Lunch at a restaurant at the Wynn Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. That’s all it took to break the ice.
They were either worn by all the talk of the high quality dream matchups that were going by the wayside, or – and this is the more likely reason – they were sick of all the money wasted in arbitration and lawyer fees.
Yes, the cold war is over between the two premier boxing promotional companies, Top Rank and Golden Boy, and it was on full display Thursday in New York City, at Madison Square Garden’s Theater.
I walked into the Theater for the presser and seated at a table together were Richard Schaefer, CEO of Golden Boy Promotions along with Bob Arum, Top Rank’s top dog.
Instead of leaving millions of dollars on the table, the two were sharing a table; Arum munching on a bagel, while it appeared as if Schaefer was carrying the friendly conversation.
The sit-down at the Wynn back in June was the immediate impetus to forming three fights between the two companies that fans wanted to see. Manny Pacquiao-Marco Antonio Barrera will kick things off October 6 in Las Vegas, in what should be a real crowd pleaser. Next, Miguel Cotto and “Sugar” Shane Mosely will slug it out at the Garden in NYC and then Joan Guzman and Humberto Soto will do battle for the WBO super featherweight title.
Not a bad trio to kickoff – what I like to call – Golden Top Promotions.
Sources tell me that the two companies are getting along on all levels. Each company’s PR teams have been complimenting the other, while the executives have been working hand-in-hand.
The legal fees were eating both the companies alive.
Schaefer and Arum came to the table without an arbitrator and hammered out their settlement. They came to the table with 25 points and they went through them all one by one and checked em’ all off.
No attorneys, no PR, just the top two guys settling up, understanding that so much is lost without their respective pugilists squaring off against one another.
An insider at Top Rank said, “We thought we were winning, but we were losing. All the money we spent should have been going into signing and developing fighters.”
In terms of the particulars going forward, Arum is happy he can now focus on his younger fighters once again:
“We always have been in the business of developing fighting. Victor Ortiz, is on this card; Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. will be a star and (Argenis) Mendez, the Dominican, is coming along. We are building a whole group of stars for the future.”
However the real result of the impasse’s end is the actual boxing matches and the excitement and revenues that they will come of them.
“We are unquestionably making better fights, we are bringing more attention to boxing, reviving the sport by bringing big attractions, and that’s good for everyone,” said Arum.
“We are delighted to be promoting with Golden Boy. It’s been great working with them,” said the excited CEO of Top Rank.
“We are really thrilled the cold war is over,” said Schaefer, Arum’s counterpart. “We will now have an opportunity to continue what we have done; only now we can make some bigger shows.”
Cotto said, “I wasn’t involved with any of the problems (Top Rank-Golden Boy), but I am pretty happy the problem is fixed. I know now I have more options.”
Although the Pacquiao-Barrera fight will come first, in my eyes the Cotto-Mosely fight should be the fight that lives up to the hype.
Both Cotto and Mosley had an aura of real confidence about them at the presser Thursday, announcing their November 10 showdown, which should be highlighted by “Sugar’s” speed and Cotto’s power.
Most scribes see this bout as a pick em’ in every sense.
“I don’t think I want to knock him out early,” said Mosley responding to a question from a member of the media regarding Cotto’s questionable chin. “I want to give the fans their monies worth.”
Cotto said, “I’m not the world’s most skilled fighter, but my training is what puts me in the situation I’m in now.”
Any way you slice it, this fight should be one of the year’s best. Both men bring a lot to the table and the fight should truly be an all out war.
Going forward, if Cotto gets by Mosley, Top Rank has said that Cotto could be back in the Garden to fight once again on the eve of the Puerto Rican Day Parade. That is unless, Oscar De La Hoya agrees to a fight Cotto, which Arum said would then take place in May. Interestingly, Arum said such a fight wouldn’t take place in Las Vegas, because they don’t allow eight ounce gloves at welterweight.
As for Golden Boy, they will be the lead promoter in the upcoming Mayweather-Hatton fight in Las Vegas, December 8. They will no doubt be using the opportunity to woo Hatton, who is a free agent, to become a Golden Boy fighter. Mayweather however still maintains that he will use this next fight versus Hatton as a springboard for Mayweather Promotions.
