FROM GMANEWS.TV

Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr., came out negative during the random-style urine testing procedure conducted on them, before negotiations for their projected 12-round mega-bout fell apart two weeks ago.

Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) executive director Keith Kizer announced that the urine samples taken from the two boxing icons “came back negative for all prohibited substances."

Pacquiao and Mayweather were ordered to undergo the procedure as part of a random out-of-competition drug-testing practice of the commission, since both fighters are licensed in Nevada.

The two provided samples last Dec. 28.

Pacquiao was tested in his hometown in General Santos City, the sample of which was taken in Malaysia, while Mayweather underwent the same process in his hometown in Las Vegas.

A disagreement in the drug-testing procedure to be conducted on Pacquiao and Mayweather Jr. hindered what many believe could have been the richest and biggest fight ever in the history of boxing.

That gave way to a Pacquiao-Joshua Clottey 12-round showdown on March 13 at the Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, where the Filipino’s World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight belt will be at stake. – GMANews.TV

MANILA, Philippines - IBF lightflyweight champion Brian Viloria is engaged to be married to long-time girlfriend Erika Navarro late this year but even as he’s floating on air in Cloud 9, the “Hawaiian Punch” is sharply focused on his fight against Colombian challenger Carlos Tamara at the Cuneta Astrodome this Saturday.

“Tamara’s a dangerous opponent and he’s as determined as me to win,” said Viloria. “He’s slightly taller and I expect him to use his reach advantage. He’s got respectable power. I’ll try to get inside his defense, work the body and slow him down. He’ll run and box so I’ve got to stay on top of him, put a lot of pressure. I’ll adjust as the fight goes on, depending on what he brings to the table. I don’t know if it’s going the distance but you can be sure I’ll be in there loading up and throwing bombs.”

Viloria, making the second defense of the IBF crown he wrested from Ulises Solis here last April, promised an explosive display of fireworks.

“The old Brian is back,” he said. “I remember firing a thousand punches a round and being very aggressive when I started out. That’s what you’ll see against Tamara. Anything can happen in a fight like this. So I’ve got to take the initiative. I now know what it’s like being down, to be in a slump. I don’t ever want that to happen to me again. That’s my motivation. It’s so easy to lose, to fall off. And it’s so hard to get to the top. Now that I’m back as a world champion, I’m making sure I stay a world champion.”

A celebrated Sydney Olympian, Viloria won his first title, the WBC 108-pound crown, on a sensational one-round knockout over Mexico’s Eric Ortiz in 2005. Then he lost the title in his second defense to Omar Niño Romero. A rematch with Romero ended in a majority draw that was later declared a no-contest after the Mexican tested positive for drugs. Viloria failed to regain the crown, losing by majority decision to Edgar Sosa for the vacant throne after Romero was stripped of the title for drug use. He rebuilt his career by winning five in a row in small-time arenas before facing Solis last April.

It was after attending midnight Mass last Christmas when Viloria popped the question during an exchange of gifts with friends in Los Angeles.

“I got Brian’s present and it was a DVD with a note stuck on it, saying play me,” recalled Navarro, a full-blooded Filipina born and raised in Hawaii - she’s in town with Viloria. “It was a video showing pictures and film clips of us together, our trips, our happy moments. At the end of the slide show, there was this letter that read: ‘I want to continue on this journey with you not as my girlfriend but as my wife.’ Then, Brian got on his knees and asked, ‘will you marry me?’ I was in tears. I never expected it. He’d been in training six days a week and I couldn’t imagine him doing this video. It was really sweet of Brian, something that came from the heart.”

Viloria’s other surprise was giving Navarro a two-karat canary yellow diamond engagement ring.

“Whenever Erika and I would pass by this jewelry store in L. A., she’d look at the ring - she must have looked at it in about eight different trips to the mall,” said Viloria. “When I finally went to the store to buy it without her knowing of course, the ring was gone. Someone had put it on hold for three months. I offered to buy it right there and then. At first, it was difficult to convince the storekeeper I was for real. I just came from training. I was in a sweat suit. The guys in the store all wore suits. I looked like a bum from the streets. But I got it. I understand a canary yellow diamond ring is rare - I think it’s the same kind of diamond Ben Affleck gave to Jennifer Lopez.”

Producing the video was another task. Viloria had to squeeze in the time during camp.

“We plan to get married in Hawaii in November or December,” said Viloria. “Maybe, we’ll honeymoon in the Philippines.”

Navarro, 28, is a University of Hawaii nursing graduate and traces her roots to Cabugao, Ilocos Sur. Viloria and Navarro have known each other since their school days but began dating seriously only five years ago.

But first things first. Viloria has Tamara to hurdle and his mindset is to take Navarro to the altar as a world champion.

“Tamara’s more like a Jesus Iribe (his second challenger whom he outpointed) than a Solis,” said Viloria. “He’s a former Olympian like me. I can’t take him lightly. I’m not looking beyond Tamara although it’s tempting to talk about a unification with Ivan Calderon. I just want to make sure Tamara is over and done with before thinking about future plans.”

Tamara, 26, is ranked No. 7 by the IBF and has won his last three outings. His record is 20-4, with 14 KOs, and he holds a win over Alejandro Hernandez, the rugged Mexican who battled Marvin Sonsona to a draw in Ontario last November.

Viloria, 29, has not lost in his last seven outings. His record is 26-2, with 15 KOs.

Fighting in Manila is special for Viloria but it really doesn’t make a difference where he performs.

“It’s the same ring wherever I fight,” said Viloria. “Of course, it’s special for me to fight in Manila just like it’s special for me to fight before my family in Hawaii. It was in Manila where I won my IBF title in a very emotional victory. But I also remember fighting in an open-air makeshift arena in a bad part of LA once under pouring rain. I had to be carried into the ring because my guys didn’t want my feet to get wet with three inches of rain on the ground. That was when I was down in the dumps and trying to pick up the pieces. That was also special for me. I don’t really care where I fight. I just want to put on an exciting show for the fans and prove that the old Brian is back for good.”

By Sam Gregory: Boxing once again will be diminished even further when what used to be the cornerstone of boxing, the heavyweight division, will be hacked apart to add the new “Super heavyweight” division.

In recent years the heavyweight division in boxing has been reduced to a fragment of what it used to be in times as recent as the Ali, Foreman and Frazier era. Many of long time boxing fans biggest fear is going to happen, the creation of the “Super Heavyweight” division; yes money speaks and these days it seems like money is all that matters when the most cherished title in boxing, the heavyweight crown, will be diminished even further.

Adding a super heavyweight division to boxing is one of the items that will be on the agenda when members of the IBF, WBAW and WBC meet in Cancun, Mexico.

People in attendance at this meeting will be WBC president Jose’ Sulaiman, WBC executive secretary Mauricio Sulaiman, WBC legal advisor Gabriel Penagaricano, IBF president Marian Muhammad, IBF advisor Larry Hazzard, WBA executive vice-president Gilberto Jesus Mendoza and WBAW ratings director Oliver Gomez.

Mendoza Jr said, “My expectation would be to continue with the good and close inter-organization relations for the benefit of boxing.” Mendoza also plans to address the main threats to world boxing, such as alternative sports, the economic crisis, and the lack of boxing figures as ambassadors to the sport.

The agenda at the meeting in Mexico will include:

1. Unification of titles

2. Inter-organizational classifications of box0ing

3. Working with local and national boxing commissions

4. Creation of the super heavyweight division

5. Proposed McCain legislation in the USA

By Peter Wells: Roger Mayweather, uncle and trainer of Floyd Mayweather Jr. and father of two children, will arrive on January 25th in front of the jury on the charge of allegedly assaulting of female boxer Melissa St Vil. Mayweather was caught with his arms around the boxer, but has said that she had attacked him first. If she was to have attacked Roger, then Mayweather will get off with maybe just a fine or a few months in prison.

Unfortunately if he’s found guilty then he could get a prison term of 3-16 years. Yes, it is a ridiculous amount of time, but this is only something I read that has been said. Firstly he is raising two small children and secondly is training one of the best boxers around.

Roger has trained his nephew Floyd Mayweather Jr to become the unbeaten best fighter on the planet, stepping in for Mayweather Sr. It wasn’t the best thing to do, but why would you do something like that when you have so much to lose. I’m not saying he’s innocent or guilty. Only he and the St Vil know what really happened.

It would be a great loss in boxing and for a very long time. Mayweather will get his father Floyd Sr. to train him, but still he has children and would not like to end up like Floyd Sr and Floyd Jr were like before being back together.

***

Pacquiao stripped of IBO Light Welterweight title

Manny Pacquiao as we all expected to happen sooner or later has been stripped of his International Boxing Organization Light Welterweight crown which he took off Ricky Hatton in just 2 rounds last May. Manny Pacquiao has only fought once since for the WBO and WBC Diamond Welterweight titles and is scheduled to defend against Joshua Clottey in March. The IBO title is now up for grabs as a vacant title. I doubt we will get a good fight out of it, but the IBO can’t have Manny keeping hold of it for as long as he likes if he doesn’t plan on fighting at light welterweight.

By Dezzie Lightbulb: Boxing has always been plagued with `what ifs`. What if Ali and Tyson had met in the ring, each in his prime? What if Cotto`s team had properly checked Margarito`s gloves before their fight? What if such and such a judge had bought himself a new pair of spectacles the day of yet another crazy decision? What if, what if, what if! These questions can never be fully answered. They can haunt us, and remain as cruelly tantalizing after twenty years as they were the first day. The latest `what if` to storm the boxing world is; `what if Pacquiao has been using PEDs or steroids?` Even longtime, faithful Pacquiao fans must have asked themselves, although probably in the privacy of their most inner selves, what if it`s true. What if Pacquiao has always been a cheat, his whole boxing career nothing more than a second-rate, shabby sham?

All boxing fans, must have given at least some thought to this question. The press has written what must amount to the equivalent of 100 War and Peaces exploring the possibility of Pacquiao juicing. In this article I wish to explore another, different `what if`. Because by now, we must all have some level of doubt as to Pacquiao`s fair play, I think that it is in the interest of a balanced and open-minded view that we have a closer look at the alternative scenario. What if Pacquiao is clean?

Pacquiao in his early days was a very different fighter to the one we see before us today. He was a light, slight southpaw, had a truckload of confidence and self-belief, and a devastating straight left punch that put an early end to many a boxers` ambitions. Yet his confidence cost him dearly. His two early defeats can be put down to overconfidence. He lost to less talented fighters who caught him unawares as he played `cock of the ring`. While he definitely had talent, his losses underlined his need for more boxing skills, and more importantly, the need for a really good trainer. Both came to him later when he teamed up with Freddie Roach.

Roach took the raw diamond that was Pacquiao, and with all the skills and attention to detail of a master jeweler, shaped him to become the brilliant jewel of a boxer we see today. Pacquiao`s boxing arsenal has been transformed from a `one-shot-wonder` to that of an all-round, great boxer. Today it seems he can do just about anything in the ring. As far as I know there is no drug that can give you skills you don`t have. That is the work of a trainer.

There is a very good reason why Pacquiao and Roach get along so well. At some stage in his career Pacquiao must have admitted to himself that he was simply not a good enough boxer to become a legend. While most boxers would rather die than to have to admit to a shortcoming, Pacquiao is obviously able to put himself to question. He knows he needs Roach, and he respects him enough to listen to every word he says. How many times, while watching a fight, have you heard a trainer telling his fighter in the corner between rounds to double up his jab or keep his hands up or some such, only to find that in the following round the obviously good advice has fallen on deaf ears? The boxer goes right on doing what he should not be doing. More than once or twice I have been pleasantly surprised to hear Roach telling Pacquiao to do something different in the next round, and lo and behold, Pacquiao does exactly what he has been told. The best trainer in the world will achieve nothing with a boxer who won`t listen to him. Roach is as a brilliant trainer as Pacquiao is a trainee.

So, back to the `what ifs`; what if` the reason Pacquiao defeated Hatton had nothing to do with drugs, but was because he had learned to use both left and right hooks, neither of which he used in his early years? And `what if` the only PED that Pacquiao has ever used is Mr. Freddie Roach, one of the best Performance Enhancing Dudes in the business? `

Michael Moorer gives us valuable insight into boxing, and particularly into training in an article at Fight Hype; I see these guys that half-ass fight, and some of them down here in training, they half-ass train, and that`s not how I was brought up. For Moorer training is obviously the key to success in boxing. He goes on to tell us how unbelievably hard Pacquiao trains. I witnessed him go 26 rounds, nonstop hitting the mits. That`s phenomenal. He just strives to be the best. He also tells us of Pacquiao`s work ethic and his will to win, all in the most flattering of terms. Moorer was a world champion and is now a trainer, so his thoughts on the subject definitely carry weight. He has proved himself to be an honest, straight-talking guy with loads of integrity. That`s good enough for me.

So `what if` Moorer is right, and Pacquiao`s success comes from such a high level of hard work, discipline, and dedication, that steroids are simply unnecessary?

In many ways Pacquiao`s hunger for success in not as surprising as it may seem. In Pacquiao we have all the elements of the ultimate fairytale, `rags to riches` story. The lowly street urchin who makes it big in a world he may never even have dreamed of as a child. It is a well known fact that a disproportionate number of self-made success stories find their roots in deprived backgrounds. Could it be that the sting of near starvation once felt will forever haunt and drive a man, and may even drive him to exceptional greatness? Perhaps being born into abject poverty gives the lucky ones who manage to escape a sense of steely, stubborn self-determination that makes them fight every second of their existence to never have to return. Can we conceive that Pacquiao feels that he has a sacred `duty` to pay back for his own good fortune by being the greatest boxer he can, and then to use his fame and fortune to help his fellow countrymen get a fairer deal than he got as a child? Could that be what has driven him to the top? Why not?

`What if` Pacquiao`s success is a result of an exceptional drive inherited from his background, and not some `two-day-washout` designer drug?

So why did Pacquiao refuse to take the damned tests? Pacquiao knows, the rest of us can only speculate. I feel that it is a combination of things. First and foremost he refused point-blank to get pushed around by Mayweather. Understandable! Secondly he did not want his all important training schedule interrupted by unannounced, invasive blood takes which could have weakened him at a time he needs all his strength. Thirdly he may believe that Mayweather needs this fight more than he does, and is playing poker not boxing. Mayweather is reportedly close to broke. Even if Pacquiao only makes 10 million dollars from his fight with Clottey, 10 million dollars in Pacquiao`s hands in the Philippians is probably the equivalent of 100 million dollars in Mayweather`s hands in the US. Pacquiao took the best welterweight challenge available for March 13, leaving Mayweather with very little choice of landing himself a convincing match. This could all be part of a plan so that team Pacquiao can dictate terms if, and when negotiations are reopened between the two teams.

To those who claim that Pacquiao`s refusal to take the random blood tests is conclusive proof of his guilt, I ask you, `what if` one or all of the above are the real reasons why Pacquiao refused the tests, not because he is dirty?

It is very easy to understand why so many people have jumped on this `Manny`s a juicer` bandwagon. Our world has evolved into a cynical, dark place. In recent years we have been repeatedly betrayed by our elected leaders who have been serving their own nasty little agendas rather than serving the common good. Some of the Churches we worshiped in have fallen into damnable disgrace. Huge pharmaceutical companies have been caught doing far more harm to people`s heath than good. Soulless corporations bloody-mindedly and shamelessly rape our world. These days nothing more is sacred. Nothing is as it seems. Honesty has become rarer than the finest gold.

And yet, `what if`, `WHAT IF` for once something was as it should be? `WHAT IF` Manny Pacquiao is simply the best boxer of his generation, no drugs required? Is that really so hard to believe? I hope not, and, call me a helpless romantic if you will, but I actually find it easy to believe the beautiful, magical, amazing story of the skinny little slum-kid who conquered the world.

By Peter Wells: In the latest news Floyd Mayweather Jr 40-0 was still scheduled to fight on March 13th at the MGM Grand. This was to compete with World Boxing Organization Manny Pacquiao’s fight with Joshua Clottey, which wouldn’t have happened, as Manny would surely have plenty more fans watching his fight. Now the news is that Mayweather is interested in fighting Shane Mosley as long as Mosley beats Berto later this month. Shane Mosley confronted Floyd after Mayweather’s point’s victory over Juan Manuel Marquez. Both Mosley and Bernard Hopkins took it upon themselves to call Mayweather out. Floyd said that Mosley was disrespecting him and also had a go at HBO commentator Max Kellerman.

With Mayweather-Pacquiao off Floyd is looking like a coward to some people, and has to prove them he isn’t and that would be the reason for this fight happening. Shane Mosley would not want to screw up against Andre Berto now, finally after all those years of waiting he finally gets one of the pound-for-pound best. And when I say best I mean like number 2 or above, and obviously if Mayweather hadn’t have retired he would probably still be number 1, but a win over Mosley wouldn’t push him ahead of Pacquiao. If Pacquiao were to lose to Clottey then Mayweather would be number 1 and Mosley would probably move to 2nd, which would make for another great superfight, the two best in the world.

This would be a real good fight, kind of the same as it would have been with Pacquiao, as Mosley would be really pushing Floyd like never before and same would go for Manny. This could be really good news for boxing fans around the globe and I’m sure most people on this site will be rooting for Mosley. As for me I’m not bothered either way, as long as it’s a good and enjoyable fight.

By Eric Thomas: According to Dan Rafael of ESPN, unbeaten Floyd Mayweather Jr. could be facing a number of potential boxing opponents such as Nate Campbell, Paulie Malignaggi, Kermit Cintron and Timothy Bradley. One opponent that Mayweather won’t be fighting is Matthew Hatton. Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer said there was no truth in the rumors that Mayweather was considering a fight with the younger Hatton brother.

What could be a bit of bad news for Manny Pacquiao and his promotional team is that Mayweather could fight on the same night, March 13th, as Pacquiao. If that happens, Mayweather could draw away many of the fans that otherwise would have purchased the Pacquiao-Clottey fight on pay-per-view.

Of course, it would take a good opponent for Mayweather for that to happen. He can’t just fight anyone and expect to take away viewers from Pacquiao’s fight with Clottey. Schaefer says that they could fight on March 14th, a Sunday night so that they don’t compete with the Pacquiao-Clottey fight. That wouldn’t be an ideal night for a fight, however. HBO would have to go along with this idea for that date to work.

The list that is being considered by Mayweather might not be good enough for him to take away a large percentage of fans from the Pacquiao bout, however. Bradley would seem to be the best fighter of the bunch, but he’s not well known by casual boxing fans, even though he’s got the best record and is considered to be the best fighter in the light welterweight division by many boxing fans at this time.

Mayweather is bigger than both Campbell and Malignaggi, and it’s hard to see these fights as anything more than a dreadful mismatch. Cintron would give Mayweather some problems with his power, but Cintron looked bad in his fight with Sergio Martinez last year, and he was destroyed by Antonio Margarito in 2008. Cintron might be the best opponent out of that list, apart from Bradley, but I’d much prefer to see Mayweather considering fighters like Sergio Martinez, Paul Williams or Carlos Quintana to fight instead of Cintron, Campbell and Malignaggi.

If Mayweather gets by his March opponent, then he will be looking to fight the winner of the Andre Berto vs. Shane Mosley fight which takes place on January 30th of this month. Although Pacquiao reportedly wants to fight the winner of that fight as well, you would have to think that Mayweather would have the edge in getting the winner – if it’s Mosley – because he and Mosley are both with Golden Boy Promotions.

By Frank Car: Contrary to news circulating that the Floyd Maywather vs. Manny Pacquiao bout is off once again. I still believe it’s not over. “It’s off” is something we have heard, what, three or four times now? Although my optimism is somewhat fading, there is still time for what a source called a “business deadline” for the Mega-Fight to be made.

There is not that much to say, other than we need to wait for more official news to surface, from both camps. It has been Pacquiao’s camp to once again say it’s off. That is no surprise seemingly how it has been Pacquiao’s camp to be quick to say it’s off numerous times in the past. It could be a negotiations tactic, but how many times you cry wolf. This time though, things seem to be a bit more serious for there is not much time left to strike a deal, but there is some time left.

When Mayweather’s camp gives a official statement, we hear about the contract negotiations themselves, and find out why they were unable to come to an agreement. We can start assume this thing is officially off. And then, the finger of blame will be coming out in full force, looking for just who is at fault for botching the one of the most anticipated match-ups ever. But it may not come to that, for once again there is still time.

You know in most negotiations, either side would probably be glad to take any type of drug test if they could chose, say the glove size. Pacquiao wanted 8 ounce gloves Mayweather wanted 10, they are using 8. Or say the weight, Pacquiao wanted 147 Mayweather wanted 154, they are going at 147. Or perhaps the date, Pacquiao wanted March, Mayweather wanted May; they are doing it in March. The only real demand I have seen Mayweather make is for Pacquiao to take the random blood test, but there has been hinting of Pacquiao using PEDs which probably didn’t help that any.

In any case a Olympic-style random blood test would take 3-5 random blood tests and 4-9 random urine tests or so. And in each of those blood tests, you would probably lose more blood if you got a bloody nose then they would require. A random drug test (which is almost the only way it can be effective) to seal the deal for the fight of the century is really and truly not that big of a deal in my view.

Pacquiao has always shown class and integrity in and outside the ring. On this one though, I am not seeing eye to eye with him. However I do understand him not enjoying being bombarded with accusations of doping, but denying a state-of-the-art drug test isn’t helping it any.

For a fun fact, if you donate an entire pint of blood you get paid $0. If you donate plasma – which is a part of blood and about a 2 hour process – you get paid around 25$. But a few random drops may keep some from making millions.

Each side may be waiting until the final seconds to see if the other side gives in until they themselves do. (That can make sense if you read it a few times)

If this bout doesn’t proceed, each boxer would be walking away from about $40 million each… I would think someone is going to turn around and pick it up.

by Jason Alcairo: According to news from Yahoo sports and as also reported in the Las Vegas Review Journal, the oft-cancelled potential mega fight between top ranked Pound for Pound fighters world Boxing Organization welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr is once again off. Mediation went on for 9 hours yesterday but no conclusion was reached and this morning, neither fighter was present at the actual mediation. A revised proposal was given to both fighters, with Mayweather being the one to disagree. The stipulations in the new proposal is at the time unknown.

The underlying issue was the drug testing demands of Floyd Mayweather Jr. The former top rated fighter in the world wanted random blood tests of the Filipino champion based pretty much entirely on the suspicions of Floyd Mayweather Sr. and despite him never failing a drug test. Though they would both be going through the same tests, Pacquiao would only agree to 3 blood tests and unlimited urine tests.

This leaves both fighters to take on 2 opponents in the meanwhile until they can decide when they finally want to get together and fight. Pacquiao is more than likely going to be taking a fight with WBA Jr Middleweight champion Yuri Foreman, with Mayweather potentially facing either Matthew Hatton of the UK (chuckle) or former IBF Jr. welterweight champ Paulie Malignaggi.

Many boxing fans feel that the blood test demand by Mayweather is unwarranted. What is also grinding the gears of the same fans is that Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer gave very vocal support to the blood tests after refusing to agree to Shane Mosley undergoing blood tests for a potential fight against Zab Judah that never materialized in 2008. According to a press release at the time, Pacquiao can be found in an interview following his 2005 loss to Erik Morales discussing the mental effects of having his blood drawn within 48 hours of the bout. According to him, he was informed that his blood documentation had been lost and he would have to give another sample.Having his blood removed in such an artificial way left him feeling weak. Even Morales had said that his punches didn’t hurt after beating Pacquiao by decision.This lead to the disagreement between the frequency and cutoff date for the blood tests.

This author’s personal opinion is riddled with frustration and a little bit of confusion. First off, if this is some sort of terribly conceived plan to keep on hyping up the fight, I’d rather they didn’t. This fight has continually demonstrated that it sells itself. If the lawsuit or PED allegations were meant to increase the drama, then I would consider it overkill. However, if this fight really, really, REALLY is off, then the lawsuit should go on as planned. Manny’s honor was besmirched by baseless accusations, and no, he doesn’t have anything to hide by refusing to take the tests no matter what the Floyd fan boys tell you. Manny’s refusal to test isn’t an attempt to hide any potential chemical transgressions so much as it’s his way of standing his ground and refusing to bend to Mayweather’s will and demands. All too often, people will throw the basic right to innocence until proven guilty out the window. The Mayweathers haven’t so much as presented a single shred of evidence to support their allegations, and the minute that the whispers of steroid use surround an athlete,the results could be costly. Pacquiao wasn’t like a baseball player who could barely hit the fence and then suddenly started crushing balls over the stadium walls left and right. He stopped shrinking himself down to make the lower weights and trained himself against pain while fully optimizing his body’s ability to produce his destruction of Ricky Hatton last May and Miguel Cotto in November. Simply put, Pacquiao is a killing machine powered by rice and fish.

Mayweather’s refusal to accept any sort of compromise leads me to believe that his 0 truly is more important to him than 40+ million dollars. To think that both sides have been capable of blowing through several months of anticipation with nothing to show for it is downright aggravating. I hope Pacquiao would pick a better opponent than Foreman,but perhaps in the future he can take on the winner of Mosley-Berto.

By Eric Thomas: If Floyd Mayweather Jr. wants his negotiations with World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao to get back on schedule, Floyds might possibly need to issue a public apology and agree to drop the random blood testing demands for his March 13th fight with Pacquiao. Pacquiao’s promoter, Bob Arum, said he wants the random blood testing dropped and some kind of public apology from Mayweather, according to news from the Sports.inquirer.

Pacquiao filed a defamation lawsuit against Mayweather, Floyd Mayweather Sr., Roger Mayweather, Oscar De La Hoya and Richard Schaefer. However, with the defamation lawsuit in process, it’s unclear what Mayweather’s lawyer would say about him giving a public apology, if Mayweather would even consider doing this. Currently, Mayweather’s management team and Top Rank will be meeting with a mediator Daniel Weinstein tomorrow to try and solve the impasse in the negotiations.

If Mayweather drops his demand for the random blood tests and issues a public apology to Pacquiao this will likely be all that is needed to get the fight back in motion. However, if Mayweather gives in to all of these points, it would appear that he would be caving in on everything without Pacquiao’s team meeting him halfway. Would Mayweather be able to give on these issues? It would give him a shot at making between twenty five and forty million if he can somehow get past all this mess with Pacquiao.

Pacquiao could face WBA light middleweight champion Yuri Foreman next as an alternate opponent in March if the Mayweather talks fail to move forward.

By Dave Lahr: In an article at Tempo.com.ph Manny Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum says “It’s unbelievable. They don’t care who Manny fights.” Arum is speaking about Pacquiao’s popularity with stadium owners and boxing fans around the world many of who can’t get enough news about the Filipino star. Pacquiao and unbeaten Floyd Mayweather Jr. are currently stuck in their negotiations with the random blood testing being the sticking point in the negotiations.

On Tuesday, an outside mediator, Daniel Weinstein, will be meeting with Top Rank, Golden Boy Promotions and Mayweather Promotions to try and rectify the stalled negotiations. As for Arum’s claim that boxing fans don’t care who Pacquiao fights, that remains to be seen. Arum wants to match Pacquiao up next with World Boxing Association light middleweight champion Yuri Foreman if the mediator fails at reviving the Mayweather-Pacquiao talks.

A fight against Foreman, a fighter only known among hardcore boxing fans, would be a big test for whether casual boxing fans would be interested in paying for to see Pacquiao fight an unknown fighter. Pacquiao wants another title, and Foreman would appear to be the easiest way for Manny to accomplish that.

A much harder task, perhaps even impossible, would be for Arum to match Pacquiao up with WBC light middleweight champion Sergio Martinez, who is considered by many boxing fans to be the best fighter in the light middleweight division. That fight would be a much more interesting fight than to see Pacquiao fight Foreman, who is a fighter with weak punching power and a history of being a runner in his fights.

To be sure, it doesn’t give one a sense of well being to see Arum so upbeat about the stadium owners not caring who Pacquiao fights.

That gives me the impression that there may not be any budging in the negotiation process by Pacquiao’s management team. I hope I’m wrong about this, because I really want to see Mayweather vs. Pacquiao. But if Arum believes like he says that people don’t care who Pacquiao fights, then there is no real reason for Pacquiao’s team to give in and meet Mayweather halfway.

I think some fans would interested in seeing Pacquiao fight Foreman, but nothing like the same amount of fans that have watched Pacquiao’s recent fights against Miguel Cotto, Ricky Hatton and Oscar De La Hoya. It takes two good fighters to make a mega fight, and if you match Pacquiao against a fighter that many casual boxing fans have never heard of in their life, I doubt they’ll willing to pay big money to watch Pacquiao on pay-per-view no matter who is packaged together on the undercard.

By Peter Wells: A man whom was deeply involved in his son’s career has passed away, suffering a heart attack yesterday. That man was Miguel Cotto Sr, father of former World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Miguel Cotto. Cotto Sr pledged his son’s corner to stop the fight against Manny Pacquiao where he was witnessing his son taking a brutal battering. Cotto Sr and Jr were close, and we all offer our deepest sympathies to the Cotto family.

Miguel Cotto Sr was suffering from Asthma and was driving in Caguas town centre when he felt ill, he then stopped the car and asked a local Liquor store owner to call an ambulance. Douglas Melendez told press that he called the hospital 4 times, and the last call was too late.

Evangelista Cotto was one of the first to the scene and was too upset to speak. Cotto’s former trainer and uncle hadn’t talked to Cotto Sr since Evangelista filed a complaint about Miguel Cotto and Cotto Sr took to his son’s side.

Felix Trinidad Sr father of 3 division world champion Felix ‘Tito’ Trinidad said that the news saddened him very much as he knew the Cotto family very much and gave his condolences to the Cotto family.

Miguel Cotto didn’t have much to say but said, “We appreciate all the tokens of affection and sympathy. It is a very painful moment for me and for my entire family. I hope that everyone respects our request for space to overcome this difficult moment”.

Cotto was saddened but strong about the sudden loss of his father and we respect his wishes and even though it has been a terrible start of the year for him we all hope things get better.

By Sean McDaniel: In a last ditch effort to save the March 13th mega fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, an outside mediator, retired judge Daniel Weinstein, will meet with Top Rank, and Mayweather’s management team to try and overcome the stalemate in the negotiations for the fight. Weinstein, who previously helped work out a problem between Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions in 2007, has to find a way to solve the dispute over the drug testing.

Mayweather, 32, wants random blood tests during the training period before the fight, but Pacquiao only wants three separate blood tests – one at the kickoff for the fight this month, another 30 days before the fight and a final one after the bout.

Mayweather asked for blood testing to be done for the fight despite the Nevada Athletic Commission, who oversees the bout, only asking for urine tests. Pacquiao and Top Rank feel as if they’re being pushed around by Mayweather with the extra blood tests, and don’t want to take more than the three blood tests that Pacquiao has already agreed upon. Unfortunately, this is the sticking point.

Mayweather hasn’t shown any signs of backing down on his request for blood tests inside the 30 day window, and Pacquiao is just as firm not to take any more than those three. Both fighters agree to the random urine tests. At stake for the fight is a possible $40 million for each fighter if they can come to an agreement.

In addition to the problems with the blood testing methods, Pacquiao has filed a lawsuit filed against Floyd Mayweather Jr., Floyd Sr., Roger Mayweather, Oscar De La Hoya and Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer for defamation. If this fight is to go forward, the mediator will likely have to work on getting this suit dropped, because it might make it difficult for the two fighters to come to an agreement if this lawsuit is still pending.

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum has a back-up plan of matching Pacquiao against World Boxing Association light middleweight champion Yuri Foreman if the mediation process fails. This obviously would be a huge letdown for boxing fans who were hoping that Pacquiao would face Mayweather or at the very least a better known fighter like Shane Mosley. However, Pacquiao wants to try and collect an 8th world title, and if he can beat Foreman, this would give Pacquiao’s his 8th title. Many boxing fans on the internet have been less than thrilled with the prospect of seeing this fight, because many of them see Foreman as the weaker of the light middleweight champions. They also wonder whether Foreman, the champion, would have to fight Pacquiao at a catch weight while still having his title on the line for the bout.

As for Mayweather, there has been talk about him facing British fringe welterweight contender Matthew Hatton, the younger brother of Ricky Hatton. That, too, hasn’t been a fight that boxing fans have been thrilled about.

By Scott Gilfoid: HBO boxing analyst Larry Merchant doesn’t understand why Floyd Mayweather Jr. has created such a big deal about the random drug testing in recent weeks, saying to Boxing Fanhouse “If it’s not gamesmanship [by Mayweather], then what they’re really saying is that ‘Nobody can be as good as Manny Pacquiao unless he’s helped by something.’ Maybe it reflects on Floyd Mayweather. Even if he believes he’s going to win, maybe he thinks that there’s a change he won’t.” This makes a lot of sense. Mayweather appears to have a doubt in his mind that he won’t be able to beat Pacquiao.

Why else would he make a huge production about the random blood testing for his March 13th bout against World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Pacquiao? That looks like a fear-based move to me. If Mayweather was really as confident as he portrays himself, he probably wouldn’t be worrying so much about the drug testing. After all, it isn’t like Pacquiao is going to come into the fight out-weighing him like Mayweather did against his last opponent Juan Manuel Marquez in September.

If he’s the same weight as Pacquiao, if not heavier, than why should Mayweather be worrying so much about the drug testing? It just seems to me that Mayweather has doubt in his mind about whether he can beat Pacquiao, and by having him drug tested numerous times, it would somehow quiet Mayweather’s self doubt.

Merchant doesn’t understand the logic behind Mayweather calling so much attention to drugs for this fight, remarking “I thought that it was gamesmanship, because I didn’t see anything to be won by this. If you think that he’s [Pacquiao] been using illegal substances, do you want him called out before the fight and revealed, and blow the whole deal? I never got the point of all this.”

I don’t understand that either. By doing that, Mayweather is basically talking down the fight, because many boxing fans might be turned off about a fight if they think one of the participants is using illegal performance enhancers. What good is it to mention that kind of thing if you want boxing fans to get excited about the fight and purchase it in droves by pay-per-view?

If anything, Mayweather should be keeping his trap shut and trying to talk up Pacquiao or at least say how he’s going to beat him. The worse thing, I think, for Mayweather to do is to put so much emphasis on the drug testing methods for the bout. That’s like a huge turn-off, at least for me.

I don’t think Mayweather has clearly thought this issue out and seen what kind of adverse effect it would have in drumming up ticket sales and pay-per-view buys. I’m just left with the impression that Mayweather is afraid about this fight about losing and ending up with his first defeat on his record.

By Scott Gilfoid: According to Michael Marley of Examiner.com, the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao bout is breathing new life. Marley reports that Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum said that he’s willing to meet with Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer next week, as well as the attorneys for Pacquiao and Golden Boy, and see if he can work something out. As things stand now, Pacquiao is going to be starting training next week with trainer Freddie Roach at the Wild Card Gym, in Los Angeles.

Marley states that Arum doesn’t seem as excited about a potential bout between World Boxing Association light middleweight champion Yuri Foreman and Pacquiao compared to before. That’s not surprising, because few boxing fans seem all that interested in paying to see Pacquiao fight the little known Foreman.

Marley says that Arum is open to meeting with judge Weinstein, the same judge who assisted in mediation with Top Rank and Golden Boy Promotions in the past. “Something could be bubbling,” Arum says, hinting that there would be some movement between the hard-line stances between the parties of the two fighters Pacquiao and Mayweather.

As of now, the sticking point is over the random blood tests for drugs that Mayweather wants for the fight to take place. Arum says, “Our first priority, before any fight with anybody, is to clear Manny’s name. Would that be through an apology? I don’t want to get into that.”

This is very interesting. Would Mayweather be willing to make a public apology to Pacquiao about the drug using allegations? I don’t know if I can see Mayweather doing that, but then again he stands to make a lot of money if he did apologize. If it meant getting the fight back on track, and having Pacquiao’s lawsuit for defamation dropped, Mayweather would stand to gain a heck of a lot by doing a bit of groveling.

Arum continues, “I will say that, if they [Golden Boy Promotions CEO Schaefer, Mayweather, and the attorneys from both sides] to meet in front of judge Weinstein on Monday, Tuesday or any day, then we are willing to listen. If some mediation occurs, and I don’t know if it will, then we would have to listen to that.” This sounds very promising. Arum also said that ‘Rumblings” about mediation were given to him by Daniel Petrocelli, the lawyer for Pacquiao.

By Jason Kim: As reported by The Grand Rapids Press, World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao could stand to win tens of millions of dollars if his lawsuit for defamation against Floyd Mayweather Jr., Oscar De La Hoya, Floyd Mayweather Sr., Roger Mayweather and Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer is successful. Pacquiao has hired famous American lawyer Daniel Petrocelli to represent him in this case. Petrocelli said in an interview at Grand Rapids Press, “They’ve already done untold damage, in the tens of millions of dollars, and we’re going to see this doesn’t happen again, and we’re going to recover for all the damage that they’ve already inflicted.”


If Pacquiao does win this case, he may not need to fight Mayweather after all to get a huge payday, because this case could potentially bring Pacquiao millions of dollars in damages. If Pacquiao fights Mayweather, he stands to make between $25 million to $40 million. That fight is looking more and less likely to happen because the two sides have been unable to agree to the drug testing methods.

By Michael Taylor: Floyd Mayweather Jr. is known so well by boxing fans for his torments and the way he gets under opponents skin, but usually does it when they stand face to face, and when the fight is arranged. But this time Mayweather has already enraged Manny Pacquiao, and Manny wasn’t short of words in a recent interview back in the Philippines. Manny has now agreed to do urine tests before the fight but still the fight is still in danger.

Manny said, “I can’t believe these guys can lie without batting an eyelash and they would even make it appear that I am the culprit for the delay of the fight and saying I don’t want it to happen. Liars go to hell. They should be man enough and own up to their words”.


So finally Pacquiao has come back, and lets hope he does the punishment in the ring, because no boxing fans are going to be at the court now are they Manny.

Manny wasn’t quite finished and had to add some remarks about Mayweather, “They claimed I threatened to walk away from the largest fight in history. That’s the first lie! Last week, I told Floyd Jr, to shut his big, pretty mouth and that we should fight so that the world will get to see who is the best fighter in the planet.

On December 30, 2009, pound-for-pound boxing champion Manny Pacquiao filed a lawsuit in Nevada federal court against Floyd Mayweather, Jr., Floyd Mayweather, Sr., Roger Mayweather, Mayweather Promotions, LLC, and Golden Boy Promotions executives Oscar de la Hoya, and Richard Schaefer for making false and defamatory statements accusing Pacquiao of taking performance-enhancing drugs. The complaint is attached.

The lawsuit claims the Mayweathers, de la Hoya, and Schaefer knew that Pacquiao has never taken performance-enhancing drugs, knew their statements were false, but made them anyway out of “ill-will, spite, malice, revenge, and envy.”

Pacquiao has retained Daniel Petrocelli of the Los Angeles-based law firm of O’Melveny & Myers LLP. About the filing of the complaint, Petrocelli stated: “Manny Pacquiao’s achievements come from God-given talent and an indefatigable work ethic — not steroids. He cannot and will not allow others to deliberately misrepresent his years of hard work and tarnish his reputation.”

The lawsuit was filed in federal district court in Las Vegas, Nevada, and seeks compensatory and punitive damages for defendants’ wrongful conduct.

By Eric Thomas: We very likely could be seeing a rematch between Juan Diaz and Paulie Malignaggi on December 12th, according to the latest boxing news. Contracts have reportedly been sent out for the fight. The bout will either take place in Las Vegas or Chicago, not in Diaz’s home town of Houston, Texas, where their previous controversial fight took place.

In that fight, Diaz won it by a 12 round unanimous decision with two judges scoring it closely and the third giving it to Diaz by a lopsided margin. Malignaggi, who appeared to win the fight by at least two rounds, was infuriated after the bout, complaining that he had been robbed by a bad decision. Diaz, however, felt that he had done more than enough to win the fight and naturally felt quite good about the decision that was handed down by the judges.

Malignaggi’s promoter has been trying to put together a rematch since then, but it’s been slow going because Diaz was looking to go in another direction, wanting to fight Ricky Hatton and Juan Manuel Marquez. Diaz wants to fight Hatton, but the chances of Ricky deciding to fight Diaz of all opponents would seem very remote at best. Hatton obviously had better options available to him and doesn’t need to fight Diaz, a fighter who stopped by Marquez earlier this year in the 9th round and was also defeated by Nate Campbell last year.

It seems pretty clear that Malignaggi is Diaz’s best option, mainly because HBO is interested in showing the fight and boxing fans are somewhat interested in watching the bout. I say somewhat because this isn’t a championship bout, lets be clear on that. Malignaggi is a good light welterweight, but he’s far from being the best in the division.

That title probably would go to Timothy Bradley. And there are a number of other light welterweights besides Bradley that are better fighters than Malignaggi. Diaz really doesn’t have a place in the light welterweight division because he appears to be too small and not powerful enough to beat the better fighters like Marcos Maidana, Kendall Holt, Ricardo Torres and Victor Ortiz. Even at lightweight, Diaz might not be a championship caliber fighter anymore.

The top guys at that weight class are Marquez, Ali Funeka and Edwin Valero, all of whom would likely beat Diaz if they were to fight. So a fight between Diaz and Malignaggi is more of a kind of a spectacle rather than a fight between future champions.

Diaz might be able to be a champion again if he moves back down and fights strictly lightweights. But if he stays at light welterweight, he’s going to get beaten up again and again by the bigger, stronger fighters in the division. Diaz is a good fighter, talented enough to beat fighters like Michael Katsidis, but not good enough obviously to beat Marquez and Campbell. Diaz would probably have big problems with Valero as well due to his power.

source: philstar.com

MANILA, Philippines - Unless Floyd Mayweather comes to his senses, Bob Arum would rather see himself promoting a fight between Shane Mosley against the winner of the Manny Pacquiao-Miguel Cotto showdown on Nov. 14.

Arum, the maker of great fights, has described Mayweather, who insists that he’s still the best out there after coming out of a long retirement to beat a smaller Juan Manuel Marquez, as “delusional.”

He said Mayweather can’t even beat Mosley, Cotto or Pacquiao, and the undefeated ex-pound-for-pound champion is out of his mind to think of getting 60 percent of the purse if he gets to fight the Filipino superstar.

Arum, who was in the Philippines last week to take a glimpse of Pacquiao’s training in Baguio City, told Boxing Scene that Mayweather should fight Mosley, but since the flamboyant American won’t do that, then he better stay on the sideline.

A separate article that came out of SportingNews.com said Arum would “strongly encourage” the winner between Pacquiao and Cotto to fight Mosley instead for a unification of the WBA and WBO welterweight titles.

It was reported recently that the purse split between Pacquiao and Mayweather will keep the fight from happening because neither fighter would settle for anything less than a 50-50 split.

“If I start hearing 60-40 (from Mayweather) that just tells me to hang up and move on to the next guy,” Arum was quoted as saying.

“I think Cotto probably beats Mayweather. I think Manny probably beats Mayweather and I think Mosley beats Mayweather.”

Pacquiao, meanwhile, slugged it out for another six rounds with his sparring mates in Baguio City, raising the total number of rounds to 24 after five sparring days.

Pacquiao has been working out with American Shawn Porter and Mexican Urbano Antillon as he continues to await the arrival of another sparring partner in Jose Luis Castillo.

Castillo, the former WBC lightweight champion who has fought great fights against the late Diego Corrales and Mayweather, was supposed to arrive last Tuesday but until yesterday he was out of the radar.