Let’s get ready to mumble.
Let’s get ready to stumble.
Which reminds me, capable Jimmy Lennon Jr., whose father was my favorite ring announcer (“King Carlos Palo–MEEE-no!”) of all time, is the microphone checker for Showtime in place of HBO’s favored Michael Buffer.
Guaranteed to happen in Las Vegas during Sugar Shane Mosley-Manny Pacqiao Big Fight Week:
Manny Pacquiao will be his usual Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm self and will go on record branding Sugar Shane “the nicest guy I’ve ever fought,” a title which was assumed to be owned by gracious former foe David Diaz.
Right after he beats Mosley, Pacman will invite Mosley and his family to come visit the Philippines as his guests.
Surprise guest in the celebrity ringside area is BALCO’s Victor Conte, who spent a small fortune defending a lawsuit from Mosley, and is on this night a huge Pacman fan.
Boxing scribes and scribettes will be discussing Kelly Pavlik’s battle against the bottle as they sip adult beverages in a casino bar. (Pavlik is on the undercard after a stay at the Betty Ford Clinic.)
Other barroom banter on Pavlik will be how admirably he’s stayed loyal to trainer Jack Loew when others wanted the fighter to sandbag him.
Roger Mayweather and Floyd Mayweather Sr. won’t be shy about getting face time as they hang out in and around press conferences, the Friday weigh in, etc.
In a real surprise, Floyd Jr. does show his smiling face, his free ringside ducats cordially arranged by his social messaging buddy Todd duBoef, but then turns his royal appearance into a carnival by walking out during the sixth round.
“They both stink, really, everyone knows Im still the Cash Cow,” Mayweather will say as he makes a less than graceful exit to a cascade of boos crashing down to the high rent seating area from the cheapest seats.
Nonito Donaire Jr., his contract dispute in front of the usual Top Rank-Golden Boy arbitrator, will ask for a photographer’s credential but promoter Bob Arum’s terse response will be, “Let’s see what develops.”
That was a joke, son, a joke.
Along about Thursday, the slowest news day of Big Fight Week usually as it’s sadwiched between the Wednesday presser and the Friday trip to the scales, rumors will be rife that Mayweather will return to the ring in November. No credible opponent’s name will come to the fore.
Arum will throw a tantrum about something even if he has to make up an issue. Arum can play righteous, furious anger as well as Samuel Z. Jackson in case you haven’t noticed. If nothing else comes to mind, Arum will rail against Golden Boy Promotions and how they are hastening the decline of Western civilization. The only thing that really outages Uncle Bob is having nothing to be outraged about or at least pretend to be outraged about. Advertisement
The media credentials people will look at their roster and remind themselves how few newspapers will bother to pay to send a reporter to the event.
I will apologize personally to Pacman conditioning coach for Alex Ariza how clumsily I handled what turned out to be an offbase story regarding his work with Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. But I won’t reveal my horribly wrong source while hoping AA doesn’t pimp slap me way the way he did Michael Koncz that time in Baguiao.
Roving Canadian Geoff Hughes will be in town along with his pal, powerful Pinoy political figure Gov. Chavit Signgson and I’ll continue angling for an invite to Chavit’s fabled Baluarte estate where lions, tigers and other wild animals roam. I trust that Chavit won’t invite me to be lunch.
READ ALL ABOUT, SEE PHOTOS OF CHAVIT’S FREE ZOO IN NORTH LUZON HERE.
Jeff Powell, the Daily Mail’s veteran columnist, will be dining out on stories about what a honorable and well-loved chap, the just deceased Cassius Clay opponent Sir Henry Cooper was. Someone will bring up Ali’s line from his comedy album about how “the British called me Gaseous Cassius…but it was their chap (Cooper) who ran out of petrol.” Former world champ now broadcaster Jim Watt will reminisce about how also just deceased Liz Taylor, sitting ringside in London with hubby Richard Burton, screamed for the ref to stop the 1963 bout as Cooper was a blody mess.
Having given half of the promotional rights to Top Rank, Kermit Cintron handler Lou DiBella will, in his usual subtle way, be pushing the Puerto Rican veteran as a 2012 Pacquiao opponent.
Mexican superstars and ex-Pacman foes Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales will both make the scene and around great interest but the most intriguing South of the Border boxer in town might be Marco Antonio Rubio, who looks like he will be a Sergio Martinez foe in the fall. Rubio’s suprise win over David Lemieux may have earned him this good chance.
