As the news broke on Friday that Floyd Mayweather would not have to report to prison till June 1st, the immediate focus turned to the possibility of a May 5th showdown between ?Money? and Manny Pacquiao. It?s a fight that has been talked about ad nauseam for two years now with no real progress in coming to fruition. However, the reality is that this fight is no closer to happening than it was before. In fact, it says here that this most recent legal maneuvering in Nevada ensures this fight is off the books for 2012. And please, folks, don?t kill the messenger. I can pander to you guys by telling you what you want or I can tell you the truth.
I?ll go with the latter.
The bottom line is that on May 5th, Mayweather- as long as he was a free man- was going to face another Golden Boy Promotions client (as he has exclusively since 2007) and Pacquiao already had his quartet of choices lined up for him by Bob Arum (who he meets this week in the Philippines).
Many now place the blame squarely on Arum, who certainly shares some it in this quagmire with his ever-changing stories and double-talk. This latest episode has been to Arum what the ?swift-boat? was to John Kerry. But he?s just one component of why this fight hasn?t taken place.
The real reason is simple: for both boxers, economically, it really doesn?t have to.
