Sunday, March 06, 2005
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

Mayweather fires verbal jabs at fighters, Arum

Pretty Boy Floyd criticizes Gatti, De La Hoya, Cotto

By KEVIN IOLE
REVIEW-JOURNAL

Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been one of boxing's elite fighters for many years. On Friday, he tried to join Bernard Hopkins, Antonio Tarver, James Toney and Hasim Rahman as one of its best trash-talkers.

A clearly agitated Mayweather fired verbal jabs at many of boxing's biggest names and best fighters, including WBC super lightweight champion Arturo Gatti, former world champion Oscar De La Hoya, up-and-coming star Miguel Cotto and Top Rank chairman Bob Arum.

He also assailed what he called unscrupulous managers who "are always inventing ways to take a fighter's money."

Mayweather's vitriol was caused by Gatti's decision to scrap plans for a June 11 pay-per-view fight between the two. Gatti's representatives had set a 2 p.m. PST deadline Friday for Mayweather to sign a contract. Mayweather agreed to terms, but had not signed.

Mayweather said he had no problem with HBO and went out of his way to praise it for paying him well, but he said "HBO is protecting Arturo Gatti because he puts up good ratings and sells a lot of tickets in Atlantic City and they don't want to see him get knocked out on his face."

He said Arum, who has promoted all of his 33 fights, "doesn't like me and I don't like him. But that's OK, because he don't know how to promote a good fighter anyway."

Mayweather warned Arum not to pair him with Cotto, the WBO super lightweight champion and the rising star of the Top Rank stable.

"If Bob Arum is smart like he thinks he is, he'll keep Miguel Cotto as far away from me as he possibly can," Mayweather said. "That's easy work, three to four rounds tops for me. I'll do him like I did his stable mate (Henry Bruseles, whom Mayweather stopped in the eighth round on Jan. 22)."

He called out De La Hoya, who announced plans to move to welterweight, but said De La Hoya has offered a lame excuse. De La Hoya has said he won't fight Mayweather out of respect for his trainer, Mayweather's father, Floyd Sr.

"I haven't talked to my Daddy in five years, so what kind of excuse is that?" Mayweather asked.

He ridiculed De La Hoya's performance against middleweight champion Bernard Hopkins, who used a body shot to stop De La Hoya in the ninth round of their Sept. 18 fight. Shortly after, De La Hoya made Hopkins a partner in his promotional company.

"Oscar took a dive and then two weeks later, they're together," Mayweather said. "Come on, man. Can't you see what's happening?"

Mayweather said he desperately wants to fight Gatti, but said he doubts he will. He is friends with undisputed welterweight champ Zab Judah, but said "Zab knows he can't beat me. No questions asked."

Despite his anger, Mayweather said he is at peace.

"I don't care who loves me or who hates me as long as my kids love me," he said. "I am the truth. I am the best. I told you many years ago I would be the last man standing. I know it's going to piss some people off, but I'm going to retire undefeated, too."

• COTTO SATISFIED -- Top Rank president Todd duBoef said Cotto will fight in June, probably June 18 at Madison Square Garden. No opponent has been selected, but it is likely to be either a rematch with DeMarcus Corley, whom he stopped somewhat controversially in Puerto Rico on Feb. 26, or WBA champion Vivian Harris.

Cotto, who was unaware of Mayweather's rants when he spoke to a reporter, said he might have been a bit reckless in going for the knockout when he badly hurt Corley in the first round.

Corley hurt Cotto in the third round and had him out on his feet with two minutes left in the round, but Cotto managed to survive.

"I think I showed people I can not only dish it out, I can take a punch, too," Cotto said. "I went for it when he was hurt and I paid for it. But that's my job, to go in and take him out when I have the chance. Sometimes when you do that, you get caught."

Cotto knocked Corley down in the fifth round with a vicious body shot, but Corley got up and appeared all right. Cotto chased him to the corner and, though Cotto didn't appear to land a shot, Corley took a knee to clear his head.

Inexplicably, referee Enrique Falu, a Puerto Rican, stopped the bout.

"I don't really know what to say about that other than I think I would have finished the job myself if the referee hadn't stepped in," Cotto said.

• LAND OF KINGS -- Promoter Don King said he has reached a deal for a WBA heavyweight title fight between Las Vegan John Ruiz and No. 1 contender James Toney, but the other major fights he hoped to make are falling apart.

IBF champion Chris Byrd of Las Vegas declined what King described as a $3.6 million offer to fight Wladimir Klitschko in Germany on April 16. HBO plans to go ahead with a Klitschko fight on that date without Byrd.

The promoter also was incensed when Steve Nelson, the business manager for Rahman, the WBC's No. 1 contender, wrote to the organization requesting a purse bid for his challenge of champion Vitali Klitschko. King said he had already secured at least $3 million for Rahman, which he said Rahman would not come close to getting via purse bid.

In a purse bid, promoters put in sealed bids with a price they're willing to pay to promote a fight. The highest bid wins, with 75 percent of the bid going to the champion and 25 percent to the challenger.

"Who do they think is going to bid more than $12 million for this fight," King said. "Explain to me the business strategy of not being happy with $3 million and going to a process where you probably will only get around $1 million? It reeks of incompetence."

King railed on Byrd adviser John Hornewer for Hornewer's inability to deliver the fighter.

"I guess I'll see him in six months," King said of Byrd. "I lived up to our contract and made him the offer and he turned it down. It is the stupidest decision I've seen in my time. I love Chris Byrd, he's a remarkable fighter, but he can't draw flies at a dump. Turning this down is incredible. It's the worst advice I've seen."

• STRIPPED -- The WBC stripped Winky Wright of its super welterweight title and awarded it to Javier Castillejo since Wright chose to fight Felix Trinidad in a nontitle bout rather than defend against Castillejo.