Dougie's MASSIVE Monday Mailbag

MAYWEATHER & THE PACMAN

Dougie:
Got a couple points. I'm not a Floyd Mayweather fan. While I acknowledge that he's a technically superior fighter, his style leaves me cold, and I much prefer watching Manny Pacquiao.

That said a couple points regarding drug testing:

1) I doubt that we're actually talking about steroids, or even HGH, I think Mayweather's people think that Pac-Man has been blood doping, either using EPO or transfusing. Using the USADA protocols in such a circumstance would uncover this because one of the things that is done is a RBC count as a baseline.

2) No matter what a punk Mayweather is, he has a right to go into the ring knowing he's on a level playing field with Pacquiao. Blood doping would not make Pac-Man stronger, but it would give him more endurance and stamina, both of which could be critical in late rounds, and would make him look and feel stronger. Ask Miguel Cotto.

3) It ain't worth no amount of money to get in between the ropes with someone who has a significant physical advantage due to doping. And conversely, if you aren't doing something wrong, who walks away from $30-40 million over a couple drops of blood? If you could do that Dougie, more power to you, but I sure as hell couldn't. But I would never get in the ring with someone I wasn't sure was clean, and Punkweather shouldn't either.

One of the best comments I heard on it was from Oscar De La Hoya, who said there ain't no way someone with as many tats as Manny is afraid of needles. -- Steve

Pacquiao's people didn't say he feared needles. They claim that he believes giving blood close to the fight will weaken him. That might not be a very rational notion to you or I but nobody ever said that Pacquiao was the most educated guy the sport. I don't claim to know the man personally, but just from observing more than a few of his camp workouts I can tell that he's superstitious, so who knows what he really believes?

Anyway, I don't have a very strong feeling on this whole drug-testing controversy. I don't think Pacquiao is guilty of any wrong doing and I don't believe that he should be treated as though he's a cheater or have to undergo more drug testing than any other prize fighter. However, if I were a boxer who believed that a possible opponent was cheating in some manner (be it PEDs or illegal hand wrapping or whatever) I would do whatever is within my power to screen for and prevent that from happening in our bout.

I've tried to avoid commenting too much on the fight and the various points of debate that have come up (such as where the bout will take place) until the damn thing is done. That's all I really care about. I just want the integral parties to the fight to workout a reasonable compromise.

Now, I'll take a stab and commenting on your points:

1)I admit that I don't know much about blood doping, EPO or transfusing, but is Pacquiao going to be able to hide that he's doing it if a blood test is taken 15-20 days out from the fight and then immediately after? If the USADA can't take his blood in the final days leading into the bout is the testing no good?

2)I agree with what you're saying about Mayweather in principle. All fighters should know that they're entering the ring on a level playing field but they have to rely on the regulations/drug testing/screening of the state commissions. I know Mayweather thinks he's bigger than boxing, but is he really? Pacquiao and Bob Arum may not think so, and you can't fault them for thinking that way. With the run his fighter is on Arum can make the argument that Pacquiao, not Mayweather, is the hottest thing in boxing and doesn't have to be dictated to by anyone, especially if his fighter has done nothing wrong and has always complied with the rules of the sport. (By the way, Pacquiao didn't break Cotto with endurance or stamina. He took Cotto's best shots early and hurt him in return. The fight essentially ended after the second knockdown in fourth round. From that point on, Cotto backpedaled and avoided exchanges. Pacquiao causally walked him down. He didn't have dig deep and come up with any kind of Herculean effort down the stretch of the bout because Cotto wasn't putting any pressure on him.)

3)I think Pacquiao would have no problem walking away from Mayweather and the giant payday. The fact that he's running for congress in 2010 instead of focusing solely on his boxing career is an indication that he feels he's already cemented his legacy in the sport. And you know what? He's earned the right to feel that way.
Mayweather has a right not to get into the ring with anyone he isn't sure is clean, but the sad fact about sports in this era is that he can't be sure that ANYONE he fights is clean. I hate to say this but I think he's going to have to get over it to an extent or re-retire. If the negotiations to all of his potential 'super-bouts' are going to be bogged down with Olympic-style testing demands I'd rather he not bothered.

ENOUGH ALREADY!

Hey Doug,
It's truly amazing how ridiculous this has all become. Hopefully, by some small miracle, the two sides will nickel-and-dime each other a little while longer in terms of how many tests and when to test, and we will have a signed fight�but I don't have my hopes up. I have to say that I was surprised that Floyd Mayweather accepted the fight in the first place. I thought to myself, hey, he's actually going to challenge himself. But of course, as is usually the case with Floyd, there's always something. Just when you think the fight will be official, Floyd wants something else. And of course, why shouldn't he? I mean, there's just no way that Pacquiao can really be THAT good, right? There's no way he could've bulldozed De la Hoya, Hatton, and Cotto like that. Manny must be taking something.

After the fight with Marquez was made and Floyd was taking heat for fighting a lightweight, Floyd was quick to point out the �fact� that he, just like Manny Pacquiao, came up from fighting at 106 (never mind the fact that Floyd never fought below 130 as a pro). He uses that �logic� in part as a way to dump on Pacquiao's accomplishments, and also so we dare not categorize Floyd as the true welterweight he is today. And so, if both Floyd and Manny were 106-pounders, can't everyone just as easily raise an eyebrow at Floyd? Can't people wonder if Floyd has done it naturally up to this point? Of course not, because whoever would say that would just be a �hater� and a �racist.� (For the record, I don�t think Floyd has done anything illegal). Floyd Sr. has no problem with his son moving up from a lighter weight, but it would be just impossible for someone else to go up in weight and dominate. But here�s a crazy idea. Maybe the reason Manny knocks guys out is because HE ACTUALLY TRIES TO KNOCK GUYS OUT. While Floyd may not be a big puncher, he's accurate enough to have stopped more guys if he had just upped his output, the latest example being Marquez.

In the end, a compromise should be reached, but at the same time Manny Pacquiao shouldn't let himself be bullied by the Mayweathers. It's hilarious to hear Leonard Ellerbe saying that Manny doesn't make the rules with regard to the fight, and in the same breath Ellerbe states his own rules and demands. It's tiresome, and hopefully it will all be over soon. Thanks. -- Jesse � New Jersey

I'm certainly sick of hearing and reading about it. Leave it to boxing to have all this nonsense explode during the damn holiday season.

Good point about Mayweather and Pacquiao weighing the same when they were 16 years old (106 pounds); the only difference being that Floyd was an amateur and Pacquiao was a pro. Both men have matured into small welterweights (by modern standards).

We could all raise our eyebrows at Floyd's ability to rise in weight while retaining his lightening-fast hnads and reflexes but his lack of pop the higher up he's gone in weight and his willingness to undergo the Olympic-style drug testing puts those suspicions to rest (or at least it should). I think Floyd is clean.

I think Mayweather Sr. is skeptical of Pacquiao because his rise from featherweight (the division that Floyd Jr. ended his amateur career at) to welterweight happened much quicker than his son's. However, I think the old man (and many fans, as well as some of my peers in the media) are ignorant to some facts about Pacquiao and his weight. Much is made about Pacquiao winning his first title at flyweight. He was 19 at the time; probably prepubescent and likely malnourished. He lost that title on the scales because he outgrew the division at age 20. His next fight was at 122 pounds, two divisions higher. He stayed at junior featherweight for many years and won his second title there in 2001. I was ringside for that fight and I watched him train for his first defense (against fellow beltholder Agapito Sanchez), which was, ironically, the co-feature to Mayweather-Chavez, which I also covered. For at least two weeks leading into his fight with the late Sanchez, Pacquiao was only eating one small meal a day. He really had to dry out to make 122 pounds; in fact, I doubt he ate anything the day before and the day of the weighin.

At that time, Pacquiao probably should have been fighting at 126 pounds or even at 130, where Mayweather was in the early part of the decade.

By the time Pacquiao was fighting at 130 pounds, he had to work very hard to make that weight. And if you go back and look at the HBO broadcasts for his last few fights at junior lightweight (the Morales rubbermatch and Marquez rematch), you'll see that he was entering the ring at 140 pounds or more. That tells me that he'd matured into a full-bodied junior welterweight a couple years ago, which tells me that his ability to fight effectively at welterweight isn't that much of a stretch (not for an athlete of his obvious talent level).

I think Mayweather Sr. and many fans are thinking of Pacquiao as some little featherweight who used banned drugs to bulk up to 140 and 147 pounds, but his �walk-around� weight was between 135 and 140 pounds (solid, not fat or paunchy) even when he was fighting at 126 pounds. For the record, I think Pacquiao is clean.

COULD MALIGNAGGI BE GOOD FOR PAC?

Hi Dougie,
I was just thinking that a fight with Paul Malignaggi could be just what Manny Pacquiao needs before fighting Floyd. Think about it, Malignaggi is a quick, slick boxer with fast hands. He could be considered a poorman's Floyd Mayweather. I know he isn't the counter puncher or defensive wizard that Mayweather is but he is somewhat comparable. Manny hasn't really ever fought that type of a fighter (please correct me if I'm wrong) so it would be smart for him to get used to it. Also the fact that Malignaggi couldn't crack an egg warrants little risk of Pacquiao getting re-injured while providing real in ring action with a slick boxer.

I know Pacquiao's people have said that he would be fine by March 13 but the Cotto fight did bust Manny up a little (eardrum and wrist) making sure he is 100% while getting used to a new style could be perfect. An interm fight with Malignaggi would also give both sides a chance to cool down and work things out while the media continued to fuel hype for the P4P clash. I'm not saying that Top Rank or Manny are planning it this way but if they are it could work out pretty well. Giving Freddie Roach extra time to form a plan of attack can't be a bad thing either. Thanks. -- David Green, Warner Robins, Georgia

It probably would be beneficial for Pacquiao to �warm-up� for Mayweather by fighting Malignaggi but I have no interest in covering a so-called major fight that is really just a tune-up for a �real� mega match and I don't think fans are going to be thrilled about being charged $60 to watch the PacMan dance with the Magic Man.

If Pacquiao-Malignaggi was on an HBO Championship Boxing broadcast and not PPV, I wouldn't have much of a problem with that fight taking place. But I don't think that's going to happen.

(And if the bout happened and Mayweather-Pacquiao didn't come off, it would be as big of a waste of time as De La Hoya-Forbes was.)

I'd rather see Malignaggi in with Tim Bradley than Pacquiao. The winner of that fight might actually gain enough fan support to merit calling out the PacMan.

I agree that the Cotto fight probably took a slight physical toll on Pacquiao and he could use more of a rest than he would get if the Mayweaher bout took place in March. One good thing (for Pacquiao, not necessarily for boxing) that could come out of this stupid drug-testing dilemma is that the bout could be pushed back to June or July, which would give the PacMan more time to recover and have a longer camp to prepare for a boxing style that he isn't used to fighting.

BLOODY HELL!

Hey Doug,
I've enjoyed your work for some time, but this is the first time I've felt compelled to write to you.

Regarding the Pacquiao-Mayweather blood testing impasse, I'm just astounded that people are actually buying into the notion that Manny should agree to the test if he has nothing to hide.

If I make a baseless accusation, with zero evidence, that someone committed a crime, the burden isn't on them to prove me wrong, it's on me to prove the accusation has merit, and that I'm not completely lying or talking s__t. In this case, as we all know, there's absolutely no evidence that Pacquiao has been doing anything illegal regarding training and fight prep, yet it's all called into question because of Floyd Sr's hunch? Seriously? A completely made-up accusation from Floyd Sr. has the boxing public in debate?

Why does the Mayweather team get to dictate the terms through which Pacquiao has to clear his name? After they're the ones who put dirt on it in the first place? If I said that Floyd Jr. took steroids, that he did it not one time, not this time, not that time, but ALL the time, would people start knocking on Money's door demanding he prove his innocence? Hell naw, they'd tell me to shut up without any proof that I wasn't just trying to tear down a fighter and his accomplishments.

Let me stop before this gets too whiney. I'm not saying this because I'm a Pacquiao fan, I think a fight between the two will be compelling and competitive to say the least, and I think Pacquiao would rightfully be the underdog due to Money's reach and ability to adjust to his opponent during the fight (obviously among many other things). I think ultimately the fight goes through, but count me out of this gamesmanship stuff. I'll sit out the Machiavelli stages of this fight. I guess just wake me up when they touch gloves.

Happy holidays to you and yours. -- Ton from Philly

Thanks Ton. I hear ya, and I think you make a very good point, which seems to be overlooked a little bit.

Pacquiao has done nothing wrong. There should not be a cloud of suspicion over him just because Mayweather Sr., who talks s__t about everyone in boxing, claims that he's on something. I guess folks forgot that Pacquiao crushed Ricky Hatton, who Mayweather Sr. was training, in two rounds. The same Hatton who went 10 rounds with his son. You don't think Senior's ego was bruised JUUUUSSST a little bit by that result? I do. I think he deals with that pain by rubbing dirt on Pacquiao's name.

And it doesn't take much to start up a debate in boxing. Fans will listen to and repeat absolute nonsense as long as they can use it to put down fighters they hate (or the fans of those fighters) on message boards and in YouTube comments, and sadly many boxing writers will write down anything that comes out of Floyd Senior and Junior's mouths. I have no idea why. Floyd Jr. can call Emanuel Steward an Uncle Tom and nobody tells him to shut up. They just jot it down and stick it in their columns. Floyd Sr. makes baseless accusations about Pacquiao and they write about it as though Manny's on trial.

If you accused Mayweather of taking PEDs folks wouldn't just tell you shut up, they'd call you �racist� or a �hater.� (By the way, in my experience people who constantly accuse others of being racists or haters are usually hateful racists.)

F___ 'EM ALL

Hey Doug,
What is this bulls__t blood testing stuff? For sure Mayweather doesn't need his balls tested as he doesn't have any... If I were Manny I'd tell them all to go screw themselves. -- Stephen, Montreal

Well, he's kind of done that with the lawsuit he's threatened to drop in the next few days, hasn't he?

WHAT ABOUT THE TATTOOS?

Pac is my favorite action fighter of all time along with Chico Corrales, but one thing NEVER occurred to me until Gary Shaw mentioned it. If the man is afraid of needles, HOW THE HELL DID HE GET THE TATTOOS? I'm sorry Manny and Top Rank, but that's FULL OF S__T. Now I actually wonder what the hell you're hiding.

Doug, who does Top Rank have in house that could create a major event for Manny, being as though most promoters are coming out saying they will insist on the same blood tests the Mayweather camp has? Floyd can wait for Shane, make that fight, and do spectacular business. You know I personally think that's when Shane whips Floyds ass, so that's cool by me anyway. Peace bro. -- Ted

I keep hearing this tattoo argument from various boxing people, who have had prior business relationships with Pacquiao (that didn't end so well), and my thought is that getting a tattoo and having blood drawn are two different things.

As for what each fighter does if Mayweather-Pacquiao isn't made, I don't care. I'd rather them sit the year out than fight anyone else, unless it's Sugar Shane.

I don't see Mayweather taking that fight, though. If he wants Olympic-style drug testing for a guy who's never been busted for anything, what's he gonna want in order to face a dude who has admitted to taking PEDs? Blood testing during fight, between rounds? Would Mosley have to have a spit bucket and a piss bucket in his corner?

I tell you what, I bet you Mosley would agree to anything to get his hands on Floyd.


Doug Fischer can be reached at dougiefischer@yahoo.com