Pacquiao Camp Officially Sues Mayweathers and Party for Steroids Accusations

Manny Pacquiao, the current pound-for-pound head honcho, IBO and Ring Magazine light welterweight and WBO welterweight titlist, has officially filed his defamation lawsuit against Floyd Mayweather, Jr., his father Floyd Senior, his uncle and head trainer Roger Mayweather and other associates including Richard Schaefer and Oscar de la Hoya.

It can be recalled that the Mayweathers have accused Pacquiao with steroids usage shortly after his stunning knockout victory over Ricky Hatton. The Filipino initially brushed these accusations but has had enough when the Mayweathers and Golden Boy Promotions demanded a random, Olympic style drug test for both fighters.

Pacquiao believes that such allegations, both baseless and lacks substantial evidence have tarnished his reputations as a professional boxer.

The lawsuit is at the District of Nevada. The Filipino boxing icon is represented by Las Vegas-based law firm Lewis and Roca LLP, specifically by Attorneys Eric D. Hone and Franchesca Van Buren. Pacquiao also demands a trial by jury against the defendants.

Here is a copy of the Defamation Complaint.

With the lawsuit, the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight is off. Bob Arum is now in the talks of concocting a potential matchup between Pacquiao and the current WBA juinor middleweight (154 lbs) champion Yuri Foreman. A win over Foreman will further solidify Pacquiao's status as an all-time great for bagging eight titles in eight different weight divisions.

Online Thread Reignites Donaire-Viloria Feud

Apparently, there are still some kinks between two Filipino champions Nonito Donaire Jr. and Brian Viloria. It can be recalled that Viloria beat Donaire and his brother Glenn in the finals of the 2000 US Olympic eliminations.

But after turning professional, it was Donaire who enjoyed large mainstream success both in and out of the ring while Viloria, due to losses in his major fights, slightly faded from the limelight. The feud between the two kicked off when Donaire directly dismissed Viloria and saying the native from Hawaii is not on his (Donaire’s) level and has nothing to offer him.

But Donaire was quick to apologize, reasoning that he was exhausted during the interview. Donaire said, “"Well I guess there is still some bad blood then. I apologized already for saying that he wasn't on my level and explained that I was just cutting weight and tired when that interview came.”

Everything seemed to be going all right for Donaire and Viloria when a thread started by Erica Navarro, Brian Viloria’s live-in partner, in a social networking site reignited the row between the two world class champions.

In her thread, Navarro blasted a certain fighter for hiring a certain trainer. Navarro and her friends went as far as calling this fighter names, including loser and copycat. Boxing insiders believe that she is referring to Donaire and his move on hiring Roberto Garcia, Viloria’s trainer, as part of his team.

Navarro posted the thread on December 21, 2009 when she and Brian learned that Garcia would miss a training day to appear at the press conference of Pinoy Power 3 / Latin Fury 13, which will be held on February 13, 2010, at the Las Vegas Hilton.

Donaire is slated to fight knockout artist Gerson “El Nene” Guerrero as one of the main bouts.

For his part, Donaire only hired Garcia as his strategist on the suggestion of his manager, Cameron Dunkin.

“I didn't think I was stepping on any one's toes hiring Robert,” Donaire commented. “Just like Freddie (Roach), I figured Robert could coach whoever he wanted. I mean he coaches my friend, Steven Luevano, a world champion, as well."

Donaire further clarified, "I just don't see what the big deal or problem is. Robert Garcia will be my strategist, not trainer at this time."

Rachel Marcial-Donaire, ever the faithful and loyal wife, came to her husband’s defense. "Well, I thought we were all friends so it's kinda sad,” said a disappointed Rachel. “I mean we invited them to all our outings, to the dinner in Manila, and we make sure if Nonito is recognized as a world champion, so is Brian."

She punctuated her piece saying, “But I'm glad I found out what she really thinks of us. I mean name-calling us "copycats"? Isn't that a high school thing?”

Pacquiao-Mayweather Fight in Jeopardy

Floyd Mayweather Jr. is scared of Manny Pacquiao. That’s how I see it as terms in negotiations are starting to get really ugly and could jeopardize this potential superfight between two prime fighters.

First, Mayweather asked Pacquiao to fight him on March 13. Considering Pac’s political ambitions as well as some time to heal his busted eardrum he got from his brawl with Cotto, the date is so soon. But hey, Pacquiao accepted, so the ultimatum did not work.

Next, you got Mayweather demanding Pac to fight him at the junior middleweight limit of 154 lbs and use 10oz gloves. That did not work also as they were very ridiculous to begin with.

Now, here is where the shit (forgive the language) hits the ceiling. I have been saying long before that the Mayweather camp will use the steroids issue as a way out of the fight. And perhaps this time, their plan might succeed.

Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe has been insisting that Pacquiao should undergo strict drug testing, blood screens and random urine sampling. First off, the steroids accusations are baseless. Second, Pacquiao has passed all the necessary tests before and after the fights. Third, he is just an anomaly which is why it’s hard to explain how he rose through the weights without losing his speed and power.

If Floyd Mayweather does not fight Pacquiao, then we all know who to call chicken.

Mosley-Berto Showdown is All Set and Ready to Go

With all the hype being channeled to the upcoming matchup between 7-division titleholder and current WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao and former world champion Floyd Mayweather, some people do not really know Shane Mosley will be up against Andre Berto for the unification of the WBA and WBC welterweight titles on January 30, 2010.

Mosley is coming off an impressive and dominating knockout victory over Antonio Margarito almost a year ago, when he clubbed the Mexican with countless strong right hands to the head. Mosley was a 4-1 underdog in that fight, since Margarito defeated Cotto in a “spectacular” fashion in his last bout. Cotto edged a split decision over Mosley in their encounter.

The young Berto is undefeated in 26 fights and has shown great potential for superstar status. Aside from his power punching, he has also shown above average technical skills against veteran Steve Forbes. In his last outing, Berto managed to grab a unanimous decision victory over then undefeated Juan Urango for the WBC title.

Here’s my analysis of the fight.

Berto is the younger guy and that should be a key factor here. He will have to use his youth to his advantage. That means he should move a lot, box Mosley inside and outside, and wear him down with those jabs. If Berto is able to do that, he might get a decision.

That said, Mosley is no pushover. A great jabber, Mosley knows how to control the fight and keep it in a pace that favors him well. He also has power and a durable chin, which should pose problems for the former Olympian. If Berto gets careless or decides to trade with Mosley, he might find himself in the losing end of the bargain.

Adding to that the fact that Berto has not fought anyone with the caliber of Mosley, an elite fighter who has been proven and tested. However, Father Time is not on Mosley side and the fact that he has not fought for almost a year may have some adverse effects once he steps back in the ring.

Berto is young but lacks the necessary experience against an aging legend in Mosley. I see Mosley winning this one by decision.

Shane Mosley
Wins: 46
Losses: 5
KOs: 39
Stance: orthodox
Height: 5′ 9″ / 175cm
Reach: 74″ / 188cm


Andre Berto
Wins: 26
Losses: 0
KOs: 19
Stance: orthodox
Height: 5′ 8½″ / 174cm

You Are Remembered

It’s my late brother’s birthday today. He would have been 27 years old.

Carlos Placencia Ragpala III
(December 13, 1982-May 3, 2009)


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