Boxing might have entered a new era on Friday.

HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg took a look at a guy who called himself a promoter but had no license, no business plan, no finance capital, no infrastructure, no fighters and, basically, no clue, and showed him the door.

Winky Wright, the brilliant middleweight who along with welterweight Floyd Mayweather Jr. is one of the two finest fighters in the world, for some reason tried to scuttle a June 17 fight against champion Jermain Taylor.

Promoter Gary Shaw has been an outspoken advocate for Wright, hammering at Taylor promoter Lou DiBella to make a fair deal. To his credit, DiBella got to the bargaining table and negotiated in good faith even though his preference was to have Taylor defend his crown in a lesser fight first.

Shaw and DiBella had all but completed negotiations when Wright showed up unannounced at Greenburg's office last week and essentially killed the deal. He said Shaw wasn't authorized to negotiate on his behalf and wasn't his promoter.

It was a curious statement, since Wright had stood by quietly as Shaw negotiated very publicly with DiBella. Shaw used the media to pressure DiBella and help make his case. Wright knew that, even sending Shaw an e-mail last month that read, "You're my promoter for life, homey."

Apparently, Wright's idea of life is a little different than 'til death do us part.

Wright is a congenial guy, but being congenial and athletically gifted are a lot different than being ethical. That darn ethics thing is where Wright comes up just a little short.

He's the guy who in 2004 signed with three promoters simultaneously: DiBella Entertainment, Don King Productions and Square Ring. As Casey Stengel would say, you could look it up.

Wright also nearly caused his last fight to fall apart by negotiating with a venue in Texas behind Shaw's back after a deal had been struck. The difference this time is that Greenburg, whose company largely bankrolls boxing, wouldn't stand for it.

So many times in the past, prominent fighters tried to do an end run around their promoters by creating their own promotional company. But all they did was make it look like HBO was the promoter.

HBO Sports executives shudder any time the words "promoter" and "HBO" are in the same sentence, but in the past, things often didn't pass the smell test.

This time, though, Greenburg was honorable and stood by the deal he had negotiated. He essentially provided Wright with two choices: Fight under this deal or don't fight at all.

Wright ultimately caved and the bout against Taylor will be live on HBO on June 17, likely at Mandalay Bay.

"I believe fighters need strong representation and they should be aware of every issue that affects them," Greenburg said. "They should be involved in the process, but they can take control of their business lives without going out and forming these promotional companies."

It's been a hectic six weeks for Greenburg, but he's so far kept a promise he made in December when he said he would strive to bring more major fights to HBO instead of pay-per-view.

He's done that, booking a series of bouts that will air live on HBO: Hasim Rahman-James Toney for a heavyweight title on March 18; Marco Antonio Barrera-Jesus Chavez for a lightweight championship on March 25; Chris Byrd-Wladimir Klitschko for another heavyweight belt on April 22; and Taylor-Wright for the middleweight title on June 17.

Greenburg deserves kudos because at least three of those bouts, if not all of them, would have been on pay-per-view in 2005. But his biggest contribution to the sport was standing up to Wright's comical attempt to play businessman. Only one of those boxer-formed promotional companies has survived, because the fighters have no clue what they're getting into.

Only Oscar De La Hoya's Golden Boy Promotions, which had great assistance from HBO in getting off the ground, remains viable.

"Some boxers seem to think there are hidden fortunes and it's a way to easy money," Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer said. "It's extremely hard work. It's more than signing a fighter and going to HBO or Showtime and then sitting in the front row of the fights with a fancy suit on."

A boxer puts his life on the line every time he climbs between the ropes. He deserves every penny he can get. But even in boxing, a man's word has to count for something.

This time, at least, Greenburg's word was his bond. The result is a lot of entertaining fights on television without asking the public to shell out $44.95 each time for the right to see them.

Kevin Iole's boxing column is published Saturday. He can be reached at 396-4428 or at kiole@reviewjournal.com.