Pacquiao vs Mosley will be available online

Top Rank announced today that the May 7 Manny Pacquiao vs. Shane Mosley world welterweight championship event at the sold out MGM Grand in Las Vegas, will be available live on both pay-per-view television and online. The four-bout pay-per-view card, produced and distributed live by SHOWTIME PPV®, will be available online for $54.95 while boasting interactive features unique to the digital platform through NeuLion’s technology. The enhanced and unique viewing offers a four-shot, multi-angle dynamic player that will allow viewers to interact and feel an enriched experience. The online pay-per-view is exclusive to U.S. viewers. “This pay-per-view offering will complement our current distribution which appeals to sports fans who are engaged in digital platforms on a daily basis. Sports viewing has entered a new frontier and Pacquiao vs. Mosley will be the pioneer for the boxing world,” said Todd duBoef, president of Top Rank. The following websites will be offering the Pacquiao vs. Mosley four-bout pay-per-view live stream: www.toprank.tv, www.sports.SHO.com, www.cbs.com and www.sports.yahoo.com. Select cable and satellite TV systems will also be offering the pay-per-view live stream. Viewers should check with their local providers.

Hernandez vs Keb Baas 2?

The possibility exists that the WBC may order a rematch between WBC light flyweight champion Adrian “Confessor” Hernandez and former champion Gilberto Keb Baas. According to WBC president Jose Sulaiman, Hernandez’ victory was legitimate on Saturday in Texcoco, Mexico where the referee Jerry Cantu didn’t allow the still game defending titleholder to continue after round ten. “Given the merit of the highly competitive fight and respect for the former champion, as WBC president I am addressing the members of the Governing Council to put to a vote the granting of a voluntary defense for the new champion Adrian Hernandez, but requiring a deserved rematch against Gilberto Keb in the next fight.”

Former Heavyweight Chris Arreola slimming down

A slimmed down and solid Chris “The Nightmare” Arreola, who is on target to enter the Home Depot Center boxing ring on Saturday night, May 14 in Carson, CA at his lowest weight in four years. “Right now I’m training very hard,” said the former #1-ranked world contender about his upcoming 10-round fight with Nagy Aguilera (16-5, 11 KOs) as the co-featured bout underneath the Super Six World Boxing Classic semi-final contest between WBA Super Middleweight Champion Andre Ward and Arthur Abraham. “I’m looking more to showing than talking; at least until after the fight,” said the normally ‘sound bite’ machine who ballooned up to a career high of 263 pounds in 2009.

The “re-dedication of Arreola” started when he and his longtime trainer Henry Ramirez trekked down to the Houston, TX training center run by Ronnie Shields to prepare for an ESPN2 main event on January 28, 2011. For the first time in eight fights, Arreola came in under 250-pounds for that bout. And now Arreola is back in Riverside hard at work with Ramirez for his upcoming bout. So what was Arreola’s motivation for re-dedicating himself? “I hate to lose,” he said.

Pacquiao ready to KO Mosley

LOS ANGELES, California – Manny Pacquiao admitted he and his coaching staff composed of trainer Freddie Roach and conditioning adviser Alex Ariza “are not really focused on the knockout” but admitted that “I would be excited about the knockout if it comes”.

“We have prepared ourselves to fight 12 rounds,” said Pacquiao, who packed up for a trip to Las Vegas, Nevada May 2 for his 12-round WBO 147-lb joust with Sugar Shane Mosley on May 7. “We work hard and if it (KO) comes, it comes.”

Pacquiao (52-3-2, 38 KOs) acknowledged that “Mosley moves fast and has great foot speed and power also. He throws a lot of punches and that’s good for us to give the fans a good fight.”

The Filipino celebrity said his championship tussle with Mosley (46-6-1, 39 KOs) will be “a kind of fight that’s better than (Antonio) Margarito”, who was a bit slower despite his reach and height advantage.

Margarito lost to both Mosley (TKO8) and Pacquiao (12 UD) and is the common denominator in analyses of oddsmakers who predicted a bloody brawl between two hard-hitting welterweights on May 7 at the MGM Grand.

Pacquiao took a time out from his training camp in Wild Card Gym over the weekend by promoting his cologne, “MP8 Scent of The Champion”, in a big mall here.

He had also guested at Jimmy Kimmel Show in Hollywood where he promoted his newly released CD album "Sometimes when we touch" and confirmed he personally invited Pres. Barack Obama during his visit to White House last December to watch his fight against Mosley at ringside.

Marquez vs Alvarez says Golden Boy Promotion?

Right now one of the hottest topics in the sport is what direction lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez will take next. Despite having a very financially-rewarding offer on the table to resign with Golden Boy Promotions and possibly land fights with Zab Judah or Robert Guerrero, the Mexico City star seems to be intrigued by the possibility of a third fight with WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao.

The history between Marquez and Pacquiao is controversial and bitter to an extent, as the two men engaged in a heated split draw in May of 2004 while Pacquiao won a razor-thin split decision nearly four years later. To this day Marquez, despite being dropped three times in the first fight and once in the second, claims that both fights belonged to him and seems to have somewhat of an obsession with his Filipino rival.

Marquez let his promotional contract with Golden Boy Promotions pass by foregoing an April meeting with Erik Morales at the Mandalay Bay, making him a free agent in theory, and seems be very serious about an offer from Top Rank of a reported $5 million dollars plus pay-per-view incentives for a third Pacquiao fight.

Some are saying it is a no-brainer that the 37-year old Marquez will opt to side with the Pacquiao fight but Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer claims that it isn't so simple.

"Juan Manuel Marquez knows that prior to him entering into any agreement, he has to come to us and we have the right to match. He has not approached us yet with any such request to match," Schaefer told our friend Rick Reeno at BoxingScene.com.

Golden Boy reportedly has the right to match any offer from Top Rank up until February of 2012 and Schaefer seemed to pull a wild card in suggesting that Guadalajara's Saul 'Canelo' Alvarez may be the man to fill that void.

"[Juan Manuel Marquez vs. Saul Alvarez] would be a very colorful promotion. It sounds like, based on interviews that I've read, both from Juan Manuel and Nacho Beristain, that they are perfectly happy to fight at 147 pounds. Canelo said he would do 147. Canelo is actually going to start working out and training in Big Bear, and he'll have a full nutritional staff and so on. So for Canelo, if he needs to make 147, it's no problem to make 147."

While Schaefer seems like he may be reaching a bit on this one, seeing as though Marquez and Alvarez currently campaign three weight classes away from one another, I wouldn't be surprised to see such an offer thrown out just because of how serious they are in their efforts of retaining Marquez.

The news on this seems to be changing by the day and it's definitely an evolving story. But before anything Pacquiao needs to take care of his business against Shane Mosley this Saturday at the MGM Grand, a fight that is far from a lock despite the lopsided odds.

Mayweather out in Pound for Pound rankings

Floyd Mayweather Jr has been dropped from the pound-for-pound rankings of the prestigious “Bible of Boxing”, Ring Magazine.

The Ring’s rankings continue to have “Fighter of the Decade” Manny Pacquiao as No. 1 with WBC light middleweight champion Sergio Martinez of Argentina replacing Mayweather at No. 2 and Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire moving up to No. 3.

Mexican legend Juan Manuel Marquez who may face Pacquiao in a third fight sometime in November is at No. 4 followed by Thai veteran Pongsaklek Wonjongkam.

Rounding off the top ten are heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, Timothy Bradley, Giovanni Segura , Andre Ward and Miguel Cotto.

Pacquiao who is also the reigning WBO welterweight champion is No. 1 in the welterweight divisional rankings with Victor Ortiz at No. 2 and former three-time champion Shane Mosley who faces Pacquiao at the MGM Grand on May 7 at No. 3 and Andre Berto at No. 4.

Ring Magazine editor-in-chief Nigel Collins told the Inquirer some two weeks ago that Mayweather had until May 1, 2011 which marks the one-year anniversary of his fight with Shane Mosley, to sign for a match or be removed from both The Ring’s divisional and pound-for-pound ratings.

Collins said “ If that happens, he won’t be reinstated in either of the ratings until after he fights again.” Collins did what he said Ring would do.l

He said then “ Where Floyd would fit at that point, is difficult to say. A win over low-level or undersized opponents would not earn him as high a spot as he now holds. It would take a clear-cut win over a high quality adversary to accomplish that.”

There were no indications that the undefeated Mayweather planned on fighting anytime soon or even signing for a fight in order to hold on to his pound-for-pound rating.

Collins also indicated that it would also be “difficult to know exactly how the pound-for-pound ratings will look without Mayweather.”

However, he stated that it would be “fairly safe to say that Sergio Martinez (WBC light middleweight champion) who is currently No. 3 on the PFP list and (WBC/WBO bantamweight champion) Nonito “The Filipino Flash” Donaire, currently No. 4 would both move up and become No. 2 and No. 3.”

Pointing to the May 7 showdown between Pacquiao and former three-time champion Shane Mosley, Collins said “of course, if Shane Mosley springs an upset in his upcoming fight with Manny Pacquiao, there would be a massive reshuffling.”

The Ring’s editor-in-chief noted that "if Pacquiao prevails (over Mosley) and Mayweather stays inactive, Manny, who is No. 1 at 147 pounds, could capture the vacant Ring welterweight championship by fighting Victor Ortiz, who would advance from No. 3 to No. 2 without Mayweather in the ratings.”

Ortiz captured the WBC crown last April 16 with an impressive twelve round decision over Andre Berto.

Boxing stars pays tribute to the late late Sir Henry Cooper

Tributes are continuing to pour in for the late Sir Henry Cooper, 76, who died yesterday after a prolonged illness. Former three-time world champion Muhammad Ali has revealed his shock at his friends death as he was never told that the former British, Commonwealth and European heavyweight champion was ill.

"I am at a loss for words over the death of my friend, Henry Cooper," said Ali in a statement on Sunday night.

“I was not aware he was ill. I visited with him two summers ago during a brief visit to Windsor as part of the Equestrian Games being held there.

“He was in good humour and looked quite fit. Henry always had a smile for me; a warm and embracing smile. It was always a pleasure being in Henry's company. I will miss my ole friend. He was a great fighter and a gentleman."

Top Rank boss Bob Arum has also paid tribute to the man, who in 1963, almost became the first man to beat the great Ali.

"Henry was a real gent and that was apparent from first to last when we dealt with him in London when Ali fought there against him for the first time."

"There was something special about him as a personality and of course, he belonged to a different age. He was a gracious man. He carried himself with dignity at all times. Later, he became an elder statesman and was one of the good guys in boxing. He will be sadly missed. I know Ali enjoyed seeing him in Windsor two years ago when Ali visited. A legend has gone. He won't be forgotten.”

On British shores, current world champions David Haye and Amir Khan has expressed their sorrow on the loss of what of the UK’s great characters of the game.

"He was at all the charity dinners and what-not and we'd talk to each other and he'd give me advice and wish me luck, give me his opinion on what he thought I should do and it was always sound advice.

"He'd let you know his opinion - whether you wanted to hear it or not! - and I believe the advice he's given me over the years is working out because I'm now the heavyweight champion of the world."

Amir Khan said: "He had everything. I remember meeting him a few times and he came across very humble, we had a good conversation about my own career.

Khan vs Prescott 2?

There are ongoing negotiations for Khan to face WBC/WBO champion Timothy Bradley, but that fight appears to be on the brink of falling through, and Golden Boy Promotions are already of lining up alternative options. In 2008, Prescott knocked Khan out in 54-seconds of the first round.

"I'm ready to let you clean up the mess I made of you in England. Now it is time to take that thorn out of your side - but I'm going to take it out and put it in your heart and finish your career for good. Amir Khan is a fraud," Prescott said.

Mayweather set for ringside seat at “Pacman” fight

The rumours coming out of the Floyd Mayweather camp is that the five-weight world champion is likely to travel the short distance from his home to the MGM Grand on Saturday night, to get a close up view of his possible future opponent Manny Pacquiao.

The 34 year-old has long been linked with a mega-fight with the WBO welterweight champion, who takes on Mayweather’s last opponent “Sugar” Shane Mosley on May 7th. The “Pretty Boy” had no trouble dispatching the aging legend and apart from a shaky second round moment, won every session against the Californian.

Mayweather (41-0, 25 KO’s) has been out of the ring over a year now and has been moved down to number three in the pound for pound rankings. His uncle Roger recently declared that his nephew is ready to return to the ring and will do so sometime in the next couple of months.

His next outing though, is set to be a scouting mission against the seven-weight world champion, who has looked unbeatable for over six years. Mayweather attended Victor Ortiz’s crowning night against Andre Berto in Connecticut a couple of weeks ago, where he was roundly booed by the pro-Pacquaio crowd and the only thing that could stop the boo’s is if he signs to fight the Filipino Congressman in the near future.

Khan vs Bradley in Jeopardy?

Although it would unify three of the four major light welterweight world titles, the proposed unification bout between WBA champion Amir Khan and WBO/WBC champion Tim Bradley still appears to be in danger of falling apart.

According to several reports, Khan's team offered Bradley $1.5 million for a July showdown, which Bradley has since said that he is unhappy with.

Golden Boy's Richard Schaefer then said to Boxingscene that Bradley's promoter Lou DiBella has until next week to accept the deal before Khan looks for alternative July opponents.

Despite reports to the contrary, seemingly the main thing separating the champions at the moment remains the purse split.

Khan and his team believe he should have the bigger share due to the fact that he is by far the bigger draw.

Bradley and his team believe he should be getting more than he has been offered due to the fact that he is the two belt champion and is universally ranked as number one in the division.

So is either really at fault?

Numerous fighters who have dealt with team Khan have criticized the amount of money that they were offered.

Before Paul McCloskey was confirmed as Khan's last opponent both he and Lamont Peterson turned down initial offers from Khan. Marcos Maidana was also unhappy with what he was offered prior to their clash, and Paulie Malignaggi made roughly a tenth of what Khan did for their bout last year.

In the end though, Khan's team have generally upped the offers they made to most opponents who initially turned them down, and bouts with Maidana and McCloskey shows that they are able to be negotiated with.

So ordinarily Bradley might have had a case for having been low-balled. If not for the fact that the amount Khan offered him was $1.3 million,a career high purse for Bradley and more than he could make against anyone else in the division.

Its no secret that Bradley has never been a big draw even in his hometown and regardless of what he achieves in the ring that doesn't look like changing anytime soon.

The numbers he put up on HBO against fellow unbeaten champion Devon Alexander were less than impressive, as was the fight itself mainly due to the clash of styles.

Also Bradley's style, while unquestionably effective, isn't often pleasing on the eye as he grinds down opponents and tends to get very few knockouts.

Then there is the headbutting issue.

His bout against Devon Alexander was ended in the tenth after a clash of heads. Previous bouts against Luis Abregu, Lamont Peterson, Nate Campbell, Kendall Holt and Ednar Cherry were all affected by head clashes.

The fact that Bradley's head has so often affected the outcome of his fights, not that it it necessarily his own fault, has undoubtedly turned numerous fans off.

Aside from the purse split itself, there is also the fact that Khan and Bradley have both had troubles with television networks of late.

Khan split from Sky Sports last month after the cable giant denied he and McCloskey's bout pay per view status. Sky then said that they weren't interested in airing Khan vs. Bradley, leaving Khan without a major network showing his fights in the U.K where the majority of his fan base is located.

HBO meanwhile can't be too keen on shelling out big money for Bradley again after his fight with Devon Alexander.

Khan is an exciting fighter whose style appeals to even casual fans but then again so was Alexander, and Bradley turned that fight into an ugly war of attrition.

Clearly though both fighters want the fight to happen. Both Bradley and Khan are eager to unify light welterweight and move up to welterweight where bigger purses and more prestigious fights against the likes of Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather await.

The difference here is that Khan is the one with the alternative options. His drawing power means that he is an attractive option for any fighter to take on, and being represented by Golden Boy he also has the connections to progress faster than Bradley and if he has a mind to even jump up in weight immediately.

Pacquiao style inpired by Bruce Lee

The boxing genius of Manny Pacquiao includes feet that belong in “Riverdance,” calves the size of grapefruits and deceptive power generated from his core. His movement is unorthodox, scattered and perpetual, as if designed by a jazz musician. He creates angles unlike any other fighter, past or present, appearing, disappearing, shifting, striking; on balance, off balance, even off one foot.

It is this style — part performance art, part technical wizardry, unique to Pacquiao— that defines perhaps the best boxer of his generation. And it started with a videotape of the martial artist who became his idol. It started with Bruce Lee.

Last month, as Pacquiao molded his style specific to Shane Mosley, his welterweight opponent on Saturday in Las Vegas, he wrapped his hands inside the dressing room at the Wild Card boxing gym here. To explain the way he fights, he settled on three words.

“Like Bruce Lee,” he said.

Growing up in the Philippines, Pacquiao studied Lee, watching his movies on endless loops. He still often views his collector’s set. “Enter the Dragon” is his favorite. His conditioning coach, Alex Ariza, says he believes Pacquiao built his baseline movement off Lee’s template, the continual attacking, the feet drummed in and out.

“Bruce Lee jumped around and kicked his feet and shook his head and shoulders,” Ariza said. “His feet moved in concert with his hands. He could be choppy, but he was rhythmic. Manny does the same thing. It comes from that.”

A stick-thin, one-dimensional left-hander arrived at Wild Card in 2001, his style still reckless, raw. Pacquiao punched at high volume, seeking knockouts, but struggled against superior technicians.

By then, Pacquiao possessed the basics of his skill set. Because he fought with the speed of the boxers he most admired, Pacquiao cornered opponents, made them feel squeezed. His tempo, the sparring partner Shawn Porter said, feels less like 1 ... 2 ... 3 and more like 1-2-3-4-5-6.

If Pacquiao’s trainer, Freddie Roach, could place one boxing skill above all others, he said, “speed is the greatest asset in the world.” Pacquiao’s speed is evident. At one workout, even the comedian Don Rickles said Pacquiao reminded him of Sugar Ray Leonard.

The early Pacquiao combined feet that moved like lightning with uncommon power for a man his size, power that started in those calves (his adviser Mike Koncz said thick legs ran in the family) and wound through his torso.

After Erik Morales defeated Pacquiao in 2005, Roach decided Pacquiao needed balance, and Roach set about enhancing his right hand. In practice, Roach instructed Pacquiao to throw jabs, uppercuts and hooks in three- to four-punch combinations, all right-handed. It took three years, but a different fighter emerged against David Diaz, and Pacquiao later knocked out Ricky Hatton with a right.

Roach divides Pacquiao’s career into two periods: before the Diaz fight and after. His style had started to take shape.

The next epiphany occurred by accident, when, during training, Pacquiao shifted left, around Roach and tapped his trainer on his left shoulder. “What are you going to do now?” he asked. Roach was stunned.

Back when Roach fought, boxers mostly engaged straight on. His work with Pacquiao, the angles they created, changed the way Roach trained. If Pacquiao shifted left, outside the right foot of his opponents, their natural instinct was to follow — into his left hand. If opponents chose not to engage, they had one option, to back away. Roach says Pacquiao improves his position with each angle created and makes it more difficult to counterpunch.

Roach and Pacquiao design angles specific to each opponent. The key, Roach said, is creating space and confusion.

“He still taps me on the shoulder every session,” Roach said. “I’ll always try to counter with what his next opponent would do. I always lose.”

Roach and Pacquiao did not invent this approach to boxing — Roach cited George Foreman’s 1990 knockout of Gerry Cooney as an earlier example — but they elevated angles into art. Roach sees boxing’s future in Pacquiao’s fancy footwork.

As Pacquiao kept moving up in weight divisions, Roach worried less about the weight or power that Pacquiao could add and more about the speed he could lose. Roach told Ariza, “Do not screw up his speed.”

In all his years, through dozens of world champions, Roach never saw a fighter who gained so much weight and retained speed and power. As a result, suspicions have been raised that Pacquiao used performance-enhancing drugs, a charge his camp denies. (Pacquiao has never failed a test.) Ariza points to other factors: different diet, isometric exercises for balance, plyometric exercises for explosiveness.

Jorge Linares to take Franciso Cordero on May 28

A confidential source informs that former two-division world champion Jorge “Niño de Oro” Linares could return May 28 in Mazatlan, Sinaloa, Mexico against former world title challenger Francisco Cordero (24-1, 19 KOs). The weight would be between super featherweight and lightweight. The 24-year-old Cordero challenged for the WBA interim super featherweight belt against Jorge “Coloradito” Solis in September 2010. Linares last fought in Japan against former world champion Jesus “Matador” Chavez last October.

Juanma to start training in Florida

Juan Manuel Lopez plans to start training in late May and will spend the last month and of half of his preparations in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. “JuanMa” is accepting the advice of Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum, president of Top Rank, who said that distractions on the island contributed to the hard-hitting Lopez losing his WBO featherweight crown against Orlando Salido on April 16.

“God willing we will begin training in late May,” said Lopez. “For now we are resting and we are almost certainly going to the Manny Pacquiao-Shane Mosley fight on May 7. I would go on Thursday. I feel great. I’m at about 145 pounds. I’m eating cleaner. And we’ll go for the last month and a half to Fort Lauderdale. Let’s please Bob Arum. This is the first time I’m doing it and I hope to get it right.” He said that his team led by trainer Alex Caraballo and manager Orlando Piñero remains intact and the only addition is Edwin Rivera, who will help with hand speed.

He also announced that he expects to vindicate himself on August 20 in a rematch with Salido that could be staged at the José Miguel Agrelot Coliseum in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Roach to Pacquiao: Slowdown!

Freddie Roach is facing the same problem he’d faced many times before: how to slow Manny Pacquiao down.

“The main job right now is to try and slow him down,” Roach said Thursday at the Wild Card Gym, after working the mitts with Pacquiao for at least a dozen rounds.

It was more like a sparring session.

And at times it looked and sounded like they were hitting each other hard.

Roach slapped Pacquiao hard with his mitts, to the body and sometimes to the head, and the latter got away with some of his own.

They shared some laughter inside the ring, but the next time they work the mitts, they better put their headgear on.

It’s just eight days to the fight, and it’s the right time for Pacquiao to slow down. But Roach seems to be having trouble asking his ward to do that.

He said he’ll try.

“I have to. I have to slow him down,” said Roach.

Roach was asked if it was possible for Pacquiao to even slow down as they wrap up the final days of training for the May 7 fight with Shane Mosley.

“Somewhat,” said the trainer, “but not as much as I would like.”

Roach thinks Pacquiao is done with all the hard work, the lung-busting roadwork, the heavy sparring, and now he’s ready for battle.

“He’s ready to go. He’s sharp. He knows the game plan very well. He’s a hundred percent ready,” said Roach, still insisting it won’t be an easy fight.

The mitts session went on non-stop, and when Roach asked Pacquiao to get some water, the boxing icon said, “Are you tired?”

“Nope,” Roach shot back.

“Oh boy, I can’t get a f***g break here,” Roach added, breathing heavily in one corner.

Pinoy scribes told him later on he appeared like he was going to quit.

“It won’t happen. We had a great workout and had fun doing it. It was a good day. He came in a little bit late today. I thought I could wear him out today,” said Roach.

One other concern, the celebrated trainer said, is Pacquiao getting a little too low on his weight, saying he weighed in at 147 after the workout.

But it could be even be lower than that.

“Payat nga ako (Yes, I’m light). Pero mataba naman ang suntok ko (But my punches are heavy),” said Pacquiao.

Later on, after the workout, inside the dressing room, he told Pinoy scribes he was just making sure all bases are covered heading to the fight.

“Ganado ako (I’m eager). Naniniguro lang,” he said.“Napagod din ako (I got tired, too).”

If he was, he didn’t show it, even when Roach had called it a day.

“One more round?” he begged his coach.

“No. I’m done,” was the only answer he got.

Haye vs Klitschko Fight in doubt?

The proposed superfight between David Haye and Wladimir Klitschko may still be in doubt.

The pair were formally due to tie the knot for their fistic nuptuals with press conferences in Hamburg, where the bout was scheduled for 2 July, and London this week. But last night these were suddenly cancelled with the Hayemaker organisation saying: "There are still issues to be resolved."

The on-off fight was announced last month but has twice been postponed before because of injuries to first Haye and then Klitschko. It seems the fight game's other glove affair has ended in divorce too. Floyd Mayweather Jnr's trial on serious charges of domestic violence has again been delayed until July. The likelihood is that Manny Pacquiao is tired of waiting for a £50m showdown, which would be the richest in history, and that fans will witness the valedictory appearance of the greatest fighter of this generation against the veteran Shane Mosley (the last man to fight Mayweather, a year ago) in Saturday's Sky-TV WBO welterweight title fight in Las Vegas.

As trainer Freddie Roach says: "We are going to lose him to politics for sure." So the Pacman versus the Money Man sadly won't happen, since Pacquiao, 32, intends to focus on his career in parliament in the Philippines and Mayweather contemplates a possible 34 years in jail if he is convicted.

Garcia Brother's made Mexican History

Mexican boxing twins Ramon and Raul Garcia, 28, wrote history today by becoming the first set of twins to win world championship fights in the same event.

Ramon, the heavier of the two, stopped Colombian Jesus Geles in the 4th to win the World Boxing Organization (WBO) junior flyweight title while Raul pummelled the Philippines Rommel Asenjo with a barrage of punches in the 3rd prompting the referee to step in and stop the fight.


They become the second set of twins to become world boxing champions at the same time but the first to win championship bouts in one venue on the same night.

The first set of twins to become world boxing champions was Khaosai and Khaokor Galaxy of Thailand.

Ramon worked on the body of the Colombian champion sending him to the canvas in the first and finally in the 4th to avenge a loss suffered earlier this year to Geles in Bogota.

Raul used his jab to pepper the obviously immobile Asenjo who kept on coming forward but was not throwing enough punches.

"I could see the punches coming but I could not move," said Asenjo after the fight. The 21-year-old Filipino cried his heart out in the dug out but was consoled by WBO President Paco Varcalcel for his bravery.

"You are young and brave and you could come back," Valcarcel told Asenjo after the fight.

This could have been the same thought in the mind of referee Raul Caiz when he stepped in and stopped the fight in the 3rd round after Asenjo failed to hit back while pinned to the ropes in the 3rd.

"He was not hitting back," Caiz said.

It was Asenjo's first loss by stoppage in 23 fights. His two previous losses were by decision.

There was celebration on the Mexican side as the Garcia brothers achieved a first in boxing history books.

Solis recaptured IBF lightweight crown

In a rematch, former longtime world champion Ulises “Archi” Solis (33-2-3, 21 KOs) dethroned 40-year-old world champion Luis Lazarte (48-10-2, 18 KOs) by close twelve round split decision to regain the IBF light flyweight title on Saturday night Club Once Unidos in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Referee Benjy Esteves Jr. warned both fighters repeatedly trying to keep a tight lid on the fight to avoid a repeat of the foul-fest in the first Solis-Lazarte clash where Lazarte retained the title in a controversial draw, after which the IBF ordered an immediate rematch. Solis did good work early, but Lazarte came on strong late. Scores were 116-111, 115-112 for Solis, 114-113 for Lazarte.

King Arthur ready to US: Referee row is now resolved

King Arthur Abraham will travel to the US on Sunday morning after the referee row has been resolved. The former Super Six World Boxing Classic Tournament point leader is set to take on WBA Super-Middleweight Champion Andre Ward in the semi-finals at the Home Depot Center in Carson on May 14. “We are pleased that all issues regarding the judges and the referee have been sorted,” Hall of Fame-Promoter Wilfried Sauerland said. “The Californian Commission and Dan Goossen have finally decided to honour the agreement that the referee will be from neither the US nor Europe. We have also agreed upon the three judges scoring the bout at ringside. This was our condition to let Arthur travel to the US, and since all of our demands have been met, he will now fly to the US on Sunday. I´m not sure why the Commission and Goossen did not stick to something everybody had signed off a long time ago but speaking from experience I know that dealing with Dan can be difficult at times.”

After Luis Pabon (Puerto Rico) was officially confirmed as the referee, Sauerland said the stage is set for an exciting fight. “This infamous referee row just adds to the growing notion that Ward is over-protected by Goossen. The fact that he has been trying to appoint a Californian referee does not make him look like the most confident promoter I have ever seen. But then again I can´t fault him for being scared of Arthur´s punching power. We are glad we have won the first round without even leaving the country but quite frankly I could have done without all the arguing.”

Meanwhile, King Arthur said he was unfazed by the referee discussion. “I do the fighting in the ring and let my mangers Kalle and Wilfried Sauerland take care of the rest,” he said. “I am glad that everything has been sorted and I am grateful their hard work has paid off.”

Abraham is travelling to the US knowing that the odds are against him. “I know that many people consider Ward the favourite – probably the same who considered me the favourite to win the tournament after my first-round KO victory over Taylor. All I can say is that I am looking forward to May 14 and that everything can happen in boxing, especially when you got a lot of punching power.”

Oscar De la Hoya Rips Pacquiao over Marquez Trilogy

Golden Boy Promotions President Oscar De La Hoya says the trilogy offer to Juan Manuel Marquez shows a level of disrespect by Manny Pacquiao and his promoters Top Rank. Marquez recently received an offer to face Pacquiao for a third time in the fall. The offer is reportedly a guarantee of $5 million dollars plus a pay-per-view percentage. De La Hoya says the offer was made at the wrong time because Pacquiao is facing Shane Mosley on May 7 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. For me, [making that offer] shows disrespect to everyone in the press, the people and the fans. Because Pacquiao has a fight with Mosley and what does this tell you? That Pacquiao will defeat Mosley? It's not right. Maybe you wait a little bit, until after the fight and you see what happens because in this sport you never know what will happen. De La Hoya said.De La Hoya wished Marquez with "all of the luck in the world but said a trilogy fight would still need Golden Boy's approval.

Salido Gets his WBO Belt

WBO President Francisco “Paco” Valcarcel is in Mexico City to present featherweight champion Olando “Siri” Salido with his WBO belt. Also on hand were WBO execs Rafael López Santos and Luis Pérez, Top Rank’s Sean Gibbons and Zanfer’s Aldo Barba. Salido won the belt with an upset stoppage of Juanma Lopez.

Pacquiao will KO Mosley: Roach

Declaring Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao tip-top shape, trainer Freddie Roach said on Wednesday his prized Filipino fighter could be the first to knockout former five-time world champ "Sugar" Shane Mosley in the big-money fight on May 7 at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas.

"We’re 100 percent ready for the fight. If Mosley brings his best we’re ready for his best. I don’t think there is any room for an upset," Roach said during an international conference call.

Roach said Mosley's attacking game is perfect for Pacquiao's "aggressive style," and confidently predicted that Pacman would win by knockout.

"I think all fights should end in knockouts so I’m looking for a knockout," said Roach, a five-time Trainer of the Year awardee of the Boxing Writers Association of America.

Roach said he has prepared Pacquiao to deal with the best that Mosley brings to the ring, which is against come-forward foes who love to trade punches, like Antonio Margarito and Ricardo Mayorga who both ended up being stopped by Mosley in the late rounds.

"In the Margarito fight [Mosley] looked great and Margarito has an aggressive style like Manny and that’s how we’ll attack him," Roach said. "It will be a little more scientific, of course, but we’re ready for the best Shane Mosley out there.

But Pacquiao downplayed the knockout angle, insisting that Mosley at 39 "is still very strong and moves like he's 30 years old."

"We’re not focused for the knockout. All we do is work hard and if the knockout comes, it comes. We’ve prepared ourselves for fighting 12 rounds," said Pacquiao, the reigning best fighter in the world pound-for-pound.

"If the knockouts come, they come. What matters is the fight that we can give to the people and the fans. I want them to be happy and excited about our performance," said Pacquiao who has a guaranteed purse of $20 million against Mosley's $5 million in the sold-out fight.

Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank assured that including their share of pay-per-view revenues, both Pacquiao and Mosley will be making "record paydays" in the Showtime-televised pay-per-view fight.

He said he considers the May 7 defense of his World Boxing Organization welterweight title "bigger" than his most recent fight against Margarito because Mosley "moves fast and he has good speed and power."

"That’s what I want. He throws a lot of punches. It will be good for us and it will be a good fight," added Pacquiao, the only fighter to win a record eight world titles in as many weight divisions.

Showing tremendous respect for his African American foe, Pacquiao described Mosley, a former pound-for-pound champ in his prime, as "a good fighter and a comeback fighter also. He was referring to Mosley stunning KO wins over Margarito and Mayorga when he was all but written off as by some boxing experts.

Mosley, who remains an 8-1 underdog by Las Vegas odd makers, said the underdog tag only motivates him even more "to shock the world" and beat Pacquiao decisively.

Mosley thinks he could hurt Pacquiao with some well-timed power shots when they trade punches in the middle of the ring.

"If Margarito, who is slow, could hit him with so many shots, think how I much more I could hit him," Mosley said. "Styles make fights, and I think I have what it takes to beat Pacquiao.

Mosley, who has a higher knockout rate than Pacquiao, then went on to predict he would stop Pacquiao "by the seventh round."

Mosley's trainer Naazim Richardson, however, has a more realistic and strategic approach to the Pacquiao fight.

Conceding that Pacquiao is the best fighter of his era, Richardson thinks he has the antidote to Pacquiao's vaunted speed and explosiveness: exploit his flaws, which are few.

"This is a marathon, it's not a sprint. It doesn't matter who runs the fastest. In the end, it's only who finishes up the proper way [who wins]," he said in the last episode of Camp 360 aired by CBS and Showtime.

Richardson told Yahoo Sports' Kevin Iole that Mosley -- a champion in three weight classes -- has the pedigree, the ability, the dedication and intelligence to beat anyone, including Pacquiao.

"Believe me, we understand that Pacquiao is a problem. He’s got a crazy amount of energy... The only attribute in boxing Manny Pacquiao doesn’t have is height and range," Richardson.

He then rattled off Pacman's attributes: ring generalship, movement, speed, power, one-punch power, and combination punching.

"He has everything except height and range," Richardson observed.

And the highly respected ring strategist thinks he has come up with a game plan to deal with a "problem" like Pacquiao.

"I agree that Pacquiao is a problem. He’s a special guy. We respect him tremendously. But you know what? We’re going to show up and we believe we can do it," Richardson said.

Fight analysis

Aware that the early rounds would be crucial, Pacquiao is expected to box and move a lot in the first four or five rounds, in much the same way when he fought Oscar De La Hoya in that career-defining victory in December 2009.

Expect Pacquiao to set a frenetic pace of moving in to throw punches in bunches and in angles and then withdrawing to stay out of Mosley power.

In contrast, Mosley will be looking to hurt Pacquiao in the early going for a possible upset. There will be furious exchanges between these two attack-minded protagonists.

At his age, Mosley is not as sharp and as quick as he was five year ago. He last two fights -- a lopsided decision loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr and a lackluster majority draw with light-punching Sergio Mora -- showed this once-elite champion is past his prime.

Can Mosley, who is known to have a solid chin and has not been seriously hurt even by bigger foes, summon the speed, power and ring savvy to upset the fastest and most explosive opponent he has ever fought in Pacquiao? At his best, Mosley out-boxed a prime De La Hoya twice, knocked out Fernando Vargas twice and held his own against bigger middleweight champ Winky Wright and the late welterweight star Vernon Forrest.

In contrast, Pacquiao has demonstrated a remarkable ability to stop bigger opponents, like Ricky Hatton, De La Hoya, and Miguel Cotto as he went up in weight. He has also taken the best shots of these and other foes despite the obvious size disadvantage.

Pacquiao, whose legacy as an all-time great boxer is fairly secured, is looking for a dramatic win over Mosley. As articulated by his trainer Roach, Pacman is looking to be the first to stop the durable Mosley. That way, he would prove to the world beyond any shadow of doubt that he is the greatest fighter of his era.

"I want Manny to make a statement in this fight," Roach told newsmen at a recent interview. I want Manny to be the first to knock out Mosley.

Some pundits speculate that a resounding victory by Pacquiao could force Mayweather to finally fight Pacman out of sheer pride. And even if that mega fight does not happen, the Filipino icon would have silenced the trash-taking Mayweather that he is the best fighter of his era, a recognition Floyd claims belong to him.

I see Pacquiao winning by technical knockout in the late rounds. If the fight goes the distance, it will still be a near-shutout for Pacman—in the same fashion he beat Margarito and the defense-minded Joshua Clottey.

Money Mayweather's felony hearing postponed!

Representatives of former pound for pound champion Floyd Mayweather were in court for the second time this week earlier today, this time regarding the evidence hearing for his domestic abuse case, and for a third time the hearing was pushed back.

The preliminary hearing was initially scheduled for January and later March, and with the latest postponement is now set to take place on July 29th.
The case, which carries a maximum sentence of 34 years in prison all told, dates back to September of last year when Mayweather had a late night altercation with former girlfriend Josie Harris.

During the incident he allegedly assaulted her, threatened his children and stole a cell phone, leading to felony and misdemeanor charges including domestic abuse, grand larceny, coercion and robbery.

Mayweather is also facing a separate charge of misdemeanor battery over a later altercation with a security guard working for the homeowners association of the Las Vegas community where he lives. During this incident Mayweather allegedly poked the security guard in the face after a heated discussion over parking tickets.

The Rematch: Pacquiao vs Kimmel

HOLLYWOOD, CALIF. (April 29, 2011) -- Fighter of the Decade, eight-division world champion, and boxing's No. 1 pound for pound fighter and box office attraction Congressman MANNY "PacMan" PACQUIAO took time from training for his upcoming defense of his WBO welterweight title against three-division world champion Sugar Shane Mosley to make another boffo appearance on ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Thursday night. This was Pacquiao’s fourth consecutive appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in as many promotions, dating back to November 2009 when he knocked out Miguel Cotto to claim the welterweight title. That 2009 appearance also marked Pacquiao’s U.S. network TV debut, which has since led to a multitude of network television and radio features, including, of CBS’ 60 Minutes, ABC’s Good Morning America, FOX News Channel’s On The Record With Greta Van Susteren, CNN’s America Morning, and NPR’s Morning Edition and Weekend Edition

Pacquiao’s first U.S. single, a remake of Dan Hill 1977 hit Sometimes When We Touch, sung with Dan Hill, was released on Thursday as well. It sold out within 12 hours on Amazon.com which promptly reordered more to satisfy worldwide demand. It is also available on iTunes.