In a recent interview, Manny Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, suggested that the reason why there's been no developments regarding negotiations with Floyd Mayweather is because he doesn't know exactly who to speak to. While nearly every boxing fan is aware that Al Haymon is Mayweather's "go-to guy" when it comes to business dealings, Arum seems to have forgotten that simple fact. Perhaps old age is starting to take a toll on his memory; either that or Arum simply refuses to acknowledge Haymon's existence due to his bitter disdain for him. Nevertheless, as was the case in late 2009 when both sides first tried to negotiate the fight, it's common knowledge that Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer has been authorized to negotiate on Mayweather's behalf when instructed to, as was the case this past November, when Team Mayweather tried to reach out to Arum in hopes of resuming negotiations. Arum, however, refused at the time, and now he claims that he doesn't know if Schaefer is even authorized to represent Mayweather.
"I don't know what arrangements have been made because I'm not privy to that. And indeed I don't even know if [Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard] Schaefer is involved. I sort of gather that he is so frantic with everybody and so forth, that he is not involved. Because unlike Top Rank, that has a contract with Manny, we are involved. I don't know if Schaefer is involved," Arum explained, telling Rick Reeno of Boxingscene that he doesn't want to speak to Richard Schaefer because he's not sure if he's authorized to represent Mayweather. "It's the same as you, calling me, and saying 'I want to do this fight, I'm promoting Mayweather, let's sit down and talk.' I wouldn't do that because I don't know if you're representing Mayweather or you aren't. You don't have a contract with Mayweather and neither does Schaefer. Schaefer has done some promotions for Mayweather for a fee, but that doesn't mean he's representing him on this type of situation," Arum continued. "If Floyd says 'I'm locked and loaded with Rick Reeno,' we would sit down with you and make a deal. But Floyd has to say it. We know for a fact there is no contract with anybody. Contrary to what a guy who is prostituting himself for access is saying, we are the ones acting reasonably. We are acting like business people. To say we don't want the fight is ludicrous. We don't want to sit down with somebody who may not be authorized, or use our sitting down with him as a way to slither his way into the promotion."
Obviously, Arum has either forgotten or is simply ignoring the fact that in November, Richard Schaefer, on the instruction of Floyd Mayweather, contacted retired federal judge Daniel Weinstein, the same judge who acted as a mediator the first time both sides negotiated. Judge Weinstein has also worked closely with both Golden Boy and Top Rank on a number of different issues and is said to be highly respected by both sides, so obviously Bob Arum had some kind of idea that Schaefer was representing Mayweather's side when he was contacted about the possibility of resuming negotiations. Clearly Judge Weinstein would not be contacting him on behalf of individuals that were not authorized to represent Mayweather. It's a fact that Arum was clearly aware of, hence the reason for his response to the judge, instructing him that they were not interested in negotiating because they were pursuing a fourth fight with Juan Manuel Marquez. Judge Weinstein would forward Arum's message to both Richard Schaefer and Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe. Considering that Schaefer and Ellerbe have both spoken on the subject, and Ellerbe made it clear that he would sit down with Schaefer to discuss other potential opponents for Mayweather, I think it's pretty obvious to everyone other than Bob Arum that Richard Schaefer was representing Mayweather.
Even if we give Arum the benefit of the doubt and say that maybe he doesn't know that Schaefer is involved, at the very least, he knows full well that he can speak to Al Haymon. Floyd Mayweather made that crystal clear in his latest interview here at FightHype, an interview that Arum obviously saw or was made aware of. "Just listen to what Floyd is saying. Don't listen to Schaefer, he's a wannabe. Floyd has said that he doesn't want to fight anybody - unless it's Manny Pacquiao. That's what he said. Why don't you give the guy credit for meaning what he said. He doesn't want to fight Alvarez. He doesn't want to fight [Robert] Guerrero. He wants to fight Manny Pacquiao," Arum would also tell Reeno. Those statements from Mayweather that Arum is alluding to come directly from an exclusive interview here at FightHype. It's the only interview that Mayweather has given since calling out Pacquiao on Twitter and it's the only time he's mentioned not wanting to fight Robert Guerrero or Saul Alvarez. Ironically, in that same interview, immediately after he mentions Alvarez and Guerrero, Mayweather clearly states, "Everybody knows that all my business is handled in a professional manner. I got people that work for me that handle my business. Everybody knows that Al Haymon is my go-to guy."
I mean, seriously, who is Bob Arum kidding? He seems to have no problem speaking with every Tom, Dick and Harry investor that comes knocking on his door with a desire to buyout the biggest financial fight in boxing history, but when it comes to actually negotiating the fight, he wants us to believe that he doesn't want to speak to Richard Schaefer because he's not sure if he's involved? C'mon man! Boxing fans deserve better than that. I'd rather he stick to the excuse that Manny Pacquiao's cut will take 5 months to heal so he won't be able to spar until April 1. That's more believable than saying he doesn't know who to speak to. Manny Pacquiao may fall for that excuse, but surely boxing fans don't...at least I hope not.
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