Phase 2 of the Joshua Clottey-Manny Pacquaio Cowboys Stadium promotion is about to launch.
With somewhere in the area of 26,000 tickets committed, Boxing Bob Arum and Football Jerry Jones are putting their marketing and publicity teams together to beat the drums on both sides of the Texas-Mexico border.
The Texas boxing commission is giving returning from suspension Antonio Margocheato, oh I am sorry I misspelled his last name again, a free pass back into boxing.
“The Tijuana Tornado” may return to the ring like a gale force wind but don’t expect any Mark McGwire style apology or any sort of true confession as to what happened Jan. 24, 2009, in LA when the fighter was nabbed with illegally loaded handwraps before he went out and took a spanking from Sugar Shane Mosley.
(Arum confirmed my mini, mini, mini “scoop” of Sunday that former world champ Robert Garcia has become head trainer for Tone Loc.)
Clearly, Arum has told the Mexican star to stick the script, meaning stand by his sworn testimony before the California commission.
Let me summarize it: Margarito knew nothing about nothing, it was all now former trainer Javier Capetillo’s doing. Capetillo, meanwhile, works freely in his native Mexico. I guess the Cali suspension doesn’t translate into Spanish.
Back to the promotion, the focus now will be to pump up the undercard with former champion Jose Luis Castillo being added to the undercard along with Irish lad John Duddy.
Margarito, Corrrales and perhaps some other Mexican boxers will appear at upcoming press conferences in Mexico City and Monterey, both cities where it is inarguable that the most popular NFL team is the ‘Boys.
What happens if the promotion stays hot?
Arum said Jones has carefully laid the best viewing lines for a total of 45,000 seats.
“I leave that up to Jerry,” Arum said Tuesday. “I don’t know what he would want to do if we go beyond that number of seats sold. He might want to expand the seating.”
Arum said he is letting Pacman settle in at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, Ca., while Ghanaian Clottey does the same in Hollywood, Fl.
“Now we’re putting some focus on Mexico,” Arum said.
