“Mayweather is a great fighter, there?s no question about that. Manny Pacquiao is a guy that would be very difficult for Floyd to figure out because he?s so quick. You can?t figure out a guy like Pacquiao unless you fight him the way Marquez did. Having said that, I know how unfocused Manny was going into that fight. So far so good going into the Bradley fight. He and his wife are getting along well. He is no idiot and he knows that Bradley will be a very tough fight,” said Top Rank CEO Bob Arum when asked about whether or not he really wants to make the fight with Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquaio. Check out what else he had to say about Floyd Mayweather as well as Manny Pacquiao’s upcoming fight with Timothy Bradley on June 9.
DL: Were you at all surprised about the Gamboa/Rios fight getting cancelled? What do you think the real reason is for Gamboa not going through with the fight?
BA: Of course, I was totally shocked. I have no idea. It makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. I was shocked about it. We aren?t talking about chopped liver here. We are talking about 1.1 million dollars! Where has he ever seen anything like it? The point is that he agreed to it.
DL: How much of an impact do you think Floyd Mayweather Jr. has had on Gamboa?s actions over the past month?
BA: It would be wrong for me to say that he did or he didn?t. I don?t know. I know that he was in Mayweather?s house but is that proof that he had impact on it? No, that doesn?t qualify as proof.
DL: Rios will still be fighting on April 14th, correct? Which network will be televising the fight?
BA: Yes, Rios will be fighting Richie Abril. It will be on HBO pay per view. It?s part of a card that will also have Marquez and this Russian guy Serhiy Fedchenko from Mexico City and we?re doing Alvarado and Barrera from Mandalay Bay.
DL: On another subject, I think the Pacquiao/Bradley fight will be a very competitive fight and I am really looking forward to it. Will it be a challenge to promote that fight because Bradley although very talented, is far from a household name?
BA: Well, yes it?s a challenge. He is far from a household name and we have to make him a household name. I?m confident that we can do that between now and June 9th. We just signed Bradley to a deal with Nike and that will help. Bradley is a terrific young man and a very good fighter. It?s a quality fight and so I?m very optimistic that it will do very well.
DL: If the fight goes the distance which is very likely considering that Bradley is very tough and doesn?t have the power to knock Pacquiao out, do you agree that a fifth consecutive distance fight for Pacquiao will make it even harder for Mayweather to claim he is on performance enhancing drugs?
BA: No, I don?t think that will stop Mayweather. He?ll continue to defame Pacquiao. I don?t put much stock in what Floyd says. All I know is that Pacquiao is a clean athlete and let?s leave it at that.
DL: Do you agree that Mayweather resorted to the oldest trick in the book (pricing himself out of the fight) once the random blood testing no longer became an issue?
BA: Yeah, well obviously he demonstrated that when he took something that was written in stone which was the fact that it was a 50/50 deal from the first conversation we ever had. Now he says he wants a bigger cut. I don?t understand that reason; it seems rather ludicrous. One thing about Mayweather, although many of his comments are bizarre one thing no one can accuse him of not being a very smart boxing guy. We promoted Mayweather for many, many years and one thing he never wanted to do is fight a southpaw, particularly a quick southpaw who throws punches from many angles. Look at Mayweather?s style and a decent southpaw is going to give him trouble all the time.
DL: As much as you dislike Floyd and making fights between non Top Rank stable fighters, are you willing to go on record that you have and are willing to move mountains to make a Pacquiao/Mayweather fight assuming that they both win their next fights and Floyd is actually serious about facing Manny?
BA: Yes, absolutely we have been trying to make this fight happen for a while now and Manny would like the fight to happen. I would certainly like the fight to happen. You know, in this business if an athlete wants a fight to happen the promoter will invariably go along. It?s clear that Manny wants this fight. It has to be done on a reasonable basis. Manny has a future as a high official in the Philippines and is not going to be perceived as yielding to unreasonable demands just because a guy says he is entitled to more because he is American and Manny isn?t. That?s not going to fly.
DL: There is a perception among many people that you don?t want the fight because you used to promote Floyd and are pissed because Floyd bought out his contract before his most lucrative fights and that you only want Top Rank fighters to fight fellow Top Rank fighters and you won?t go out of your way to make the fight. How do you respond to that?
BA: The point is, even if I didn?t want the fight (which I do) it?s not up to me. It?s up to Manny Pacquiao who wants the fight. This idea that I don?t want the fight and that I?m stopping the fight is absurd. Manny wouldn?t let me do that. It?s a simple deal and we can get the thing done in a day. Mayweather is hesitating and I know why he doesn?t want to fight Pacquiao. He doesn?t want to fight a quick southpaw, particularly one who hits as hard as Manny.
DL: He did fight Zab Judah.
BA: Zab Judah was beating him, you know. Until Zab Judah ran out of gas he was winning the fight.
DL: Right, but that?s why they go 12. Floyd is also a master at figuring guys out after a few rounds. He has a genius boxing IQ. You have to admit that.
BA: Mayweather is a great fighter, there?s no question about that. Manny Pacquiao is a guy that would be very difficult for Floyd to figure out because he?s so quick. You can?t figure out a guy like Pacquiao unless you fight him the way Marquez did. Having said that, I know how unfocused Manny was going into that fight. So far so good going into the Bradley fight. He and his wife are getting along well. He is no idiot and he knows that Bradley will be a very tough fight.
DL: Where did you grow up and how did you get involved in boxing?
BA: I grew up in New York, in Brooklyn. I was a lawyer in the justice department. I met Jim Brown who introduced me to Muhammad Ali and I became Ali?s lawyer and promoter.
DL: Did you ever box yourself?
BA: No, I never even saw a boxing fight until the first fight I promoted. I was a fan of basketball and baseball. I was a Brooklyn Dodger fan. I go way back.
DL: If you could have promoted any fight in history, mythical or otherwise which fight would it be? Ali/Tyson?
BA: I never much cared for Tyson as a fighter. I would think Sugar Ray Robinson against either Hagler or Leonard.
DL: Who is more loyal between Latino boxing fans or European boxing fans?
BA: Latino. There is nothing like Latino fans, particularly Mexicans. Both Mexican Americans and Mexican born fans are amazing. English boxing fans are very loyal and very dedicated too. Recently we have been seeing a growing number of Germans supporting boxing because of the Klitschkos. I would say that the English are the most loyal almost of any group other than the Mexicans.
DL: Have you thought of tapping into the European market as well?
BA: Well there are some very good promoters out there like Frank Warren. I have done fights in Europe going back to Ali/Cooper. When Frank was a young man I assisted him and was a mentor to him.
DL: We don?t hear much from Don King anymore. Is he in semi retirement now?
BA: I would say yeah. The whole problem with Don is that he never brought in younger people to help him out. He was a brilliant promoter, but he was basically a one man gang. I have always brought in younger people to help out.
DL: Anything in closing Bob?
BA: We have Chavez Jr. against possibly Andy Lee in June. We also have Nonito Donaire fighting Cristian Mijares this summer. If Rios and Marquez win their next fights in April we expect to match them against each other in July at Cowboys stadium.
DL: Oh, that would be a dream fight for the hardcore fans! Thanks very much for your time Bob.
BA: You?re welcome.
