If WBC president Jose Sulaiman has his way, he’ll throw lawyers out the window for interfering in the process of determining the deserving challengers for the world championship.
Sulaiman made a cameo appearance at the weigh-in the day before Manny Pacquiao demolished Jorge Solis at the Alamodome in San Antonio last April 14. He arrived in a wheelchair to rest a bum knee and was mobbed by reporters who swarmed all over the amiable Mexican. Like a veteran politician, Sulaiman didn’t mind the media attention at all.
Curiously, Sulaiman was on his feet and bouncing on stage when the fighters in Top Rank chairman Bob Arum’s card stepped up to test the scales on an elevated platform. His wheelchair was parked backstage, far from prying lenses.
Asked to comment on the legal tussle between Top Rank and Golden Boy for Pacquiao’s promotional rights, Sulaiman said he was disappointed that a boxing issue has been dragged before the courts.
“I don’t care what the lawyers are arguing,” said Sulaiman. “I do what is good for boxing. Throw out the lawyers. My only concern is to preserve the integrity of the sport. If (Juan Manuel) Marquez has to defend against Manny, then he should and he will because the WBC will order it.”
Marquez is the WBC superfeatherweight champion and Pacquiao is the No. 1 contender. Both fighters are represented by rival promotions outfits. Marquez is allied with Oscar de la Hoya who owns Golden Boy while Pacquiao is promoted by Top Rank.
Because Golden Boy and Top Rank are at odds, neither group is taking the first step in negotiating a dream rematch between Marquez and Pacquiao.
Sulaiman said he has directed Marquez to stake his title against Pacquiao in a mandatory defense but because of the coming Philippine elections, will not require an immediate fight.
“Manny has other things on his mind right now,” said Sulaiman. “We are willing to wait, maybe six months. If he wins in the elections, I see no reason why he can’t continue to fight. I think it’s a credit to professional boxing that someone like Manny can aspire to become a congressman.”
Sulaiman said it is within his authority as WBC president to order a purse bid in case the promoters of Marquez and Pacquiao refuse to compromise.
Golden Boy went to court twice in attempting to stop Pacquiao from fighting Solis but was thwarted. Arum said he knew all along Golden Boy wouldn’t succeed in pulling off an injunction but admitted as a fallback, he had a Vancouver venue ready in case the court ruled out a US fight. Sulaiman also said Marco Antonio Barrera had announced his retirement in Mexico City.
“I was told that he was pressured by his family to quit,” said Sulaiman. “But I doubt if it will stick. I heard Barrera mentioned he’d like to retire with a championship, even a minor one. If a promoter arranges a rematch with Pacquiao and offers a nice purse, I don’t think he’ll turn that fight down.”
Arum said he has been contacted by someone from Barrera’s camp to talk about a possible Pacquiao rematch. Barrera was supposed to be at ringside for the Pacquiao-Solis bout as Arum’s guest but didn’t show up. The rumor is Barrera has left Golden Boy’s team where he was a titular vice president.
It wouldn’t be a shock if Barrera jumped out of De la Hoya’s camp. He was paid $1.2 million for losing his WBC crown to Marquez in a Golden Boy promotion and would’ve taken home at least $4 million if he fought Pacquiao in a rematch for Top Rank.
Sulaiman said he’s pushing for a three-point program to prevent mismatches and will submit it for approval at the WBC annual convention in Manila on Nov. 17-20.
The first point is to classify fighters by categories from 1 to 10, depending on their ability, credentials and experience. This will require the cooperation of the WBC’s 164 member countries.
Sulaiman stressed that national boxing commissions will be mandated by the WBC to enforce the matching process according to the categories. He said recent Filipino fatality Lito Sisnorio would never have fought former WBC flyweight champion Chatchai Sasakul in Thailand under this grading system. Sisnorio was knocked out by Sasakul and died the morning after.
The second point is for each national commission to issue a permit to fight overseas before a boxer leaves. Sulaiman said the permit will be a requirement for an overseas bout by the hosting boxing commission. Coordination between the boxing commissions is critical, he added.
Under his proposed system, Sulaiman said the GAB should’ve issued Sisnorio a permit to fight overseas and the Thai Boxing Commission shouldn’t have demanded it before sanctioning the bout against Sasakul.
Finally, Sulaiman said a fighter must undergo medical tests – to be prescribed by the WBC – before he is cleared to travel by his boxing commission.
The first WBC convention was held in Mexico in 1963. Manila hosted the annual convention in 1967 and 1970. Last year, the convention was held in Croatia. Asia has hosted nine of 44 conventions so far with Thailand five (Bangkok in 1985 and 1991, Chiang Mai in 1995, Pattaya in 2001 and Phuket in 2004), Tokyo in 2002, Seoul in 1981 and Manila twice.
