GRAPEVINE, TEXAS—It is indeed true that, in prior attempts to make a Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Manny Pacquiao super bout, promoter Bob Arum acted like a raging bull in a China shop.
But the shrewd, turning age 79 in three weeks head of Top Rank makes all his moves with careful consideration. He hasn't been either the leading or second leaning ringmaster and generator of money over 40 years because he has no well thought out strategies.
But Arum's latest m.o., his new tack on pushing a Floyd-Manny megafight so it can come to fruition either next May or November, is carefully designed to fail.
Truth be told, Arum does not want the $100 million goldmine bout to be next Megamanny's next fight.
That's why supplicant Sugar Shane Mosley and his new adviser, the Houston rap and boxing mogul James Prince, hovered on the sidelines at the Pacman-Margarito postight press conference inside Cowboys Stadium.
Not only is Mosley, who says he is still a vice president and shareholder in Oscar de la Hoya's Golden Boy outfit, spreading his wings to choose his own matches as his career winds down at age 39, he also revealed to me that he will soon launch Sugar Shane Mosley Promotions company.
But that's in the near future, let's look at what the canny Arum will set into motion next week vis a vis the electrifying Pacman and the undefeated Mayweather.
Step #1—This coming week, “I will have Todd (Duboef), his stepson and TR president) place a call directly to Floyd. Todd will ask one question and one question only, and that is whether Floyd wants to fight Manny.”
Notice that Mayweather adviser and control freak Al Haymon is not mentioned or included.
Step #2--''If Floyd's answer is yes about fighting Manny, then Todd will ask for Floyd's express permission to call his criminal lawyer (Richard Wright in the Baby Mama Drama case, now put over to a January date) and to ask the lawyer if he can be sure if Floyd will be available, not on trial or otherwise occupied, on specific dates.”
Notice, again, how Mayweather guru and control freak Al Haymon is not included.
Step #3--''If Todd gets a good answer from the lawyer, then Todd calls Floyd directly one more time. Todd will ask Floyd, who is your chosen representative, who should we sit down with to to put this fight togther? We don't care who Floyd says, who he picks, be it Don King, Golden Boy or anyone else.”
Notice again, how Mayweather mastermind Haymon is glossed over and basically ignored.
It's a perfect plan, one certain to fail.
Which is Arum's goal.
Then he can put Pacman into the ring come May against Mosley on PPV TV and it will be an event because it is a Pacquiao recital and people will ignore how dimished Mosley's skills are. He can probably stand up for 12 rounds, as long as the now hospitalized and waiting a Tuesday facial surgery Margarito did.
In the alternative, Arum envisions a catchweight bout, the part three that makes Juan Manuel Marquez-Pacquiao a historic trilogy, as an acceptable substitute.
Ducking and dodging Haymon is the way to achieve Arum's preferred sequence of bouts.
When the May match is over, Arum will roll up his sleeves and/or HBO's Ross Greenburg will hit both sides with an anvil and the Big One will get made.
But it won't go down in May as Mayweather's legal problems give everyone an easy out.
If it doesn't happen next November, it will never happen.
But, for $100 million plus, never say never even with the calculating Arum and the reluctant Mayweather.
If HBO shuts off their faucet, they will make a deal and then both sides will act like they have done some huge public service.
I, for one, will be clapping with only one hand.
Source: http://www.examiner.com
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