Showing posts with label Pacquiao-Mayweather. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pacquiao-Mayweather. Show all posts
Friday, April 24, 2015
Foot Locker – It’s Really Happening feat. Manny Pacquiao Part 2
"The last time Manny Pacquiao was in a Foot Locker commercial he found out the fight that everyone wanted to see was finally happening. Except it wasn’t really, it was just a commercial. But now it is. Even though this is also a Foot Locker commercial."
Thursday, April 23, 2015
The Matrix: Neo meets Pacman
Add Keanu Reeves to the list of celebrity supporters of Manny Pacquiao in his fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. on May 2.
Wednesday, April 22, 2015
Wednesday, April 15, 2015
Thursday, April 9, 2015
RollingStone: Manny Pacquiao and the Fight of His Life
By Michaell Weinreb
There is the inner circle, there is the outer circle and there are the ever-widening concentric circles of hangers-on who drift about the periphery like a distant star hovering around the sun. There are the members of the Filipino media who show up every day, and there are the members of the American media who show up in fits and starts (today Rolling Stone, tomorrow The New York Times), and there are the HBO executives, and there is the promoter and there is the camera crew the promoter hired to document everything.
There is the security detail and there are the pressmen and the managers and the canines and the trainers and the celebrities, because it would not be a Pacquiao camp without the celebrities. One day, it was Chappelle; on another day, it was Robert Duvall; sometimes, it's Mark Wahlberg, and a day or two from now, it will be a fellow Christian soldier named Tebow. On this particular afternoon, a sedan lurches forward into one of the spots and discharges a gadfly of a fight promoter named Bob Arum, who casually introduces his driver as Bill Friedkin, the man who directed the most iconic celluloid car chase of the 20th century.
Continue reading HERE
There is the inner circle, there is the outer circle and there are the ever-widening concentric circles of hangers-on who drift about the periphery like a distant star hovering around the sun. There are the members of the Filipino media who show up every day, and there are the members of the American media who show up in fits and starts (today Rolling Stone, tomorrow The New York Times), and there are the HBO executives, and there is the promoter and there is the camera crew the promoter hired to document everything.
There is the security detail and there are the pressmen and the managers and the canines and the trainers and the celebrities, because it would not be a Pacquiao camp without the celebrities. One day, it was Chappelle; on another day, it was Robert Duvall; sometimes, it's Mark Wahlberg, and a day or two from now, it will be a fellow Christian soldier named Tebow. On this particular afternoon, a sedan lurches forward into one of the spots and discharges a gadfly of a fight promoter named Bob Arum, who casually introduces his driver as Bill Friedkin, the man who directed the most iconic celluloid car chase of the 20th century.
Continue reading HERE
Don't Believe The Hype: Mayweather-Pacquiao Is Not Good Vs. Evil
by Diana Moskovitz
Deadspin
The many failings of Floyd Mayweather to follow the basic rules on how to be a good human being are well documented. He’s a serial woman beater who once evicted his father and pleaded no contest to threatening his children. His odiousness speaks for itself. But his competitor, Manny Pacquiao, is busy (via his handlers) doing his best to paint himself as a good guy, the man who will get revenge for all the wrong Floyd has wrought on the world. Good vs. evil is an easy sell of a narrative, and sportswriters have been quick to buy it as fact. But it’s insultingly shallow, and requires conveniently forgetting that Pacquiao is a shithead too.
Like Mayweather, Pacquiao’s dirty history is a mixture of personal failures amplified by the power that comes with wealth and celebrity. He has spoken out against gay marriage, insisting he has gay relatives but still opposes same-sex marriage because, “It’s the law of God,” was a mostly absent congressman in his home country last year, and didn’t step in when a basketball player in the Philippines was fired for stating the obvious—that the 5-foot-7 Pacquiao’s basketball career was a stunt and a joke. His concerns about the laws of God apparently didn’t conflict with allegedly mauling a fellow politician or cheating on his wife. The Phillippine government says he owes tens of millions in back taxes. And should you try to take comfort in thinking that perhaps Pacquiao at least respects women more than Mayweather does, remember that he fought against legislation in the Philippines that would mandate sex education, subsidize contraception, and expand family-planning offerings. And he is not just some random celebrity with a platform; he’s a politician who actively affects policy. That’s objectively more harmful than the usual powerless bigot-athlete.
Freddie Roach wants you to forget all that. Given his man’s cut of the PPV pot, he’s literally banking on it. The longtime trainer fed mindlessly scribbling reporters their talking points, and they’ve dutifully repeated them. USA Today is just one example, in a piece under the all-knowing headline.
“Pacquiao fueled by Mayweather’s domestic abuse.”
“Manny is really against domestic violence,” Roach said. “It is a big issue maybe in the Philippines for him and being a congressman he can control some of that stuff. That is a big plus for me that Manny does not like the guy, I think the killer instinct is going to come back a lot faster.” ...
“(I see the fight as) good against evil, yes. I have even thought about bringing a couple of the metro cops from Vegas in to tell Manny how many times (Mayweather) has been arrested and how bad of a guy he is, but I decided I can’t go that far. He already doesn’t like him; I think we are OK.
The article doesn’t say what, if anything, Pacquiao has done or might do back in the Philippines to prevent domestic violence. Hell, it doesn’t even quote Pacquiao himself. This is pure, cynical salesmanship from Roach, who worked with post-prison Mike Tyson, a convicted rapist whose victim testified that the boxer laughed about the assault while she cried.
Then there’s Rolling Stone, which portrays Roach utilizing Mayweather’s badness as a training tool:
But with Mayweather, Roach can work Manny’s natural antipathy: He’s a bad guy, he’ll whisper into Pacquiao’s ear sometimes. He’s bad for boxing. You’ll be doing a courtesy to the world if you knock him out.
“He knows he’s a bad person,” Roach says.
At least reporter Michael Weinreb actually asked Pacquiao about his feelings toward Mayweather, though he got an answer oblique to Roach’s straightforward trope-usage. “Usually I don’t comment on his personal life,” Pacquiao tells Weinreb. Perhaps that’s true; it’s also a convenient way of outsourcing the media manipulation while keeping his hands clean.
Even older than leaving the hype to the hype men is the urge to package a fight in biblical terms, good vs. evil, the bad boy vs. the avenging angel, the evil woman-beater versus the defender of all. To see exactly how much stock to put into these roles, recall Mayweather’s 2001 bout with Diego Corrales, who had been charged with assaulting his pregnant wife. Leading up to the fight, Mayweather declared he would beat Corrales for “every battered woman in the world.” Mayweather won and went on to be arrested multiple times on charges that he violently battered the women in his life. Virtue is fungible.
Which leaves us here, three weeks from the biggest fight of the young century. There are plenty of reasons, based purely on what’s likely to happen inside the ring, to avoid the fight. But sports is never just about the act itself. It’s about the the storylines, the unknown, the unexpected, the sides we choose, and what those choices say about us. We do define ourselves by the team or the athlete we back. And in this case, we have no comfortable choices.
Sure this all can be categorized and analyzed until the lesser evil is identified to our satisfaction. What’s worse, beating up women or trying to make it harder for millions of them to get birth control? Do you mind less the absent politician or the abusive father? Which is easier to tolerate, a man who leveraged his fame and fortune for favors across the Philippines or a man who leveraged his fame and fortune for favors across the United States? Athletes are human; they exist on the same ethical continuum as the rest of us, stretching from saints to sinners with a long, murky middle where most reside. It should be enough to sell this fight that Mayweather and Pacquiao are the two best boxers of their generation. But don’t let the appeal to morality confuse you: that’s all they’re good for.
Deadspin
The many failings of Floyd Mayweather to follow the basic rules on how to be a good human being are well documented. He’s a serial woman beater who once evicted his father and pleaded no contest to threatening his children. His odiousness speaks for itself. But his competitor, Manny Pacquiao, is busy (via his handlers) doing his best to paint himself as a good guy, the man who will get revenge for all the wrong Floyd has wrought on the world. Good vs. evil is an easy sell of a narrative, and sportswriters have been quick to buy it as fact. But it’s insultingly shallow, and requires conveniently forgetting that Pacquiao is a shithead too.
Like Mayweather, Pacquiao’s dirty history is a mixture of personal failures amplified by the power that comes with wealth and celebrity. He has spoken out against gay marriage, insisting he has gay relatives but still opposes same-sex marriage because, “It’s the law of God,” was a mostly absent congressman in his home country last year, and didn’t step in when a basketball player in the Philippines was fired for stating the obvious—that the 5-foot-7 Pacquiao’s basketball career was a stunt and a joke. His concerns about the laws of God apparently didn’t conflict with allegedly mauling a fellow politician or cheating on his wife. The Phillippine government says he owes tens of millions in back taxes. And should you try to take comfort in thinking that perhaps Pacquiao at least respects women more than Mayweather does, remember that he fought against legislation in the Philippines that would mandate sex education, subsidize contraception, and expand family-planning offerings. And he is not just some random celebrity with a platform; he’s a politician who actively affects policy. That’s objectively more harmful than the usual powerless bigot-athlete.
Freddie Roach wants you to forget all that. Given his man’s cut of the PPV pot, he’s literally banking on it. The longtime trainer fed mindlessly scribbling reporters their talking points, and they’ve dutifully repeated them. USA Today is just one example, in a piece under the all-knowing headline.
“Pacquiao fueled by Mayweather’s domestic abuse.”
“Manny is really against domestic violence,” Roach said. “It is a big issue maybe in the Philippines for him and being a congressman he can control some of that stuff. That is a big plus for me that Manny does not like the guy, I think the killer instinct is going to come back a lot faster.” ...
“(I see the fight as) good against evil, yes. I have even thought about bringing a couple of the metro cops from Vegas in to tell Manny how many times (Mayweather) has been arrested and how bad of a guy he is, but I decided I can’t go that far. He already doesn’t like him; I think we are OK.
The article doesn’t say what, if anything, Pacquiao has done or might do back in the Philippines to prevent domestic violence. Hell, it doesn’t even quote Pacquiao himself. This is pure, cynical salesmanship from Roach, who worked with post-prison Mike Tyson, a convicted rapist whose victim testified that the boxer laughed about the assault while she cried.
Then there’s Rolling Stone, which portrays Roach utilizing Mayweather’s badness as a training tool:
But with Mayweather, Roach can work Manny’s natural antipathy: He’s a bad guy, he’ll whisper into Pacquiao’s ear sometimes. He’s bad for boxing. You’ll be doing a courtesy to the world if you knock him out.
“He knows he’s a bad person,” Roach says.
At least reporter Michael Weinreb actually asked Pacquiao about his feelings toward Mayweather, though he got an answer oblique to Roach’s straightforward trope-usage. “Usually I don’t comment on his personal life,” Pacquiao tells Weinreb. Perhaps that’s true; it’s also a convenient way of outsourcing the media manipulation while keeping his hands clean.
Even older than leaving the hype to the hype men is the urge to package a fight in biblical terms, good vs. evil, the bad boy vs. the avenging angel, the evil woman-beater versus the defender of all. To see exactly how much stock to put into these roles, recall Mayweather’s 2001 bout with Diego Corrales, who had been charged with assaulting his pregnant wife. Leading up to the fight, Mayweather declared he would beat Corrales for “every battered woman in the world.” Mayweather won and went on to be arrested multiple times on charges that he violently battered the women in his life. Virtue is fungible.
Which leaves us here, three weeks from the biggest fight of the young century. There are plenty of reasons, based purely on what’s likely to happen inside the ring, to avoid the fight. But sports is never just about the act itself. It’s about the the storylines, the unknown, the unexpected, the sides we choose, and what those choices say about us. We do define ourselves by the team or the athlete we back. And in this case, we have no comfortable choices.
Sure this all can be categorized and analyzed until the lesser evil is identified to our satisfaction. What’s worse, beating up women or trying to make it harder for millions of them to get birth control? Do you mind less the absent politician or the abusive father? Which is easier to tolerate, a man who leveraged his fame and fortune for favors across the Philippines or a man who leveraged his fame and fortune for favors across the United States? Athletes are human; they exist on the same ethical continuum as the rest of us, stretching from saints to sinners with a long, murky middle where most reside. It should be enough to sell this fight that Mayweather and Pacquiao are the two best boxers of their generation. But don’t let the appeal to morality confuse you: that’s all they’re good for.
Wednesday, April 8, 2015
RollingStone: Inside Manny Pacquiao's Fight Club
Last month, Rolling Stone sent author Michael Weinreb to Los Angeles, to spend a day with boxer Manny Pacquiao as he trained for his May 2 fight with Floyd Mayweather. Turns out, the sparring and speed-bag work was only part of the story – the constant circus that follows his every move was impossible to ignore (Pacquiao is arguably the most famous fighter in the world, after all).
"There is the inner circle, there is the outer circle and there are the ever-widening concentric circles of hangers-on who drift about the periphery like a distant star hovering around the sun," Weinreb writes of the scene at Wild Card.
"There are the members of the Filipino media who show up every day, and there are the members of the American media who show up in fits and starts, and there are the HBO executives, and there is the promoter and there is the camera crew the promoter hired to document everything. There is the security detail and there are the pressmen and the managers and the canines and the trainers and the celebrities, because it would not be a Pacquiao camp without the celebrities."
It also would not be a Pacquiao camp without lunch at his favorite Thai restaurant, Nat's, a few jokes from entourage members Buboy and Nonoy or trainer Freddie Roach filling the swear jar he's set up at ringside ($5 per profanity, by the way). Through it all, photographer Leslie dela Vega snapped away, and here's her photo diary of the day with the Pride of the Philippines.
Continue reading HERE
"There is the inner circle, there is the outer circle and there are the ever-widening concentric circles of hangers-on who drift about the periphery like a distant star hovering around the sun," Weinreb writes of the scene at Wild Card.
"There are the members of the Filipino media who show up every day, and there are the members of the American media who show up in fits and starts, and there are the HBO executives, and there is the promoter and there is the camera crew the promoter hired to document everything. There is the security detail and there are the pressmen and the managers and the canines and the trainers and the celebrities, because it would not be a Pacquiao camp without the celebrities."
It also would not be a Pacquiao camp without lunch at his favorite Thai restaurant, Nat's, a few jokes from entourage members Buboy and Nonoy or trainer Freddie Roach filling the swear jar he's set up at ringside ($5 per profanity, by the way). Through it all, photographer Leslie dela Vega snapped away, and here's her photo diary of the day with the Pride of the Philippines.
Continue reading HERE
Wednesday, November 19, 2014
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
The Christian Post: Manny Pacquiao Talks Being a Stronger Fighter in God
Filipino Pugilist Comments on Marquez Fight, Future Mayweather Bout
By Christine Thomasos , Christian Post Reporter
Manny Pacquiao is
gearing up to face Juan Manuel Marquez in the ring for the fourth time
on Saturday and despite the critics, the Filipino pugilist believes that
his Christian faith makes him a better fighter.
"What I can say is, if God is with you, who can be against you," Pacquiao questioned. "All things are possible with God."
Despite his faith, Pacquiao told the publication that he can still have a "killer instinct" in the ring.
"Boxing is a sport. We allow each other to hit each other, but I'm not treating my opponent like my enemy," Pacquiao said. "We're doing a job to entertain people."
"Because God loves us so much. He doesn't want us to die. He takes no pleasure in the death of anyone," Pacquiao told ESPN. "That's what He said. I mean, if we don't have God in our life, we're considered dead."
Pacquiao describe his favorite Bible verses when speaking to the publication.
"In Ezekiel 18, verse 31 and 32, it says: 'Rid yourself of all the offenses you have committed and get a new heart and a new spirit and for I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord,'" Pacquiao said. "Repent and live."
While Pacquiao will face Marquez in the ring next, his most popular opponent has yet to fight him. Floyd Mayweather, undefeated pugilist, has been a coveted opponent for Pacquiao and his fans for years.
Although a fight has yet to be scheduled between the two, Pacquiao said he hopes that they will both enter the ring on opposite sides next year. Until then, the Filipino boxer said he is praying for Mayweather.
"I have no comment about him. But I'm praying for him that he will find a way of life," Pacquiao told ESPN. "Because our life here in this world is temporary. I'm not angry at him. I like Floyd. This is my brother. In God, in Christ Jesus."
International Business Times: Roach Waiting on Mayweather Response as Pacquiao Demands 2013 Showdown
By Adrian Back
Legendary trainer Freddie Roach has revealed that he is waiting for a response from Floyd Mayweather after an offer was made on behalf of his fighter Manny Pacquiao.
The two future hall of fame fighters have repeatedly failed to agree terms on a mega fight that would go down as one of the biggest bouts in the history of the sport.
Mayweather has demanded that there be stringent drug testing in place for any fight, whilst also demanding a higher percentage of the earnings, two clauses that Pacquiao has recently agreed to meet.
It has remained impossible to make the fight as Pacquiao prepares to face Juan Manuel Marquez for a fourth time, while Mayweather was sentenced to a short spell behind bars earlier this year.
Mayweather has demanded that there be stringent drug testing in place for any fight, whilst also demanding a higher percentage of the earnings, two clauses that Pacquiao has recently agreed to meet.
It has remained impossible to make the fight as Pacquiao prepares to face Juan Manuel Marquez for a fourth time, while Mayweather was sentenced to a short spell behind bars earlier this year.
Legendary trainer Freddie Roach has revealed that he is waiting for a response from Floyd Mayweather after an offer was made on behalf of his fighter Manny Pacquiao.
The two future hall of fame fighters have repeatedly failed to agree terms on a mega fight that would go down as one of the biggest bouts in the history of the sport.
Mayweather has demanded that there be stringent drug testing in place for any fight, whilst also demanding a higher percentage of the earnings, two clauses that Pacquiao has recently agreed to meet.
It has remained impossible to make the fight as Pacquiao prepares to face Juan Manuel Marquez for a fourth time, while Mayweather was sentenced to a short spell behind bars earlier this year.
Mayweather has demanded that there be stringent drug testing in place for any fight, whilst also demanding a higher percentage of the earnings, two clauses that Pacquiao has recently agreed to meet.
It has remained impossible to make the fight as Pacquiao prepares to face Juan Manuel Marquez for a fourth time, while Mayweather was sentenced to a short spell behind bars earlier this year.
Monday, December 3, 2012
Yahoo Sports: 50 Cent, the man to make the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight happen?
By Kevin Iole
Curtis Jackson is a former boxer, so perhaps the
stamina he showed on Thursday shouldn't have been all that surprising.
Jackson, the hip hop and rap star whose stage name is 50 Cent, clearly
displayed an extraordinary aptitude for his new job as a fight promoter.
The ability to find new solutions to old problems, as well as his salesmanship, is what has made Jackson one of the most successful under-40 entrepreneurs in the world.
His sales ability and business savvy might just be the variable that finally, after more than three years of agonizing and often bizarre negotiations, brings Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao to meet in what would be the richest boxing match in history.
Pacquiao has business to take care of ahead of a potential Mayweather fight, though. On Saturday, he'll meet Juan Manuel Marquez for the fourth time in a pay-per-view bout at the MGM Grand Garden. Their first three bouts were exceptionally fast-paced and action packed, but no matter what he did, Pacquiao hasn't been able to conclusively defeat Marquez.
A win Saturday and once again talk will pick back up about if and when Pacquiao will face Mayweather.
Jackson is positioned perfectly to make the fight happen. He's been Mayweather's long-time friend, but as a boxing fan he wants to see his buddy fight Pacquiao as badly as anyone.
He started to make maneuvers toward getting the fight done more than a year ago. He finally came up with the idea of creating a promotional company with Mayweather that they were going to call TMT Promotions. Working together, Jackson thought, might be the way to get the fight made.
But when Mayweather elected not to invest his half of the money in the startup, Jackson walked away and created his own company, SMS Promotions.
Jackson signed former featherweight and super featherweight champion Yuriorkis Gamboa to a promotional deal, then quickly worked out arrangements with Top Rank CEO Bob Arum to get Gamboa onto the Saturday card featuring Pacquiao and Marquez.
"This is going to be a huge night for Gamboa, and a bigger night for boxing," Jackson said. "The kid can fight. I mean, he can fight. It's always good for boxing when you have exciting fights and that's what Gamboa's going to give."
Jackson scoffed when it was noted that all three of the fighters he signed – Gamboa, Andre Dirrell and Billy Dib – were poor ticket sellers and attracted few TV viewers.
Jackson promised to turn them into ticket sellers in short order.
If he's able to do it, it will be a feat akin to what he pulled off last month on QVC, the home shopping channel, where in nine minutes he sold $177,000 worth of headphones.
"I just made 177,000 dollars in 9min on QVC," he wrote on Twitter. "Can some one hate on me so I can know this is real life."
The next day he was back on QVC selling those same headphones as if they were bottles of water on a hot day in Las Vegas. He put up with the inane banter from the hosts because he was making extraordinary amounts of money as they yakked about his headphones and groveled about his stardom.
If he's going to play a role in getting the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight done, he'll have to find a way to make sense of the incomprehensible. Hundreds of millions of dollars are at stake and seemingly trivial issues are derailing the bout.
One of the big issues, Jackson said, is that Mayweather is incensed at how much money Pacquiao would make. Mayweather offered Pacquiao a flat $40 million for the fight, which would represent the highest purse of Pacquiao's career.
For a fight this big, even $40 million is a low-ball offer, and anyone with a modicum of business sense knows Pacquiao would have been foolish to accept that deal. But Jackson said Mayweather gets irate that fighters make so much money fighting him.
Mayweather, Jackson believes, wants the majority of the earnings for himself.
"Having to pay that kind of money really irritates Floyd," Jackson said. "He feels that when someone is making more money than they ever made, they shouldn't be asking for more. He feels like he's the star and he should be making the money and they should be thanking him for what he's willing to pay them."
He said Mayweather is "hand-picking opponents" and "looking for a reason not to take the [Pacquiao] fight."
This is a contrast to how Jackson perceives his role as a promoter: to make the fights fans want to see. He lavishes praise upon Top Rank for its way of doing business, and notes that Golden Boy does a good job.
But Jackson says few other promoters invest in their business and aren't willing to put their fighters in situations that could potentially hurt their investment.
"These guys have one fighter, one meal ticket, and you ask them if they want to fight and they aren't willing to take a risk with a guy like Gamboa unless they're at the end of the line and there are no other options," he said. "They want to protect what they have, and make sure their meal ticket keeps producing.
"Me, I look at it like this: We're going to make stars by putting our fighters in exciting fights. People want to see the best fighters fight each other and that's what I'm going to do. I'm going to invest in my fighters and invest in marketing them and promoting them, so we build an audience for them. I'm not going to sit around and let some TV guy tell me who my guy should fight and when and where."
It's smart business. He already looks better than the vast majority of promoters and he hasn't put on a show of his own yet.
If he can iron out the details and get the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight done, that's going to be nearly as impressive a feat as selling $177,000 worth of headphones in nine minutes.
Maybe, just maybe, 50 Cent is the right guy at the right time for boxing.
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
First Take: Larry Merchant sells his take on Mayweather-Pacquiao megafight
 |
| photo credit: HBO Boxing |
For people who regularly follow the show, the guest appearance of Larry Merchant was like a breath of fresh air after being exposed for far too long to the daily diatribes of the two hysterical, loquacious, and hilarious motormouths in Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith. On a side note, the addition of Cari Champion as the moderator between the two protagonists is a welcome addition, too.
Larry Merchant, a hard-hitting veteran of the boxing circuit, who is not afraid to speak his mind on any topic, knows his boxing really well. He will not hold any punches to dish out verbal jabs, hooks and straights on anyone if he deems it necessary to convey his point. He is a straight-shooter inside and outside the ring and is probably one of the greatest, if not the greatest, TV boxing analysts of all time.
The topic of the discussion was: "Running Scared: Is Floyd Mayweather really afraid of Manny Pacquiao?", showing video snippets of Pacquiao proclaiming on one of his earlier appearances on First Take that he is willing to accept a lower percentage of the fight revenue (45%-to-55%) and that his earlier objection to random drug testing is now a non-issue ("No problem even at the night of the fight, no problem").
But the most telling piece was when Manny Pacquiao was asked whether Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is afraid of him. Manny Pacquiao laughed at the question and seriously stated that he believes that Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is really afraid of him -- "I think it's kind of that."
But true to form, Larry Merchant had a different opinion on the matter: "Mayweather is not afraid of fighting Manny Pacquiao. I think, number one, what's held up this fight, and I've been in the 'yes it's going to happen' category when the nos have been carrying the day for a few years, is that there's a disincentive financially."
He further explained that both fighters are "making upwards of 40-50 million a year: Pacquiao by fighting twice, Mayweather by fighting once. There's no urgency. It's a business as well as a sport."
Stephen A. Smith then offered his 'solution' of "stop buying the pay-per-view other than a Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather, Jr." fight and went on to say that he believes that Floyd Mayweather will win it because "he is the best boxer on the planet."
Larry Merchant went on length to convey his views on Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather, Jr. -- "They are the heavyweight champions in America in terms of their popularity, in terms of reaching beyond boxing to the casual fans."
"I think Floyd Mayweather thinks he's going to beat Manny Pacquiao. He will be the favorite. What Mayweather is afraid of more than anything else is an L, a loss. He has marketed himself as this unbeaten and unbeatable fighter, and to a lot of new fans or unsophisticated fans, they think that's a big, big deal, which it never has been, because if you fight enough good, young fighters in their prime, somebody's gonna beat you. It happened to Pacquiao even in a bad decision, but against a tough, good kid."
Skip Bayless pressed Larry Merchant further, "Does Floyd think he'll win or lose to Pacquiao?"
"I think he thinks that Pacquiao is the greatest threat to him. Why take, in the risk-reward equation, if I can make $40 million for fighting some guy (and) I've only got to give him $3 million to take the fight, why am I going to do that (fight Pacquiao)? There have been comparable situations in the past. Lennox Lewis and Tyson didn't fight 'til well into their careers and broke records; they were past their primes. So, it's business. Will the heat still be there? Will they both have maintained their star status? Will they lose it? It's not unprecedented in boxing. Hopefully it'll happen someday. Meanwhile, we've got 3 big pay-per-view events in boxing in a year instead of one big blowout."
And Stephen A. Smith, not to be outdone, posited this silly question to Merchant-
"Who's the best boxer on the planet right now?"
"I think Mayweather is on top and I think Pacquiao is right there." Merchant then confessed though that he "likes Pacquiao's style as a puncher-boxer."
Then Larry Merchant added this nugget of a wisdom on the possible Mayweather-Pacquiao scenario:
"The old expression "good defense beats good offense." It was the pitcher for the Pirates Bob Veale who said, "good pitching beats good hitting" and vice versa. It's the good hitting that sometimes beats good pitching."
The round-table discussion continues with Skip Bayless interjecting that he is on record that Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is "ducking Manny Pacquiao because he fears that Manny is equal to him in hand quickness but has more punching power, and for the first time in Floyd's career, not only does he stand to take the L but he stands to get hurt, to get caught."
Larry Merchant, in his own irrepressible way, delivered the counterpunch: 'I'm surprised that Skip has such strong opinions on this thing" that elicited laughter among themselves.
"My attitude about the fight is I wanna see it happen. Mayweather fought Cotto; it was a good fight, a better fight than expected, and the 4th Marquez-Pacquiao fight may be a better one than the first three, all of which were good fights."
Cari Champion then asked that if Mayweather and Pacquiao get together, "Who do you think is gonna win the fight?"
Larry Merchant refused to answer the question directly but has this to say:
"I'm gonna wait 'til it happens. And because things happen between now and then, there's no doubt that Mayweather will be the favorite. And that if you go by the history of these things, the boxer, the guy who comes out of the dressing room with his first and second thoughts are 'I'm not gonna get hit' and is a master at that," and in Merchant's opinion, "it's hard to beat him."
Many fight fans are hoping that Larry Merchant's first appearance on the show will not be his last. And even if we do not agree with some of his views, it is refreshing to listen to somebody as knowledgeable and eloquent as Larry Merchant sharing his thoughts regarding some of the issues plaguing the sport.
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Mayweather, Pacquiao Settling Defamation Case
LAS VEGAS -- Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao are settling a
federal defamation case in Las Vegas, clearing a key hurdle to a
long-awaited bout between two top fighters who've traded verbal jabs for
years but have never met in the ring.
Terms of the pretrial agreement cited in documents filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas are confidential, said Malcolm LaVergne, a lawyer representing Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s father in the case.
LaVergne said documents filed under seal ask U.S. District Judge Larry R. Hicks to dismiss the lawsuit. Documents filed publicly said each side would bear its own attorney fees and costs.
"The matter has been resolved," LaVergne said. "Any alleged terms of the resolution would be strictly confidential. Floyd Mayweather Sr. is very happy that this lengthy case has finally come to a conclusion."
Pacquiao filed the lawsuit in December 2009 seeking unspecified damages based on allegations that Floyd Mayweather Jr. defamed him by suggesting Pacquiao used performance-enhancing substances. Pacquiao denied Mayweather's claim.
In a statement released Tuesday night through the mediator in the case, the Mayweathers said they "wish to make it clear that they never intended to claim that Manny Pacquiao has used or is using any performance-enhancing drugs, nor are they aware of any evidence that Manny Pacquiao has used performance-enhancing drugs."
An attorney for Pacquiao did not immediately respond to messages from The Associated Press.
The direction of the case took a turn against Floyd Mayweather Jr. last week, when the judge issued a ruling ordering him to pay about $114,000 in legal fees and costs for avoiding questioning under oath from Pacquiao's lawyers.
Hicks faulted Mayweather for failure to comply with a court order. But he earlier rejected a bid by Pacquiao lawyers Daniel Petrocelli and David Marroso to end the lawsuit with a more severe sanction -- a default judgment for Pacquiao.
LaVergne said Tuesday he had no information about whether the court settlement means Mayweather and Pacquiao will meet in the ring.
Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank Inc., declined comment. His spokesman, Lee Samuels, said the company was not involved in the defamation case.
Nevada State Athletic Commission chief Keith Kizer said he wasn't aware of any talks between the two camps about scheduling a fight. But Kizer said such a fight could set records for the highest purse, gate and number of cable television paid viewers.
A Mayweather-Pacquiao fight might eclipse the Mayweather super welterweight fight against Oscar De La Hoya that drew 17,078 fans to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in May 2007, Kizer said. Paid attendance was $18.4 million.
"Based on my dealings with the boxing public and boxing insiders, the proposed Mayweather-Pacquiao fight has as much interest as any fight I can remember in the last 20 years," Kizer said. "I think this would be our first gate over $20 million."
Pacquiao, 33, also a member of Congress in the Philippines, is 54-4 with two draws in 60 fights. He is due to fight Juan Manuel Marquez on Dec. 8 at the MGM Grand Garden.
Mayweather, 35, who goes by the nickname "Money," was serving two months of a three-month sentence in a Las Vegas jail on a domestic battery conviction when he was named by Forbes magazine this summer as the highest-paid athlete in the world for 2011.
He is undefeated in 43 fights and was guaranteed $32 million for the May 5 bout during which he defeated Miguel Cotto.
Terms of the pretrial agreement cited in documents filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Las Vegas are confidential, said Malcolm LaVergne, a lawyer representing Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s father in the case.
LaVergne said documents filed under seal ask U.S. District Judge Larry R. Hicks to dismiss the lawsuit. Documents filed publicly said each side would bear its own attorney fees and costs.
"The matter has been resolved," LaVergne said. "Any alleged terms of the resolution would be strictly confidential. Floyd Mayweather Sr. is very happy that this lengthy case has finally come to a conclusion."
Pacquiao filed the lawsuit in December 2009 seeking unspecified damages based on allegations that Floyd Mayweather Jr. defamed him by suggesting Pacquiao used performance-enhancing substances. Pacquiao denied Mayweather's claim.
In a statement released Tuesday night through the mediator in the case, the Mayweathers said they "wish to make it clear that they never intended to claim that Manny Pacquiao has used or is using any performance-enhancing drugs, nor are they aware of any evidence that Manny Pacquiao has used performance-enhancing drugs."
An attorney for Pacquiao did not immediately respond to messages from The Associated Press.
The direction of the case took a turn against Floyd Mayweather Jr. last week, when the judge issued a ruling ordering him to pay about $114,000 in legal fees and costs for avoiding questioning under oath from Pacquiao's lawyers.
Hicks faulted Mayweather for failure to comply with a court order. But he earlier rejected a bid by Pacquiao lawyers Daniel Petrocelli and David Marroso to end the lawsuit with a more severe sanction -- a default judgment for Pacquiao.
LaVergne said Tuesday he had no information about whether the court settlement means Mayweather and Pacquiao will meet in the ring.
Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank Inc., declined comment. His spokesman, Lee Samuels, said the company was not involved in the defamation case.
Nevada State Athletic Commission chief Keith Kizer said he wasn't aware of any talks between the two camps about scheduling a fight. But Kizer said such a fight could set records for the highest purse, gate and number of cable television paid viewers.
A Mayweather-Pacquiao fight might eclipse the Mayweather super welterweight fight against Oscar De La Hoya that drew 17,078 fans to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in May 2007, Kizer said. Paid attendance was $18.4 million.
"Based on my dealings with the boxing public and boxing insiders, the proposed Mayweather-Pacquiao fight has as much interest as any fight I can remember in the last 20 years," Kizer said. "I think this would be our first gate over $20 million."
Pacquiao, 33, also a member of Congress in the Philippines, is 54-4 with two draws in 60 fights. He is due to fight Juan Manuel Marquez on Dec. 8 at the MGM Grand Garden.
Mayweather, 35, who goes by the nickname "Money," was serving two months of a three-month sentence in a Las Vegas jail on a domestic battery conviction when he was named by Forbes magazine this summer as the highest-paid athlete in the world for 2011.
He is undefeated in 43 fights and was guaranteed $32 million for the May 5 bout during which he defeated Miguel Cotto.
Court settlement clears path for $200m Mayweather v Pacquiao superfight
The hotly anticipated superfight
between Floyd Mayweather Jnr and Manny Pacquiao has taken a step closer
as the two fighters settle a long-standing defamation case in Las Vegas.
Fight fans around the world now hope this will pave the way for the $200million showdown in Sin City to be confirmed.
Pacquiao filed the lawsuit in December 2009 seeking unspecified damages based on allegations that Floyd Mayweather Jnr defamed him by suggesting he used performance-enhancing substances.
Terms of the agreement cited in documents filed in the US District Court in Las Vegas are confidential, said Malcolm LaVergne, a lawyer representing Floyd Mayweather Jnr's father in the case.
LaVergne said documents filed under seal ask US District Judge Larry R. Hicks to dismiss the lawsuit, and that others involved in the case were preparing a public statement. Documents filed publicly said each side would bear its own attorney fees and costs.
In a statement the Mayweathers said: 'We wish to make it clear that they never intended to claim that Manny Pacquiao has used or is using any performance-enhancing drugs, nor are they aware of any evidence that Manny Pacquiao has used performance-enhancing drugs.'
The direction of the case took a turn against Floyd Mayweather Jnr last week, when the judge issued a ruling ordering him to pay £70,000 in legal fees and costs for avoiding questioning under oath from Pacquiao's lawyers.
Hicks faulted Mayweather for failure to comply with a court order. But he earlier rejected a bid by Pacquiao's lawyers to end the lawsuit with a more severe sanction - a default judgment for Pacquiao.
Nevada State Athletic Commission chief Keith Kizer said he wasn't aware of any talks between the two camps about scheduling a fight. But Kizer said such a fight could set records for the highest purse, gate and number of cable television paid viewers.
A Mayweather-Pacquiao fight might eclipse the Mayweather super welterweight fight against Oscar De La Hoya that drew 17,078 fans to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in May 2007, Kizer said. Paid attendance was £11.3m.
'Based on my dealings with the boxing public and boxing insiders, the proposed Mayweather-Pacquiao fight has as much interest as any fight I can remember in the last 20 years,' Kizer said. 'I think this would be our first gate over £12.3m.'
Fight fans around the world now hope this will pave the way for the $200million showdown in Sin City to be confirmed.
Pacquiao filed the lawsuit in December 2009 seeking unspecified damages based on allegations that Floyd Mayweather Jnr defamed him by suggesting he used performance-enhancing substances.
Terms of the agreement cited in documents filed in the US District Court in Las Vegas are confidential, said Malcolm LaVergne, a lawyer representing Floyd Mayweather Jnr's father in the case.
LaVergne said documents filed under seal ask US District Judge Larry R. Hicks to dismiss the lawsuit, and that others involved in the case were preparing a public statement. Documents filed publicly said each side would bear its own attorney fees and costs.
In a statement the Mayweathers said: 'We wish to make it clear that they never intended to claim that Manny Pacquiao has used or is using any performance-enhancing drugs, nor are they aware of any evidence that Manny Pacquiao has used performance-enhancing drugs.'
The direction of the case took a turn against Floyd Mayweather Jnr last week, when the judge issued a ruling ordering him to pay £70,000 in legal fees and costs for avoiding questioning under oath from Pacquiao's lawyers.
Hicks faulted Mayweather for failure to comply with a court order. But he earlier rejected a bid by Pacquiao's lawyers to end the lawsuit with a more severe sanction - a default judgment for Pacquiao.
Nevada State Athletic Commission chief Keith Kizer said he wasn't aware of any talks between the two camps about scheduling a fight. But Kizer said such a fight could set records for the highest purse, gate and number of cable television paid viewers.
A Mayweather-Pacquiao fight might eclipse the Mayweather super welterweight fight against Oscar De La Hoya that drew 17,078 fans to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in May 2007, Kizer said. Paid attendance was £11.3m.
'Based on my dealings with the boxing public and boxing insiders, the proposed Mayweather-Pacquiao fight has as much interest as any fight I can remember in the last 20 years,' Kizer said. 'I think this would be our first gate over £12.3m.'
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Friday, August 31, 2012
Floyd Mayweather, Jr. speaks abou his future, jail time and Manny Pacquiao
After his release from jail, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. has so far managed to maintain a low profile when it comes to his career and personal life. Except for a few interviews here and there, Mayweather has been quiet on all fronts; no mean feat for a person who historically craves the limelight and a magnet of controversy both in his words and actions.
In one of the interviews he did for FightHype, a sober Floyd Mayweather, Jr. opened up his mind and bared some of his plans. He spoke about his personality ("It's about having personality, you know. You gotta be outspoken and have personality. It's not really the bad guy. I enjoy entertaining. That's what it's about, giving the fans excitement and entertainment. Some pay to see me win, some pay to see me lose, but they all pay."), his relationship with his rapper buddy 50 Cent ("everything that he touch turns to gold"), his promotions company, his time in a Las Vegas prison, and of course, Manny Pacquiao.
Floyd Mayweather, Jr. gave us a glimpse of his life in jail which included his distrust of the food that was being served, "I was surviving off commissary. I didn't eat the food at all...I don't like it and I didn't trust it" and the activities that he did to keep himself in good physical shape, like ridiculously pushing himself to do push-ups -- from a few hundreds to a thousand push-ups or more per day -- "I started doing 436 pushups a day. Then I went from 436 to 872. Then I went to 1308, so I was doing like 1300 pushups a day."
Floyd Mayweather, Jr. also divulged that he also found time to read while incarcerated, "I was doing a lot of reading from the fans, and just reading different books, different magazines." It would have been interesting to know what kind of books and magazines Floyd Mayweather, Jr. has found a liking to, except that the interviewer did not pursue the topic.
But the most telling part of the interview was the one regarding his views and positions on fighting Manny Pacquiao. His ambivalence on the topic was palpable as he tried to explain his reasons, as well as reiterating his uncompromising stand on his demands.
"I don't have any hate towards Manny Pacquiao, you know. I respect him, but I'm just saying, it's not a crime. I'm also saying I'ma do random blood and urine testing, you know, just so I can be in a clean sport. That's all I'm asking."
"Actually, we don't do the same type of numbers, so how can we split? We don't draw the same type of money."
"It's kind of hard. I mean, Arum wants money, but the thing is, it's about putting the fighters in a good position. It's about Pacquiao and Mayweather. It's about putting both fighters in a good position, and of course I'm going to put myself in a good position."
"I can't really say why he won't do the random blood and urine tests...at this particular time, I don't know if he wants to do it or not."
These pronouncements are nothing but empty rhetorics though, since we have all heard this before. These pronouncements are nothing but a sad refrain from a fighter who is showing ambivalence in fighting the one person who could test his will and limits as a prizefighter. There is no question that Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is one of the greatest fighters of his era and is actually favored to beat Manny Pacquiao if ever they face each other in the ring, but until the day happens we will never really know the answer.
Obviously, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is putting the blame on Bob Arum for the failed negotiations of the megafight. Floyd Mayweather, Jr. is still adamant that he will call the shots when it comes to the purse split as well as the percentage of the pay-per-view revenue. And lastly, Floyd Mayweather, Jr. makes it appear that Manny Pacquiao is still against random blood testing. (For the record, Manny Pacquiao has gone on record on numerous occasions that there is no more problem on his part with the blood testing issue -- random, Olympic or otherwise.)
And Floyd Mayweather, Jr. has this to say as a parting shot, "The only thing I can continue to do is, if I do fight again, I'll fight whoever they put in front of me."
It would have been great for boxing if only Floyd Mayweather, Jr. would be true to his pronouncements, but based on his track record, we will all need to take everything that he says with a grain of salt.
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