Bob Arum promotes some of the best fighters in the world. Manny Pacquiao, Miguel Cotto, Kelly Pavlik and Antonio Margarito all belong to Arum.
They are consensus top-10 pound-for-pound picks.
Along with that success comes the obligatory headaches. Arum this week is consumed with two situations. Next Saturday two of his fighters – Pacquiao and David Diaz – will square off for Diaz’s lightweight world title at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas (on HBO pay-per-view).
Also, Arum is stunned Joe Calzaghe has changed his mind about fighting Pavlik and instead wants to end his career by taking on over-the-hill Roy Jones Jr.
Diaz was asked this week what he thought about the idea that Arum might want Pacquiao to win because he is Arum’s proverbial cash cow. Diaz answered by addressing Arum, who was present.
“Bob, no offense – who you want to win, or if you want Manny to win,” Diaz said, “but I understand the business aspect of it. That’s not my concern; that’s not even anywhere near my thoughts. My thought is to go out there and retain my title and beat Manny Pacquiao.”
Arum played the diplomat.
“My job as a promoter … is to make sure that both fighters have an even playing field,” he said. “So, whoever wins that fight, wins that fight. And that’s irrespective of any opinions I have, anything.”
As for longtime super middleweight champion Calzaghe, he moved up to light heavyweight last April and had a narrow win over
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——————————————————————————– Bernard Hopkins. With Pavlik (34-0, 30 KOs) having become such a terrific middleweight champion who wants to move up to super middleweight, Pavlik-Calzaghe is a no-brainer.
But Calzaghe (45-0, 32 KOs) apparently wants to end his career undefeated because last week he provided a South Wales publication with these comments: “I’m not sure if Pavlik really wants to face me at the moment. He would have little to gain because I believe I would definitely beat him and, with respect to Gary Lockett, I would be a step-up too far for Pavlik.”
Pavlik knocked out Lockett in the third round June 7.
Calzaghe went on to say that the washed-up Jones “is the right fight for me at the moment.”
Cazlaghe referred to Jones as a legend. That’s all well and good. But he’s no longer a premier fighter and Pavlik is all that and more.
Arum and Frank Warren, Calzaghe’s promoter, had been in early negotiations before Pavlik destroyed Lockett.
Arum believes that’s why Calzaghe is backing out.
“This is what I call the Floyd Mayweather (Jr.) school of how to avoid an opponent – demean an opponent,” Arum said. “Remember what Mayweather said about Margarito and Cotto?: `They are not in my class, therefore I do not deem it appropriate for me to fight them.’ Once a fighter says that, it means he’s afraid to fight him.”
