By Bob Bethe: I didn’t want to write an article on Manny Pacquiao – Mayweather until I knew it would happen – and now I’m pretty proud of myself, I figured Floyd Mayweather Jr would get himself out of it. Bob Arum doesn’t think it will happen, yet Roach says, “Where else is he gonna get this kind of money? We don’t need him. He needs us.” Which is true. Mayweather wouldn’t fight Shane Mosley after Mosely came in and challenged him. Now Mosley is fighting Andre Berto for a two title welterweight unification bout on HBO. Mayweather doesn’t have any options.
No one really cares about seeing him fight. He’s ducked many opponents. You think he’ll get in the ring with Mosley, Margarito, Paul Williams, ect. I guess he would go to Cotto or Clottey who he could hit and run from and go to 41-0. This all comes after Pacquiao’s camp demanded he be fined ten million dollars each pound he comes over the welterweight limit. Like how no one noticed how he screwed Marquez – a bout scheduled to take place at a catch-weight of 145 – Marquez, Lightweight, made the weight, Mayweather weighed in at 147. When told to lose two pounds or be fined six hundred thousand dollars, he came back hours later at… 147 pounds, which shows you that’s what he trained for and had no intentions of making weight.
This is why I’m surprised he’s ranked at welterweight. He retired in ’07. In ’09 he fought once, against a lightweight, and cheated, paid the “Money” and no one noticed. In ’07 he went to 154 and won a controversial split decision, a fight where he did not look he wanted to engage, against Oscar De La Hoya for a Jr. Middleweight strap, so he could claim he has won titles in five divisions.
Then that year, he fought Jr. Welterweight Champion Ricky Hatton, and KO’d him in the 10th round. He has not beaten a Welterweight since 2006 against a Carlos Baldomir with 10 losses. Almost four years ago. In fact, the only two welterweights he fought, were Zab Judah, after Baldomir beat Judah, and Judah had three losses on his record, already, and then he fought Baldomir. Judah was actually a Jr. Welterweight who moved up.
In the top ten Welterweights at the moment, he has beaten no one. But that’s the “Ring” Top Ten. Oscar De La Hoya owns The Ring. He is also with “Golden Boy Promotions” in association with “Mayweather Promotions” who led out a press release about Mayweather demanding that Pacquiao take a blood test before the fight. It’s funny he didn’t ask any WWE opponents to test for steroids before he fought them. Roach said, “If we agree, can we be sure it’s not the day of the fight” and he was told “no” and according to a doctor Arum talked to, that agreed with Pacquiao, getting blood taken the day before or day of the fight can weaken a person. And there is no commission that has a rule like this. Pacquiao has never ducked a urine test, that’s mandatory, before and after fights, and they said they would gladly give a urine test any time, and a blood test before the training, and after the fight.
And it’s a fact, according to Doctor’s that a blood test can’t prove anything anyway. This is just Mayweather playing his usual games. “Now he makes the rules?” Freddy Roach says. Mayweather is unsuccessfully trying to get out of the fight and make Manny look bad. Or he’s playing games, which is fine, but I don’t think he ever wanted this, he had no choice. The audience is sick of him beating a lightweight in a boring fight. Pacquiao, however, as the Featherweight Champion, knocked Marquez down three times in the first round. The fight ended a draw, then a judge admitted he scored the first round wrong.
They fought again for the junior lightweight title. Pacquiao knocked him down again, and won a split decision. Mayweather, makes him come up in weight, cheats, and wins a boring decision over Marquez. Pacquiao fought De La Hoya at Welterweight, and made De La Hoya quit, and retire, Mayweather retired instead of fighting De La Hoya again, and won by a split decision. Manny then went to Jr. Welterweight, and obliterated Ricky Hatton in two rounds.
Mayweather made him come up in weight, and couldn’t KO him until the tenth. Pacquiao then knocked out Miguel Cotto. But why Roach still thinks it will happen, is because “Money” won’t get money anywhere else. And, according to a lot of sources, “Money” came back, for “Money” – he’s supposedly in debt to the IRS. Oscar De La Hoya was rumored to help him pay off some debt. Mayweather has run before. At Jr. Lightweight, he left while undefeated Freitas and Casamayor were still undefeated. He went for the lightweight title, and many believe he lost the first fight to Jose Luis Castillo.
His reign at Jr. Welterweight was a win over Arturro Gatti, who De La Hoya, already easily KO’d years before. In his fight versus Zab Judah, Mayweather should have been disqualified for his corner coming in the ring. 40-0 may sound terrific. But Pacquiao sure seems better. I think Mayweather put himself in a corner. He wouldn’t fight Mosley, now he’s trying to get out of fighting Pacquiao – if he doesn’t fight him, he won’t be taken seriously at all.
Comments are closed.