By Sizzle JKD: Here’s the thing, the tug-of-war of words between both camps that has been going on for over a month is a result of one thing only: the never-ending battle of egos between rival promoters Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Bob Arum.
The “he said, she said” media war between Mayweather and Arum notwithstanding, the super fight between Mayweather and Filipino boxing legend Manny Pacquiao still looks destined to take place in 2015. Whether it will be in May or September is anyone’s guess.
Nonetheless, it seems like the last couple of months has been more about Floyd vs. Arum than Floyd vs. Manny.
It appears more so than ever that the psychological war between the rival promoters is at a fever pitch, with Arum attempting to show the world that no matter what Mayweather says, the Top Rank CEO is going to be involved in the negotiations. This explains why over the last month, Arum has become increasingly vocal with the media in expressing his views about the negotiations and his sentiments towards Mayweather. It has been reported by numerous media outlets that Arum has been so vocal to the point he’s even infuriated members of his own team.
Nothing is going to stop Arum, however, because I’m sure the Hall of Fame promoter believes he knows what he’s doing. Questions have been raised as to whether or not his statements to the media about the negotiations will have a negative impact on the chances of the fight happening. Nonetheless, what we are seeing is certainly a power play attempt by Arum to show Floyd that Floyd can never get rid of Arum’s involvement with Pacquiao.
Meanwhile, Mayweather continues to refute every single one of Arum’s claims that the contract has been drawn up or the fight is “two issues” away from being finalized, while doing his best to portray himself as the sole entity calling all shots in the negotiations.
The verbal jousting and ego posturing between the two camps isn’t going to go away; not until Mayweather announces the fight is on. This is what Mayweather wants and this is what he will get, because he is the so-called “A-Side.”
Speaking of “A-Side/B-Side,” this was a concoction by adviser Al Haymon, and Mayweather has bought into it immensely. Never before was “A-Side/B-Side” talked about in the press like it has been with Mayweather-Pacquiao. Mayweather loves to re-iterate his stance as the “A-Side” no matter whom he fights, but I’m sure Arum is having none of this.
Arum and Pacquiao may have acquiesced to Floyd’s demands in an effort to do their part to make the fight happen, but when you look at the numbers between the two fighters, it is clear Manny is just as much an “A-Side” as Floyd despite Floyd having slightly better numbers. At the end of the day, neither fighter will generate as much revenue fighting someone else than they will fighting each other. No other combination except for Mayweather vs. Pacquiao will produce over 3 million PPV buys.
But if Floyd wants to have his cake and eat it too, it’s apparent that congressman Pacquiao has no problem giving Floyd his cake and serving as the more honorable ambassador for the sport of boxing.
To use an analogy in the music industry, if Floyd’s A-Side were Tupac Shakur, Manny’s B-Side would have to be The Notorious B.I.G. What is separating the two is so inconsequential that it shouldn’t even matter to fans which side each fighter belongs.
It’s important to note that Haymon came from the music industry and most of his success has come from managing the careers of musicians so it should be no surprise why Haymon taught Floyd about the importance of marketing the “A-Side/B-Side” aspect of a boxing promotion.
Not that all this matters to Pacquiao because Manny being Manny, he has been calm yet assertive throughout the storm. Pacquiao is definitely accustomed to the pressure and I’m sure Manny is letting the promoters do their thing in order to make this fight happen. Pacquiao has always believed his only job was to get in the ring and fight whoever is presented in front of him. His mindset hasn’t changed, and when the time comes he will let his fists do the talking.
In the meantime, both promoters do what they do best – talking the talk.
The world continues to wait for the announcement. Floyd will tweet, he will take advantage of the attention he is getting and sell his new app, and he will continue to deny anything and everything Arum says to the media because it is Floyd who, at the end of the day, will make the final announcement. Being his former promoter, Arum fully knows Floyd’s intentions and will surely play along with Mayweather.
As Oscar De La Hoya told Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports the other day, “Bob is a smart guy; a very smart guy. He knows what it takes to make a big fight and how to put a big fight together. If he’s talking [publicly], he must think there’s a good reason to do it.”
The reason has been made loud and clear by the man they call “Uncle Bob.” No matter what Floyd does or says, Arum isn’t going anywhere and will be heavily involved because Arum IS Top Rank and Top Rank IS Pacquiao’s promoter whether Mayweather likes it or not.
If Floyd decides to walk away from the fight, the entire world will know that the only reason Mayweather decided against fighting Pacquiao was because of Arum. And if Arum is the sole reason Floyd doesn’t fight Pacquiao, it only solidifies the popular notion that Floyd doesn’t want to endanger losing his undefeated status and risk losing his “zero” and instead is using Arum as the scapegoat.
The power play is in effect by both promotional companies. Who has the psychological upper hand is anyone’s guess. It’s a back-and-forth war to gain a competitive edge in the high stakes world of prize fighting.
In the saga known as Mayweather vs. Pacquiao, there is one thing we know for sure: Mayweather’s A-Side back is against the A-Side wall to make this fight happen and he is seizing the day by basking in the glory of attention, while Arum continues to masterfully apply the pressure.
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