For years, Oscar De Le Hoya and Richard Schaefer have taken pride in their claim that they always do what's best for the fighters. "The fighters don't work for us; we work for the fighters" is a motto they would lead you to believe their company adheres to. On the surface, that may appear to be true, but behind closed doors, it's a totally different story, and all that glitters is not gold when it comes to Golden Boy Promotions. According to sources, while Juan Manuel Marquez has been given the freedom to pursue a third clash with Manny Pacquiao as a free agent with no strings attached, future Hall of Famer Shane Mosley has been denied that opportunity and Golden Boy Promotions is now attempting to buy back his shares of the company for a mere $1000.
Although Mosley recently announced his own free agent status, as well as his intent to pursue certain bouts without the services of Golden Boy Promotions, he's never officially announced a desire to leave the company for which he's a partner with. "I'm not signing with Top Rank. I just want to fight a couple of the fighters there. I still have stock in Golden Boy. I have a percentage of Golden Boy," Mosley has reiterated since word spread weeks ago about his hiring of rap mogul and boxing impressario James Prince. "The reason why I had to go solo, and basically on my own, is because Golden Boy and Judd have a problem with Top Rank and Top Rank has 3 guys I can fight: Cotto, Margarito and Pacquiao," he explained. "I hired J. Prince as an advisor to help me negotiate and help me talk with Bob Arum. That's what James Prince came in as; as an advisor to help me out and talk with them and get that fight because Richard Schaefer and Judd [Burstein] can't go in there and talk to them because they don't like each other."
Seeing as how the bad blood between Golden Boy Promotions and Top Rank is essentially limiting Mosley from maximizing his earning potential in this stage of his career, the move seemed innocent enough, particularly since there is no existing contract with Golden Boy that prevents him from working with other promoters. It seems, however, that Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer would disagree with that sentiment. "First of all, I am not going to discuss the contractual relationship through the media, like some statements Shane has made," Schaefer would tell Robert Morales of Boxingscene.com just four days ago. "I am very proud of what we have accomplished for him [Mosley] and the kind of paydays he got. The same can be said for Bernard Hopkins, who joined us in his 40s, and the amount of money we paid him, I'm sure, is a world record for any fighter in their 40s," Schaefer added, making it a point to mention Bernard Hopkins, who at one time also declared his free agency status when it appeared as though Golden Boy Promotions was having difficulties securing him an opponent. "You live and learn. But again, the contractual relationship is something I am not going to discuss. You know, I know Shane can read and so let him and his new manager [James Prince] figure it out."
For the record, as I already stated, James Prince is Mosley's advisor, not his manager, but regardless, the point is, it appears as though Golden Boy Promotions is now going on the offensive in an attempt to "punish" Mosley for having the guts to do something that, at this point, they don't seem capable of doing for him, which is getting him a meaningful fight. Although neither side has had an opportunity to sit down and discuss the situation, our source informs us that Golden Boy Promotions has already sent a letter to one of Mosley's attorneys with an offer to buy back his shares of stock in the company for $1000. The move comes just days after Golden Boy Promotions President Oscar De La Hoya announced their willingness to allow lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez to pursue a third bout with pound-for-pound champion Manny Pacquiao independently, as a free agent, removing themselves from the equation and eliminating the bad blood that has prevented the two sides [Golden Boy and Top Rank] from sitting down at the negotiating table.
"As president of Golden Boy Promotions, I want to make the fight between Pacquiao and Marquez. The problem is that [Top Rank CEO Bob] Arum doesn't want to make the fight if Golden Boy is involved," De La Hoya commented in a recent interview with Televisa Deportes when asked about the possibility of a third bout. "There is no way in the world that Pacquio or Arum will want a part of Marquez after watching this, they will hide, but like I said, Golden Boy will stay out of the promotions because Arum doesn't want to do business with us. I will do it for Juan, because he deserves it. I won't be part of the promotion for that fight and let Top Rank do the full promotion."
So the question is, why is Juan Manuel Marquez being allowed the opportunity to negotiate with Top Rank with no strings attached, but Shane Mosley is being forced out of the company for wanting to do the exact same thing? Is Golden Boy Promotions in the habit of treating certain fighters differently, or is there much more than meets the eye in their relationship with Juan Manuel Marquez? Enquiring minds want to know, especially since Shane Mosley is now the third prominent figure (the others including Bernard Hopkins and Winky Wright) to have problems with a company that prides themselves on looking out for the best interest of the fighter.
MUCH MORE TO FOLLOW IN THE NEAR FUTURE...
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