Don King gives Floyd Mayweather (ego) massage of a lifetime -- Examiner

By Michael Marley, Examiner.com

Let me follow up my Friday exclusive interview with Don King on his South Florida visitor/special guest Floyd Mayweather Jr.

If it's a massage, particularly the ego massage of a lifetime, the vainglorious Mayweather has gone to the right guy.

DK could be a masseur because he never rubs an undefeated superstar such as Mayweather the wrong way...at least before they sign a voluminous DP contract.

Seriously, let's not forget how the persistent King lured Mike Tyson, who was briefly in the clutches of then wife Robin Givens and her Mommy Dearest, Ruthless Ruth Roper, away from manager Bill Cayton and trainer Kevin Rooney.

When the ladies got involved in a domestic quarrel with the explosive Tyson at his Bernardsville, NJ, mansion, and numerous household and personal items were hurled by “the Baddest Man On The Planet” into the mansion's fireplace.

I was working the breaking story for The New York Post and recall someone tipping me off that Tyson was trying to cool down at an area coffee shop.

“Where is Brother Mike?” King said to me, speaking excitedly over the phone from his stretch limo. “I've got to rescue this man and do it now,”

Mike and Robin were divorce bound and King's aggressive pursuit was the beginning of the end for the impersonable Cayton regime.

After Hasim Rahman shocked the world by knocking out Lennox Lewis in South Africa, his promoter Cedric Kushner made some drastic errors.

He had pocketed a contract renewal bonus due Rahman because he was convinced, like the rest of the world, that The Rock would be hammered into submission by Lewis. If memory serves, the amount was meager, something like $40,000.

Then “The Walrus” let his overachieving client fly in steerage rather than first class back from Johannesburg to the USA. Kushner compounded the mistake by not traveling with the exuberant new heavyweight champion.

By the time Rahman's flight got to Baltimore or Washington, you can guess who was there to meet and greet him and had a suitcase loaded with $100 bills to bestow on Lewis' conqueror.

Kushner's reign as Rahman's promoter vitually ended at the baggage carousel.

When crackhead-alcoholic Oliver “Atomic Bull” somehow flattened Lewis (with his eyes closed, no less) in London, I was working for King.

The next day, I heard King booking some tickets on the Concorde. Great, I thought, I always wanted to try the supersonic transport.

“You're not going on the Concorde,” King said. “That's just for Oliver and me. Oliver is the new Yankee Doodle Dandy for knocking out Lennox right here in London. You can fly coach and meet us in New York.”

Like I say, if Mayweather's nose is out of joint, if he truly feels his handlers have not kissed his rump enough or brought in all dollars available, them maybe his public meeting with King will lead to a relationship between the two.

At the least, Mayweather is getting his super ego fondled like never before.

But a great massage is one thing and a “happy ending” is yet another.

Even Al Gore now knows that much.

Right now, though, King seems to be “rubbing” Mayweather the right way.

(mlcmarley@aol.com)

Source: examiner.com

JM Marquez the master over Juan Diaz as Amir Khan waits in the wings -- Telegraph

By Gareth A Davies, Telegraph.co.uk

Juan Manuel Marquez still has it. In abundance. The Mexican master fought his way to a unanimous decision over Juan Diaz at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas in the early hours of this morning, to retain his WBA and WBO lightweight titles.

Clinical, rarely troubled, Marquez put on a top-level, counter-punching performance, to defeat Diaz for a second time, following his ninth round stoppage victory in February last year.

The memories of Marquez (51-5-1, 37 KOs) being dominated by the much bigger Floyd Mayweather Jnr – in September 2009 – eased away as Diaz (35 wins 4 losses) was picked apart by a fighter whose ambition shows no sign of decreasing.

It is now it is a question of what happens next…British WBA light-welterweight king Amir Khan was ringside, as was David Haye, the WBA heavyweight champion, who was working the corner for supermiddleweight George Groves, making his debut in the United States.

Diaz – known as Baby Bull – was forceful in the opening rounds, but as the fight progressed, Marquez’s superior ring skills began to tell, from round four the two belt world champion landing at will with left hooks and piston right hands. Diaz was in trouble in the middle of the fourth round, rocked by upper cuts.

Marquez, 36, who has held titles in three divisions, may now move up to light-welterweight, after the 116-112, 118-110 and 117-111 verdict.

Marquez said after the fight that his preference is for a third fight with Manny Pacquiao – with one draw and the Filipino winning by split decision in the other – yet the pound for pound king is due to fight at light-middleweight against Antonio Margarito on Nov 13.

Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions, is looking at Khan as a possible opponent for Marquez in December.

Marquez said: “There’s a lot of possibilities, the door is open. One challenge is to move to 140 and be the first Mexican to win four divisions. My priority right now has always been Pacquiao. If I have to defend my title I will with honour. Against [Michael] Katsidis [who was ringside for th fight] ? That’s what I’ll do.”

Source: blogs.telegraph.co.uk

Mastery never gets old, part two: Marquez decisions Diaz -- 15Rounds

By Bart Barry, 15Rounds.com

LAS VEGAS – It was entertaining as a one-sided fight could be, but finally, “The Rematch” was a one-sided fight. Blame it on Marquez’s class – the ageless type.

Saturday night at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, in a rematch of 2009’s Fight of the Year, Mexico City’s Juan Manuel Marquez (51-5-1, 37 KOs) and Houston’s Juan Diaz (35-4, 17 KOs) squared up to determine the lineal lightweight champion of the world. Twelve rounds later, it was the same guy as it was when the night began, with Marquez winning by unanimous decision scores of 116-112, 118-110 and 117-111.

The 15rounds.com scorecard concurred, scoring it 118-110 for Marquez.

Diaz’s strategy, to box and keep his weight from falling over his front foot, was a sound one for survival. But starting in round 1, and with only a brief exception in rounds 2 and 3, it was not a strategy that would ever bring him victory.

For his part, Marquez was the same master craftsman he has always been, riddling Diaz with left uppercut-right cross-left uppercut combinations whenever the younger man’s enthusiasm brought him within range. The rest of the time, Diaz was safe, but he wasn’t in the fight.

Afterwards, Diaz hinted at the possibility of his retirement, saying he still wasn’t sure about his future and thanking his hometown of Houston for its undying support.

Marquez, meanwhile, addressed the possibility of a rubber match with pound-for-pound champion Manny Pacquiao, after his victory.

“I think the third fight with Pacquiao is the one the aficionados want,” Marquez said. “And it’s the best thing for the fans.”

Class tells: Pirog ruins Jacobs

Golden Boy Promotions’ eye for talent has been questioned often since its inception. What Russian Dmitry Pirog did to Golden Boy prospect Daniel “Golden Child” Jacobs in the co-main event of “The Rematch” will make such questions all the more prevalent.

Pirog (17-0, 14 KOs) outclassed Jacobs (20-1, 17 KOs) in each round, using fundamental boxing to solve the speedy Brooklynite, before catching him flush with a perfect right cross, knocking Jacobs out cold at 0:57 of the fifth round to become the WBO middleweight champion of the world.

After a fairly even opening stanza, round 2 began with Pirog marching forward behind a right cross and extremely efficient footwork, entirely neutralizing Jacobs’ reflexes. Then Jacobs wisely began the third on his bicycle, circling away from Pirog, fighting part of the round as a southpaw and regaining his composure. Round four, too, passed in a somewhat even fashion.

Pirog came out in the fifth, however, backed Jacobs to the ropes and waited for him to start a tentative punch. At that moment, Pirog stepped fully into a right cross that landed on Jacobs’ chin and dropped him to the blue mat in a pile. Referee Robert Byrd wisely forwent his 10-count, waving an immediate conclusion to the fight.

Guerrero brushes away “Cepillo”

Boxing may never know Joel Casamayor’s true age, but Saturday it learned how old he now is: Too old.

In a junior welterweight scrap some in Mandalay Bay’s Events Center hoped would be competitive, California’s Robert “The Ghost” Guerrero (27-1-1, 18 KOs) easily decisioned Cuban Joel “El Cepillo” Casamayor (37-5-1, 22 KOs) by lopsided unanimous scores of 98-89, 98-89 and 97-90.

Down in each of the match’s first two rounds and penalized a point for holding, the previously resilient Casamayor looked old and spent, Saturday, as Guerrero hurt him with every landed left hand. In round 2, a Guerrero left cross even stunned Casamayor to the point of dropping both gloves and looking around in disbelief before rallying to wrap his arms round Guerrero’s trunks.

Never a strict adherent to the Queensbury rules, Casamayor looked particularly sad in his opening six minutes against Guerrero, when he was reduced to fouling to survive rather than win.

After such a shaky start, though, Casamayor, whose chin has never been doubted, found enough of his stride to give Guerrero quality rounds. Still, a Guerrero left hand or two seemed to buckle Casamayor’s old knees in almost every round.

But as the fight progressed, and Casamayor threw more punches, Guerrero began to holster his left hand, gradually sapping the match of its emotion. By the ninth round, a few vocal fans began to boo the action in the ring while the large majority of the Events Center crowd expressed its displeasure with abject silence.

The final stanza, though, saw Guerrero over-commit to a left hand and impale himself on Casamayor’s outstretched right glove. But the suspense passed quickly when Guerrero rose and boxed to a comfortable victory.

Linares plays bus driver, takes Juarez to school

Venezuelan Jorge Linares literally towered over Houston’s Rocky Juarez at Friday’s weigh-in. Saturday night, Linares towered over him figuratively too.

In the first fight of “The Rematch’s” pay-per-view telecast, Linares (29-1, 18 KOs) easily decisioned Juarez (28-7-1, 20 KOs) over 10 one-sided rounds to win the WBA’s vacant lightweight title by unanimous scores of 99-90, 97-92 and 99-90.

The fight began as Juarez fights always do, with Juarez doggedly chasing his opponent, eating punches and unable to let his own hands go. Linares, who would look nimble in the ring with anyone, looked positively balletic across from the heavy-footed Juarez. Snapping jabs and dancing away, Linares gave Juarez a boxing lesson in the fight’s first four rounds.

Towards the end of round 5, Linares landed one of many left uppercuts, and this one caused Juarez to stumble backwards and drop to the blue mat, a place one rarely finds him. Unable to hurt Linares and now worried that Linares might hurt him, Juarez, who’s hesitant even when he’s winning, began trading two Linares uppercuts for his every landed jab – a formula destined to fail.

What few vocal fans there were gave a number of halfhearted “Rocky, Rocky” chants as the fight progressed, and Juarez’s eyes continued to close, but the arena was otherwise silent enough for the bell to cause echoes at the end of each round.

The final round saw most of the fight’s sustained action, but those three minutes did not feature nearly enough pressure from Juarez to undo the 27 minutes that preceded them. The problem for Juarez, finally, is not just that he is now 0-6 in world title fights. It’s that he’s losing by larger margins in his every subsequent challenge.

Undercard

It was a case of dog attacks man in “The Rematch’s” final off-television match, as undefeated junior welterweight Los Angeleno Frankie “The Pit Bull” Gomez (5-0, 5 KOs) went through Minnesota’s Ronald Peterson (2-3, 2 KOs) without a modicum of resistance. A Gomez left hook to Peterson’s liver ended the match at 2:14 of round 1, when Peterson chose not to continue.

The fourth match on the untelevised undercard might well have been its best, as unheralded Mexican lightweight Juan Manuel Montiel (6-3-1, 1 KO) swapped blows and taunts with Nevadan Mike Peralta (4-6, 1 KO) in a well-matched six-round bout, which Montiel won by unanimous scores of 58-55, 60-53 and 58-55.

Despite spitting blood for half the fight and appearing fatigued throughout, Peralta nevertheless entertained the local crowd with his heart and will. Finally, though, Montiel had too much class, and the judges did not see the fight competitive as fans did.

The night’s third bout came to a rapid and ugly end when Australian Sakio Bika (28-4-2, 19 KOs) fouled undefeated and unarmed Frenchman Jean Paul Mendy (29-0-1, 16 KOs) at 1:19 of the first round of their IBF super middleweight eliminator, losing by disqualification and bringing some well-deserved hostility from the desert crowd.

In a maneuver disappointingly reminiscent of a different super middleweight – Arthur Abraham and his right hand to a kneeling Andre Dirrell in March – Bika knocked Mendy to the canvas and then stepped forward and fired a point-blank right uppercut at the defenseless Frenchman. Mendy, who had almost no power to speak of while upright, tilted forward and landed on his own forehead. Referee Joe Cortez called an immediate end to the match.

Mendy was later able to walk from ringside unassisted.

At Friday’s weigh-in, ESPN commentator (and cruiserweight contender) BJ Flores said the man to watch on Saturday’s undercard was a Brit by the name of George Groves. Flores was right. Accompanied to ringside by heavyweight titlist David Haye and favoring a left hook-right cross combination, Groves (10-0, 8 KOs) chopped away at Mexican Afredo Contreras (11-8-1, 5 KOs) until a somewhat early intervention by referee Russell Mora halted the match at 0:48 of the sixth round.

While Contreras did not appear to be in any trouble, and never went down, Groves, for his part, appeared to be committing fully to each of the right crosses with which he tagged Contreras with increasing frequency.

Before that, “The Rematch” got off to a quick and violent start Saturday afternoon as Maryland heavyweight Seth “Mayhem” Mitchell (18-0-1, 12 KOs) went directly through overmatched Philadelphian Derek Bryant (20-6-1, 17 KOs), stopping him at 1:45 of the first round.

After firing a succession of left hooks to Bryant’s body, Mitchell went upstairs with lefts and rights to the head and continued his assault till referee Kenny Bayless had seen enough.

The opening bell rang on a sparse Events Center crowd at 2:40 PM local time.

Source: 15rounds.com

Warrior Pacman deserves so much better than the delaying tactics of 'smoke & mirrors' Mayweather -- Mirror

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

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

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

The Manny Pacquiao – Floyd Mayweather JR Meltdown: Where the Fault Lies -- Ringside Report

By Geno McGahee, Ringside Report

I think it’s safe to say that the boxing world is about as disappointed as it can be at this moment. The fight that everyone wanted has fallen through. Bob Arum was quick to note a missed deadline for Floyd Mayweather, JR., to agree to a fight with Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao, while Team Mayweather contended that there was never even a negotiation taking place. RSR can confirm that there was, and now the picture may be coming clear.

Floyd Mayweather, JR., 41-0, 25 KO’s, has had the reputation of being a businessman first, and a fighter second. When tests would arise that may challenge his unblemished record, he has often bowed out, citing different reasons. When Antonio Margarito was in line for a shot at Mayweather, JR., he declined, stating that it was not a marketable fight. Kostya Tszyu showed interest that was never reciprocated. Mayweather, much like he does in the ring, picks his spots, and there is no real reason at this point why he cannot fight Pacquiao…at least on the surface.

Manny Pacquiao, 51-3-2, 38 KO’s, has appeared to be a fighter first, businessman secondly, although most would contend that he lost the number of Juan Manuel Marquez when he nearly beat him on two occasions. There was no need to tempt fate again. He has made a name for himself as a fearless brawler, that enjoys being in fights. He is quick and has great timing, and is just the opponent to test the impregnable defense of Mayweather, JR. The people want this fight. They want the fight more than any other fight in boxing over the last ten years, but it’s not happening. Let’s explore the reasons.

Roger Mayweather

The last thing that you want to do when you are going into the biggest fight of you life is to switch trainers. It has been evident time and time again that there is an adjustment period when fighters move from trainer to trainer because all are different and you can see a fighter do different things depending on what they are being taught. Roger Mayweather, the trainer of Floyd Mayweather, JR., is in quite a bit of trouble after beating up a woman and choking her out. He will hopefully be locked up for a while, but what’s good for humanity may not be good for boxing. Without Roger, this fight will not proceed and this is, I’m assuming, the big reason why this fight is not happening.

Sabotage

The sly Bob Arum may not have clean hands here. Pacquiao may have five more fights in him before he calls it a day and should he fight Floyd, he would most likely lose, and his marketability may plummet because of it. If he should fight some recognizable names in fights that he should easily win, it might make that much more money over the course of time.

Despite the objections of Luis Resto returning to the ring, Bob Arum had no problem bringing back Antonio Margarito, a fighter of similar offense. He had loaded gloves. He knew he had loaded gloves and he and his trainer were loading them for some time. Prior to the discovery, Margarito went on a spree of destruction, plowing over the opposition with the bricks he had on his hands, but when he went into a fight without the Plaster of Paris on his hands, he was dominated and left in a heap by an old Shane Mosley. The fact is: Margarito + plaster in gloves = top fighter. Margarito – plaster in gloves = mediocrity.

The positive thing that has come out of Margarito’s bad ways has been his appeal as a bad boy of boxing and Arum knows that he can sell him as an opponent for Pacquiao and people may actually think it’s a competitive fight. Even if they didn’t, Mike Tyson sold fights just on the “I wonder what he’s going to do,” factor. Margarito may have that same appeal.

On November 13th, we will see Margarito in the ring with Pacquiao and we will see the “PacMan” pummel him into early submission, and Arum will laugh all the way to the bank. This bird is in the hand is better than the two in the bush. Arum’s interest may have been in this route then the shot at Floyd, where he could lose his cash cow.

Better Safe than Sorry

There is a widespread contention by the Pacnuts that Floyd Mayweather, JR., is afraid to fight Manny Pacquiao. They would probably say the same thing about Wladimir Klitschko…but you have to take what blind groupie fans say with a grain of salt. I have seen articles by “writers,” which just about anyone can be a writer that has a laptop and an email address, jumping on this contention as well. You have to cut through the garbage here and draw your own conclusions and amazingly, they may not be that far off the mark.

When you look at the career of Mayweather, it is very impressive, but when he established himself as the man to beat, he began to play it safer then he did throughout his early career. The fight with Pacquiao would be his toughest, on paper, since his fight with Diego Corrales in 2001. He has beaten a lot of good fighters, but few were in their prime when they eventually met.

Boxing is a business and sometimes not doing what the public wants is better in the long run, but with the money on the table for this fight, it’s hard to imagine Floyd not wanting it, unless he has some trepidation. The two fights where Floyd was hurt were against Zab Judah and DeMarcus Corley, both southpaws. Pacquiao is a more complete fighter than either Judah or Corley and would not stop punching. Floyd had issues with Jose Luis Castillo. There may be some major concern about fighting Pacquiao from Floyd, and it may not be worth the gamble when he could fight anyone else and make great money in the process.

A big problem, really, is that Floyd has nothing to prove. When he fought Corrales, he was an unknown to most of boxing and he needed to put together some signature wins to establish himself. Now he is known worldwide and win or lose to Pacquiao, they have a spot reserved for him at the Hall of Fame. He is always working on his own terms and will not be dictated to, no matter how much the fans are begging for the fight.

One More Power Play

When the fight was all but set, Floyd Mayweather, JR., demanded specific steroid testing for Pacquiao, which was quickly refused and just as quickly, the fight fell apart. Time passed, and they sat down again to speak and that was ironed out, but once again, the fight evaporated and Floyd went on vacation. Is this a power play by Money Mayweather?

There is no question that both men are a draw, but PPV buys proves that Floyd is the “Money” going into this fight. He knows that the fans want to see him tested and know that no other fighter can do it but Pacquiao. He also probably realizes that Margarito or a Miguel Cotto rematch would not put a blemish on the record of his future foe and therefore, they are not a threat to him. He can come back at any time and say: “I agree to fight” and it will be on for the 13th of November.

Floyd is the master of mental warfare and this could be another example of it. It’s hard to imagine it is, but it’s certainly a possibility. We will find out in the near future because the fans are feeling shunned and are losing interest. They are refusing to salivate over food they will never get.

Who’s to Blame

The blame has to fall, at this point, on Floyd Mayweather, JR. If he wanted the fight, he would have the fight and it would be based mostly on his terms. Pacquiao, by all indications wants the fight. He wants to be the undisputed best in boxing but he has to beat Floyd in order to be that. I’m interested to see what happens with Roger Mayweather. Should he come out of his legal troubles in decent shape and ready to train, will the fight be on? I believe that this is the biggest obstacle and once it’s out of the way, let’s hope that we have the mega fight that we all want.

Source: ringsidereport.com