By Chris Williams: The negotiations between Floyd Mayweather Jr and Manny Pacquiao have reached a stall point with neither fighter’s management teams being able to make progress. There are a number of areas where the fighters are currently stuck at, one of them rumored to be the HBO – Showtime negotiations.
With the May 2nd date quickly approaching, both fighters are drawing up plans for another opponent, according to the New York Post.
In the meantime, HBO president Ken Hershman is saying that HBO is not blocking the Mayweather vs. Pacquiao fight from taking place.
“We’re here to stand by and help wherever we can to make this fight happen,” Hershman said via Newsday.com in responding to the reports that HBO is looking to stall the Mayweather-Pacquiao negotiations in order to wait until Mayweather is no longer under contract with Showtime in 2016. “We’re not an impediment to that happening, and we’ll do what’s necessary from our end. Then, it’s up to the principals.”
We don’t know whether it’s the networks or the fighters that are standing in the way of the fight getting made. If it’s a situation related to the fighters unable to agree to the negotiations, then you’ve got to wonder how that could be happening.
If Mayweather and Pacquiao already agreed on the 60-40 purse split, then they should be able to come to an agreement on the smaller stuff. If one of them is being stubborn about not giving in on incidental areas in the contract then it makes you wonder how badly they want the fight.
Whether boxing fans want to agree to this or not, Mayweather is the A-side in this negotiation. This isn’t a case of two A-side fighters trying to come to an agreement where neither guy feels he’s got to budge. Mayweather brings in the better pay-per-view numbers in the U.S, and he’s got the better record, especially in his recent fights.
Pacquiao was beaten twice by Juan Manuel Marquez and Tim Bradley. Mayweather should be able to get his way in the negotiations, and if not then it makes you wonder whether Pacquiao and his team are seeing things in a realistic manner. After all, this isn’t Brandon Rios, Chris Algieri or Bradley that Pacquiao is negotiating with.
Pacquiao and his promoter Bob Arum are clearly in a one down position, and if they’re negotiating as if they’re dealing with one of the typical B-side or even C-side opponents for Pacquiao, then of course the negotiations are going to stall out. This is Mayweather who they’re trying to negotiate with, and they should be willing to do whatever it takes to make the fight happen.
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