Vegas.
The likely place for the fight to land is Cowboys Stadium. The facility, which played host to Pacquiao's most recent fight on March 13 when he soundly defeated Joshua Clottey in front of more 50,000 fans, is available. The Cowboys play at the New York Giants on Nov. 14, the day after the fight.
Arum said Cowboys Stadium is in the mix and he has talked to owner Jerry Jones. However, he also said other venues have expressed interest.
"New York wants it. New Jersey wants it. Seattle wants it," Arum said. "But let's see what happens in California first."
According to Arum, the Association of Boxing Commissions will announce on Aug. 19, the day after Margarito's California hearing, whether other states can move forward and license him.
"It's a unique situation," Kizer said. "Obviously, the incident in California was a very serious one and the commission treated it as such. And if and when Mr. Margarito comes before the (NAC) again, I'm sure it will be a very serious hearing and they'll have to make a decision as to what to do.
"What happened in California was horrible, regardless of who was to blame for it -- whether it's one guy, two guys, or more than both guys -- it's a horrible situation. That's why he got the stiffest penalty possible by the California commission. This isn't something that's going to go away. This is going to haunt him the rest of his career -- as it should. Whether he can meet his burden is a different story."
However, Kizer said he understood Arum's position.
"Some of these big fights take months and months of preparation and promotion to happen, especially with a fighter who hasn't won a fight of significance in nearly two years," Kizer said, referring to Margarito. "I think most promoters, if not all promoters, would say their No. 1 choice is Las Vegas. We've certainly seen that over the last 20 years. But sometimes things don't go their way and they have to go to Plan B or Plan C."
Arum said he has plans to hold a fight card on Dec. 4 that would feature Miguel Cotto facing Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in the main event. He would like to have that fight in Las Vegas but he said he has not made an offer to MGM officials.
"We don't have (Pacquiao-Margarito) for Nevada, so we have to think about another fight," Arum said.
Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2913.
Source: lvrj.com
Floyd Mayweather and promotional company face lawsuit of almost $62,000 for rental property -- Grand Rapids Press
By David Mayo, The Grand Rapids Press Floyd Mayweather and his promotional company have been sued for almost $62,000 in a lawsuit alleging they did not pay rent for a building space that housed Mayweather Promotions in Las Vegas.
The promotional company formally was evicted this week, although Mayweather’s adviser said it already had relocated primary operations to a different location.
The breach-of-contract lawsuit was filed Tuesday in Las Vegas District Court by TDF Investments and names the boxing star and his promotional company as defendants.According to the lawsuit, Mayweather Promotions signed a three-year lease for the space in July 2008, at rent of almost $10,800 monthly.
Ross Goodman, the attorney who filed the lawsuit on behalf of TDF Investments, on Friday said Mayweather Promotions met its rent obligations for more then a year “then just stopped paying” in February.
Mayweather’s attorney, Jeffrey Morse, said the dispute is a “typical landlord-tenant dispute” and that Mayweather Promotions quit paying rent and relocated operations because the property was unkempt.
“Floyd rented the space from the gentleman, the landlord, and was displeased about how the property was handled,” Morse said. “Floyd thought it was substandard. In order for Floyd to owe rent, the landlord must maintain the property in an acceptable standard, and that did not happen.
“It was Floyd’s decision to rent, and if the rent was due, Floyd would pay.”
Goodman countered that Mayweather did not respond to multiple communications from the landlord seeking back payment and never voiced concerns about the property’s upkeep.
He said the building is in “excellent condition” and that items belonging to Mayweather Promotions and still on site when the eviction was executed by the constable’s office were returned by the landlord.
Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather's adviser, said Mayweather Promotions already had relocated its office before the action.
Mayweather, a Grand Rapids native, faces a much more substantive lawsuit in federal court in Las Vegas, where his archrival Manny Pacquiao has sued him and several members of Team Mayweather for alleged defamation of character.
That lawsuit relates to allegations that Mayweather and others close to him wrongly accused Pacquiao of using performance-enhancing drugs.
E-mail David Mayo: dmayo@grpress.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/David_Mayo
Source: mlive.com
No way to sugarcoat this: Mayweather fears Pacquiao -- CBS Sports
By Mike Freeman, CBSSports.com
There's no other way to say this. Mayweather has a chance, directly in front of him, to make grand history. He can shut up doubters, display true mastery and etch his place into boxing lore by staging one of the great sporting events of all time. Instead of running to this opportunity, he's scurrying away from it.
Over the last several days I've had conversations with various people within boxing and no one understands why Mayweather is avoiding Pacquiao. His tactics outside the ring are as dumbfounding as they are in it.
What many in boxing believe is that Mayweather is nervous about Pacquiao and Mayweather is also enjoying his fame a little too much.
Mayweather is becoming Strayweather, a fighter more concerned about the arid glitter of celebrity than fighting the best possible opponent. He's a ship at sea and doesn't seem to care that there are numerous ports in sight.
The closest thing to a pseudo-defense of Mayweather I'm hearing is that ducking Pacquiao is part of an elaborate plan by Mayweather to increase interest -- and subsequently the money -- surrounding the fight. That, of course, would not be atypical Mayweather behavior. No one plays the media and boxing public for bigger dupes than him.
Yet the overall opinion in boxing seems to be Mayweather's concern is Pacquiao's smart brutality is an even match for his skilled quickness.
Who are we to say that a man who fights for a living is, well, afraid to fight? But Mayweather is leaving even his most strident supporters speechless with his recent game of running.
The irony is I think Mayweather would win and it wouldn't be as close as some believe. Mayweather's hand speed is still daunting and though Pacquiao is a solid boxer, he's mostly a slugger. Pacquiao is red-fanged but Mayweather would out-technique him. Apparently, I have more faith in Mayweather than Mayweather does.
Mayweather's refusal to fight Pacquiao runs contrary to everything we know about professional athletes. Imagine the New Orleans Saints getting to the Super Bowl but refusing to play Indianapolis because they feared the Colts? Or Kobe Bryant not wanting to beat LeBron James? Or Mary Ann thinking she wasn't prettier than Ginger?
What Mayweather is doing remains one of the most unusual stories in sports today. It trumps Pitino, T.O. and almost all other summer silliness because we're seeing an elite athlete refuse to be great.
Most in boxing thought we'd have a fight set by now, particularly after Pacquiao reportedly agreed to more stringent performance enhancing drug testing. There have been charges and counter charges about who is ducking who, but it's clear now that Mayweather is the one doing the running.
Pacquiao has moved on and will fight someone else in the fall while Strayweather runs in the opposite direction.
Many of history's great fighters didn't duck other greats or if they did, they didn't for long. Sugar Ray Robinson had 200 fights, sometimes with numerous fights in one year. Mayweather is proving more the exception to this rule.
Mayweather is also proving to be something I never thought I'd see.
Scared.
Source: cbssports.com
He is possibly the best pure athlete today. Yet, despite his great physical prowess, he looks scared. He looks like a frightened man
.
. Floyd Mayweather usually appears gorged with bravado and his perpetually functioning ego can power a thousand cities, but these days his courage could seemingly fit neatly into a pair of a girl's dancing slippers as he continues to dodge Manny Pacquiao.
There's no other way to say this. Mayweather has a chance, directly in front of him, to make grand history. He can shut up doubters, display true mastery and etch his place into boxing lore by staging one of the great sporting events of all time. Instead of running to this opportunity, he's scurrying away from it. Over the last several days I've had conversations with various people within boxing and no one understands why Mayweather is avoiding Pacquiao. His tactics outside the ring are as dumbfounding as they are in it.
What many in boxing believe is that Mayweather is nervous about Pacquiao and Mayweather is also enjoying his fame a little too much.
Mayweather is becoming Strayweather, a fighter more concerned about the arid glitter of celebrity than fighting the best possible opponent. He's a ship at sea and doesn't seem to care that there are numerous ports in sight.
The closest thing to a pseudo-defense of Mayweather I'm hearing is that ducking Pacquiao is part of an elaborate plan by Mayweather to increase interest -- and subsequently the money -- surrounding the fight. That, of course, would not be atypical Mayweather behavior. No one plays the media and boxing public for bigger dupes than him.
Yet the overall opinion in boxing seems to be Mayweather's concern is Pacquiao's smart brutality is an even match for his skilled quickness.
Who are we to say that a man who fights for a living is, well, afraid to fight? But Mayweather is leaving even his most strident supporters speechless with his recent game of running.
The irony is I think Mayweather would win and it wouldn't be as close as some believe. Mayweather's hand speed is still daunting and though Pacquiao is a solid boxer, he's mostly a slugger. Pacquiao is red-fanged but Mayweather would out-technique him. Apparently, I have more faith in Mayweather than Mayweather does.
Mayweather's refusal to fight Pacquiao runs contrary to everything we know about professional athletes. Imagine the New Orleans Saints getting to the Super Bowl but refusing to play Indianapolis because they feared the Colts? Or Kobe Bryant not wanting to beat LeBron James? Or Mary Ann thinking she wasn't prettier than Ginger?
What Mayweather is doing remains one of the most unusual stories in sports today. It trumps Pitino, T.O. and almost all other summer silliness because we're seeing an elite athlete refuse to be great.
Most in boxing thought we'd have a fight set by now, particularly after Pacquiao reportedly agreed to more stringent performance enhancing drug testing. There have been charges and counter charges about who is ducking who, but it's clear now that Mayweather is the one doing the running.
Pacquiao has moved on and will fight someone else in the fall while Strayweather runs in the opposite direction.
Many of history's great fighters didn't duck other greats or if they did, they didn't for long. Sugar Ray Robinson had 200 fights, sometimes with numerous fights in one year. Mayweather is proving more the exception to this rule.
Mayweather is also proving to be something I never thought I'd see.
Scared.
Source: cbssports.com
Margarito camp starts fight preparation -- Manila Bulletin
By NICK GIONGCO, Manila Bulletin
The moment Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum made the announcement that Manny Pacquiao's next fight will be against Antonio Margarito, the Mexican’s trainer, Robert Garcia, immediately gathered all of the Filipino icon’s fights on video.
"Since I learned about the fight I’ve been watching Manny Pacquiao’s fights, from when he got knocked out in the beginning of his career, to his loss against (Erik) Morales (in March 2005) and all the other fights were he beat everybody else," Garcia told the leading boxing website fightnews.
"We’ve been studying all those fights and I think we’ll come in with a great plan and a great strategy to beat him," said Garcia, whose former clients include ex-world champion Brian Viloria.
As Arum tries his best to get the best deal out of the interested parties, Garcia is making himself busy coming up with the blueprint for Pacquiao's downfall.
Source: mb.com.ph
The moment Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum made the announcement that Manny Pacquiao's next fight will be against Antonio Margarito, the Mexican’s trainer, Robert Garcia, immediately gathered all of the Filipino icon’s fights on video.
"Since I learned about the fight I’ve been watching Manny Pacquiao’s fights, from when he got knocked out in the beginning of his career, to his loss against (Erik) Morales (in March 2005) and all the other fights were he beat everybody else," Garcia told the leading boxing website fightnews.
"We’ve been studying all those fights and I think we’ll come in with a great plan and a great strategy to beat him," said Garcia, whose former clients include ex-world champion Brian Viloria. Pacquiao and Margarito will slug it out for the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) super-welterweight title on November 13 at a venue that will soon be determined, according to Arum.
Vying to host the much-awaited return of Pacquiao are Las Vegas, Dallas, Monterrey in Mexico and Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. Arum said he would know by next week which city will secure the rights to stage the bout.
Oil-rich Abu Dhabi
is said to be very keen in getting the fight and is going all-out in pleasing Pacquiao's ultra-luxurious taste.
is said to be very keen in getting the fight and is going all-out in pleasing Pacquiao's ultra-luxurious taste.As Arum tries his best to get the best deal out of the interested parties, Garcia is making himself busy coming up with the blueprint for Pacquiao's downfall.
Source: mb.com.ph
Pacquiao sister wanted for illegal gambling racket -- AFP
AFP
GENERAL SANTOS, Philippines — Philippine police said Friday that a sister of boxing hero Manny Pacquiao was involved in running an illegal gambling
racket, after detaining 25 people in a raid on her home.
A police vice squad detained the 25 and seized evidence, including gambling materials and cash, in Thursday's raid on the home of Pacquiao's elder sister, Isidra Paglinawan, said local police chief inspector Leo Sua.
Pacquiao, the seven-time world champion elected to a seat in the Philippine parliament this year, personally watched as police searched the house in the southern port city of General Santos, but vowed not to interfere.
He said the detained people were bet collectors for the illegal racket, in which bettors place wagers on the last two digits of the winning ticket of the Philippine lottery.
Police seized 33,000 pesos (about 721 dollars) in suspected bets, said Sua, who led the raid. He said police would ask state prosecutors to file illegal gambling charges in court against Paglinawan and the 25 other suspects.
Sua said police were searching for Paglinawan.
Pacquiao told reporters Friday he was attending his father's birthday party when police raided Paglinawan's house next door.
He said he would ask the police to investigate whether his sister was indeed a "masiao" operator.
"I will not interfere. Let the law take its course," boxing's "pound-for-pound" king said.
Betting in an illegal numbers game or allowing one's property to be used for such a game is punishable by up to six years in prison.
Working for an illegal gambling operation, or actually running it, carries jail terms of between eight and 20 years.
The well-appointed houses of Pacquiao's parents and five siblings are tourist attractions in the otherwise depressed General Santos district of San Isidro, where Pacquiao grew up in poverty.
The sister sought by police and her husband have no known permanent jobs.
However it is well known in the neighbourhood that Pacquiao, now one of the world's richest sportsmen, gave his relatives the houses and large amounts of seed money to start their own businesses.
His winnings from boxing as well as his commercial endorsements last year made Pacquiao the world's sixth-highest paid athlete, with earnings of 40 million dollars, according to Forbes magazine.
During the election campaign in May, aides of Pacquiao's rival for the local parliamentary seat alleged that the boxer's family were "masiao" operators.
Pacquiao publicly denied the allegations during the campaign.
Pacquiao is expected to fight Mexico's Antonio Margarito for the vacant World Boxing Council junior middleweight championship on November 13.
He had wanted to fight undefeated American Floyd Mayweather Junior in what would have been boxing's richest ever draw, but protracted negotiations appeared to have fallen through.
Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved.
Source: google.com
GENERAL SANTOS, Philippines — Philippine police said Friday that a sister of boxing hero Manny Pacquiao was involved in running an illegal gambling
racket, after detaining 25 people in a raid on her home.A police vice squad detained the 25 and seized evidence, including gambling materials and cash, in Thursday's raid on the home of Pacquiao's elder sister, Isidra Paglinawan, said local police chief inspector Leo Sua.
Pacquiao, the seven-time world champion elected to a seat in the Philippine parliament this year, personally watched as police searched the house in the southern port city of General Santos, but vowed not to interfere.A lower court in General Santos ordered the raid as part of a crackdown on an illegal numbers game known as "masiao", but Paglinawan, 34, was not at home, Sua told reporters.
Police seized 33,000 pesos (about 721 dollars) in suspected bets, said Sua, who led the raid. He said police would ask state prosecutors to file illegal gambling charges in court against Paglinawan and the 25 other suspects.
Sua said police were searching for Paglinawan.
Pacquiao told reporters Friday he was attending his father's birthday party when police raided Paglinawan's house next door.
He said he would ask the police to investigate whether his sister was indeed a "masiao" operator.
"I will not interfere. Let the law take its course," boxing's "pound-for-pound" king said.
Betting in an illegal numbers game or allowing one's property to be used for such a game is punishable by up to six years in prison.
Working for an illegal gambling operation, or actually running it, carries jail terms of between eight and 20 years.
The well-appointed houses of Pacquiao's parents and five siblings are tourist attractions in the otherwise depressed General Santos district of San Isidro, where Pacquiao grew up in poverty.
The sister sought by police and her husband have no known permanent jobs.
However it is well known in the neighbourhood that Pacquiao, now one of the world's richest sportsmen, gave his relatives the houses and large amounts of seed money to start their own businesses.
His winnings from boxing as well as his commercial endorsements last year made Pacquiao the world's sixth-highest paid athlete, with earnings of 40 million dollars, according to Forbes magazine.
During the election campaign in May, aides of Pacquiao's rival for the local parliamentary seat alleged that the boxer's family were "masiao" operators.
Pacquiao publicly denied the allegations during the campaign.
Pacquiao is expected to fight Mexico's Antonio Margarito for the vacant World Boxing Council junior middleweight championship on November 13.
He had wanted to fight undefeated American Floyd Mayweather Junior in what would have been boxing's richest ever draw, but protracted negotiations appeared to have fallen through.
Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved.
Source: google.com
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