LENNOX LEWIS, the former world heavy weight boxing champion, is among several possible witnesses in the $33-million (P1.78 billion) lawsuit Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao has filed against his estranged American promoter Murad Muhammad in US federal court in New York, according to an Internet report on Tuesday.
The trial was set to start Monday (Tuesday in Manila), with Judge Loretta Preska of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York presiding. The judge has ordered that the trial be completed in two weeks.
Other possible witnesses, according to Pacquiao’s lawyers Judd Burstein and Keith Davidson, include Filipino sports columnist Joaquin “Quinito” Henson, Roberto “Boying” Nazario, trainer Freddie Roach, promoters Lou DiBella and Dino Duva, and the lawyer Sydney Hall—who has also filed charges against Muhammad in superior court in California.
Lewis, of Britain, is expected to shed light on Muhammad’s apparent failure to protect Pacquiao’s interests, particularly his share of the pay-per-view earnings in his fight against Mexico’s Erik Morales last March 19.
Lewis is a former client of Burstein, who won a $7.4-million federal court judgment for the former undisputed heavyweight champion against promoter Panos Eliades on grounds of racketeering and fraud in 2002.
Burstein has also won cases over several promoters, including Don King, in behalf of other fighters like Terry Norris and Julio Cesar Chavez.
DiBella, promoter of middleweight star Jermain Taylor and other boxers, offered Pacquiao a contract in 2002, but the Filipino still resigned with Muhammad, according to the report on ringtalk.com.
The report added that Duva might be called to testify that he offered Pacquiao a contract back in 2001 before Muhammad got involved.
Hall may also appear to testify against the promoter, since the lawyer brought Pacquiao to the United States and advised him to sign a short promotional agreement with Muhammad.
All witnesses will have to accept and approve their appearance in court, the report added.
Pacquiao filed suit against Muhammad and his promotional outfit, M&M Sports, on April 27, alleging the promoter withheld some of his earnings.
The lawsuit alleges Muhammad transferred more than 30 percent of Pacquiao’s purses to a shell company—Philippine Boxing LLC, controlled by Pacquiao’s longtime business manager Rod Nazario and his US-based son Roberto—on the basis his American taxes would be paid from there.
But the taxes were never paid, the lawsuit said, leaving the former International Boxing Federation super bantamweight and World Boxing Council flyweight champion with huge bills for back taxes, penalties and interest.
The lawsuit also alleges the arrangement meant his business managers agreed to purses that were below market, since they could make more from the money they set aside than they would from the 10-percent fee on properly negotiated purses.
Muhammad has denied the charges and said it is merely a ploy by Pacquiao’s new handlers—manager Shelly Finkel, the lawyer Nicholas Khan and Davidson—to formally break the Filipino’s contract, which specifies he has two more fights under the promoter until August 2006.
