Only Manny Pacquiao’s hairdresser knows for sure but, as for boxing promoter Bob Arum, he completely missed the coiffure controversy from Thursday’s Beverly Hills press conference.
I had to pull Uncle Bob’s wig, er I mean his coat, about the Internet storm–albeit a fun, tongue in cheek sort of one–over Pacman’s Justin Bieber style locks.
Me, I did find it shocking that the 79 year old Arum even knew who teen hearthrob Bieber is. Maybe he subscribes to Tiger Beat.
“I know who the kid is but I didn’t know that Manny knew him, that Manny might play in a basketball game with him and Jimmy Kimmel,” Arum said. “As far as Manny’s hairstyle, I missded all that but it just shows you how Manny has gone to a level of interest way beyond boxing, a level of interest like Muhammad Ali had. We had 20 TV cameras at this press conference, the fire department showed up because it was crowded. It was the biggest Pacquiao presser we’ever had, including going back to the de la Hoya fight.”
I asked if there’s been any new word out of the White House about a Manny and Jinkee meeting there with Barack and Michele Obama. The Pacquiaos will have a luncheon and a U.S. Senate guided tour from Nevada Sen. and Arum buddy Harry Reid next week.
In typical Arum fashion, the promoter cited the Egpytian masses’ KO of 30 year dictator Hosni Mubarak as perhaps being fortuitous for a Pacman-Obama summit.
“You have to get a formal invitation from them,” Arum said. “If some catastrophe comes up, then it won’t happen. We got a good break with Mubarak stepping down. I think this invitation will be proferred when we’re in Washington.”
Arum said many in the media are not analyzing the May 7 Sugar Shane Mosley bout properly.
“Styles do make fights, I don’t know about hairstyles. Sure, Mosley looked bad in most of the (Floyd) Mayweather fight and all of the (Sergio) Mora fight. But, as an older (age 39) fighter, Mosley needs an opponent who will be in front of him, who will be very aggressive.
“That’s how Manny will approach this fight. Yeah, you can say Manny’s faster, Manny makes him miss but people are forgetting one Mosley attribute he’s always had. He’s always taken a good punch and that’s why this will be a good, entertaining fight. The media has to understand this.”
Arum revealed that, when Congressman Pacquiao takes Amtrak to the nation’s capital, Mosley will head north to Bristol, Ct., to visit the ESPN “campus.”
No Obama action for His Sugarship, it seems.
Arum said that Top Rank has no interest in talking to either Timothy Bradley or Juan Manuel Marquez, likely Pacman foes down the line, until their respective promotional contracts with others are exhausted.
“Marquez has a deal with Golden Boy that ends Feb. 20 but has a 30 day window for first negotiation/first refusal,” Arum said. “With Bradley, he owes Gary Shaw one more fight and Shaw must deliver it by a certain date. We’ve let it be known we’re not talking to any of these guys while they’re tied up.”
Finally, Arum said he believes that a renewed relationship between Mayweather and TR president Todd duBoef will continue. Arum and his stepson schmoozed with “Money,” a former Top Rank star, in Jerry Jones’ luxury box at the Super Bowl.
“Todd and Floyd were buddies for a long time, back when Floyd was with us,” Arum said. “I’m sure they will get together, Todd is 42 and Floyd is age 34, even if it is just socially.”
