Pacquiao, Gatti: Thrillgivers with much in common

If you did not enjoy watching Human Highlight Film Arturo Gatti fight, then you shouldn’t call yourself a boxing fan.

The comparisons are inevitable. When it comes to being a fan friendly fighter in the ring and a fighter who graciously received and returned the love of fans outside of it, “Thunder” Gatti and Manny Pacquiao had much in common.

Gatti, who never had the overall boxing skill of the Pacman nor the worldwide popularity, died under msyerious circumstances in Penambuco, Brazil, on Saturday.

Police are investigating a possible murder at the seaside hotel where Gatti was visiting.

Unconfirmed reports have it that Gatti and his Brazilian wife were in conflict and may have been on the verge of separation or divorce.

If you asked me, off the top of my head, to name the three most incredible value for money boxers I ever saw in person, I might quickly list Pacquiao, Gatti and a fellow out of Detroit named Thomas “Hitman” Hearns.

No one ever looked for a refund after the bouts of any one of this trio.

There’s another possible tie between Pacquiao and Gatti, who died too soon at just 37.

Pacman has fought two wars against Mexican rival Juan Manuel Marquez while Gatti, a Montreal resident who fought out of Jersey City, NJ, had the thrill a minute trilogy against Irish Mickey Ward.

I still think, no matter what else the future holds for Pacman and Juan Ma, they will fight a third time.

If the third fight brings as much excitement as did the first two bouts did, you can be sure TV announcers and others in the media will analogize Marquez-Pacquiao to the Gatti-Ward series.

One more thing Manny and “Thunder” Gatti will someday have in common.

Gatti was a lock for admission to the International Boxing Hall Of fame based on the Ward bouts and widespread popularity,

including all those sellout crowds he attracted to Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City.

Unfortunately, Gatti, who quit after losses to Carlos Baldomir and Alfonso Gomez, will be enshrined posthumously.

It would just seem natural if Ward accepted the honor on his behalf. No big brainstorm there, just common sense.

Pacquiao will be a landslide selection for the shrine in Canastota, NY, as soon as his five years after retirement waiting period is done.

Many fighters talk about giving all their blood, sweat and tears to the paying customers.

Guys like Gatti and Pacquiao make it their professional creed.

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Shane Mosley: Waiting For the Well to Run Dry

As the prospect of a match up between Pound for Pound King, Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto draws nearer to materializing, Shane Mosley finds himself in a frustrating position. After his impressive January win over Antonio Margarito, Mosley reinstated himself as a legitimate contender in the welterweight division. Many took to drawing similitudes between his condition and that of Bernard Hopkins. They were drinking the same elixir of youth, grasping the mantle of victory in contests where few gave them a chance to do so. So, inevitably Mosley came to wonder, why shouldn’t he have the opportunity to fight Pacquiao next?

Mosley, at thirty-seven years old, may have looked entirely rejuvenated in his last outing against Antonio Margarito, but having a showing reminiscent of the capabilities of Bernard Hopkins doesn’t mean that he has the same DNA. Inevitably, maintenance of that condition will be challenged by Father Time, and the expanse between thirty- seven and forty-four in boxing years is gargantuan. Against Margarito, Mosley appeared to be the Sugar Shane of old, all sweetness in the execution of his craft. But the opponent standing in front of him assisted that in every possible way. Up to their January bout, Margarito was chronically avoided due to his almost superhuman willingness to walk through assaults in order to mount his own. Though he is a fighter riddled with shortcomings (he comes forward in straight lines, squares up, and doesn’t think much of defense), he focuses doggedly on his target. He concentrates on this target in the manner of one who has been put under a spell; somehow temporarily rendered impervious to the sensations of pain and fatigue; reanimated for one purpose alone: to destroy. His trainer, Javier Capetillo served as conjurer, rasping orders into his ear.

The night he met Shane Mosley at The Staples Center in Los Angeles, Margarito was forced to perform as a lesser version of himself, both literally and figuratively. Before the fight, a foreign substance was found in Margarito’s hand wraps. The deceit was detected by Mosley’s trainer, Nazim Richardson, during the routine inspection. The hand wraps were confiscated and any lengthy consideration was unnecessary in presuming what Margarito must have been thinking. Whether he knew of the tampering with the hand wraps or not, and Capetillo insisted he didn’t, he knew he was in trouble. Stripped of his battle implement, one that potentially assisted him in an unknowable number of fights, he was helpless against Mosley. Without doubt, the uncertainty of what was about to come was playing ceaselessly on his mind, and that kind of distraction drowns out even the most emphatic of incantations. Margarito was reduced to mere mortality; more capable of being hurt, less capable of inflicting hurt.

It would have served Margarito far better if the Shane Mosley who fought Ricardo Mayorga had shown up on that night, but it wasn’t to be. Mosley had a new lease on life. He was separated from his wife and had taken on a new trainer in Richardson. He was mentally prepared for the challenge that lay ahead of him. He knew the reputation of Margarito going into the bout, and he was stepping up to the plate by taking on a fight that it seemed no one else wanted. He was going to prove that he had been restored to the Shane of old, and that he did. Whatever the condition of Margarito mentally on that night, whatever his shortcomings, they cannot detract from what Mosley was able to accomplish against him. He was fast, focused, determined, and intelligent; a reminder of the style that had at one time earned him the title as Pound for Pound King. He looked like a fighter at the top of his game, and one that could offer a legitimate threat to any of the division’s elite.

At this point in time, Manny Pacquiao has been fabricated into a practically untouchable entity. He is the man everyone wants. He is the man who generates the kind of money that makes the risk of challenging him worthwhile. He has taken on the mythically proportioned title of “The New Henry Armstrong.” Miguel Cotto now seems to be the one getting the next crack at the golden egg, which is certainly not undeserved, but is also not the most expedient choice. The convenience of setting up a match between two of Top Rank’s most prominent fighters is obvious, but it doesn’t fully respect the integrity of the welterweight field. There is an order that should be observed. And Mosley is next in line. At his age, with his past accomplishments, and his past identity as Pound for Pound King, he deserves a chance to see if there is any water left in the well. Mosley has been voicing his discontent at the choice of Cotto, claiming a bit unfairly that Cotto had all he could handle in Joshua Clottey. It’s important to mention though, that Clottey is a difficult opponent for any fighter; like Luis Collazo, he always comes up a bit short in the elite ranks, but creates havoc while there nonetheless.

In 2007, Miguel Cotto won a unanimous decision against Shane Mosley. This has been offered as reasoning for bypassing Mosley and going directly to Cotto. But that Shane Mosley, the one who lost to Cotto, isn’t the one who has been witnessed recently. This one, at least for now, shows the promise of reclamation, of restoring himself to his old self. He deserves the opportunity to see what he can do. Suggesting that Mosley wouldn’t be able to generate enough money to make the fight worthwhile is untrue. His fight against Margarito drew out a huge number at The Staples Center. There is a definite interest in seeing Shane test himself against the best. Oscar had his chance to see if he was still golden; Shane deserves his. In the end, if Pacquiao were to dispose of Mosley in the manner of De La Hoya, he would be criticized yet again for the superfluous destruction of a has-been. And that’s a label that is hardly unfamiliar to him.

Without Pacquiao in his future, Mosley does have options. The welterweight division is one of the most impressive in boxing, with interesting match ups figuring almost every which way. There is the up and coming talent, Andre Berto, as a possibility. There is Kermit Cintron, whose only two losses came at the hands of Antonio Margarito, and no one can be sure what was packed on those hands at the time. And then there is Paul Williams, the impossibly rangy, endurance driven menace to the division. If Mosley has complete faith in himself, and is willing to risk all to prove his point at a slightly less glamorous level, he should challenge Williams. Nobody would be able to ignore the man who lays Williams down at his feet. Not even a King… 

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"Truce": Chronicling the past 10 years of Boxing's best (part 11)

"Truce"

After losing in the congressional elections in his home province, Pacquiao was facing another battle outside the ring. This time the battle was for the promotional rights of his boxing career. Pacquiao was caught in the middle of a tug-o-war between the two biggest boxing promotional outfits in Bob Arum’s Top Rank Promotions and Oscar De la Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotions. Pacquiao had signed a seven fight contract with Golden Boy after allegedly being handed $500,000 in a suit case from a face-to-face meeting inside a limo, Godfather style, as a signing bonus. At the time of the deal however, Pacquiao still had a contract with Top Rank and Bob Arum blew the whistle on the Pacman.

This wasn’t the first time Pacquiao has been marred with controversy regarding his promoter, but this time he was cast as the offender. The media blasted him saying he signed promotional contracts as if they were autographs. And as his fame grew, people were also starting to question the other side of Manny.  

A tedious legal battle went on for months with all parties shelving lots of money on legal representation. People were saying all Pacquiao had made as a boxer would probably end up just paying for his lawyers.

Luckily for Pacquiao mediator Daniel Weinstein stepped into the picture to lend his voice of reason with both companies. And with UFC and mixed martial arts creeping up on boxing and even surpassing them in various occasions with PPV sales, the giants of boxing promotions forged an unlikely truce.

ESPN quoted Arum after the mediation saying,

"I'm absolutely relieved this is behind us and that we will work together to make some great fights. I think it's tremendous for boxing."

Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaeffer echoed his statement and said,

"We are very pleased that we were able to do this. Boxing is the big winner. It's an important day for boxing when you have two of the biggest promotional companies settling their differences and moving on to do things together. We can bring fans great fights. Top Rank and Golden Boy working together is great news for the sport."

What followed was probably one of boxing’s best stretches of fights in the past decade. The top guns of Golden Boy were facing the top guns of Top Rank. And in Pacquiao’s case, the two companies agreed to share revenue from Pacquiao’s fights with Top Rank being the majority promoter as chosen by Pacquiao. The doors re-opened for Pacquiao to face the best competition in his division as the current bests at that time such as Marco Antonio Barrera and Juan Manuel Marquez were both under the Golden Boy umbrella.

A rematch with the man whom Pacquiao claimed superstardom from was first to be laid on the table. Bob Arum said after making-up with GBP,

"The big picture is that it will enable so many fights to be made quite easily because Schaefer and I are both business people. We're not going to waste time on petty issues like a lot of promoters. We made Pacquiao-Barrera at lunch in 10 minutes."

The Pacquiao-Barrera fight was definitely tops in the priority list, and rightfully so, a lot of fight fans wanted to see their rematch. Barrera was eager to get another shot at Pacquiao. He described Pacquiao as a thorn in his paw and vowed to avenge his 2003 loss to the Filipino. Barrera went on to be the linear super featherweight champ after losing to Pacquiao and proved that he was still one of the best fighters in the sport and remained a mainstay in the top Pound-For-Pound best list. 

Pacquiao on the other hand seemed preoccupied with other things aside from boxing. He was basking in the glory and the trappings that came with his rise to fame. Pacquiao was making records, filming movies, doing TV appearances left and right, up and down (b-a, b-a select start like he had thirty lives) filming movies, and was rumored to have been partying, gambling and drinking lavishly. He stood up his trainer Freddie Roach a couple of weeks and instead asked Roach to personally fly to Manila to train him.

Pacquiao was turning people off faster than girls with gingivitis. People were disappointed that after just going through the controversy with his promotional contracts, that he acted as if he had not learned a thing by being unprofessional. He had an ugly split with his former television network and made comments against the very people he promised to fight for.

Perhaps Pacquiao was lashing out like he was doing things for himself for once after being turned down by the people he felt he put first. The damage of losing was something he is definitely not used to. He wanted to serve his people, and after all the pain and suffering he had endured in the ring to give them glory, it hurt him that he was turned down by the people he felt he never turned his back on. Even when others would’ve forgotten, he kept giving. Manny may be a great athlete and an extraordinary man, but at that point in time, he was a human being who’s hurt feelings needed some mending.

He also had some issues with some people he was associated to at the time like his old television network ABS-CBN. In a report published by Manny Pinol for Philboxing.com in May of 2007, Pinol wrote,

I still don't know when the relationship started to sour. But obviously, on the part of ABS-CBN, it started when Manny's business managers priced the rights to the TV coverage of the Pacquiao-Solis fight way beyond what was financially viable. 

While ABS-CBN executives will not admit it, the situation became worse when the TV rights for the Pacquiao-Solis fight went to its main rival -- GMA 7. 

I felt it was the worst thing that could happen to ABS-CBN. It was like a slap on their faces. And so when the electoral campaign started, there was a noticeable change in the way ABS-CBN handled stories concerning Manny Pacquiao. 

Gone were the idolizing slants. What prevailed was a series of stories which Manny himself described as "unfair" and "masakit (painful)." 

I talked to Peter Musngi after the elections (which Manny lost) and asked him what happened and he said he had no control over the way the news department handled the stories. 

But Manny does not buy that line. "Wala silang kwentang kaibigan," a hurting Pacquiao told me on the phone. 

Any chance of reconciliation? ABS-CBN is asking for a meeting with Manny to clarify things but Manny's response was a firm "NO!" 

On a different front, Top and Rank and Freddie Roach tried to put a lid on Pacquiao’s whims as best as they could, insisting that training was going well despite the erratic changes.

In Barrera’s camp, everything seemed to have been going smoothly. The Baby Faced Assassin was focused and determined to make the most of his shot at revenge. 

On October 6, 2007, after almost four years, Pacquiao and Barrera finally met inside the ring once again. Things were different though from the first time they met. Pacquiao was now a legitimate superstar, and Barrera was simply holding on to being regarded as such. Actually, Barrera was talking of a possible retirement after his rematch with Pacquiao. Apparently age catches up even with “The Baby-Faced Assassin”.

One striking change in Pacquiao was his outfit. Gone were his old No Fear gear and shorts that looked like a walking billboard and in came the Nike swoosh. The fighter that almost every trainer in America shut its doors to was now endorsing the biggest and most popular sports brand in the world. Even Freddie Roach was looking “fresh to death”. It’s amazing actually how Nike selects their athletes. I understand how they have the spending power now to get whoever they want but from day one, who would’ve known that they were starting a billion-dollar empire under the brand “Air Jordan”? The list just goes on- LeBron, Tiger, Roger Federer, Kobe and Maria Sharapova just to name a few.

The crowd filled the Mandalay Bay events center and as usual, Mexican and Filipino boxing fans were split in the middle. The fight started off rather slow. Perhaps learning from his and his countrymen’s previous fights against Pacquiao, Barrera was looking to fight more of a tactical counter-punching style- a style that definitely will not appear in descriptions about Barrera’s boxing biography. Barrera is more known for his fierce, toe-to-toe aggressive style which has endeared him to Mexican fight fans. Pacquiao on his part was looking a little bit tentative too. Usually he comes out blazing like a house on fire but for some reason, Pacquiao appeared to be giving Barrera more respect.

Action came in bunches. Both fighters seemed to be waiting for the other to lose their composure and take advantage. As Larry Merchant described Barrera,

“Barrera used to be a risk taker. Now he is a risk calculator.”

What was evident though was Pacquiao’s superior strength and explosiveness. He was simply too dynamic and athletic for the aging Barrera to keep up with. The way Pacquiao closed gaps after Barrera would throw his combinations was truly a sight to behold. He did it with ease and showed incredible natural instincts with his timing and reflexes.

The action picked-up a little bit in the fourth round but Barrera was simply not letting his hands go as often as he usually and needed to do. It was either respect for Pacquiao’s power or a case of the De la Hoya broken trigger syndrome- in other words, Barrera simply did not have it anymore.

Side note: HBO brilliantly displayed their familiarity with Pacquiao after years of having him in their boxing shows when they got Pacquiao’s gorgeous wife Jinkee Pacquiao on camera in-between rounds four and five. Jim Lampley described how she had been very public in the past couple of years and how it was impossible for it to be not public being next to Pacquiao particularly in the Philippines. It would’ve been a nice homage to Pacquiao’s significant other as HBO showed and introduced her formally to the whole world. But I guess the operative phrase in Lampley’s comments was “in the Philippines” because the girl he was describing and talking about, and whom HBO’s cameras broadcasted to the whole world as Pacquiao’s wife was actually not. They got the wrong girl. A version released a week after the fight made the necessary edits.

The fight dragged on with Barrera failing to pull his trigger and Pacquiao content on assaulting Barrera occasionally, controlling the fight with his footwork and throwing punches from different angles.

In round 11 however, the most exciting round of the fight, Pacquiao would open a cut under Barrera’s right eye and at the 58 second mark, he staggers and backs Barrera up by the ropes as he landed his signature left cross right on Barrera’s right eye. Pacquiao followed it up with a vicious flurry that wobbled Barrera as the fight looked like it would be over soon. When both fighters got tangled up in a clinch however, Barrera threw an illegal punch when he struck Pacquiao right on his left jaw as the referee was separating both fighters after calling for a break. Referee Tony Weeks immediately penalized Barrera for the dirty tactic as the crowd booed.

Pacquiao needed a few seconds to recover from the blow as he appeared dizzy and dazed while grabbing the ropes and walking around the ring trying to shake off the cobwebs. Pacquiao confirmed after the fight that the illegal blow by Barrera hurt him as he wasn’t expecting the punch. One has to wonder whether Pacquiao sold that one a little bit too though because with the way Pacquiao bounced back, it seemed like he wasn't as hurt as it seemed. Perhaps his acting in movies and TV shows weren’t really all that bad for his boxing career after all.

Aside from the cut under Barrera’s eye, the fight went on the same way it did all night with Pacquiao engaging Barrera, and Barrera seemingly content with hitting Pacquiao once or twice here and there. Barrera looked content just being able to last the full 12 rounds with Pacquiao. After the final bell, Pacquiao stood in the middle of the ring as Barrera turned around to his corner. With a look of befuddlement, Pacquiao appeared to have been wondering where the fierce Barrera he knew went. In the words of Larry Merchant, the fight ended with “a whimper, not a bang.” It was as dissatisfied you’d ever hear the veteran commentator after a Pacquiao fight.

The fight went to the scorecards. Judge Tom Schrek scored it 115-112 and the other two judges, Jerry Roth and Glenn Trowbridge, each had it 118-109 in favor of Pacquiao for the unanimous victory win. One has to wonder what fight Schrek was watching and how he was able to give that many rounds to Barrera. Either way, it was a Pacquiao victory.

After the fight Barrera said,

"I'm sad because I lost, but he hit me with very few punches, very few combinations. I thought I controlled him with my left hand all night. I'm happy we're finishing off the career with that," and added,
"I lost my head in a couple of the rounds," he said. I think I got too caught up in things. I shouldn't have stayed in those exchanges. I should have just kept boxing him. I thought I boxed him really well."

The comments reflected how much respect Barrera held for Pacquiao as he was more than content to go the distance with one of the sport’s best. Pacquiao’s performance on the other hand may have fallen short of some people’s expectations, but the way he fought showed signs of his maturity. He did not force the action and risked getting himself in a bind as Barrera was probably hoping for him to do. He showed that he can fight a smart fight as well and take a victory on the score cards.
With that said, some people were starting to wonder whether Pacquiao’s best days were behind him. People were simply not used to see Pacquiao's fights go the distance. Was his second victory over Erik Morales the climax of his career? Or are his off-the-ring distractions simply catching up with him?

Pacquiao was already rich and did not have to work another day of his life if he chose to. He had made enough money to sustain a good lifestyle for the rest of his life. Where does Pacquiao’s career go from here? Check back in the next couple of days for part twelve of this article as I chronicle the next few years of Manny Pacquiao's career. Thanks for reading.

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Pacquiao, Cotto fight done deal

Even though contracts have yet to be signed, Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto have agreed in principle to face each other on Nov. 14 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

“A (disagreement over) a pound or two will not stop this fight,” Lee Samuels said yesterday as the ace Top Rank publicist was awaiting his flight to the Bay Area from Las Vegas to preside over Nonito Donaire’s public workout in the city of San Carlos, just a 15-minute drive from San Francisco.

Top Rank is confident in sealing the deal that the company’s head — Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum — remains on vacation in Europe and won’t be reporting back to work until next week.

Pacquiao said recently that he will insist that a catchweight of 143 lbs be imposed although Cotto has publicly declared that he cannot go lower than 145 lbs. The welterweight limit is 147 lbs.

“We’ll be able to tweak things out,” said Samuels. “This is the money fight for Pacquiao and Cotto and the things that we are having right now like (stalled) negotiations is just normal.”

Before leaving for Europe for his annual sojourn, Arum handed Pacquiao adviser Mike Koncz a proposal for the Nov. 14 fight although it would only be today that the pound-for-pound king will go over the documents.

“(Pacquiao lawyer) Jeng (Gacal) and myself will go over this tomorrow (Sunday),” said Koncz, who was on the Philippine Airlines flight that landed in Manila from Los Angeles last Friday.

Arum is so upbeat of forging a deal that he has informed Team Pacquiao about the promotional tour being lined up just before Pacquiao reports for training camp under Freddie Roach at the Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood.

To maximize the earning potential of the bout on pay-per-view, Arum will bring the boxers on a press tour of key US cities like New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles, Cotto’s territory of San Juan in Puerto Rico and even Mexico City.

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Mosley shifts focus to Berto

Now that Manny Pacquiao isn’t in Shane Mosley’s immediate future, the future Hall of Famer has turned his attention to Andre Berto.

Golden Boy Promotions, Mosley’s promoter, has begun negotiations for a welterweight title-unification bout on either Nov. 21 or Dec. 12. Mosley holds the WBA belt, Berto the WBC belt. They are rated Nos. 1 and 5 by THE RING.

Richard Schaefer said he has been in contact with HBO executives and Al Haymon, Berto’s advisor, and all sides have expressed interest in putting the fight together. Schaefer has yet to speak to Lou DiBella, Berto’s promoter.

“We’ll be crunching the numbers and presenting them to Shane in the coming days,” Schaefer said.

Schaefer said he doesn’t know where the fight would take place. He has calls into casinos in Las Vegas and is exploring the possibility of staging it at Staples Center in Los Angeles. Berto lives in Florida.

Mosley pushed hard to get Pacquiao into the ring but has announced he has given up, at least for now. Schaefer said the fighter is disappointed but ready to move on.

“Shane is the type of fighter who wants to meet the biggest fighters out there,” he said. “That’s what really gets him motivated, the mega-event. That’s what he lives for. I’m not saying Berto isn’t a big event; it absolutely is.

“It’s a title-unification fight. We just want to make the right decision, to make sure the money is right.”

And no one knows how things will play out in a deep division.

Mosley (46-5, 39 knockouts) presumably would still be in the mix in the next round of fights after Floyd Mayweather Jr. faces Juan Manuel Marquez on Sept. 19 and Pacquiao meets Miguel Cotto on Nov. 14.

“There are a lot of what-if scenarios,” Schaefer said. “Let’s assume Marquez wins. What are the best fights for him? Maybe Ricky Hatton in England. I know Ricky would like to do that. Or a rematch against Mayweather. Those are big fights.

“And if Mayweather wins, maybe Marquez goes back down in weight and is still undisputed lightweight champion. Maybe he has a rematch with Juan Diaz or maybe Erik Morales if he’s serious about coming back. Another possibility is Amir Khan.

“As far as Mayweather goes, is he supposed to wait to see what happens with Pacquiao and Cotto? Maybe he says, OK, I’ll fight Mosley instead of waiting. And what if Cotto wins? What would Mayweather do? I think Mayweather-Mosley is much bigger than Mayweather-Cotto.

“If Mayweather wins, we’ll try to get [Mayweather-Mosley] done. Pacquiao, if he wins, can fight (Edwin) Valero or whoever he wants and then fight the winner of Mosley and Mayweather. The good news is that no matter how you mix or match it, you’re going to have very big fights.”

Meanwhile, a Berto-Mosley fight would be an important opportunity for Berto (25-0, 19 KOs). The former Olympian, who represented Haiti in the 2004 Games, has been on the precipice of stardom. If he beats Mosley, which certainly won’t be easy, his career would receive a significant boost.

“Oh yeah, for Berto, it would be a huge opportunity. Absolutely,” Schaefer said. 

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10 reasons why boxing is better than the UFC

My last top 10 list described why, in my view, the UFC is better than boxing. Here are my top 10 reasons why boxing is better than the UFC:

Number 10. The Olympics. It doesn't really matter that mixed martial arts is not an Olympic sport, it's the amateur program to get there. Fighters who make an Olympic team are a big deal. Some of them become successful professionals, some don't. Regardless, the guy at number 9 below would not have been "golden" without the Olympics.

Number 9. Oscar De La Hoya. I know he's number 9 on the other list; however, he was a one-man pay-per-view wrecking crew for this decade and last--years of amazing growth for the UFC. Oscar alone proved that boxing is not dead, dying, or critically injured.

Number 8. The legends. Out of fairness to the UFC, I'm only looking at boxing legends from 1993 through today, which includes Lennox Lewis, Roy Jones, Jr., Julio Cesar Chavez, Bernard Hopkins, Felix Trinidad, Evander Holyfield, Pernell Whitaker, Manny Pacquiao, and countless others. Can you name a UFC fighter who has had a similar impact? I can see arguing for Dan Severn, but nobody else. Mark Coleman is in the UFC Hall of Fame and his MMA record is 15 wins, 9 losses. Ken Shamrock is in as well with a 26-11-2 record. Randy Couture? Yeah, he's in with a 16-9 record. A lot to becoming a legend is exposure. UFC guys simply aren't around long enough and don't win enough.

Number 7. "The sweet science." I cringe every time a UFC announcer describes a fighter as having a "boxing background" because I have yet to see any of them display any boxing ability. Can they punch? Sure, in a Ricardo Mayorga sort of way. The better question is can UFC fighters defend against a punch? Sure, in a Ricky Hatton sort of way. Box, wrestle, monkey kung fu, who cares, just show some sweetness.

Number 6. The champions. UFC championships seem to trade hands on a daily basis. Bernard Hopkins was middleweight champion for a decade. His successor, Jermain Taylor, was champion for over two years. The main who took the belts from Taylor, Kelly Pavlik, has been champion since 207. I get it that UFC fighters go to war more often, but that's to be expected in a sport that only has 5 rounds.

Number 5. The history. Joe Louis v Max Schmeling, Sugar Ray Robinson v Jake LaMotta, Evander Holyfield v Riddick Bowe, Muhammad Ali v Joe Frazier, Thomas Hearns v Sugar Ray Leonard, Gerry Cooney v Larry Holmes, Manny Pacquiao v Juan Manuel Marquez. I think you get my point.

Number 4. Earth. If the sport of boxing depended on the United States for survival, then I would send flowers to its grave site. Thankfully, we have champions and top contenders from all over the globe. By comparison, the UFC is predominately an American sport that has hosted just a handful of events outside of the States.

Number 3. HBO, Showtime, and ESPN. I fully understand that I am critical of them most of the time; however, I recognize the need for all three. HBO's coverage is normally superb with Showtime keeping pace. ESPN's Joe Tessitore and Teddy Atlas are the best commentators in the business. Argue with any point on my top 10 list, but the three networks destroy the UFC's commentators. Who are they again?

Number 2. The fans. I rate boxing fans higher than UFC fans for one simple reason--most of them inherited the sport. The UFC has not been around long enough to see it pass from one generation to another and, frankly, it may not be.

Number 1. Manny Pacquiao. I rewrote this paragraph more times than I refill my glass of Jack Daniels on a daily basis. Disclaimer: Manny Pacquiao would not be number 1 on my list without Gerry Penalosa--his idol. Disclaimer: Manny Pacquiao would not be number 1 on my list without Freddie Roach. Now that I've given credit where it is due, Manny Pacquiao IS number 1 because he is not only a future hall-of-famer, but he is on the cusp of history. I'm not talking financial history and I'm not talking about PPV buy records. I am talking boxing history, sports history. Above all else, and perhaps because of everything else, the UFC will never have its version of Manny Pacquiao.

The bottom line is that boxing and mixed martial arts are two different sports with very few similarities. To suggest that one is better than the other, as I have done on purpose, misses the point. A boxer can win by knocking his opponent down. A UFC fighter may only be able to win by voluntarily going to the canvas--apples and oranges. Above all else, however, survival equates to money and money equates to fans. Something both sports need to always remember.

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Pacquiao over Mayweather in fantasy fight

The fight may happen. Then again it may not. Freddie Roach said that Floyd Mayweather wants a 60 / 40 split his way. That will never happen. Roach said his man is the the reason tickets would be sold. Mayweather contends he is the reason tickets will be sold. Experts agree that Pacquiao is in fact the hottest commodity in boxing right now. Either way , Roach says everything is negotiable.

So lets jump to spring of 2010. Mayweather has beat Juan Manuel Marquez and Pacquiao has beat Miguel Cotto. These could be two highly competitive fights. But , for the sake of argument and my article , Mayweather and Pacquiao come out winners. How does the fight shape up? You have two extremely skilled boxers. Both are quick. We have the former and present pound for pound kings facing off. Different styles , different personas and very different trainers. What happens on fight night?

The closest thing Mayweather has faced to an opponent that resembles Pacquiao is a combination of Zab Judah and Jose Luis Castillo. A concoction of Erik Morales and Juan Manuel Marquez is what we need to create a suitable , if thats possible , Mayweather clone.

The counter punching of Marquez gave Pacman trouble. Manny was leary of jumping on Marquez and when he hesitated he lost the round. Morales did basically the same thing. Erik's philosophy was to take ten punches to land two punches.

Mayweather had trouble with Judah. At least for the first four rounds. Judah used his speed to give Mayweather angles. It was effective until Judah had his usual meltdown. His loss of focus turned a good fight into an easy Mayweather victory.

Many thought that Castillo beat Mayweather in their first fight. He did this with constant pressure.  Mayweather likes to be on the ropes and look for openings as his opponent commits to his punches. Castillo took this advantage away by staying close and throwing an assortment of punches.

Roach said De La Hoya won every round against Mayweather when he used his jab. This kept the defensive minded Mayweather in an even more defensive posture. But Mayweather is smart and has a habit of figuring out opponents.

So what happens? Pacquiao's aura of invincibility shows in the first round. He starts strong and immediately attacks Mayweather. Mayweather grins , but you can tell he isn't comfortable. Mayweather's quickness allows him to roll with and away from some punches. Still , Mayweather cannot land any telling blows as Pacquiao's speed is amazing.

Round two also goes to Pacquiao. But , you can see Mayweather becoming a little more offensive minded.

The two split rounds three to six. Pacquiao raises his hands after the two exchange. He is in his element. Whenever there is a lull Mayweather grabs the opportunity to potshot his opponent.

Rounds seven through ten see more of the same. The difference is that Mayweather continues to head hunt while Pacquiao has focused on Mayweather's body. Pacquiao seems to be ahead six rounds to four. Some may even see him ahead seven to three.

Rounds eleven and twelve are usually Floyd's rounds , but the bodyshots have definitely taken their toll. Knowing he probably needs a knockout doesn't matter. Mayweather believes he is ahead and goes defensive again. Round twelve sees Mayweather back on the ropes. He appears hurt from the body attack. Manny attacks like a hungry lion and tries to stop his prey , but Mayweather survives the round.

Manny Pacquiao is announced as the clear cut winner. Manny says the jab and body punching were the key to his victory. The only one in disbelief is Floyd Mayweather. He sprouts off about boxing politics and Larry Merchant ends the interview by saying , "Floyd , you finally lost , get over it".

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Is Nonito 'Filipino Flash' Donaire the Next Manny Pacquaio?

SAN CARLOS, Calif. -- Filipino world flyweight champion Nonito "The Filipino Flash" Donaire (21-1, 14 KOs) knows that his growing legion of boxing fans -- and many in the sport -- view him as the next Manny Pacquaio.

To that end, Donaire recalls the tension he felt April 19 inside a packed Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, Philippines. Those nerves were not because he was preparing to fight previously undefeated Raul Martinez (24-1) of San Antonio for an IBF title defense.

Donaire, 26, who moved to California from the Philippines at age 10, also is a devoted student of boxing history. Araneta Coliseum gained fame as the site of the third and final match between heavyweights Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier in 1975, the "Thrilla in Manila," and Donaire was nearly overwhelmed by the experience and pressure of fighting there.

"The place was filled and the fans were chanting, just wanting to know if I was a bust, or if I was one of those guys who would bring glory to Filipino boxing,'' Donaire told FanHouse.

"It was so big for me, I couldn't sweat before the fight. I couldn't even break a sweat. That was the first time ever [fighting in metro Manila]. Shadow boxing couldn't break a sweat for me,'' he says.

"But the moment I got into the ring, I knew exactly what to do. The minute I got into the ring, the pressure would either take me down or push me to something great. I'm glad it pushed me to a different level."

Donaire quickly scored two knockdowns in the first round -- four overall -- and won a fourth-round TKO over Martinez. The victory was an impressive follow-up performance to his celebrated 2007 one-punch, left-hook knockout of previously undefeated defending champion Vic Darchinyan.

All this has pushed Donaire toward greater stardom. He is now one of the prized fighters for Top Rank promoter Bob Arum, along with his superstar countryman Pacquiao.

The comparisons to Pacquaio bring enormous expectations, as well as a sense of pride.

"It's big pressure, when I think about it,'' Donaire concedes, "and there are times when I feel I can't push myself anymore, when it all gets to me, the expectations that everyone has. When they're calling me the next Manny Pacquiao, that truly keeps me going. I don't want to let anyone down.

"It pushes me and inspires me to do my best and to keep looking forward, like Manny Pacquiao does. We want to make the Filipino people proud."

"When they're calling me the next Manny Pacquiao, that truly keeps me going. I don't want to let anyone down"Donaire will be the main event on the Aug. 15 "Pinoy Power 2" pay-per-view card at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, battling Rafael "El Torito" Concepcion (13-3-1, 8 KOs) in a 12-round bout.

Donaire is moving up to 115 pounds for this next challenge, which shouldn't be much of a problem for a fast, powerful puncher who already has won four world championship fights by knockout.

"I think I can carry that same power at 115, 118 pounds," says the 5-foot-6 inch Donaire, who typically bulks up 20 pounds or more after weigh-ins. "I grow,'' he says with a laugh. "I have reached 140 before. But I want to be at least 125 when I go into that ring with Concepcion. Not too big, not too small. I want to have speed against his strength."

In this sense, Donaire is like Pacquaio, 30, who has steadily packed on weight and muscle as he has collected five world titles in five weight divisions.

The smaller Concepcion -- who is 5-foot-4 on a good day -- is a fill-in opponent for this Top Rank-promoted PPV event, after Arum's negotiations with Hugo Cazares and Jose Lopez fell through. Many in boxing expect him to be a speed bump for Donaire. Concepcion, known for his ability to take a punch, managed to get to 115 pounds for his Sept. 15, 2008, fight against Jorge Arce, but retired in the ninth round of the scheduled 12-rounder.

"I don't take him for granted, or anyone who steps into the ring. I have nothing but respect for my opponent because of what we go through in training, the heart it takes to get in that ring,'' Donaire says.

He's no trash talker. "I'm no good at it,'' he says, laughing. "The only thing I'm good at is complimenting people."

Donaire also is a star on EA Sports' Fight Night 4 video game, where he takes on Arce. And he reaches out to his fans on his Web site, www.filipinoflash.com, which contains video of his bouts and photo albums of himself and his popular Filipina-American wife, Rachel Marcial Donaire. They blog about their lives with regular "Keeping Up With the Donaires" entries.

The two are a good pair. Marcial Donaire, a one-time child model, earned her black belt in Taekwondo at age 14. She keeps her husband grounded and they often train together at the sparkling clean Undisputed Boxing Gym in San Carlos, Calif., and run hills that snake along the hilltops at nearby College of San Mateo.

"She's tougher than me,'' Donaire says. "She can take more punishment than I can."

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Below the Belt 07.10.09: Mayweather Hate Edition

Since when is being great a reason to catch so much hate? Read on, as we get our fill with twice the bitterness!

Below the Belt: Mayweather Hate Edition

There was a time when being the best fighter of your generation meant adulation and respect from the people who watched your era of dominance. Why is it that arguably the greatest fighter of not only his own era, but the last several eras of boxing then is in the same boat as the late Rodney Dangerfield and getting no respect?

When Floyd Mayweather finally announced what many saw as an inevitable comeback, the question remained who would his opponent be? While many hoped for a dream match with Manny Pacquiao or an exciting showdown with Miguel Cotto or Shane Mosley, Mayweather chose unlikely candidate Juan Manuel Marquez.

Marquez, currently a champion in the lightweight division, seemed like an odd choice. Mayweather hasn't fought at 135 pounds in close to 6 years, not to mention that Marquez only made his lightweight debut in his last fight, otherwise having made his home in the featherweight and junior lightweight divisions over the course of his career. Still, Marquez is seen by the vast majority as the #2 active pound for pound fighter in the world behind only Manny Pacquiao, his arch-rival with whom he's fought to two disputed decisions, one a draw and one a split decision loss.

For whatever reason, people immediately began questioning Mayweather's motivations. Why is he taking on a lighter fighter, why isn't he fighting Pacquiao, why isn't he doing this or that, etc etc. People were acting as if Floyd was some big, physically imposing menace ala Paul Williams trying to find as small a fighter with as high regard as possible for some cheap credit.

I guess the part of that hate stems from poor short term memory, as for the majority of his fighting career, and most especially in his bigger fights, Floyd has been the naturally smaller man. He's moved up and given away size against Castillo, Corley, N'dou, Gatti, Baldomir, Judah, De la Hoya, and even Ricky Hatton was the naturally bigger man when they locked horns. Why does Floyd always have to be the small man, yet when he's finally the one with a size advantage all of a sudden he's a bully?

Then the July 18th fight date was postponed when Floyd made an announcement that he suffered a rib injury in training camp. "Experts", including some in our very own 411Family were quick to say that Floyd was running scared. So a guy lays off for two years, then gets into a rigorous training routine preparing for the second best fighter in the sport, and its out of the question he was taking on too much too soon?

The more logical theory of faking a rib injury that emerged, was that when Mayweather saw Miguel Cotto suffer a vicious cut above his eye in his victory over Joshua Clottey, that he thought it would take Miguel out of the running for a potential fight with Manny Pacquiao, and Floyd could move in on said opportunity. When negotiations between the Pacquiao and Cotto camps went forward anyway, Mayweather immediately rescheduled his bout with Marquez for September, two months prior to the rumored date of the Pacquiao-Cotto bout.

Why all the hate for this guy? Is it because he constantly runs his mouth and there's nobody who can shut it? You know what? If nobody can shut his mouth why doesn't he have the right to run it?

How many guys are there who can say they've beaten everyone they ever faced, including close to a dozen world champions? How many guys are there who've had 30+ fights and still don't have a blemish on their record without taking a gimmie in over a decade? He's beaten Hall of Famers with no controversy and hasn't ducked anyone regardless of what people will try to claim. What the hell does Floyd have to do to get some respect? Its sickening to watch a guy who could be the greatest boxer to ever live get nothing but disrespect from the people who claim to love the sport and appreciate the talent its top stars bring.

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Manny Pacquiao and African-American Boxers

You tell me one African-American fighter he’s (Pacquiao) fought. I mean, you can check the record. We don’t care about African fighters. We said African-American fighters. And I had a lot of fans like…“Well name any African-American fighters that are big enough to make a fight with him.” That’s not true. That’s not true. There’s been many fighters that were big enough to make a fight with him, but at the end of the day, it is what it is. The record says what it says.”—Nate Campbell

In the Era of Change, bannered by electing the first black President of the US of A, an African-American boxer named Nate Campbell uttered the most racist statement addressed to the Pound for Pound King, Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao.

As if saying "His Pacness" avoided top fighters of his time. Ducking top boxers is what they're accusing Pretty Floyd of all these years. The problem with this argument is that it is being peddled by boxers and promoters who wanted to share the money cake.

Of course, Box Office Kings Dela Hoya, Mayweather, and Pacquiao cannot fight any boxer who challenges them. It's their prerogative to choose who among those challengers is worth sharing their millions (in Pacman's case, billions). 

Now back to Nate. Although it's true that Mega Manny never fought a great African-American boxer, it is not his fault. There is no decent black fighter to fight in the first place.   

Let me remind all the readers that "His Pacness" never backed down in a fight, from Pinoys, Latinos, Half-Americans, to all the greatest fighters of his former and current division. From the up-and-coming boxers to the most seasoned, from top ten P4P contenders to the future hall of famers, from boxers in their prime to the overhyped patsies, he fought them all.

Yes, Pacquiao experienced defeats, but we never heard anything from him. Everybody's blaming the judge who mis-scored in the first Marquez fight, but he kept his silence. Everyone's blaming the accidental cut in the first Morales bout as the culprit in his loss, but he showed the crowd how gallant he is in refusing to surrender. He fought with one blind eye and accepted his defeat afterwards.

Earlier in his career, he was dethroned outside the ring for not making weight. He also suffered a knock out, and while he could have used a valid excuse of being dehydrated, he chose to suffer in silence. He went home, humbled, and nobody bothered to welcome him.

No one offered him another title shot. But he continued to fight. He filed KO upon KO, fighting unknown boxers hoping that someday, somehow someone would discover and polish him.  

These experiences makes Pacquiao who he is right now: the King of Boxing. You can accuse him of anything, but don't accuse him of ducking any boxer, no matter the color.

The question of Pacquiao refusing to fight Juan Manuel Marquez for the third time is not a question of Pacman being afraid of JMM; Mega Manny just outgrew Marquez.

There's more money in fighting the likes of De La Hoya, Hatton, Cotto, and Mayweather than making a trilogy with JMM. Of course, Marquez would make it to the Pacman Sweepstakes if he beat the other money man Pretty Boy Floyd.

Again back to Campbell—all of this talk was aimed to force Pacman to fight him. Nate should learn from Mosley's experience that no cheap talk would force the King to concede. (ano uto-uto?) 

Has Nate Campbell earned his ticket to "His Pacness" money train?

Campbell who? 

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Diaz-Malignaggi set, is Pacquiao paying attention?

I'm not too excited about it either, but this fight does have some legitimacy. Diaz, with his U of H diploma in hand and life lessons learned from his defeat by Juan Manual Marquez in February, is still a major player in the lightweight and junior welterweight divisions.

The particulars: The Toyota Center in Houston is the site. It's on HBO Boxing After Dark on Saturday August 22. The weight limit is 138.5 lbs. which seems to favor the hometown Diaz.

Diaz is still a very viable opponent for anyone between 135 lbs. and 140 lbs. And yes coming off of big win after disposing of Malignaggi he could be a logical opponent for Manny Pacquiao say 12 months from now.

I mean, let's assume Mayweather, JM Marquez and Mosley are out of the way by then. Who's left?

Diaz certainly has the credentials in the ring. Being Hispanic, he brings a lot of fight fans to a Pacquiao promotion. He speaks well, he's bilingual and could certainly handle himself well in and out of the ring in a pressure - packed mega fight.

Malignaggi, a veteran, knows he's the glorified "opponent." A loss could make this fight his last big payday unless he wants to work his way back up the food chain.

I don't think anybody could have gotten any more out of Malignaggi than his promoter Lou DiBella. His only losses are to Miguel Cotto and Ricky Hatton.

Houston fighter Rocky Juarez is not on the card, although he sells lots of tickets in Houston and has the same promoter in Golden Boy.

It seems Juarez is positioning himself for another title shot that was taken away when champion Chris John had to pull out with a blood disorder a couple of weeks ago, The budget for this fight just didn't have a Juarez fight in the cards.

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Manny Pacquiao, Kobe Bryant slam dunk Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Jekyll and Hyde had nothing on Mean Manny Pacquiao.

The Pinoy Idol plays the nice guy role convincingly away from his office but, as it turns out, he really knows how to hurt a guy even outside the ring.

NEWS FLASH: Floyd Joy Mayweather Jr., still nursing those sore and not spare ribs which were given a pasting allegedly by some Irish amateur kid, has suffered another injury.

Initial reports are sketchy but reports have it Mayweather is having his head examined so that a team of medical experts can diagnose and then properly treat his newest ailment.

“Massive wound to his superego,” said Doctor Larry Fine.

“Money May Pay The Hospital Bell has an ego which is approximately the size of the combined land mass of Brazil plus Texas,” said Doctor Moe Howard.

“Does this guy have medical insurance because I’m not looking forward to getting stiffed on my bill like Pacman stiffed Ricky Hatton?” asked attending if not attentive Doctor Curley Fine.

I asked the medical trio if Mayweather will recover from this super ego damage in order to fulfill his Sept. 19 once delayed bout against Little Old Whinemaker (“I beat Manny!”) Juan Manuel Marquez.

They replied in unison and simultaneously: “Mayweather will be fine!”

Then they began giving each other eye pokes and noogies and the like. If you didn’t know better, you’d think they were comedians or just Three Stooges.

At this point in my daily ramble, you join Professor Mumblesmore and Bernie Vee in saying, “Get to the point, Marley man, get to the point, how did Pacquiao render this serious injury to PBF?”

I hear your cry and thus I will now reveal.

It is a severe case of money lust and sponsor jealously.

I mean here is Pacquiao jetting off to Los Angeles, big high roller joining a NBA champion high roller, for a Nike commercial shoot.

Then, soon after Pacquiao commutes back to Manila (what’s MP’s air mileage, anyway, he must have numerous free trips earned), Kobe Bryant comes to the Philippine capital as part of an Asian tour.

Kobe’s tour will make stops in six cities:

July 21 - Manila
July 22 - Singapore
July 23- Taipei
July 24- Hong Kong
July 25- Shanghai
July 26- Chengdu

Persistent rumors out of Beaverton have it that Kobester is getting more than expenses and meal money for this Asian tour which is designed to sell all Nike product, especially sneakers and those marvelous but high priced Manny Pacquiao shoes and shirts.

Mayweather feels like a jilted lover. He may be singing that “Billie Jean is not my lover… “

I’ve cracked the Mayweather code and “Billie Jean” means Nike.

You see Mayweather “Remembers The Time” when he, and before him, fellow American ring superstar Roy Jones were the only boxers on the planet that Nike had time and money for.

In fact, Mayweather adviser Al Haymon delivered Mayweather’s mismatch against weathered Sharmba Mitchell to the Rose Garden in Portland as some kind of a tie-in to the Nike corporate cats.

I must say the Rose Garden has smelled sweeter on other nights as the official, puffed up attendance figure was a knee slapping 7,000.

It was more likely half that. You could have shot Uzis across the arena without hitting a living person.

Amazingly, HBO forked over nearly $4 million for such a fight. That kind of money buys a whole lot sneakers.

It seems that Mayweather’s Nike connection went away with his retirement.

That was the period when many idiots fell hook, line and sinker for the Honest Rasslers story that Floyd was getting $20 million for his momentous match against The Big Show.

Some people just can’t discern a script from a prescription if you know what I mean.

Nike may have been happy with its affiliation with Mayweather, I don’t know. Maybe he has some continuing relationship or his comeback will spark one.

But Nike looks for world domination and their Asian conquest is led by Kobe and Manny.

That’s some back court, a prodigious pair of point guards.

First, the ribs and now Floyd’s feelings have been hurt.

I just hope Mayweather can bite down now and answer the bell come Sept. 19.

Which reminds me, how come Shane Mosley is peddling Ice Link watches but not Nike products?

What is he, chopped liver?

Perhaps we must refer the whole issue to Cricket Examiner Bill Belew, who is currently getting more hits than Pete Rose on a batting binge.

Brother Belew will know how to handle such a sticky wicket.

Marquez may not realize it but he is scheduled to fight a seriously wounded man.

Here's an undefeated fighter with sore ribs, sore pockets and now a damaged psyche.

I feel L'il Floyds more than L'il pain.

Demanding came the IRS. 

Crack went the ribs.

Swoosh went a big Nike role to Manny.

You don't have to be a meterorologist to give the current Mayweather:

Extensive pain.

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Super middleweight tournament scuttlebutt

Your weekly random thoughts …

• First things first: I love the idea of the six-man super middleweight tournament being spearheaded by Showtime. I wish other divisions had similar plans. Imagine the kinds of fights we'd see if there was one at welterweight or junior welterweight?

If the Showtime round-robin at 168 pounds is finalized, I think it might be the biggest boxing story of the year.

For those who missed my July 4 blog (yeah, I've been known to work holidays) on the tournament, it's a nine-fight round-robin of pre-determined bouts followed by semifinals and a final. The tournament would commence in October and finish in May or June of 2011. Fighters will fight at least three times, with the top four advancing to the seeded semifinals on a points system.

The tournament includes six of the top names in the division: titleholders Mikkel Kessler and Carl Froch, former middleweight champ Jermain Taylor, rising contenders Andre Ward and Andre Dirrell and middleweight titlist Arthur Abraham, who would dump his belt at 160 pounds and move up in weight to participate. It has the potential to be very exciting for everyone involved, including boxing fans around the world.

Showtime is working hard to get it all wrapped up with the hope of staging a kickoff news conference Monday in New York. That's not a lot of advance warning, but hopefully everyone who needs to sign paperwork will in time. But when you're dealing with six fighters and five promoters spread across four countries, things can get complicated. It's no wonder Showtime boxing honcho Ken Hershman hasn't found time to respond to media inquiries, even with a "no comment."

From what I hear, there are a few issues holding up the announcement. One is the promotional status of Kessler. He has been in a legal battle with Danish promoter Mogens Palle, who has been working on a settlement that would see German promoter Sauerland Event, which also handles Abraham, take over Kessler's contract. But it's not done yet.

There are also more mundane issues, such as the travel. Besides a New York news conference, Showtime also wants media events in Europe next week and there has been some bickering over who will foot the bill for such expensive last-minute overseas travel. These big deals really do come down to the minutiae sometimes.

Talking to various sources and hearing how this thing is unfolding is sort of like watching sausage get made. At the end of the day, most people don't really care about that. They just want to eat it.

Boxing fans, I believe, just want to see the fights happen.

I've heard some criticisms here and there, however. Some have wondered why Taylor, who is 1-3 in his past four, including two knockout losses, was invited to participate. That's fair. Some have railed against the exclusion of titleholder Lucian Bute. Some have asked why isn't it an eight-man single elimination tournament?

Those are all legitimate questions, but nothing is perfect. Tournaments are hard to put together. This one is ambitious, and I will be thankful if it comes off even close to the way it is outlined in the master contract.

• For the record, Don Majeski, an agent for Bute and his promoter, InterBox, told me that Bute did not reject an invitation to the tournament as some have said. He said Bute was never invited. If that's true, it's a travesty.

• I always thought that Wladimir Klitschko would have knocked out David Haye had their June 20 fight come off. Haye, unfortunately, pulled out on short notice. Now it looks like Haye is going to fight for Vitali Klitschko's title Sept. 12 instead. Guess what? I think Vitali will smoke Haye even easier than I thought Wladimir would have.

• Now that Shane Mosley has returned to reality and plans to fight this fall (having finally realized he isn't going to get Manny Pacquiao), I have this funny feeling he will wind up facing Zab Judah. Just a feeling.

• Seems like Floyd "Money" Mayweather ought to change his nickname to "Needs Money." According to public records obtained by The Associated Press, Mayweather is millions in debt. Mayweather's tax issues have been an open secret, but seeing the specific numbers was still surprising. The AP's report paints a pretty harsh portrait of the fighter, who has been known to travel carrying tens of thousands of dollars in a paper bag (I've seen it), and who brags about his supposed wealth. But according to the report, he owes the IRS $6.17 million, not to mention $193,000 in back taxes to New Jersey, $9,400 to three homeowners' associations, $3,900 to a contractor who did work in his home and even $320.10 to his garbage collector. Come on, man, at least pay the trash man! Mayweather is a tremendous fighter, and maybe he legitimately misses the competition and the roar of the crowd. But anyone who believes that money isn't the driving reason for him coming out of retirement is crazy.

• Heavyweight contender Eddie Chambers was in tremendous condition for his impressive win last week against Alexander Dimitrenko. If only he had been in that kind of shape when he fought Alexander Povetkin, who handed him his only loss.

• Here are a few guys I'd like to see get some exposure (or even more exposure) on American television: Jorge Linares, Marcos Maidana, Fernando Guerrero and Jean Pascal.

• The clowns at the WBA are at it yet again. Once again, they'll have three so-called champions in the same division, which means triple the sanctioning fees. It must be a great gig when you can get into three different pockets and be paid three times for the same thing. The latest abomination is courtesy of the lightweight division, where Juan Manuel Marquez reigns as the "super champion" and Paulus Moses is the "regular champion." On July 25 the horrific hat trick will be completed when the winner of the Urbano Antillon-Miguel Acosta bout is declared "interim champion." It's an absolute disgrace and a farce. Why is it that anyone still takes this wretched organization seriously?

• So how are those big plans for Tavoris Cloud coming along?

• I am quite intrigued by the Aug. 15 heavyweight fight between American Kevin Johnson and Cuban Odlanier Solis, both of whom are undefeated and risking a lot. One question, though: Why is this fight on a Top Rank pay-per-view card, especially one featuring Filipinos? A fight like this belongs on HBO's "Boxing After Dark."

• So Johnny Tapia is back in jail. I'm just shocked.

• Welterweight Delvin Rodriguez has been a staple of ESPN2's "Friday Night Fights" for years. Isaac Hlatshwayo has also appeared on the network, including his upset of Nate Campbell. So it is particularly disappointing that their Aug. 1 fight for a vacant world title (and a rematch of last fall's exciting draw) won't be seen on ESPN2. The only American television for the bout will be regional cable. But if any fight ought to be on FNF, Rodriguez-Hlatshwayo II is it.

• I'm still totally bummed that Andreas Kotelnik's junior welterweight title defense against Amir Khan next week in England is not being televised, even on pay-per-view, in the United States.

• DVD pick of the week: There was a time when important fights were a staple of network television. I miss those days, but fortunately I have many of those old matches in my archives. So I went back to Sept. 3, 1988, in Atlantic City, N.J., for a fight that would absolutely be on HBO or Showtime if happened today. Back then it was an afternoon fight on ABC. It was Meldrick Taylor against Buddy McGirt. Taylor was a 21-year-old prodigy four years removed from winning an Olympic gold medal. McGirt was an experienced veteran riding a 10-fight winning streak and making his second junior welterweight title defense. Taylor, however, had the faster hands and harder punches. He outboxed McGirt and wore him down. Finally, Taylor notched the 12th-round TKO when McGirt trainer Al Certo jumped in the ring to save his man, who was cut, getting tagged with ease and clearly out of gas. Less than two years later, Taylor would lose the title in his unification match against Julio Cesar Chavez. 

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Ringside With Raymundo 07.09.09: Pacquiao Seeking First Welterweight Title

This week, Raymundo thinks the proposed November mega fight between Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto will be Pacquiao's stiffest test yet, Margarito's input and "Sugar" Shane loses hope for a showdown with Pacquaio.... for now....

The fight that is 99% made will be the fight that Manny Pacquiao will seek to win his first true welterweight title.

Sure, he won the IBO light-welterweight title in a relatively easy two round knockout over Ricky Hatton in May, but this coming Fall, the "Pac Man" is trying to prove once a for all that he is a solidified welterweight.

The proposed November 14 bout against Miguel Cotto will be the true test for the former flyweight, who boldly ascended into the lightweight and welterweight divisions, going a pristine 3-0 and winning two titles in the process in a little under one year.

After edging out a controversial split decision victory over arch-nemesis Juan Manuel Marquez in March 2008, Pacquaio faced David Diaz in June, scoring a defiant stoppage after nine rounds, then faced future Hall of Famer Oscar De La Hoya in a highly touted December bout in which after absorbing a barrage of ‘Pacquaio Pressure', De La Hoya could not answer the bell for the ninth round.

In the first mega fight of 2009, Pacquaio took on light welterweight champion Ricky Hatton, and proved too much for Hatton, who was knocked down twice in the first stanza and was stopped in the second round. Pacquiao was dominant over Hatton, who fell to 1-2 in his past three fights and looks to have one foot in the ring, while the other is stepping towards retirement after two big time knockout losses.

So far it's been pretty much a breeze since moving up in weight, needing only 19 rounds in three fights, in the process scoring three wins and taking the throne of pound for pound best fighter on the planet.

What's on the horizon is his stiffest test in the higher weights, when he takes on career welterweight and seldom defeated Miguel Cotto.

Cotto, (34-1, 27KO's) has recorded two victories after a disputed first career loss against Antonio Margarito may or may not have had loaded gloves in the July 2008 fight, which Margarito is currently serving a year suspension for having a ‘plaster like substance' found in his gloves in his next fight, a January 2009 bout which he lost to Shane Mosley.

Prior to that fight last summer, Cotto was seemingly indestructible: a knockout machine who donned the best ‘go to body' game in the business. Alongside a strong Puerto Rican fan base, Cotto represented an entire country and fought valiantly for them. 

The Puerto Rican was undefeated and rated in the top five on pound for pound lists by most major affiliates. Cotto was a machine, and his demise may have come by way of ‘Antonio Margacheato'.

Cotto's comeback bout was for Paul Williams recently vacated WBO welterweight title, in which he steamrolled over Michael Jennings in five rounds in front of a supportive Madison Square Garden crowd in New York City.

Poised to be the best welterweight fight of 2009 by your truly, Cotto faced his biggest test since being defeated in a June bout against rugged Joshua Clottey. The bout, while competitive throughout, featured a knockdown in Cotto's favor in the first round, a rally by Clottey in the mid-rounds, and late round heroics from a bleeding Cotto, who persevered through a third round clash of heads that handed Cotto a cut above his right eye.

Cotto is back on his winning trail, and barring injury will face Manny Pacquaio in a mega bout in November of this year.

"Cotto/Pacquiao is the fight I want to make. It's the fight I really want to make," stated Top Rank's Bob Arum, who currently promotes both fighters.

It's believed the deal is all but done, with only issues of weight and purse split to be decided. Heading into his two previous bouts, the main argument from Pacquaio and Co. has been the purse split.

Pacquaio argued his way up from a proposed 70-30 split in the De La Hoya bout, eventually succumbing to somewhere around a 37-64 split. His most recent fight against Hatton, Pacquaio engaged in another purse war with Ricky Hatton, and when the dust was settled, the pound for pounder secured a bigger piece of the pie, even though Hatton held the IBO light welterweight title.

The purse split seems to be the biggest, and really the only issue in the making of Cotto v. Pacquiao. Pacquaio has grown accustomed to fighting just as hard out of the ring for his paycheck as he does with his fist in the ring. This is somewhat acceptable in his position; he is the most sought after boxer and let's face it, this is a dangerous sport and these athletes need make as much currency as they can while their able bodies allow them to do so. What does Antonio Margarito think of the match up?

In an interview with "The Record", former welterweight champion Antonio Margarito expressed that he feels Pacquiao will come out victorious over Miguel Cotto due to Cotto agreeing to meet at a catch-weight.

"From the very first round, the advantage will be for Pacquiao because Cotto will be dehydrated (from losing weight)."

Margarito pointed to Oscar De La Hoya's difficulty in fighting the speedy Pacquaio in part due to coming down to such a low weight, and feels Cotto will lose in the same fashion.

Shane Mosley abandons hope!

According to reports, WBA welterweight champion "Sugar" Shane Mosley has given up his attempts to land a fight against Manny Pacquiao.

The champion has tried in interviews and press releases to lure Pacquaio into a match, to no avail.

Perhaps Mosley could attain a shot at the winner of the Pacquiao/Cotto bout, yet for now, Mosley is shopping around an HBO date later this year with his name on it. Any takers, Andre Berto, Paul Williams, ANYONE???!!!!

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Miguel Cotto Better Watch Out For Manny Pacquiao's Wicked Right Hook!

The finishing touches for the Manny Pacquiao-Miguel Cotto Fight is in the final stages. If and when this fight materializes, it is best for Cotto to heed this simple advise: watch out for Manny Pacquiao's right hooks and them some!

This extraordinary punch from a very ordinary stance is Pacquiao's secret when he demolished Ricky Hatton in merely two rounds of their celebrated fight.

I saw it coming. Team Pacquiao was really into something big going into that fight with Ricky Hatton, and then boom! The wicked right hook landed when Hatton was concentrating on MP's left hand.

And then Boom! Boom! The Right hand kept on coming! It even scored the first knock-down!

And when Ricky Hatton shifted his focus from MP's left hand to that new weapon which is MP's right hand...boom! The left hand finished the job in spectacular fashion.

And to think that MC's chin is suspect doubles the risk for Puerto Rico's most brilliant star.

Cotto could try to penetrate MP's defenses and attack the body early. Most likely, MP will not be in his best form for the fight. Concentrating on local politics to the national concerns (as he was made the  Ambassador for Peace and Understanding by no less than the President of the Philippines), MP will have plenty distractions.

Secondly, MP is locally known as a party boy. He might just miss a little concentration on this very important preparation for his fight.

Of course, we all know that MP's recent fights were all models of a boxer's dedication to training. But perhaps MP could just miss a step or two.

And then, boom!

Cotto could take advantage of the situation and give MP an ugly loss. Add to these potential distractions the perennial domestic problem on money matters—the first, with the people around MP at home and the second is his financial relations with Bob Arum.

Not many Filipinos are aware that in Pacquiao's latest fight against Hatton, which was supposed to be 50-50 split, was not really. MP took home around $12 million from that fight.

And RH? Well, for losing miserably, Hatton took home almost double what Pacquiao got—$ 23 million! Why? Well, we could only ask the kind of arrangement that MP entered with Bob Arum.

As Lord Hughey wrote in his comments in Bleacher Report, this boxing promoter Bob Arum is under investigation for game fixing by the FBI. And no less than four searches were conducted in his office by the FBI agents after receiving information that this promoter is into game fixing. This situation could take MP's concentration in the preparation for the MC fight.

MP is not invincible, as many of us MP fans fail to realize. If there should be any weakness in MP's armor, the foregoing could be a short list. But of course, not necessarily in that order.

But then again, MC has many weaknesses himself. The catch weight of 144 lbs or 145 lbs can work against the Puerto Rico's superstar. He is a natural big welterweight and reducing his body weight to an agreed catch weight could do him in.

And if there is anything sure about this fight, it is the tenacity of the fighters and the brutality of the fight that is most likely to happen.

A cut on MC is not a far possibility. And so does a possibility on MP. And a good return on the gates and the PPV could also add the possibility of a return bout.

Let us wait and watch for a possible classic fight. Two ring warriors with different fighting styles trying to outwit and out-fight each other on top of the ring.

This is the coming MP-MC fight.

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Manny Pacquiao’s Most Effective Techniques part 2: The body cruncher!

It was round 7, 1 minute 41seconds left in the round. And bam! Pacquiao hit Oscar Dela Hoya to the body. It was quick, lightning fast. I knew that punch gotta hurt! Oscar was backing up…Pacquiao leapt towards Oscar and another body shot to the right! Boom! Oscar flinches… And as I expected, those body shots are taking its’ effect. Oscar Dela Hoya froze! He can’t move! He can’t do anything! And when you do that in front of Manny Pacquiao while you’re inside the ring with him…you’re in big trouble… And we all knew what happened after that.

Which brings us to Manny Pacquiao’s Most Effective Techniques part 2: The body cruncher!

Back when Manny Pacquiao was still a skinny kid, he’s got unusual power for his size. If you can drop bigger opponents with body punches, it just means your fists sure have lots of firepower.

The technique goes like this: Manny Pacquiao starts off with his right jab. Then double jab. He uses the jab to measure the punching distance. And once he connects with the jab, he follows it up with the left. And then some flurry of punches to the head. This move would usually get his opponent reeling back to the ropes. And once Manny Pacquiao caught his opponents on the ropes, he delivers a sharp “bam!” to the side of the body. This will force his opponents to fold even lower and drop their elbows to cover their ribs. And when they do that, Manny would continue raining flurry of punches to the head which again will force his opponents to cover their faces. Then another big “bam” to the other side of the body.

If you’re a Manny Pacquiao opponent and you think after two body shots, he’ll get tired of punching you to the body? Hah! You wish! Those body shots will be popping on your left or on your right whenever you leave your ribs exposed. Ouch!

Those body shots takes out the fight off you. It freezes you. The wind will seem like they’re sucked out of your belly.

Erik Morales got some good deal of those body shots during their second fight. I can see Erik folding and grimacing whenever I see him get hit by those Manny Pacquiao body shots. He eventually slowed down during the later rounds and we all knew what happened in that fight.

Marco Antonio Barrera went down for the count with a huge body shot on their first fight in the eleventh round.

That’s just how effective and devastating Manny Pacquiao’s body shots are. So when people tell me “Miguel Cotto or Ricky Hatton…they’re big body punchers!” Believe me, so is Manny Pacquiao!

Check this video out to see what I mean…

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