Drug testing, for those whose memory extends no further than Kim Kardashian?s latest selfie, played a role in delaying The Fight?
All they have to do is fight.
But that which has preceded the May 2 superfight between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao, including delays, subterfuge, backslapping, hoopla, and skirmishes over niggling details, is growing more tiresome by the day.
The latest concerns drug testing. Drug testing, for those whose memory extends no further than Kim Kardashian?s latest selfie, played a major role in delaying The Fight.
In 2009, Mayweather accused Pacquiao, and not for the first time, of juicing. How to else to explain his evolution from skinny Asian to spark plug with a big head? The ?take the test? chorus of Floyd, Roger, Mayweather Sr., and Leonard Ellerbe was as off off-key as it was dissonant, and they were sued for defamation of character.
The case was settled out of court for an undisclosed sum.
But that was then and this is now. The drug testing issue, however, has resurfaced again. The only difference is that this time, Mayweather is on the short end of the stick.
In order to insure that everything is on the up and up, Team Pacquiao proposed that a $5 million penalty clause be inserted as a rider to the original contract should either fighter fail a drug test.
Mayweather, who presumably has nothing to lose or fear, rejected the offer, for reasons that neither he nor anyone in his camp has revealed.
?It was very simple,? Manny?s advisor, Michael Koncz, told USA TODAY. ?If Manny failed a test, he would have to pay $5 million. If Floyd failed, he would have to pay $5 million.?
However reasonable that appears, the unreasonable put the kibosh on the proposal.
?They have made derogatory statements for years about Manny,? added Koncz,? and now we challenged them by asking for the $5 million fine, and they refused to do it. It?s disheartening.?
Disheartening or not, Leonard Ellerbe, CEO of Mayweather Promotions, put things in perspective.
?If this moron (Koncz) didn?t convey his fighter?s wishes when the negotiation was going on, that?s their problem,? he said. ?This is a lame-ass attempt to generate publicity.?
On one hand, it seems like a great opportunity for the Take the Test Gang to earn a cool $5 mil by catching the sneaky Pac-Man in the act. On the other hand, maybe Mayweather has something to hide.
According to Thomas Hauser, ?Floyd Mayweather had tested positive on three occasions for performance-enhancing drugs and?in each instance, the test results had been covered up by Golden Boy and USADA.?
Whether that?s true or not, only Hauser?s hairdresser knows for sure. But it does raise interesting questions.
Is it possible that a steady diet of fatburgers composed of steroidal beef might show up in a drug test? That seems unlikely. What doesn?t seem unlikely is that Team Mayweather wants complete control of every aspect of everything and isn?t willing to make concessions.
Rest assured that the fight will go on as scheduled.
I just wish it would hurry up and get here already.
