By Norm Frauenheim
LAS VEGAS – Floyd Mayweather Jr. complained about the lack of padding at the knuckles of Marcos Maidana’s gloves in a controversy that erupted Friday after the weigh-in for their pay-per-view welterweight fight at the MGM Grand.
There are two pairs in question. Both are in light blue, the national color for Argentina, Maidana’s home country.
Mayweather’s corner did not argue with the brand, Everlast. But Mayweather’s management, including advisor Leonard Ellerbe and attorney John Hornewer, demanded during a rules meeting that the Nevada State Athletic Commission prohibit Maidana from wearing either pair. Maidana walked out of the meeting. There was still no resolution to controversy late Friday.
Maidana is known for his power. With 31 knockouts in 35 fights, he has one of the best KO ratios in boxing. Mayweather wears Grant-made gloves.
The glove controversy was just one of many in a week full of them during the build-up for Mayweather-Maidana.
At a weigh-in that sounded like a rap concert, the only excess pounds came from booming speakers loud enough to simulate a small earthquake. The building shook. The scale rocked. The noise was heavy. Only the fighters weren’t.
Both Mayweather and Maidana came in under the 147-pound limit. Mayweather looked bigger and might be much bigger at opening bell, but at 146 pounds he was lighter on the official scale than Maidana, who was at 146-½ for his sixth fight at welterweight.
Mayweather, who had Atlanta rapper 2Chainz in his entourage, appeared calm and confident as ever, despite controversy throughout the week before his third fight in a Showtime contract for a possible six bouts and a potential $250 million.
The week started with Mayweather defending Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling, whom he called “a nice guy” despite Sterling’s racist comments that resulted in the NBA banning him for life. The controversy continued Thursday when Mayweather posted allegations on his Facebook account that his former fiance, Shantel Jackson, aborted their twins because he is pro-life. The post, taken down later in the day, included a photo of what he said was her sonogram.
Showtime broadcaster Jim Gray asked Mayweather about “distractions” after the pound-for-pound champion stepped off the scale.
“Pressure, I love it,’’ said Mayweather, who also promised to do what he does best.
There doesn’t appear to be much pressure on Mayweather (45-0, 26 KOs) in the bout itself. Odds, which have been as high as 11-to-1, have made him the overwhelming favorite since the fight was announced.
If there’s pressure, it’s in how he wins. At different times and in different words, Mayweather has been close to promising his best performance ever. He has said that doesn’t necessarily mean a stoppage. But fans are interpreting it that way. Consider this: The odds are 6-to-5 for Mayweather by KO. A lot of bettors are putting their money on the 10th-round, which would coincide with Mayweather’s 2007 TKO of Ricky Hatton, who — like Maidana – was a natural 140-pounder fighting as a welterweight. Mayweather by KO in the 10th opened at 12-to-1. Late in the week, it had been bet down to 8-to-1.
Predictably, Maidana (35-3, 31 KOs) has said he is not bothered by the overwhelming odds. What else is he going to say?
“I know he’s going to be much bigger, but because of my style I know I can beat him,’’ said Maidana, who possesses one of the best knockout ratios in boxing, yet could not stop Adrien Broner, a former lightweight, in his upset of him in December.
In some ways, Maidana’s slim chance at a monumental upset is reflected in the wealth gap that separates the two purses. Mayweather’s guarantee is $32 million, according to a contract filed with the Nevada State Athletic Commission. Maidana’s guarantee is $1.5 million, according to the Nevada commission. Maidana is expected to get a percentage of Argentina’s television revenue. Nevertheless, Maidana’s guarantee is a fraction of what Mayweather will pocket no matter what the pay-per-view does.
Form the odds to the respective paychecks, it all adds up to Mayweather, unless — and perhaps only if — Maidana gets lucky. In this city of longshots, he might. But the best bet is that his chances at luck are better with a pair of dice at a Vegas’ table than in the ring against Mayweather.
De La Hoya, Arum meet
According to various reports, Oscar De La Hoya met Thursday with Bob Arum at Arum’s home in Los Angeles in an attempt to end the Golden Boy Promotions-Top Rank feud.
“Our relationship is now totally repaired, whether we do any specific business, we will have a friendly relationship between Todd (DuBoef) and I on our side and Oscar,’’ said Arum, De La Hoya’s primary promoter during his Hall of Fame career “We’ll have a collegial relationship.
“It was a very emotional meeting. We hugged each other. Oscar meant a lot to me, and I meant a lot to him. We had a helluva ride together. It was the right thing to do.”
Arum said the meeting lasted about two-and-a-half hours.
“We had lunch,’’ he said. “It was at our vacation house in Los Angeles. There was a good tenor to our conversation. Todd and I met with Oscar, and reminisced about old times. We talked about how it was crazy that we were at odds. We buried the hatchet, and it as a very productive meeting. We never talked any specific business, ever.”
De La Hoya, founder of Golden Boy, has been feuding with his CEO, Richard Schaefer, who has vowed to never to do business with Arum again. Golden Boy has been working as associate promoter for the Mayweather-Maidana fight.
However, De La Hoya has not attended any of the news conferences. He also was not at Friday’s weigh-in.
Also on the scale
Both Amir Khan (28-3, 19 KOs) and Luis Collazo were at the mandatory, 147-pounds, for their key welterweight fight on the televised card. Khan hopes for an impressive victory that will keep him in line for a shot at Mayweather, perhaps later in the year.
Adrien Broner (27-1, 22 KOs) was at 140 pounds and Carlos Molina at 138 ½ for their junior-welterweight bout. There were boos for Broner, who was happy to hear them. “Keep on booing me,’’ said Broner, who is coming off his loss to Maidana. “I’m going to keep on doing my thing.’’
