Fighting from the bottom to the top, Muhammad has guided some of the biggest names in boxing from Matthew Saad Muhammad and Dwight Muhammad Abdul-Qawi to the latter years of Larry Holmes heavyweight-reign (the last time boxing was on prime time network TV). Having guided much of the career of Roy Jones Jr.; Muhammad is now working full-time to guide another superstar in the person of Manny Pacquiao. Fightnews recently spoke to Muhammad.
Everyone wants to know about Manny Pacquiao can you tell us how he is doing and when will he be fighting next? Manny is fine and yes we are still looking to tackle the three Mexican giants; Marco Antonio Barerra who we already conquered, Juan Manuel Marquez and Erik Morales. The rematch with Marquez is next and that is what we are working with HBO on currently. There are only so many dates left in the year but we are looking for the rematch sometime in the early fall and if that does not work out or it will take too much time we may take another fight in between Marquez. Everyone is excited about Manny now and he has given a lesson to the world that the Asian boxers are world-class. Asian fighters used to be looked at as a joke in America as they would come over hear and get knocked out and even killed but after Manny Pacquiao nobody can ever again question the Asian fighter and his ability to succeed against the American and Latino fighters.
How is his hand holding up after the injury that he suffered in the fight with Marquez? We are following doctors orders and his hand is healing well. We just got the word from the doctor that it is OK to begin training again.
After scoring three big knock downs in the first round against Marquez many thought the lead that Pacquiao had built-up was insurmountable, but the judges ruled it a draw. Where you disappointed in that outcome? Absolutely. Pacquaio deserved the victory but was the victim of the mistake of a judge who failed to score the first round 10-6 and admitted that he made the mistake and even confusingly asked the chairman of the Nevada State Athletic Commission during the fight if they disapproved of 10-6 rounds. Manny Pacquiao shouldn’t have to suffer because of the mistakes of the judges and that is why we filed a protest which they refused to hear and then we filed a second protest for them failing to hear the first protest.
You traveled to the Philippines with Pacquiao how were you received there? I was treated like a king in the Philippines. The Filipino people are a very hospitable people and very generous and they make tourists feel very welcomed and at home and I want to tell the American people that if they are looking for a vacation it is a great place to go where they will be treated good and have access to beautiful hotels, scenic nature and superb-restaurants. Also, the American people should not believe this nonsense the media spreads about staying away from the Philippines because of terrorism that is completely false.
I heard that you had the chance to meet with Filipino President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo while in the Philippines and that she is a Pacquiao fan. I was the guest of the president and treated as a state-guest and this head-of-state. With all of the difficulties she has in her second term, [she] went on the record to say that she believed that Manny Pacquiao was wronged in the decision of the Marquez fight and I feel honored that she did that.
Are you trying to develop a stronger relationship with Filipino boxing and a stronger presence there? We will have a second Thrilla in Manilla but this time it will not be heavyweights it will be the little guys and you will see HBO in Manila with Manny Pacquiao. I have been traveling to the Philippines for years and while I am an American, my heart is also in the Philippines. This is also bigger than boxing this is about attracting investment in this impoverished country. Through Manny Pacquiao, people will visit the country and some of these people are wealthy people who can invest in the infrastructure and economy of the Philippines so that people no longer have to live in huts without electricity. These are the people that Manny Pacquaio has given hope to, the poor and the downtrodden who see him as their inspiration.
You and Roy Jones have been so close over the years and you guided him through much of his career. What is your reaction to his loss to Antonio Tarver? Roy is like a son to me and I love him and he is still a great fighter and a better fighter than Antonio Tarver. I guided Roy to do things people thought that we could not do. We sold out the Radio City Music Hall in New York City the first time boxing was ever held there. We went to Mississippi and fought before a sold-out crowd when people thought that could not be done. I got Roy Jones the fight with John Ruiz after Don King told me in his limo he wouldn’t take the fight, turned it down again in his helicopter and again in his plane, but in the end we got the deal with Ruiz and Roy Jones made history.
What did you think about the decision for him to go back down to light heavyweight and fight Tarver in the first place? I was against it and I told him I was against it, but sometimes like between father and son you have to step-back and let them make their own decisions. I knew from talking to people that Roy would have problems dropping the weight and maintaining his strengh and that was what happened.
What did you want to see Roy Jones do? I wanted to make history and have the largest grossing fight in the history of boxing. I wanted to do something bigger than myself or Roy and have a fight with Mike Tyson that could have grossed a billion-dollars and that could have taken care of our families for generations. That is what I am talking about and this is bigger than boxing. This is real power and money in the hands of African-Americans. This is not nigga money as we would say back in the projects. That would have been real money and money that would have lasted.
You where one of the first prominent African-American promoters in boxing. Looking back at your career what are your thoughts? I have worked with legends and I am a creator, the scripture says God is THE Creator, but he has put some small creators here on earth and that is what I am. I put boxing in ice rinks in New Jersey when people said I was crazy, I did boxing in Atlantic City when people said that was crazy, I put on shows in prison. I worked with and helped Larry Holmes, Matthew Saad Muhammad, Eddie Mustafa Muhammad, and so may great other fighters. Thirty-five years in boxing and I was the one they said could not do it. From washing dishes in the camp of the great Muhammad Ali to one of the top-five promoters in boxing.
What do you think about the television situation in boxing right now? I have put on more than one-thousand on TV and there have been some great ones. It is a shame to see this great sport not on network TV. Even BET, the black network, does not have boxing on it and that is a real shame. ESPN had boxing every week and now that is going downhill and FOX used to have shows twice a week and now they do hardly any. But I want this to be heard and I want this to be said: boxing is not off of the networks because of the black promoters. Boxing is off TV cause you got people doing ESPN shows who wanted to catch the Concord to London without ever having been on a helicopter.
With all of the investigations into boxing currently your name has not come up, but what do you feel about these investigations? My father told me that a good name is better than gold. When I got my gaming license from the State of New Jersey the investigator came to me and told me that I was so clean I could run for Governor, that is how thorough the background check they did and it came up clean. I operate with Taqwa (God-consciousness) and I do not cheat my fighters or anyone because I have that and that is why my name is as good as gold in the industry.
Have you used the success you have had in boxing, particularly as an African-American male, to reach out to the community? I started the victims-aid assistance program in New Jersey. We have worked to help the widows and orphans of those police officers and fire fighters slain in the line of duty and we have also went into the prisons to try and work with some of those incarcerated. This is bigger than boxing. This is about empowerment and helping our people and helping black Americans establish institutions which is race-consciousness — not racism, and there is a big difference.
Do you feel that some of these investigations have unfairly targeted African-Americans? In the case of IBF founder Bob Lee, and we are talking about a man that, no matter what they say, has made history in boxing and his place in history cannot be replaced and the IBF is still the only American-based sanctioning body and it is headed by an African-American. Bob Lee went to jail because fifteen Caucasian men cooperated with the authorities and turned states evidence and one Hispanic man disappeared.
How do you see the future of African-Americans promoters and executives in boxing? There is a conspiracy against the African-American companies in boxing! In boxing, unlike the other major sports where the players are mostly minority but the ownership and money is white, you have minorities with power and money and there are a lot of people that do not like seeing that. If there was a Tyson-Jones fight that grossed a billion dollars and it is all in the hands of African-Americans well that is just too much for some people. One day they want to make it were a man like me can’t fight to get to the top, but you have to have a Harvard degree to be in boxing.
Having the name Murad Muhammad, especially in a day when Islamophobia is rampant, has your being a Muslim caused any problems for you in the industry? You just don’t know how many times over the years people have tried to hide my name on banners or banners have fallen down because they did not want the name Muhammad to be seen. People have this attitude because they do not understand Islam. As an African-American Muslim who first began with the Honorable Elijah Muhammad who taught us African-Americans to have a positive self-image, we are now integrated into following the sunnah and the global Muslim community. Yes I have race-consciousness, but as a Muslim all races are equal. The only difference is in the deed of the individual. By the way, you will never see the name Muhammad on any ring post or on the canvas, because that is the name of our Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) and that is not a name to be stepped-on, sweated-on or bled-on.
Looking at our 2004 Olympic boxing team and the state of youth boxing what do you see? I do not follow youth boxing that closely but I know that our boys are not being treated well and that is a shame. When you build the gyms in the ghettos you give the young men a positive way to get rid of energy and if they are not doing that there is no telling what they will do. Put boxing back on TV and give the children in the ghetto an opportunity to see someone like them succeed and maybe one day they can be on TV. America needs boxing and should be investing in boxing and not turning its back on boxing. We all need to give back and help people, that is why I operate the email helpline [email protected] so that people can contact me if they are seeking advice.
