Floyd Mayweather Jr. | Larry Brown Sports

Manny Pacquiao Reportedly Will Take Blood Tests without Cutoff Date

August 19, 2011 By Larry Brown 8 Comments

Even though Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been called a chicken for not fighting Manny Pacquiao (and in Michael Irvin’s words, made brothers look bad), the real reason negotiations have always broken down is because Pacquiao would never submit to complete Olympics-style drug testing.

At first, Pacquiao refused to have his blood drawn, citing a fear of needles. Then, his camp said he would submit to a blood test but there had to be a cutoff date prior to the fight (at least 14 days). That’s where most people got the story wrong. Just because Pacquiao was willing to take the blood test doesn’t mean he was open to random testing — his people wanted to have a cutoff date. Apparently that stance has finally changed.

Tucked into Lance Pugmire’s story on Floyd Mayweather Jr., who’s preparing for a September fight with Victor Ortiz, was this important nugget on Pacquiao’s new position.

Floyd Mayweather Jr. Dreams of Fighting in U.K.

August 15, 2011 By Larry Brown 5 Comments

Floyd Mayweather Jr. is returning to boxing next month after taking the past year and a half off. He’s set to face Victor Ortiz on September 17th in Las Vegas. The bout will be distributed by HBO Pay-Per-View to 170 countries, and it will be available both online and on TV in the U.K. From the sound of things, it appears as if Mayweather may want to fight in the U.K. at some point.

“I love all of my British fans and I appreciate all of their support throughout my career,” Mayweather said in a press release distributed by his promoters. “It is my dream to eventually fight in the U.K.”

Those are notable comments for several reasons. First off, Mayweather lives in Las Vegas. All of his fights since 2006 have been in Vegas. He’s never even fought outside the United States. Additionally, outside of Cowboys Stadium hosting a couple of Manny Pacquiao fights recently, Las Vegas is where almost all big fights take place.

I can’t imagine Mayweather fighting abroad but it would be cool to see him build a larger fan base in the U.K. Now that he’s back and fighting, he may try to challenge Manny Pacquiao for global popularity.

Filed Under: Boxing Tagged With: Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Michael Irvin: Floyd Mayweather Jr. Making Brothers Look Bad by Ducking Pacquiao

August 9, 2011 By Larry Brown 1 Comment

We’ve been talking about a potential dream fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao for two years. In our first mention of the fight, it was Manny Pacquiao who said he had no interest in the bout. That was a long time ago, because things have changed since then.

Floyd said he had nothing to gain from the fight and demanded Manny Pacquaio take extra drug testing. Pacquiao initially refused, later acquiesced, but he’s always wanted a cutoff date for the testing. Because of his demands, it’s appeared as if Mayweather was ducking the fight. It’s so bad that he’s even been called out by Michael Irvin. Check out this interview the Playmaker gave to Elie Seckbach:

“I like both fighters but I’m telling you right now, I wish Mayweather would go ahead and fight the guy. It makes brothers look bad with all of this running. You know we’re not into the running.”

That’s a pretty funny line, but I back Floyd on this. He’s the one who looks bad because he doesn’t have a loudmouth promoter like Bob Arum controlling the press. If Pacquiao would agree to complete drug testing, this would be on. As it is, it looks like the fight will finally go down early next year.

Filed Under: Boxing Tagged With: Floyd Mayweather Jr., Manny Pacquiao, Manny Pacquiao vs Floyd Mayweather Jr., Michael Irvin

Floyd Mayweather Jr. and 50 Cent Allegedly in Middle of Vegas Strip Club Throwdown

August 5, 2011 By Larry Brown 1 Comment

Floyd Mayweather Jr. and rapper 50 Cent allegedly were in the middle of a Las Vegas strip club all-out brawl late July. A massive fight broke out between 50 or so men and women at the Deja Vu Strip Hop Topless Party and 30 police officers responded to the call. KTNV-TV in Las Vegas obtained the police report from the incident and it alleges that Mayweather was there and that he escalated the situation.

The report alleges that “Mayweather was extremely confrontational and argumentative with several police officers on scene.” It also says that he “challenged multiple citizens and officers to fight.”

Things apparently turned violent when some folks tried to rush the stage to steal the necklace of rapper Nipsey Hussle who was performing. Can’t make this stuff up. The report also says a few people were arrested, and that they had ties to either the Bloods or Crips.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Boxing Tagged With: Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Dana White: Floyd Mayweather Jr. Is One of the Big Problems in Boxing

July 23, 2011 By Larry Brown 3 Comments

Dana White is an outspoken character and his brash attitude has helped build the UFC into the powerful sports organization it is. Though he has several faults and his business lacks in several areas, the UFC is miles ahead of boxing in at least one area: matchmaking. If fans want to see a fight, he makes it happen. Boxing is different; it’s run by individual fighters and promoters. Because of that, Floyd Mayweather Jr. has avoided fighting Manny Pacquiao (and fighting in general). That’s why White says Mayweather is “what’s wrong with boxing.”

Here’s what White had to say during an interview on WFAN in New York this week:

“I’m a huge, huge Manny Pacquiao fan. He is boxing right now. Floyd Mayweather, and Floyd and I go way back and I told Floyd to his face too, Floyd is one of the big problems with boxing. Holding out, not taking this fight with Manny Pacquiao, and doing what he’s doing. I think Manny Pacquiao is boxing. Everything about him is positive and I love the guy.”

Even though White is in the MMA business and has a history with Floyd as Rick Chandler notes, I think White is just being honest. White runs the UFC from a fan’s perspective; he puts on the fights he and they want to see. He doesn’t make those comments because he dislikes boxing (he still watches the top matches), he says it as a fight fan who wants to see the best matchups.

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Filed Under: Boxing Tagged With: Dana White, Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Amir Khan Accuses Floyd Mayweather Jr. of Using Steroids in De La Hoya Fight

July 20, 2011 By Larry Brown 8 Comments

The loose-lipped uncle of boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. is making accusations once again. Roger Mayweather, who trains his nephew Floyd, told Las Vegas Boxing Examiner Chris Robinson that the only reason Amir Khan has become successful is because he’s on stuff just like Manny Pacquiao. The Pacquiao accusations are nothing new (Manny has actually sued him over his remarks), but the Khan ones are.

Khan responded to Roger’s accusations by defending himself. “I’ve consistently proved that I am a clean fighter. This is nonsense. I’ve been tested repeatedly in my career, before and after fights, at home and my base in Los Angeles.

“Don’t forget that I came through the Olympics (in 2004) where testing is very thorough. I’ve never refused the test, even though I could have done so when I received an unannounced knock on the door a month after my last fight against Paul McCloskey.”

Khan then took things a step further, turning the tables on the Mayweather camp. Khan accused Floyd of using something to prepare for his fight with Oscar De La Hoya.

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Filed Under: Boxing, PEDs Tagged With: Amir Khan, Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Floyd Mayweather: Shane Mosley Advised Getting Manny Pacquiao Drug Tested

July 3, 2011 By Larry Brown Leave a Comment

Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Victor Ortiz kicked off a tour to publicize their September 17th fight with press conferences in LA and New York last week. The big story to emerge from the New York conference was Mayweather saying he absolutely wants to fight Manny Pacquiao. One of the stories to emerge from the LA press conference was Mayweather sharing that Shane Mosley, Pacquiao’s most recent opponent, advised Floyd to ensure he has Manny drug tested prior to their fight.

Mayweather wouldn’t reveal who reached out to whom with the conversation, but the contents are not a surprise. Mayweather told reporters “Shane Mosley, all he said was ‘You know what Floyd? If I were you, I would make him take the test.’ Especially saying before he went into the fight, he should have made him take the test.”

We all know the reason Shane Mosley didn’t ask for a drug test prior to the fight — all he cared about was cashing in on a huge payday; what happened in the ring was inconsequential.

You may recall that in May, Manny Pacquiao had to issue a denial statement after Shane Mosley and Floyd Mayweather Jr. publicized a “story” that said Pacquiao was using performance-enhancing drugs. Knowing that, it’s no surprise Mosley made the suggestion to Floyd.

Demanding Pacquiao take Olympic-style drug testing is nothing new for Floyd. The talks for their potential fight stalled in 2009 when Pacquiao would not agree to Mayweather’s testing demands. As I said then and as I’ll repeat now, if Pacquiao doesn’t have anything to hide then drug testing should not be a problem. But the last person who should get involved with these conversations is Shane Mosley. Not only is he a cheater, but he also didn’t care about drug testing as long as he was making millions.

Filed Under: Boxing, PEDs Tagged With: Floyd Mayweather Jr., Manny Pacquiao, Shane Mosley