A Saturday press conference is in the works for smack-talkers Adrien Broner and Paulie Malignaggi.
Lem's latest: Arum eyes Cotto-Chavez Jr., Martinez to meet with HBO - Next
|
Page 2 of 2
OTHER POTENTIAL SCENARIOS? "If Manny decides to go with Cotto, and if Chavez wins in February, then Chavez will get another opponent in June or something like that. But then, if Cotto wins, or even if he loses to Manny, then Cotto can fight Chavez in the fall," said Arum. "Cotto is going to fight Chavez if Chavez wins and if Manny doesn't fight Cotto. But I don't know what Manny is going to do. Obviously, though, if Manny chooses Cotto, it means that he's not going with Marquez. So that means that Marquez can fight either Bradley or Peterson." Got all of that? PACQUIAO-MAYWEATHER? MAYBE IN THE FALL Arum has indicated that he still would entertain a November matchup between Pacquiao and WBC welterweight titleholder Floyd Mayweather Jr. if Pacquiao gets beyond his next fight in May or June. Mayweather is facing a 90-day jail sentence that is slated to begin on Friday, a development which has potentially ruined his announced plan to return to the ring on May 5 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. "Manny is going to fight in May or June," Arum was quoted by BoxingScene.com, "and if Floyd is available and Manny is successful, we'll fight Floyd in November." MARTINEZ TO MEET WITH HBO OFFICIALS RingTV.com has learned that Martinez is set to meet with officials at HBO on Tuesday regarding what has become his strained relationship with the network. During a press conference in his native Argentina on Dec. 29, Martinez renounced his WBC "Diamond" belt and indicated that he might pursue a relationship with Showtime over HBO, which he feels has mistreated him. Martinez was forced to give up his WBC belt for fighting Sergei Dzinziruk in March on HBO, a bout Martinez won by an eighth-round KO. The WBC then elevated Sebastian Zbik to the status of full champion and mandated that Zbik face Chavez, who dethroned Zbik in June. Martinez also has expressed the desire to face RING super middleweight champ Andre Ward at a catchweight in a clash that Ward said that he would welcome. "My response to a matchup with Sergio Martinez is pretty short and sweet," said Ward, who is promoted by Dan Goossen. "I like it. Hopefully the fight can be made." Contracted to Showtime, Ward defeated Carl Froch on Dec. 17, adding Froch's WBC belt to the WBA crown he already owned and also capturing the network's Super Six World Boxing Classic Championship Cup. Martinez earned the undisputed middleweight belt with a unanimous decision over Kelly Pavlik in April of 2010, following that up with a second-round knockout of Paul Williams in a November rematch of their 2009 fight that Williams won by a controversial majority decision. Martinez is rated No. 3 in THE RING's pound for pound list and is coming off an 11th-round knockout of Darren Barker in October.
AMIR KHAN RAISES NEW QUESTIONS ABOUT HIS LOSS TO PETERSON Khan posted a series of pictures on Twitter on Thursday showing what he says is an unidentified man "interfering" with WBA fight supervisor Michael Welsh during his loss to Peterson, according to the Associated Press. Peterson has been offered a career-high $1 million by Golden Boy Promotions for a rematch with Khan, who already has cited poor officiating and scorecard descrepancies among the reasons he has appealed to the IBF and the WBA to overturn Peterson's victory or else to order an immediate rematch. In the newest development, Khan points out a man wearing a hat who sits down ringside next to Welsh during the bout, and whom he alleges is seen leaning over Welsh several times, even appearing to pick up a scorecard on at least two occasions.
"From Round 6 all the way through to round 12, this guy starts to interfere with what Michael is doing,” tweeted Khan, indicating that the man's behavior is "strictly against the rules."
Photos by Chris Farina, Top Rank Inc. Photo by Fightwireimages.com Lem Satterfield can be reached at lemuel.satterfield@gmail.com |