Ortiz says he's ready to rock Mayweather -- OC Register

By MARK WHICKER, The Orange County Register

VENTURA – They wouldn't be upsets if you could see them coming.

Coffee cups dropped on floors all over the world when Leon Spinks knocked off Muhammad Ali.

The unofficial "Yeah, right" record was set when people heard the bulletins from Tokyo: Buster Douglas really had stopped Mike Tyson.

The Las Vegas bookmakers think Victor Ortiz is swimming upstream when he meets the unbeaten Floyd Mayweather Jr., on Sept. 17 at the MGM Grand.

If Mayweather agreed to fight Ortiz, the reasoning goes, he must know he will win.

That's why Mayweather hasn't fought Manny Pacquiao, because he really doesn't want to put the "0" in his 41-0 record within Pacquiao's artillery range.

All of that makes sense.

But you never see history coming.

On Thursday, Ortiz lay on the floor at his training gym, a converted garage in the back of an industrial park, and propped his legs against a wall. He missed a workout last week because of back problems.

But three weeks before that, he entered a triathlon at Camp Pendleton. A triathlon is something for which you train, not a training tool for boxing.

"They had 2,500 people and I finished ninth," Ortiz said. "This time, the guys who were with me put me in the elite bracket. I said, dude, this is my weekend off. They said, come on, Vic, just do it. But it felt good. I didn't even try that hard."

Ortiz likes to surf. He spent a year and a half at Ventura College, in between two jobs and training. He says he wants to get through boxing cogently enough to "dive out of a plane if I want to. At the end of the day boxing isn't what defines me. I'm Victor, not Vicious. That's my other persona. I don't even know that guy."

The party line from Camp Ortiz is that Mayweather has dodged more than just uppercuts.

"He's never fought anybody in his prime," said Danny Garcia, Ortiz's trainer. "Everybody's been either too old or too young."

Ortiz is only 24, a decade younger than Mayweather, but he is 29-2-2 with 22 knockouts. With a jarring right jab and a big left hook, he has floored everyone he has fought.

He was flying toward pay-per-view stardom when he got cut by Marcos Maidana on June 27, 2009, and the referee stopped the fight after six rounds.

"I don't deserve to get beat up like this. I have a lot of thinking to do," he said in the post-fight interview, a cryptic remark that, understandably, followed him around.

"We can thank our good friend Max Kellerman (the interviewer) for that," Ortiz said, smiling. "He ruined me for two years, but I should say thank you, because it made me stronger."

Ortiz went to the back of the line. He left Bob Arum's organization and signed with Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy.

"I told them I wanted Andre Berto," he said. Both Ortiz and Berto went down twice, but Ortiz won a bravura unanimous decision and the WBC welterweight title.

"Now I want Mayweather," Ortiz told Golden Boy matchmaker Eric Gomez.

"And everybody laughed. But Mayweather has never impressed me, ever since I was a kid," Ortiz said. "There's been a lot of hype. He's fought the right fight at the right time. Go home and turn off the sound. He's nothing. Well, not nothing, but not as great as people think.

"I thought he lost to (Jose Luis) Castillo. I thought Oscar was beating him, one-sided, until he stopped using the jab. I don't know that it's really a tough fight."

While Mayweather erupts at family members, Ortiz grew up by himself. His parents' influence was erased by their own substance abuse, and from 13-16 he lived with foster parents Sharon and John Ford in Garden City, Kan.

"I was a little knucklehead, not exactly a demon but I had some demons on my back and shoulders," Ortiz said. "I thought I knew it all. I've apologized to them quite a few times."

He and his younger brother, who lives under Ortiz's custody now, moved to Denver to be with a sister.
Former heavyweight Ron Lyle noticed Ortiz in a gym and began training him; trainer Robert Garcia, now estranged from his brother Danny, noticed Ortiz in a junior Olympics and moved him here.

Compelling life stories don't beat Mayweather, who loves to set the tone with his pre-fight jabber. De La Hoya admitted Mayweather infuriated him.

Ortiz said he has neutralized that already.

"I'm not dumb or anything, but talking to me like that is like talking to a mute, or a tree stump," he said. "I don't listen to a lot. Everything's been done to me."

Amusement danced in his eyes. Ortiz probably will not become the first man to beat Floyd Mayweather Jr. If he does, you've been warned.

Source: ocregister.com

Hearns mulls Mayweather, Pacquiao against himself, Leonard, Hagler -- Ring

By Lem Satterfield, Ring TV

Thomas Hearns ponders who wins between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Paquiao, and how each would do against himself, Sugar Ray Leonard, Marvin Hagler, Wifredo Benitez or Robert Duran.

RingTV caught up to 52-year-old Thomas Hearns on Tuesday to reflect on his on career as well as those of eight-division belt-winner Manny Pacquiao and six-time title winner Floyd Mayweather Jr.

First, a brief look at the career of Hearns (61-5-1, 48 knockouts), who won six career title belts over as many weight divisions despite "never asking for a catch weight," according to his former trainer Manny Steward.

Hearns weighed 146 pounds when his second-round knockout dethroned Pipino Cuevas for the WBA welterweight belt in August of 1980. Then, Hearns rose to earn the WBC's junior middleweight belt with a 15-round, majority decision over Wilfred Benitez as a 153.5 pounder in December of 1982.

Next, Hearns climbed to light heavyweight and weighed 173.5 for his 10th-round knockout of Dennis Andries for the WBC crown in March of 1987. After that, Hearns dropped to 159.5 for his very next win, a fourth-round stoppage of Juan Domingo Roldan for the WBC's middleweight belt in October of 1987.

Two fights later, a 165.5-pound Hearns decisioned James Kinchen by majority decision for the WBO's super middleweight belt in November of 1988. Finally, Hearns weighed 189 pounds when he won the IBO cruiserweight title by unanimous decision over Nate Miller in April of 1999.

Hearns won another notable fight by second-round stoppage over former belt-holder Roberto Duran in June of 1984. Hearns lost by 14th round knockout to Sugar Ray Leonard in a welterweight unification bout in Sept. 1981, and by third-round knockout to Marvin Hagler in his bid for the undisputed middleweight crown in April of 1985.

In a subject-response talk with RingTV.com, Hearns mulled how Mayweather and Pacquiao would fair against each other as well as in the mix with himself, Leonard, Hagler, Benitez and Duran.

Hearns' thoughts on Mayweather:

"Floyd Mayweather Jr. is an excellent fighter. I will give credit where credit is due. I can not take anything away from Floyd Mayweather.

"Floyd Mayweather is a very smart fighter in the ring. He feints well, and he punches pretty good. I mean he's pretty active while he's in there."

On how Mayweather and Pacquiao would do against himself, Leonard, Hagler, Benitez and Duran:

"I think that he would do pretty good. He's got good head movement and I can't put him down. He's pretty active while he's in there. Floyd Mayweather is an excellent fighter. I have to give him his props. He could last.

"Manny Pacquiao, I think that he's a pretty good fighter too. I think that he would do well. He would do okay. I think that he would do pretty good."

On what his strategy would be in a fight against Mayweather:

"Against me, I would have to respect him. I think that he could go the distance with me. I would have to out-think him and definitely out-jab him. He's a shorter man, so he can't get to me.

"I would have to keep the jab on him and keep him at a distance and force him to use his head movement all of the time. Somewhere down the line, I would probably hit him with a couple of right hands.

"I would probably get him with a good right hand if not an average right hand. If I was to go to the body, you know that might play into what he is probably trying to do strategically.

"I think that if I got closer to him trying to land a body shot, that would be what he wants. So I think that my best thing would be to stay on the outside and just box him. But I think that he could go the distance with me."

On his strategy against Pacquiao:

"He would definitely have to come to me. I would probably just box him and keep boxing him and look for the shot. Yeah, definitely, I would box him and look for the opening. I would give him a good boxing lesson [laughs.]"

On who would win between Mayweather and Pacquiao:

"I would say that it would be an awesome fight between the both of them, but I think that Floyd should win the fight. If Floyd does what he's supposed to do, then I think Floyd wins and that he should be victorious.

"If he doesn't, then Pacquiao will take over the fight. Manny Pacquiao comes to fight. That's all that he wants to do. But I think that the only way that Pacquiao could win is by knockout of Floyd.

"The way that Floyd is going to win is to out-box Manny Pacquiao and to make Manny Pacquiao fall apart."

On whether either Mayweather or Pacquiao could beat him:

"[Laughs.] Listen, they're good fighters, right? Can't take anything away from those guys. But you know anybody who was in my weight division, you know, I would give them hell.

"They would have to be really fighting hard and be ready to absorb a lot of punches to beat me. Because, you know, I ain't going to let anybody just come in and beat me."

Lem Satterfield can be reached at lem.satterfield@gmail.com

Source: ringtv.craveonline.com

Floyd Mayweather Jr. on blood tests: He's for them -- Los Angeles Times

By Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times

The most problematic issue preventing a Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Manny Pacquiao super-fight has been Mayweather's insistence that both submit to random, Olympic-style blood tests for performance-enhancing drugs.

Mayweather doesn't want to budge from this position because, from his perspective, it's just an extension of the principles he's based his boxing career on: Stay out of harm's way, make a lot of money.

The 34-year-old Mayweather (41-0, 25 knockouts) has long said there's no glory in taking punishment to the head in the boxing ring, and he's established a legacy as one of the greatest defensive fighters in the sport's history.

"I don't care how much money is negotiated," Mayweather said at his Las Vegas gym as he trains for his Sept. 17 fight against WBC welterweight champion Victor Ortiz at the MGM Grand. "This [performance-enhancing drug testing] is what I want. Look at how these guys end up punch-drunk in this sport.

"I'm sorry, but all of a sudden a guy [Pacquiao] at age 25 becomes a great fighter? I want to be on a level playing field with this guy. We're fighting at the highest level, talking about the biggest fight ever. You should have the greatest testing too," Mayweather said.

Pacquiao, 32, will next fight Nov. 12 against Juan Manuel Marquez.

Mayweather stepped over a line in his suspicion of Pacquiao, declaring last year in a video that he believes the Filipino fighter has used "power pellets" to win previous fights. Pacquiao is suing Mayweather in federal court in Nevada for defamation, and Mayweather is overdue to give a deposition in the case.

Despite long-standing bitterness between Mayweather and Pacquiao, and three previous failed fight negotiations, there are signs both camps are closer to reaching an agreement on a drug-testing protocol.

Mayweather dismissed as "hearsay" reports he's balked at lucrative financial guarantees as lofty as $65 million to take on Pacquiao.

As Mayweather talked Friday, a woman who had chatted with him previously during a workout returned, handing him a Las Vegas sports book ticket showing a major bet on the Pittsburgh Steelers-Washington Redskins' preseason NFL game.

"Look what I just won," Mayweather said, revealing a five-figure payoff.

It reinforced his point: He has enough money.

"Anytime I lace them up now, just know it's over $50 million. So it's not about the money. I can get the money in any fight I take," Mayweather said. "It's about me being able to say, 'This is what I want.'"

As part of his contract, Mayweather insisted Ortiz agree to a more stringent drug-testing procedure than the random urine tests required by the Nevada State Athletic Commission. The U.S. Anti-Doping Agency is performing random blood tests on Mayweather and Ortiz, as it did in Mayweather's most recent fight in May 2010, against Shane Mosley.

Bob Arum, Pacquiao's promoter, says his fighter is willing to accept being subjected to blood testing rules under the World Anti-Doping Agency code, which keeps the blood sample schedule unannounced. Pacquiao had previously said he didn't want to be tested within 14 days of a fight.

"You can't have a window where an athlete knows he'll not be tested," said Travis Tygart, head of the USADA. "Unannounced testing is part of the deterrent."

Arum said the tricky part of a testing program will be in establishing consequences for events like a missed test, or for a banned prescription drug that is prohibited in the Olympics.

Arum wants a state boxing commission, like Nevada's, to have a say in establishing such guidelines to avoid an unreasonable fight cancellation.

So perhaps the super-fight fans want to see is on track for 2012 — assuming Mayweather and Pacquaio win their next bouts.

Asked if he'll take the fight as long as Pacquiao cooperates in an effective drug-testing program, Mayweather said, "Absolutely. Write that word down 10 times in a row. I absolutely want the fight."

lance.pugmire@latimes.com

twitter.com/latimespugmire

Source: latimes.com

Man says Mayweather ordered bodyguard to fire at him at skating rink -- Las Vegas Review-Journal

By Francis McCabe, LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

A Las Vegas man who accused undefeated boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. of ordering his bodyguard to shoot at him outside a Boulder Highway skating rink in August 2009 is suing the former Olympian.

Details of the lawsuit were not immediately available, but the plaintiff is Quincey Williams, one of two men who say they were shot at by Mayweather's bodyguard Ocie Harris outside the Crystal Palace Skating Center.

Williams, who has publicly said he believes Mayweather told Harris to shoot at him, is being represented by high-profile attorney Robert Eglet in the negligence lawsuit filed Tuesday in District Court, according to court records.

Williams also accused Mayweather in November 2010 of trying to force his vehicle off the road in a road rage incident. The allegation was investigated by Las Vegas police. Mayweather was not charged after the investigation.

Williams has told the Review-Journal that he has feared for his life since the skating rink shooting.

"He (Mayweather) feels like he's entitled to do whatever he wants and get away with it. He wants to walk around and intimidate people like he's some type of thug," Williams said after reporting the incident on the road.

Williams told the Review-Journal that he was a young boxer when he first met Mayweather after his success in the 1996 Olympics. Williams later worked for Mayweather but said he quit because of low pay.

The relationship soured in 2009 after Williams sent a text message to Mayweather saying he hoped the undefeated boxer would lose.

Months after the message was sent, on the evening of Aug. 23, 2009, Williams told authorities, Mayweather threatened his life at the skating rink on Boulder Highway, north of Flamingo Road.

Authorities allege that around 10 p.m. that day, Harris shot at a BMW containing Williams and another man, Damein Bland, as the vehicle was leaving the skating rink. The car was hit six times.

No one was injured, and Mayweather was not charged.

Harris, of Chicago, was indicted on two felonies, attempted murder and assault with a deadly weapon, in connection with the shooting. He remains free on bail awaiting a February trial.

Williams could not be reached for comment about the lawsuit.

Attorney Mark Ferrario, who is defending Mayweather in other civil cases, did not return a call seeking comment.

In recent months, several other lawsuits against Mayweather have popped up, in which the boxer is accused of ordering bodyguards to assault and intimidate people in Las Vegas.

In June, Anthony Cliff alleged that Mayweather ordered three of his bodyguards to assault him at the Palms valet entrance on May 27, 2010, after he had been told not to photograph the boxer.

According to Cliff's lawsuit, Mayweather made a " 'thumbs down' sign or gesture to the bodyguards, which was a signal for the bodyguards to attack."

Mayweather also is being sued by a bouncer at the Strip nightclub Drai's who said he was assaulted by the boxer's bodyguard Jan. 2. In a lawsuit filed in May, Clay Gerling alleged that an unknown bodyguard for Mayweather "maliciously assaulted and battered plaintiff, by grabbing the plaintiff, and choking him" after he asked for identification from Mayweather and others in his entourage.

In criminal court, the boxer faces two misdemeanor harassment counts after an October confrontation with Southern Highlands security guards over parking issues.

Mayweather faces a misdemeanor battery charge in connection with a Nov. 15, 2010, incident involving another guard, Shayne Smith. A bench trial in that case is set for Nov. 4.

Mayweather also faces an Oct. 20 preliminary hearing on felony charges, including coercion, grand larceny and robbery, in connection with a Sept. 9, 2010, incident with his three children and their mother, Josie Harris. Mayweather is free on $31,000 bail in that case.

Both criminal cases have been delayed by Mayweather's defense lawyers until after a scheduled fight with Victor Ortiz for the WBC welterweight title on Sept. 17 at the MGM Grand Garden.

Meanwhile, boxer Manny Pacquiao, considered by many the world's best pound-for-pound fighter, is suing Mayweather over accusations that Pacquiao was using performance-enhancing drugs.

The 2009 lawsuit followed talks for a fight between the two that fell apart over Mayweather's demand that both fighters submit to random blood and urine tests before the bout.

Mayweather has failed to appear at multiple depositions ordered in that case.

Contact reporter Francis McCabe at fmccabe@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039.

Source: lvrj.com

Floyd will fight Pacquiao in 2013 - Jeff Mayweather -- ESPN

ESPN.co.uk

Floyd Mayweather Jnr's uncle Jeff Mayweather is predicting that the long-awaited showdown between the undefeated American and his pound-for-pound rival Manny Pacquiao will not take place for another two years.

A potentially mouthwatering clash between the two fighters has yet to be agreed, despite the growing clamour, although the bout looked to have moved a step closer in recent times after Pacquiao's camp accepted Mayweather's demands for stringent blood testing.

Pacquiao, who is attempting to sue Mayweather for defamation after the American suggested his rival has used performance-enhancing substances, is preparing to face Juan Manuel Marquez for a third time in November, while Mayweather is scheduled to meet Victor Ortiz on September 17.

With both men not getting any younger, there are growing fears the fight the sport craves most may never happen - although Jeff Mayweather is convinced the pair will get it on in 2013.

"I think he [Mayweather] will be fighting another couple of years," he told Fighthype.com. "I think that's being realistic because I think the fight that's out there will take that long to materialise."

Mayweather, who has not fought since outpointing Shane Mosley in May 2010, makes his eagerly-anticipated return to the ring against Ortiz, who has only lost twice in 33 fights, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Ortiz won his WBC welterweight belt with a unanimous decision against Andre Berto in April, despite being knocked down twice, but Jeff Mayweather believes his nephew will take the 24-year-old "to school".

"I think Victor Ortiz is a beast, but I think Victor Ortiz is going to be taken to school like he's never been taken to school before in his life," he said. "I mean, Floyd has already fought Victor Ortiz. He fought him when he fought Ricky Hatton, and Ricky was a better version of Ortiz. I think that Ortiz is a guy who is caught up in the fact that he's coming off of his biggest win, and of course he's riding the wave, but the reality of it is this, Victor Ortiz has never faced anyone who is remotely close to having Floyd's ability.

"He's going to be taken to school, drowned in the deep water and get himself knocked out. He's too smart for him; he can stand right in front of Victor Ortiz and do whatever he wants to do to him.

Source: espn.co.uk

Pacquiao says he 'will' fight Mayweather during 2012 -- ESPN

ESPN.co.uk

Manny Pacquiao is in no doubt that his hotly-anticipated showdown against Floyd Mayweather Jnr, which will determine the planet's pound-for-pound king, will take place during 2012.

The barriers preventing the clash have been broken down in recent weeks, with Pacquiao's promoter confirming that the Filipino is willing to agree to Mayweather's demands for Olympic-style drug testing.

Talks collapsed last year when Pacquiao refused to have blood drawn from him in the days prior to the bout, claiming that it would sap too much strength from him ahead of the clash.

Pacquiao has also moved to bring an end to the legal proceedings he brought against Mayweather, urging a judge to deliver a verdict on the defamation case launched in the wake of the sampling dispute.

"I will fight Mayweather next year," said Pacquiao, according to boxingscene.com.

Amir Khan's desire to fight Mayweather, apparently reciprocated by the American, threatens to complicate matters further. Khan intends to take to the ring against Mayweather in late 2012 after moving up to welterweight.

The clamour for the Pacquiao-Mayweather bout would evaporate if either suffers a shock defeats in their next bout. Mayweather enters the ring for the first time in over a year against Victor Ortiz on September 17 in a WBC welterweight title clash, while Pacquiao takes on Juan Manuel Marquez on November 12.

Source: espn.co.uk

HBO to air Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez fight Nov. 12 -- USA Today

By Bob Velin, USA TODAY

HBO is back in the Manny Pacquiao business.

The premium network, which has led the way in airing big pay-per-view boxing events during the last decade, will produce and distribute Pacquiao's third fight against Juan Manuel Marquez on Nov. 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

HBO lost the rights to Pacquiao's last fight against Shane Mosley last May to Showtime, and the devastating loss of the biggest attraction in the sport was one of the main factors in HBO President Ross Greenburg stepping down last month.

Top Rank chairman Bob Arum and president Todd duBoef engineered the deal with HBO, even though Showtime's Pacquiao-Mosley telecast drew nearly 1.4 million pay-per-view buys. Showtime used its parent company, CBS, to help promote that fight.

MORE: Pacquiao seeks default vs. Mayweather in defamation suit
HBO will use parent company Time-Warner's many platforms to help promote this fight, including TBS, TNT and CNN.

"In boxing we talk about great fighters coming back after a loss. Well, HBO came back just like a great fighter," duBoef told ESPN.com. "They came back from being on the canvas. They made their adjustments and came back and won the fight. You have to give them a lot of credit."

Said HBO spokesman Ray Stallone: "We're thrilled that Manny Pacquiao's Nov. 12 fight with Juan Manuel Marquez will be presented by HBO Pay-Per-View. We look forward to working with Top Rank on this special event."

This is the third fight in the Pacquiao-Marquez trilogy, with the first in 2004 ending in a draw, and Pacquiao, who has won titles in a record eight weight divisions, winning the second four years later in a controversial split decision.

This fight will be for Pacquiao's WBO welterweight title and will be fought at a catchweight of 144 pounds. Pacquiao is 53-2-2 with 38 KOs, while Marquez who has won three in a row since losing to Floyd Mayweather in 2009 coming in with a record of 53-5-1 with 39 KOs.

HBO will also televise this fall's other blockbuster pay-per-view event from the MGM Grand — undefeated Floyd Mayweather (41-0, 25 KOs) vs. Victor Ortiz (29-2-2, 22 KOs) on Sept. 17.

Source: usatoday.com

Pacquiao schools Khan in sparring - Roach -- ESPN

ESPN.co.uk

Trainer Freddie Roach has lifted the lid on the notorious sparring sessions between Amir Khan and Manny Pacquiao in the Wildcard gym.

Both fighters have improved significantly since coming under Roach's wing, and the duo have made no secret of the intensity of their training bouts.

A clash between the pair would be one of the most lucrative fights possible at present, but Roach is eager to keep his two pupils apart, with Khan instead set to face Floyd Mayweather Jnr in the next year.

The fact Khan is being discussed in the same breath as Mayweather shows the improvement Roach has coaxed out of the Brit, having linked up with him following a humiliating first-round knockout defeat to Breidis Prescott in 2008.

"When they spar it's always good but, while Amir is more than able to hold his own, as it progresses Manny takes control," Roach. "Amir has developed so much since I started working with him. He's a great kid who is always listening and always wanting to learn. Manny is a great fighter but Amir is certainly going in the right direction - that's a fact."

Meanwhile, Khan is not ruling out a rematch against Prescott as he searches for a December opponent for his final battle at light-welterweight. "Prescott may be a fight in the future for me," he said. "A fighter always wants to avenge his defeats. He is another name on the list if he beats [Paul] McCloskey. I will be taking one step at a time - there is no need for me to rush into a fight with Mayweather.

"Erik Morales is a possibility as my next opponent and so is [WBO champion Tim] Bradley. Robert Guerrero is another name on my list. If he beats [Marcos] Maidana next month, as I expect him to, that will be a very good fight."

Source: espn.co.uk