Money always wins out
Lance Pugmire
Los Angeles Times
This is an unknown for now, requiring the ability to read a mind. The mind needing to be read is Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s, a skill that borders on impossible even for those close to the unbeaten boxer.
For now, we've been told Mayweather Jr. is in vacation mode, enjoying the lifestyle he earned by pummeling Shane Mosley on May 1 and earning $25 million, which we hear he is happily spending.
Of course, the money that Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao will generate by fighting each other will one day prove impossible to reject. Mayweather's spending habits will force him to recognize this, Pacquiao's fear of a blood test will mysteriously vanish, and the fight will have more than a year of crazed fan anxiety to maximize pay-per-view dollars and ensure a live-gate sellout no matter how much tickets cost.
lpugmire@tribune.com
Mayweather will cave
Orlando Sentinel
Floyd Mayweather's la-di-da attitude about facing Manny Pacquiao in the mother of all super-fights is the reason pro boxing is getting it's butt kicked by MMA.
It will happen because the pile of money the fighters could have split is staggering. Each guy stands to make between $25 million to $40 million.
Somebody twists little Floyd's arm to make him understand the consequences of his actions. Free choice you ask? I suppose it's OK to turn down $40 million. But in the macho-man sport world of pro boxing, maybe Little Floyd has some other concerns.
Like having Pac Man slap his arrogant face around, knocking off the invincibility of the man who professes to be the toughest pound-for-pound hombre.
Take off your diapers and come out and play, Floyd.
gdiaz@tribune.com
It's coming … in 2011
Paul Doyle
Hartford Courant
With Bob Arum's deadline passing and Floyd Mayweather Jr. more interested in hobnobbing with his celebrity friends than training for Manny Pacquiao, the Nov. 13 megabout is off. It's just what a sport careening toward irrelevance needs — the bout fans want on hold because overpaid egos can't iron out details.
Eventually we'll see the two touch gloves. Someone will finally get through to Mayweather and convince him to leave the hot tub and start training for a bout that will define his career.
Or, someone will convince him that he can't pass on a $30 million to $40 million payday. We know this about big-time sports — ultimately, money speaks louder than words. With so much cash at stake, Mayweather and Pacquiao will inevitably meet.
Maybe it'll be the Fight of 2011. Be patient, fight fans.
pdoyle@tribune.com
Loss of legacy worth it
Azam Ahmed
Chicago Tribune
The question is money versus legacy. And the decision rests in Floyd Mayweather's corner.
Will he risk losing his only fight ever to the Pac Man? Mayweather will face the fight of his life, and perhaps his last, if he chooses to square off. He's already considered among the top fighters in history — you have to wonder whether he wants to risk his place as the best pound-for-pound fighter.
Then again, does the promise of such a cosmic payday make these issues moot? I see it as a short-term versus a long-term question for Mayweather. The short is money in his pocket. The long is the blemish of one loss in the history books.
My guess is that with his penchant for flash, Mayweather will only be able to hold out for so long. But so long is going to feel like forever.
aahmed@tribune.com