Kirkland scratched from fight

Sorry if reposted. By Dan Rafael ESPN.com Archive Junior middleweight contender James Kirkland, who remains in federal custody on a weapons charge, was scratched Friday from the Ricky Hatton-Manny Pacquiao HBO PPV undercard in Las Vegas, Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer told ESPN.com. Kirkland, 25, was arrested during a traffic stop in his hometown of Austin, Texas, and booked Sunday afternoon. He was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon, according to the Travis County Sherriff's Department Web site. Kirkland was due to face Michael Walker in a 10-round televised bout at the MGM Grand on May 2. According to Schaefer, the judge presiding over Kirkland's case rejected a petition to allow Kirkland to travel to Las Vegas with the guarantee that he would return to Austin on May 3. Schaefer said Golden Boy, Kirkland's attorney and his co-manager Michael Miller were willing to hire an off-duty police officer approved by the court to escort Kirkland to Las Vegas and stay with him 24 hours a day. "We were going to assume the responsibility and guarantee the judge that James would come to Las Vegas on Wednesday or Thursday, fight on Saturday and return home on Sunday under the strict supervision of an off-duty police officer. The judge wouldn't allow it." Kirkland (25-0, 22 KOs), one of boxing's most ferocious punchers and emerging contenders, is on probation for a 2003 armed robbery that cost him 2½ years of his career. The legal issues have sidetracked a fighter on the fast track to stardom. After stopping Joel "Love Child" Julio in six rounds on March 7, Kirkland was quickly lined up for the May 2 fight. Had Kirkland won, he was due back in an HBO main event in early August to possibly challenge for a world title. "We support James and we want him to take care of his issues," Schaefer said. "We're not going to abandon him because he has a serious problem that he is facing." Schaefer said that if middleweight prospect Daniel Jacobs (14-0, 13 KOs) wins his fight on tonight's "Friday Night Fights" card in Chicago against Jose Varela (23-5, 16 KOs), and comes out uninjured, Jacobs likely will assume Kirkland's place on the pay-per-view card and face Walker (19-1-2, 12 KOs).