Boxing Wishes Granted: Floyd Mayweather JR – Manny Pacquiao on the Verge & Wladimir Klitschko – David Haye Announcement Looming
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By Geno McGahee
Why don’t we start with the big news? The fight that everyone wants to see seems to be a fight that both Floyd Mayweather, JR., 41-0, 25 KO’s, and Manny Pacquiao, 51-3-2, 38 KO’s, desperately want at this point. With every bout apart from each other, the public opinion seems to shift. Both men have been impressive and have looked unbeatable, which is why this fight is so important to boxing, history, and the legacy of both fighters.
The rumor mill is spinning quickly and there is consistent talk that this fight will be next, despite the political moves of the Filipino fighter. There has been talk of retirement for Pacquiao, but he has a personal mission to defeat a man that has never known defeat and to stop the man that has thrown allegations his way and tarnished his reputation.
When Floyd Mayweather, JR., left the sport as the pound for pound best, we knew he wouldn’t be away too long and when Manny established himself as the new best fighter in the world, Floyd was lured out, and has put together two great wins over Juan Manuel Marquez and Shane Mosley. Manny has been cleaning up boxing, beating Juan Manuel Marquez, Oscar De La Hoya, Ricky Hatton, Miguel Cotto, Joshua Clottey, Erik Morales, and Marco Antonio Barrera along the way. He is without question the best fighter that Floyd will ever face and vice versa.
The biggest thing standing in the way of this fight happening is the drug testing. Manny has stated that it would sap his energy for the fight and many point to Mosley’s performance against Floyd as proof that it can and will do that. Mayweather has reportedly stated that there is wiggle room if the money is right, and those are the magic words and that is why there are some initial talks starting up again. This fight is too big for it not to happen and it will happen. Expect some breaking developments in the near future here at RSR. This fight may fall apart again, but we are nearing the beginning stages of negotiations and constructing the biggest fight in recent history.
And just to emphasize the money that this fight with Pacquiao would generate, the Mayweather – Mosley fight drew 1.4 million pay per view buys, making it one of the biggest sells in the history of boxing. It would be likely doubled should the Filipino warrior and the defensive genius meet up.
Youtubed into the Unification
Be careful what you wish for… Well, WBA Heavyweight Champion, David “Hayemaker” Haye, 24-1, 22 KO’s, and IBO/WBO/IBF Heavyweight Champion, Wladimir “Dr. Steelhammer” Klitschko, 54-3, 48 KO’s, have agreed to terms to fight in mid September. Haye has been calling out Wlad for quite a long period of time and once actually signed to fight him before pulling out, citing injury. It is rumored that he pulled out due to promotional problems and the fact that he would most likely not get paid for the fight.
Haye had artwork created where the severed head of Wlad is held tightly in his hand as he towers above the headless body. This infuriated both Wlad and older brother Vitali. The answer to their anger was another piece of artwork featuring Haye holding both Wlad’s and Vitali’s severed heads. He knows psychological warfare, but Wlad was not ready to give up or give in. He wants to shut Haye up…even stating that he would not settle for a quick knockout. He wanted to punish him.
Wladimir went to the popular video website, Youtube, and aired his challenge to Haye and the world, stating that the British champion “bitched out” of showdowns with both he and his older brother and that the challenge was not coming from Wlad’s promotion, but Wlad himself. Haye had to take this challenge or be viewed as a man fearful of Wlad and he contends that he is not, and he doesn’t appear to be.
Haye is coming off of a vicious stoppage of former 2-Time WBA Champion, John “QuietMan” Ruiz, becoming only the second man to defeat him by knockout. Ruiz would announce his retirement shortly after the defeat. In that fight, Haye showed the power, timing and movement that are needed to beat a man like Wlad. He will not be in there to lose and expect Wlad to be more aggressive than usual. There is a lot of bad blood here and this is easily the best fight in the heavyweight division since Lennox Lewis took on Vitali Klitschko.
Coming Soon: Paul Williams – Kermit Cintron II
He was moving well, blocking and moving well, and in the fourth round, he landed well with an overhand right hand that seemed to buckle Paul Williams, the heavy favorite. Kermit Cintron would pounce and Williams would fall and so too would Cintron, but he would land out of the ring, on top of a table. The doctor was quick to rush in and keep Cintron on the floor and called for a stretcher to bring him to the hospital.
When you watch the fall, it didn’t look serious and Cintron has stated that he was ready to continue shortly after the fall and that it was the doctor that would not allow it, which led to a victory for Paul Williams, a controversial one for sure. Now, the high profile bout that ended so strangely will have a sequel, or so it appears.
It will be interesting to see how their game plans change now that they know each other inside of the ring. Cintron knows that he can confuse Williams and do some of the things that Carlos Quintana was able to do to him in their first fight, and Williams now knows that he must take “The Killer” seriously. The fireworks will be huge for this rematch. You can expect it to materialize soon.