"He's always been the holdup and he will continue to be the holdup. Bob Arum doesn't want to do business with Floyd Mayweather and he's made that evidently clear. When everyone thought that they had an agreement a couple of years ago, I think it was Bob Arum who messed up the negotiations...It's not about the fighters. I think the fighters really do want to fight each other. I think it's Bob Arum. If he would get out of the way and let Todd DuBoef do his thing, I think the fight gets made. But that's not going to happen. I think he is going to continue to be an impediment and then the fights not going to happen. Obviously the media people are going to take sides and then some are going to side with Floyd and some are going to side with Manny Pacquiao. Obviously fans of either camp are going to blame the other side, and it's truly unfortunate that this fight may not ever happen," stated world-class trainer Ron Frazier, who shared his thoughts on whether or not Mayweather vs. Pacquiao will ever take place, Bob Arum's role in making it happen, and much more. Check it out!
PC: Recently, James Toney went over to Russia and was pretty much blanked by Denis Lebedev. He did have an injury in the 2nd round, but being a big fan and supporter of James Toney, what would you like to see him do next?
RF: Man, I would like to see him call it a day. I know he had the injured knee, but he is 43 years old and he has put a lot of time in this game already. There is really nothing he can add to his legacy at this point anyway. Call it a day and ride off into the sunset. I know it's hard on these guys, especially after a loss and especially if you feel you have something left and that you were hurt, but what is there left to prove? Beating up some of these lesser-known guys for these titles that don't mean anything is really not going to add anything to a Hall of Fame career. He's had a great career and he's been a great fighter. It's time to do something else; time to do something else.
PC: Another guy that I think it's safe to say time is ticking on is Glen Johnson. I just don't think he is a 168-pounder and Lucian Bute proved that, as well as what Carl Froch was able to do to him.
RF: Yeah, I mean, he can't beat these guys at a smaller weight. They are too quick for him and they have too much movement. He is a 175-pounder and you know what? It's time for him as well. At some point, you gotta call it a day. I know you have been doing something since you were a little kid and it's hard to walk away. It is very difficult to walk away from being a professional athlete, but at some point, you have to see that you don't have what it takes. Glen Johnson is not a 168-pounder. If he's not going to beat the upper echelon fighters at 168 or 175, then what are you doing it for? Are you doing it just for a payday? And if that's the case, then say, "I'm just doing it for paydays." He can't beat those guys. We can all see it and I know in his mind, he should be able to see it. Somebody has got to be able to get into these guys' ear. I know it's extremely difficult to put that arm on that shoulder like Eddie Futch did Joe Frazier and say, "Hey, we're done. It's done."
PC: And sadly for Glen, I think these 3 fights or so at 168 may have taken a few fights at 175 off of his career because he never looked right at 168 to me.
RF: No, he never looked right. He's been a light heavyweight for a long time, and the older you get and the more mature muscle you have, it gets harder and harder to take that weight off. I think you do more harm to your body if you're going to be a fighter. If you just want to go on a diet and walk around for life at a lighter weight, that's fine, but his effectiveness as a fighter is obviously compromised and it's something that he hasn't been able to really pull off. I don't see where he can go back up to 175, and even if he did, who wants to pay money to see him fight. The problem with these promoters and the problem with this sport, they are showing us guys that nobody wants to see anymore. Bernard Hopkins, for whatever you like about Bernard or don't like about Bernard, nobody wants to pay to see him fight. The pay-per-view was an absolute joke. Ant racing would have made more money than the Chad Dawson and Bernard Hopkins pay-per-view. Nobody wants to see these guys and they are not main event caliber fighters anymore. They are getting a lot of money and yes, they have legendary stats, but that's not progressing the sport. UFC is on FOX, virtually free TV.
PC: I'm sure you watched the James Kirkland and Alfredo Angulo fight. It was a hell of a fight, but I think people are kind of jumping out of the window on Kirkland based on that performance. It was a remarkable comeback, but I saw a lot of the same flaws and Angulo basically punched himself out. What did you think?
RF: I agree with you wholeheartedly on that. His chin is still a mess. Going back to Ann Wolfe helped him out mentally and it allowed him to have that resolve to overcome it. And then you have another guy who punched himself out, got hurt, and then broke mentally. At the end of that first round, you knew that Angulo wasn't coming back like Kirkland.
PC: I gotta ask you, since you are a trainer at a top notch facility, do you think Wolfe's training methods are outdated and a little over the top? I mean, they work, so it's hard to dispute it, but can he fight at a high level 5 years from now training like that?
RF: (Laughing) Actually, the comment I had for that, I probably can't put it in print. I'll text it to you what I told somebody about the training methods. They are definitely a little outdated. Mentally, they work for him, but I worry about the guy getting over-trained a little bit based on the stuff that they showed. But if it's working for him, you can't knock it.
PC: I argued that a little after the fight. I wasn't taking anything away from Kirkland, but I never questioned his heart, his will or his toughness. He still walks into right hands and his chin is still suspect, and it only took 30 seconds for him to make that mistake, so my argument is he didn't show me anything that I didn't already know about him.
RF: Yeah! He got hurt and he got hurt badly. And then, even after he got up, he got hurt a couple of seconds later and he dropped his hands and they were really looking at stopping the fight. And then he got against the ropes and got hit and turned around where they could have justifiably stopped the fight, and nobody could have really argued it but Kirkland's people.
PC: You share a last name with him, one of the all-time great heavyweights, what are your final thoughts on Joe Frazier?
RF: It's extremely sad to see Joe Frazier pass. I had just been looking at the Thrilla and Manila and a lot of stuff on Joe Frazier even before I found out he was sick. Joe is probably underappreciated because he is always going to be linked and overshadowed by Muhammad Ali, but he brought determination and that big left hook. He was just one of those guys that was always willing to go to war. And look, who did he lose to? Ali and George Foreman, two other Hall of Famers, so he should go down rightfully so as one of the greatest heavyweights that ever lived. We do share a last name. Being in the fight game, people think we are related, but we're not, so I got a lot of condolences text. I had to text back like, "That is not my father, we are not related, but he is a great guy."
PC: May 5th, Floyd Mayweather said he is going to come back, quite possibly even earlier than that. Who would you like to see it be, in order?
RF: I want it to be either Pacquiao or Sergio Martinez. Amir Khan is not ready and I don't think he has done anything of note to deserve that fight anyway. I think Timothy Bradley and Devon Alexander are in the same situation. I know Andre Berto and Victor Ortiz are going to get it on again, but does that really propel them to fight Mayweather at this point? It should be Pacquiao, Sergio Martinez or no one.
PC: You've always said Bob Arum has been the reason for Mayweather and Pacquiao not getting it on. Seeing some of the things that Bob Arum has been saying, do you think he will prevent it from happening this time around as well?
RF: He's always been the holdup and he will continue to be the holdup. Bob Arum doesn't want to do business with Floyd Mayweather and he's made that evidently clear. When everyone thought that they had an agreement a couple of years ago, I think it was Bob Arum who messed up the negotiations. Bob Arum is telling everybody that this is all a publicity stunt and if they really wanted the fight, they would have come to him privately. Well, I seem to remember about a year ago, you were going out saying, "The clock is ticking and you got until Friday at midnight to take this offer." You put that all over the media, so you can't have it both ways. You can't say, "Oh, he's just doing it for publicity when he negotiates in the public, but when I do it, it's for real."
PC: And on top of that, why would anyone from Mayweather's camp reach out to them when they had a fight scheduled a week from when Team Mayweather made their May 5th return date?
RF: Yeah, it's absolutely absurd. They are just trying to do their thing and make their money. They say Pacquiao is going to fight 3 or 4 more times and they know who it's going to be. They don't plan on fighting Floyd Mayweather. They just plan on doing what they are doing and trying to make it look like it is Floyd who is ducking and dodging them. And you know what? It's not about the fighters. I think the fighters really do want to fight each other. I think it's Bob Arum. If he would get out of the way and let Todd DuBoef do his thing, I think the fight gets made. But that's not going to happen. I think he is going to continue to be an impediment and then the fights not going to happen. Obviously the media people are going to take sides and then some are going to side with Floyd and some are going to side with Manny Pacquiao. Obviously fans of either camp are going to blame the other side, and it's truly unfortunate that this fight may not ever happen. Do either one of them need it to happen? No because 10 years from now, when they are retired and ride off into the sunset...well, maybe they will be retired. The way boxers are going these days, they may still both be fighting. We will look at what they did and who they did it against and we will judge them against that. You know what? Sugar Ray Leonard never fought Aaron Pryor and we don't hold that against either one of them. It probably should have happened and it didn't.
PC: Riddick Bowe never fought Lennox Lewis as a pro and it took, what, 5 years to make Tyson/Holyfield?
RF: Oh, absolutely, and well past when it should have happened. We just talked about the late Joe Frazier, and Ali/Frazier 3 may have been the best of the trilogy, but Ali/Frazier 1 was the most important of the three and people don't even remember the second fight.
PC: Before I let you go Ron, I gotta get your opinion again on people like Skip Bayless and Michael Wilbon talking boxing, and more than that, giving their thoughts on why Pacquiao/Mayweather hasn't happened. Personally I think Teddy Atlas is the only one on ESPN with any authority to talk boxing.
RF: They are a joke. Michael Wilbon and Skip Bayless talking boxing is a joke. Stick to what you know. Stick to the other sports, like football and basketball, and talk to and about the people that you actually cover. You guys don't cover boxing. You are never in Vegas; you are never out in these guys' camps. And you know what? I am tired of guys who are not in the game saying another professional fighter is scared of another professional fighter. It is absolutely retarded. Floyd Mayweather was sparring champions when he was 17 years old. This kid has been brought up in this game. That's all he knows. Whatever you think about him outside of the ring is fine. If his scrapes with the law or his arrogance bothers you, then that's fine, but he's always been the truth inside that ring. He's had 42 professional fights, he had over 100 amateur fights, and thousands upon thousands of hours sparring. To say that he is scared of another fighter, and you don't even cover this sport, is absolutely absurd.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]