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EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: BOB ARUM
By G. Leon
30,000 Pacquiao-Clottey tix already sold
GL: What's the latest and greatest, and what updates can you give us on Top Rank's upcoming fights, starting with The Event? "The tickets are going unbelievably well, the requests for Manny are unreal. As far as the 60 Minutes, Good Morning America, all of the mainline outlets, not sports, which is something really special for us. Also, in the sports world, ESPN the Magazine is doing a five page story on Joshua Clottey, and we feel really good about that."
GL: Last time we spoke, you told me that 25,000 tickets were already sold. Is that true?
The Bobfather: Yes, we've sold well over 30,000 now. We were in Mexico, Jerry Jones and myself, in Mexico City and Monterey, and the response we got over there was ridiculous.
GL: Are you concerned that the recent consummation of the fight between Mosley and Mayweather trumps this event?
The Bobfather: Not at all. Pacquiao has an enormous following, and that following will come out for the fight. You've got to realize that most of our fans are enamored of Pacquiao and want to see him fight Clottey. I think the other fight will do well as well.
GL: As you know, Mosley is going to be going along with the random testing that Mayweather is requesting. If Mayweather's successful against Mosley, is your position against the random testing still firm?
The Bobfather: We have no absolute problem with random testing, as long as it's urinalysis, and as long as it's done by a legitamite boxing comission. We are not going to go along with random blood testing that takes us anywhere near where the fight is going to be.
GL: If Mayweather's demand, and going public, for random drug testing weren't in poor taste, as somebody involved with boxing, do you think we need better standards of testing to be mandatory and mandated by commissions?
The Bobfather: Yes, I think that it might be feasible in certain cases, but I think everything that has to be done can be done with urine analysis. Including now, this new urine analysis that is even more effective than blood testing, which really isn't effective at all, in discovering HGH. Blood testing is very dangerous, particularly when dealing with fighters, who have to use their arms. Very often, when you go in to give your blood, as we all do when we have physicals, you have the nurses miss the veins, and so forth, and the arm is sore for a few days. If you're training for a fight, that's not very good. You certainly don't want to have blood taken right after a performance, in a dressing room, where the risk of infection is high.
GL: Is there any word yet on who Margarito is going to be facing on the undercard?
The Bobfather: No, we're still working on that, we'll reveal that shortly.
GL: You have a name in mind already?
The Bobfather: No, not really.
GL: Is Pavlik-Martinez closed?
The Bobfather: It's done, as far as I know. Contracts went out to Lou DiBella, and Pavlik, and all of the terms have been agreed to. It's on April 17th, in Atlantic City, at Boardwalk Hall.
GL: When will Juan Manuel Lopez's next fight take place?
The Bobfather: It will probably be in June or July. We've had discussions with HBO to do an electronic double header. Gamboa and Caballero in one place, I guess Miami, and Lopez and the winner of Conception-Santiago, who are fighting next Saturday in Puerto Rico.
GL: Is Cotto-Foreman good to go?
The Bobfather: It's good to go if it's for June 12th. We haven't talked terms, because we're working out whether it's going to be on regular HBO or PPV.
GL: What else?
The Bobfather: Fox Sports Series is going extremely well. Every show is really hitting home, getting great ratings. The show from Mexico last week was tremendous, we have a show tonight from Texas. It should be two really good fights, television pictures are wonderfull, we're lighting everything different. It's day and night, production wise than ESPN's show. Just watch it, the fights have been very good, but aside from that, the quality of the broadcast, you can see so clearly. It's really something special.
GL: Closing thoughts.
The Bobfather: I think everything is good, we're working very hard for March 13th. We're working very hard for February 13th, which is going to be a big show for the Phillippine community, four Phillpino fighters fighting four Latin fighters. It's making a lot of headlines in the Phillipines, so we're very excited with what we've been doing. We're in the planning stages for a big show in May as well. It will probably be from Mexico, in Agua Caliente, where they have a festival for 1,000,000, and the bull ring holds close to 30,000. We did a show there two years ago that was extremely successful and we're hoping to do another one.
By G. Leon
30,000 Pacquiao-Clottey tix already sold
GL: What's the latest and greatest, and what updates can you give us on Top Rank's upcoming fights, starting with The Event? "The tickets are going unbelievably well, the requests for Manny are unreal. As far as the 60 Minutes, Good Morning America, all of the mainline outlets, not sports, which is something really special for us. Also, in the sports world, ESPN the Magazine is doing a five page story on Joshua Clottey, and we feel really good about that."
GL: Last time we spoke, you told me that 25,000 tickets were already sold. Is that true?
The Bobfather: Yes, we've sold well over 30,000 now. We were in Mexico, Jerry Jones and myself, in Mexico City and Monterey, and the response we got over there was ridiculous.
GL: Are you concerned that the recent consummation of the fight between Mosley and Mayweather trumps this event?
The Bobfather: Not at all. Pacquiao has an enormous following, and that following will come out for the fight. You've got to realize that most of our fans are enamored of Pacquiao and want to see him fight Clottey. I think the other fight will do well as well.
GL: As you know, Mosley is going to be going along with the random testing that Mayweather is requesting. If Mayweather's successful against Mosley, is your position against the random testing still firm?
The Bobfather: We have no absolute problem with random testing, as long as it's urinalysis, and as long as it's done by a legitamite boxing comission. We are not going to go along with random blood testing that takes us anywhere near where the fight is going to be.
GL: If Mayweather's demand, and going public, for random drug testing weren't in poor taste, as somebody involved with boxing, do you think we need better standards of testing to be mandatory and mandated by commissions?
The Bobfather: Yes, I think that it might be feasible in certain cases, but I think everything that has to be done can be done with urine analysis. Including now, this new urine analysis that is even more effective than blood testing, which really isn't effective at all, in discovering HGH. Blood testing is very dangerous, particularly when dealing with fighters, who have to use their arms. Very often, when you go in to give your blood, as we all do when we have physicals, you have the nurses miss the veins, and so forth, and the arm is sore for a few days. If you're training for a fight, that's not very good. You certainly don't want to have blood taken right after a performance, in a dressing room, where the risk of infection is high.
GL: Is there any word yet on who Margarito is going to be facing on the undercard?
The Bobfather: No, we're still working on that, we'll reveal that shortly.
GL: You have a name in mind already?
The Bobfather: No, not really.
GL: Is Pavlik-Martinez closed?
The Bobfather: It's done, as far as I know. Contracts went out to Lou DiBella, and Pavlik, and all of the terms have been agreed to. It's on April 17th, in Atlantic City, at Boardwalk Hall.
GL: When will Juan Manuel Lopez's next fight take place?
The Bobfather: It will probably be in June or July. We've had discussions with HBO to do an electronic double header. Gamboa and Caballero in one place, I guess Miami, and Lopez and the winner of Conception-Santiago, who are fighting next Saturday in Puerto Rico.
GL: Is Cotto-Foreman good to go?
The Bobfather: It's good to go if it's for June 12th. We haven't talked terms, because we're working out whether it's going to be on regular HBO or PPV.
GL: What else?
The Bobfather: Fox Sports Series is going extremely well. Every show is really hitting home, getting great ratings. The show from Mexico last week was tremendous, we have a show tonight from Texas. It should be two really good fights, television pictures are wonderfull, we're lighting everything different. It's day and night, production wise than ESPN's show. Just watch it, the fights have been very good, but aside from that, the quality of the broadcast, you can see so clearly. It's really something special.
GL: Closing thoughts.
The Bobfather: I think everything is good, we're working very hard for March 13th. We're working very hard for February 13th, which is going to be a big show for the Phillippine community, four Phillpino fighters fighting four Latin fighters. It's making a lot of headlines in the Phillipines, so we're very excited with what we've been doing. We're in the planning stages for a big show in May as well. It will probably be from Mexico, in Agua Caliente, where they have a festival for 1,000,000, and the bull ring holds close to 30,000. We did a show there two years ago that was extremely successful and we're hoping to do another one.
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