By Michael Marley
Top Rank's CEO Bob Arum rang me up to set the record straight.
According to his promoter, WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao was never left in the dark as to the shift of his May 7 title defense against Sugar Shane Mosley, presumed to be going to mainstay HBO PPV TV, to the Showtime/CBS combined forces.
It is Showtime which will carry Mosley-Pacquiao live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena and the fact that Pacman appeared not to know about the news when quizzed in his Manila Congressional office by ABS-CBN and Inquirer reporter Dyan Castillejo is misealding, Arum said Friday.
Arum insists that a time lag was the lone reason Pacquiao didn't know that the proposed network swtich had been made, and not because he was being kept out of the loop.
"Manny did not know, because of the time difference, when she asked him about Showtime. But Manny knew that we had a proposal before Showtime/CBS, he knew that for a long time. Manny knew that we were attempting to make this important deal," Arum said.
"But the news got circulated through the media, over the Internet at a time when the time difference between the U.S. and the Philippines made it so we couldn't call Manny."
Still, Arum said, representatives of both fighters had been fully informed that the change to Showtime/CBS had been written up in deal memo form and accepted and acknowledged by both sides.
"I never spoke to either fighter nor did [Top Rank President Todd (duBoef)," Arum said. "But I did tell (Mosley's agent) James Prince and his lawyer, Josh Dubin. And I fully informed (Pacquiao's agent) Michael Koncz."
Arum said he thinks Pacman's verbal hesitation with Castillejo was a case of his not wanting to hurt what he still felt was an unfinished pending deal.
"Mike did not have a chance to update Manny yet, that's the explanation here."
Arum said his cash cow client knew about the ramifications of moving to Showtime/CBS including a "360 Camp" pre-fight series (similar to the HBO 24/7 hype video programs) being shown on both the prime cable network and terrrestial network platforms.
In what some will find surprising, Arum declared that, although no definitive plans have been outlined for CBS to show fights itself, he personally would see such a platform as one open to other promoters and fighters not under the Top Rank banner.
"The car companies are looking to sell cars to Hispanics, for example," Arum said.
"So what would be better than to showcase young Latino boxers on CBS? We view this move to Showtime/CBS as something than can benefit everyone in boxing.
"I don't think that has to be limited to my company, to our fighters."
Finally, Arum fully credited stepson duBoef for "breaking the ice" with Showtime, chiefly through Showtime boxing boss Ken Hershman.
Arum said the initial approach was not so warmly recieved by Showtime.
"They thought, and I can understand this, that we were just trying to use them as a stalking horse, to extract more out of HBO. But we were able to convince them otherwise."
As far as future Pacman opponents, Arum flatly denied he will limit them to those who are on his company's roster.
"Not true, never was true," Arum said. "If (Ricardo) Mayorga beats (Miguel) Cotto on March 12, then Matyorga becomes an attractive opponent for Manny.
"Mayorga is with Don King and so then I will deal with him."
