The fight between Manny Pacquiao and Murad Muhammad has finally started in the arena where it should be fought – the court.
After weeks of heated exchanges, the heat mostly coming from Murad’s group through Ronnie Nathanielsz and Rita Sharp, Manny Pacquiao took the bull by its horn by filing the case for a violation of the Muhammad Ali Act in order to collect the million dollars that he should have gotten in the fight against Erik Morales.
It is good to know that Judd Burstein is helping him. On the basis of Burstein’s winning record against greedy promoters, the probability of a Pacquiao win is much higher.
On the other side of the fence, Murad Muhammad’s defense is not a legal argument, but an appeal to emotion saying that Pacquiao should be grateful to him for making him famous and a money-making machine. He forgot to mention though how much Pacquiao has made him richer by the millions of dollars. It will be good to know how much Pacquiao earned compared to that of what Murad received because of Pacquiao.
Lets just hope that the case will be publicized so that the boxing fans would be regularly updated on what happens. The discovery stage will open all the documents and transactions that were dealt by Murad in behalf of the PacMan. The court can compel the presentation of the documents that are in Murad’s possession.
At this early stage, it appears that Murad has really failed to disclose to Pacquiao the entire financial arrangement with Arum and HBO. The Ali Act is explicit on the requirement that promoters should disclose to the boxer all the financial proceeds and transactions that the fight will generate. Pacquiao has always claimed that Murad did not disclose to him that he would not have a part of the PPV proceeds. Murad, on the other hand, has never denied that he received the PPV proceeds and even contended that Pacquiao does not deserve a centavo out of those PPV receipts. Murad will have a lot of explaining to do before the court of law.
With Murad’s tirade with the “I made Pacquiao rich and famous and therefore, he should be grateful to me” line, I am more convinced of Murad’s betrayal of his fighter’s trust and confidence in him. I would like to believe that he has done so for the following reasons:
1. He knew as early as the Fahsan fight, that his days as Pacquiao’s promoter are numbered because Pacquiao has sought the assistance of Roach to help him deal with Murad. He knew that Pacquiao felt that he was not being transparent to Pacquiao and the intervention of Roach threatened to expose everything.
2. Because he knew that his days are numbered, he decided to make quick money out of the Pacquiao Vs Morales fight if it presented the right opportunity. That is why there was a supplemental contract which Pacquiao was made to sign through the persuasion of Ronnie Nathanielsz.
3. Roach’s entry into the picture made Murad uneasy because Murad always believed that he was the one who made Pacquiao famous, he should be the one to receive all the credit and the money that the Pacquiao fights will bring. Roach threatened to destroy all his money-making plans and therefore, he should get all that he could get at the moment before going and this is exactly what he did. He arranged the most lucrative fight he could get, and made sure that he would receive the lions share from the proceeds, knowing fully well that the Morales fight will be a PPV blockbuster.
4. Why did he not disclose the PPV arrangement to Pacquiao can be subject to speculation which the court case can uncover. But my guess points to the fact that Murad may want to get back and spite Pacquiao for dumping him in favor of Roach. He felt a misplaced sense of entitlement to the fame that Pacquiao is having now. It is a great disappointment to him that Pacquiao has never recognized that. So, Pacquiao must suffer the consequences for not giving Murad, the “miracle man”, the attention and importance that he should have received.
Now that the case is filed, it will now be legal drama that all boxing fans must see. Judd Burstein and Keith Davidson may be a formidable team that Murad may have to fear, but it will be a great mistake to underestimate the capability of a desperate man such as Murad.
