After years of back and forth insults, Floyd Mayweather and Bob Arum put their acrimonious feelings aside for a civil face to face at last night’s Super Bowl.
Both men were guests of Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, whose Dallas Stadium hosted the event. Arum developed a business relationship with Jones courtesy of Pacquiao’s 2010 fights at the venue.
Since splitting with Bob Arum’s Top Rank in 2006, Mayweather has made many disparaging remarks about his former promoter, such as accusing him of holding back black fighters. He cites Arum’s refusal to pursue his desire to face Oscar De La Hoya as the main catalyst for his departure.
Arum has countered that Mayweather left his company for fear of facing fellow stablemate Antonio Margarito despite a guaranteed $8 million dollar contract. Arum also accused Mayweather of ducking other tough challenges, most recently during last year’s two negotiation attempts with Manny Pacquaio, which both fell apart over Olympic style drug testing requirements.
The two remained cordial last night, and any future business deals were reportedly not discussed.
At press time, Mayweather’s domestic violence case has been rescheduled for April 25. Manny Pacquiao will face Shane Mosley on May 7.
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Well, it least some progress has been made. According to Arum, Mayweather wasn’t even returning his calls before. While they may have declined to state anything publicly, we all know they discussed the possibility of a Pacquiao fight. If Mayweather doesn’t receive jail time, there’s a good chance 2011 could yield the superfight we’ve waited two years on. But we have to consider we’re dealing with Bob Arum, the promoter who likes to let fights “marinate.” Look no further than Yuriorkis Gamboa and Juan Manuel Lopez, who at this rate probably won’t face each other until 2013. With that case in mind, it wouldn’t surprise me to see Mayweather-Pacquiao dragged out for another year.
Beats, Boxing and Mayhem 