Floyd “Money” Mayweather made his upcoming fight with welterweight mega-star and five-time world champion Sugar Shane Mosley, official today when he signed the contract that pits the two fighters against each other on Saturday, May 1 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in a mega-bout which will be televised live on HBO Pay-Per-View®.

“This one is definitely for the fans as I wasn’t going to waste anyone’s time with a meaningless tune-up bout and asked to fight Shane immediately,” said Mayweather. “I have said ever since I came back to the sport that I only wanted to fight the best. I think Shane is one of the best, but come May 1, he still won’t be great enough to beat me.” Read the rest of this entry »

The stars will fight, big and bright, deep in the heart of Texas! Jerry Jones and Bob Arum, owner of the Dallas Cowboys and chairman of Top Rank, respectively, announced today that Cowboys Stadium would be the site of the MANNY PACQUIAO vs. JOSHUA CLOTTEY World Welterweight Championship fight taking place on Saturday, March 13 and broadcast Live on Pay-Per-View. Formal news conferences at Cowboys Stadium and in New York next week will provide details on tickets and the pay-per-view broadcast. Pacquiao vs. Clottey will be promoted by Top Rank, in association with the Dallas Cowboys and MP Promotions. Pacquiao and Clottey boast a combine record of 85-6-2 (59 KOs) — a winning percentage of 91% and a victory by knockout ratio of nearly 70%.

“I have wanted to bring a major boxing event to North Texas for many years, so why not bring in the biggest and the best?” asked Jones. “Manny Pacquiao is boxing’s No. 1 pound for pound attraction and the world champion. Manny defending his title against Joshua Clottey is not just a great fight, it’s a great event, and one we can showcase to the fullest in Cowboys Stadium. We’re going to promote this like it was the Super Bowl..” Read the rest of this entry »

On December 30, 2009, pound-for-pound boxing champion Manny Pacquiao filed a lawsuit in Nevada federal court against Floyd Mayweather, Jr., Floyd Mayweather, Sr., Roger Mayweather, Mayweather Promotions, LLC, and Golden Boy Promotions executives Oscar de la Hoya, and Richard Schaefer for making false and defamatory statements accusing Pacquiao of taking performance-enhancing drugs. The complaint is attached. The lawsuit claims the Mayweathers, de la Hoya, and Schaefer knew that Pacquiao has never taken performance-enhancing drugs, knew their statements were false, but made them anyway out of “ill-will, spite, malice, revenge, and envy.”

Pacquiao has retained Daniel Petrocelli of the Los Angeles-based law firm of O’Melveny & Myers LLP. About the filing of the complaint, Petrocelli stated: “Manny Pacquiao’s achievements come from God-given talent and an indefatigable work ethic — not steroids. He cannot and will not allow others to deliberately misrepresent his years of hard work and tarnish his reputation.”

The lawsuit was filed in federal district court in Las Vegas, Nevada, and seeks compensatory and punitive damages for defendants’ wrongful conduct. Read the rest of this entry »

By Horold Kupelle: According to news from the Boxing Scene, Manny Pacquiao had blood taken from him 24 days before his May 2nd bout against Ricky Hatton earlier this year. This is important news because there were reports yesterday that Pacquiao had blood taken 14 days before the fight. This was being used as added pressure to get Pacquiao to agree to having random blood tests within the 30 day window for his proposed fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr. on March 13th. Read the rest of this entry »

By Tim Rice: In what may turn ultimately to be a futile effort to save the mega fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao, the head of the Nevada boxing commission ordered both Pacquiao and Mayweather to take urine tests within two days. It’s not exactly what Mayweather and Golden Boy Promotions had in mind, although the news seems to have Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum overjoyed, since he’s all for unlimited random urine tests but not unlimited random blood tests. Read the rest of this entry »

By Chris Stein: If we’re going to get a fight on March 13th, it’s going to take World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao to give in and agree to take random blood tests inside the last 30 days before the fight. Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer and Floyd Mayweather Jr’s adviser Leonard Ellberbe both put their foot down yesterday, saying that they won’t accept a fight with Pacquiao unless he agrees to random blood tests within the 30 days. Read the rest of this entry »

By Harold Kupelle: ESPN writer Dan Rafael is reporting that promoter Bob Arum will be speaking to Manny Pacquiao to attempt to change his mind about taking a blood test within the 30 day window, perhaps at the two week mark. Earlier today, an old HBO Pacquiao/Hatton 24/7 segment was shown where Pacquiao was seen taking a blood test 14 days before the fight. The reason this is important is because Pacquiao has been adverse to taking a blood test within the 30 day period before the fight, saying that it might weaken him for the March 13th Mayweather fight. Read the rest of this entry »

By Manuel Perez: It’s really so disappointing how hard that Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Golden Boy Promotions have worked at making the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight happen, giving in to ring size, a 50-50 purse split, a $10 million dollar weight penalty, gloves, the date of the fight and now with the agency that’s testing the blood. With all that, Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum still won’t agree to allow blood testing from an outside agency within 30 days of the fight. Read the rest of this entry »

By Chris Stein: It’s not looking good for the March 13th mega bout between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao today after Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum made what he said was his final counter offer by suggesting that the blood dispute be settled by the Nevada Athletic Commission to decide in their next meeting on January 19th. Read the rest of this entry »

By Anthony Cain: In Manny Pacquiao’s recent press release sent out announcing his potential lawsuit with the Mayweathers and Golden Boy Promotions, Pacquiao revealed that he is still interested in fighting Floyd Mayweather Jr., saying “Pretty Boy Floyd, face me instead on March 13 in Las Vegas and not in some talk show forum or in press releases written for you by people who don’t even know me. Face me in a fight where I get to punch back.” Read the rest of this entry »