Yahoo! Sports' decade in review takes to the ring for a series of boxing-related top-fives.

First up is upsets of the decade – and if you even think about arguing that the decade doesn't really end until next year then we're going to send Corrie Sanders 'round to have some harsh words. Now you're scared.

5. Danny Williams beats Mike Tyson

Tyson already was well past his prime by the time he took on British journeyman Williams in Kentucky in July 2004. Even so, "Iron Mike" had dispatched Clifford Etienne inside a round in his previous contest and was expected to have little trouble in disposing of Williams in similarly quick time.

It was even suggested that a Tyson victory could put him back in the title picture following Lennox Lewis' retirement. However, Williams silenced that talk with a fierce flurry toward the end of the 4th, to which Tyson had no answer and was counted out.

4. Glen Johnson beats Roy Jones Jr.

Jones was still one of boxing's biggest stars when he took on Johnson in Memphis in September 2004, despite having being knocked out by Antonio Tarver four months earlier.

His bout with Johnson, who was 35 and had lost nine times, was supposed to get his career back on track – but instead ended with him flat on his back once more. A huge right hand from Johnson put Jones out cold in the 9th, and Jones hasn't been the same since.

3. Corrie Sanders beats Wladimir Klitschko

The younger of the Klitschko brothers was unbeaten in five years and was defending his WBO heavyweight title for the sixth time when he faced South African southpaw Sanders in Hannover, Germany, in 2003.

Klitschko was an overwhelming favorite but got tagged by a big left hand in the first round and never recovered. Big Wlad went down twice in the opener before being saved by the bell, but the Sanders assault continued and he finished it off less than 30 seconds into Round 2.

2. Bernard Hopkins beats Felix Trinidad

Few gave Hopkins a chance against Puerto Rican superstar Trinidad, who was 40-0 going into the final of Don King's 2001 middleweight unification tournament. Hopkins taunted Trinidad mercilessly before the fight, and even placed a $100,000 wager on himself to emerge victorious.

Once the contest started, Hopkins swiftly assumed control, fighting brilliantly on the outside and never giving Trinidad a chance to settle. He was at least five points up on each scorecard going into the final round, but capped it off in style by knocking Trinidad out midway through the 12th.

1. Hasim Rahman beats Lennox Lewis 

Lewis was the dominant heavyweight on the planet when he took on unheralded Rahman in South Africa in 2001. Even though the Brit had spent some of his precious training time filming on the set of "Ocean's Eleven," it was expected that he would be too big and too strong for Rahman.

But Lewis looked jaded and sluggish in the ring and was never able to generate any serious momentum. Even so, the fight was still even until the fifth round, when Rahman sent Lewis crashing to the canvas with a monstrous right hand that turned the heavyweight division on its head.

Comparisons were immediately drawn between this fight and Mike Tyson's loss to Buster Douglas. It might not be as big an upset, but it's the biggest one of this decade.

Monte Poole from The Modesto Bee says Ward is beyond perfect for the role of American boxing hero:

Ward is a man of virtue and good nature - but a cobra in the ring. Moreover, he is the kind of flag-carrier boxing today needs - not as abrasive as Bernard Hopkins, not as brazenly vain as Floyd Mayweather, not as earnestly glib as Oscar De La Hoya and certainly not as menacing as Mike Tyson.

Ward, now the WBA super middleweight champ, dominated Kessler from the get-go. He was too fast and crafty for the Danish veteran. Surviving the rough streets of Oakland, Ward is deeply spiritual:

Mostly, though, Ward fights for his faith, as indicated by his nickname "S. O. G.," son of God, and the robe he wore entering the ring, white with the words "Jesus Christ is King" inscribed in red on the back.

"I feel like I'm here to make my mark, to use the stage as a platform to glorify Him," Ward said. "Nothing is impossible with God on your side. Nothing."

Ward (21-0, 13 KOs) will fight Jermain Taylor next in The Super Six. Promoter Dan Goosen said it could Oakland again in March.

(Even Kessler can't figure out where JaMarcus Russell is throwing the ball)

Mikkel Kessler got his wish. The Dane voiced concerns earlier in the week that there were too many Californians involved in judging and officiating his fight against Andre Ward tomorrow night in Oakland. According to the Oakland Tribune, the California State Athletic Commission acquiesced and replaced one of the Californians with Swedish judge Mikael Hook. California's Steve Morrow is still judging the fight and the referee is California-based Jack Reiss. The other judge is South African Stanley Christodoulou.

The WBA was talking about not sanctioning the super-middleweight title bout if the situation wasn't addressed. On Thursday, The Copenhagen Post wrote that the decked was stacked against Kessler (42-1, 32 KO's) and Ward (20-0, ) was going to get "home cooking." Kessler's management also complained that Reiss was a bad choice:

Wilfried Sauerland, owner of Team Sauerland, told Sporten.dk."‘They’ve also picked a referee who’s never worked a fight at this level."

If Kessler beats Ward, he'll fight Carl Froch next to unify the WBA and WBC 168-pound straps. After that, the 30-year-old Kessler fights Jermaine Taylor. 

It's been a banner year for boxing at least on the blockbuster fight/pay-per-view front. HBO PPV chief Mark Taffet predicted just before the Manny Pacquiao-Miguel Cotto fight that 2009 would be the first year where two fight cards would exceed the 1 million buy threshhold. He was right. Pacman's win turned in 1.25 million buys domestically. Who knows how viewers that really means. Worldwide it may have been in excess of 10 million. HBO reported that in Puerto Rico alone, there were 110,000 buys made. The fight was broadcasted across the Philippines for free. 

Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole spoke with HBO's Ross Greenburg and Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum about boxing's latest home run and what could be coming in 2010. 

If you missed the fight, the replay is tomorrow night on HBO at 10 p.m. ET/PT

Those of us who enjoyed Manny Pacquiao's victory on Saturday night over Miguel Cotto have no idea of the impact the Filipino has back home as he continues to climb the ladder of boxing history.

Pacquiao's win was also a nice pick up after horrible months of typhoons that killed 1,128:

"This is a glorious day for the Philippines especially after the typhoons," Tondo district chief Marcel de Asis.

Cerge Remonde, President Gloria Arroyo’s spokesman said, "Once again, Filipino grit and determination triumphed over great odds. The President joins the entire nation in rejoicing over the unprecedented victory of Manny Pacquiao over Miguel Cotto."

The Manila Times reports today that jailhouses were quiet and the Islamic revolution front took a day to rest, in order to watch Pacquiao fight on Sunday afternoon in the Philippines.

In strife-storn Mindanao, the military silenced its guns against al-Qaeda-linked Abu Sayyaf militants to watch from the trenches.

“In the [southern Philippine] headquarters, we set up a big screen for our soldiers to support our icon,” regional chief Maj. Gen. Benjamin Dolorfino said. “The ground units also had their satellite feed to boost troop morale.”

A spokesman for the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) fighting since 1978 watched Pacquiao's fight on television as it's entering peace talks with Manila.

Pacman (50-3-2, 38 KO's) put Cotto on the floor twice, in the third and fourth rounds. Pacquiao's greatness is clear in the fact that it was a short right that produced the first knockdown and a left uppercut that put him on the deck in the fourth.

Cotto had little left by the eighth. His wife Melissa, left the arena with her son after the 10th. Cotto's father begged for a stoppage after the 11th but was overrules by the corner. They couldn't overrule referee Kenny Bayless who saved Cotto in the final stanza.

Pacman outlanded Cotto 336-172 and nailed him with 43-percent of his punches. Over 270 of those punches were to head and 276 were power shots. He landed those with a 49-percent accuracy rate.

Cotto did land some big shots on Pacquiao but the Filipino withstood all of them. He did have some bruising and small cuts under both eyes.

Pacquiao wouldn't say in the ring if he wanted Floyd Mayweather Jr. next. His trainer Freddie Roach didn't hold back saying that's the fight he wants.

Chavez Jr. (41-0-1, 30 KOs) was fighting for the first time at 160 pounds. He threw the harder punches but still lacked the zip to ever hurt the 34-year-old journeyman Rowland. 

It's mystifying that Top Rank would put this fight as the lead-in to Cotto-Pacquaio with 16,000-plus folks in attendance and probably 5-6 million watching worldwide.

There is talk of Chavez Jr. being matched next against Irishman John Duddy. Let's hope it happens, so we can see if the kid can actually fight.

He's a rabbi-in-training, so Yuri Foreman made for a nice storyline coming into his junior middleweight title shot against Daniel Santos. Most critics concentrated on the fact that Foreman, 29, only had eight knockouts in 27 fights. No punching power, meant no real threat to the veteran Santos. Foreman showed he could be a rough, tough customer. He often charged with his head which resulted in several headbutts and was credited with a knockdown in the second when he slugged Santos in the back of the head. He got a more legitimate knockdown in the 12th to seal the deal.

Foreman became the first Orthodox Jewish boxing world champ in more than 70 years. Jackie "Kid" Berg, a junior welterweight from London, was the last, in 1932.

With a better connect rate throughout, it was more than enough for Foreman to get his first world title via unanimous decision 116-110, 117-109 and 117-109.

Foreman was the slicker fighter throughout. His jab, fighting out of a southpaw stance, puffed up Santos below his right eye. Santos eventually suffered a cut on the edge of the eye in the eleventh round.

Foreman suffered a cut over left eye early in the fight but his corner did a nice job of managing the wound.

The Puerto Rican looked sluggish at times. Maybe it was the big weight gain after Friday's weigh-in. Foreman was 161 pounds tonight, while Santos was 173. Foreman pointed out during the postfight press conference that he noticed how big Santos looked at the start of the figt.

Foreman outlanded Santos 146-105 and connected at higher percentage (29-24).

Foreman's story can be best described as the American dream. Born into poverty in Belarus, he moved to Israel as a child and then New York as a 19-year-old. Five years ago, he began studying to be a rabbi on the advice of his girlfriend, who is also a professional boxer and model.

Soto-Karass really lost the fight in the third and fourth, when he was penalized a point in each stanza for repeated low blows. If he hadn't lost those poiints it would've been a majority draw. It was the third straight win for Gomez, who's hoping to get another welterweight title shot. He lost his first shot against Miguel Cotto back in 2008.

Middleweight Matt Korobov, the best fighter on the non-televised undercard, steamrolled James Winchester. Winchester didn't have a chance with his less-than-skilled approach. The Russian mauled Winchester to the body. The judges couldn't find a round to give Winchester. All three had it 60-54 for Korobov (8-0, 6 KO's) 

Korobov probably wanted a night like Eden Sonsona. Sonsona scored a knockdown in the first with a great left against Eilon Kedem. Kedem escaped the first but last only 17 seconds in the second round before the fight ended on a knockout by Sonsona (14-3, 4 KO's).

In fight No. 2 it was a Filipino prospect's turn to shine. Richie Mepranum didn't blow out Ernest Marquez but he did enough to his junior lightweight bout via split decision (58-55, 57-56, 56-57). It's surprising the gap wasn't bigger after Mepranum floored Marquez in the second with a nice left. Mepranum (15-2-1, 3 KOs) gassed a bit in the final three rounds allowing Marquez (9-6-2, 3 KO's) to narrow the score.  

Abner Cotto won the opening bout of the evening. Miguel Cotto's younger cousin, Cotto was simply the better boxer against Gudalupe Guzman (3-5, 3 KO's). He got the unanimous decision (60-54, 60-54, 59-55) in a six rounder. Cotto is 5-0 to start his career.   

First things first, Pacquiao needs to beat Miguel Cotto. If he does, Steve Carp from the Las Vegas Review-Journal said initial conversations for a 2010 megafight could start as early as Monday. Arum will ask Schaefer to reach out to Team Mayweather:

"I have tremendous respect for Richard," Arum said. "We give each other our word, and we can make a deal or we could not make a deal in two hours."

Schaefer will have to take the lead because Arum can't stand Mayweather managers Al Haymon and Leonard Ellerbe:

"I don't know," he said. "Nobody is going to sit around and wait for Mayweather and take his abuse. If Mayweather wants to fight Pacquiao if Manny wins and (Mayweather) is sensible about it, why not?"

Schaefer said it all comes down on how the purse money is split. If Pacman crushes Cotto, he's certainly entitled to something in excess of 50-percent. Can Mayweather and his boys deal with being on the short side? 

Surprisingly, Pacquiao was the most pessimistic person quoted in Carp's story:

"I don't think it's going to happen. I'm sure (Mayweather) doesn't want to fight. Boxing for him is like a business. He doesn't care about the people around him watching. He doesn't care if the fight is boring, as long as the fight is finished and he gets his money."

Pacman said it should be about the fans:

"I want people to be happy when I fight. You have a big responsibility as a boxer."

After 21 months away from the ring, Mayweather won a comeback fight against Juan Manuel Marquez on Sept. 19.

Yuri Foreman takes a big leap of faith when he enters the ring on Saturday night against junior middleweight champ Daniel Santos. But the 29-year-old Belarussian will go into the squared circle with peace of mind because this isn't a make or break situation. If the boxing thing doesn't produce titles and big paychecks, he's already working on his future. Foreman is training to be a rabbi.

Foreman, born in Belarus, he moved to Israel as a child and eventually made his to New York in 1999 where his wife, Leyla Leidecker, convinced him to study the Torah with a Brooklyn rabbi named DovBer Pinson.

It's never been easy for Foreman, who lived through a dangerous childhood according to the New York Times:

His early memories are trailing his mother with a knife tucked in his waistband as she walked through Gomel for fear that she might be kidnapped. The blade of the knife was so big (“like Crocodile Dundee,” he said) that it pricked his knee as he shadowed her. When he was 5, thugs forced his mother into a car and she was missing for days. 

He even felt threatened when making the simple move of switching trainers. His first trainer Michael Kozlowski, didn't deal with things gracefully:

The split was messy. Foreman said he was visited by a masked gunman who delivered a package. Inside was a bullet. Foreman alerted his promoter, who hired a private investigator, and Kozlowksi said he was visited by F.B.I. agents. The pupil and the coach still train in the same gym, but do not speak to each other.

As far as his upside in the ring, the opinions are mixed. Top Rank promoter Bob Arum is a big fan. More objective sources don't seem so bullish.

Josh Alper from NBCNewYork.com suggests the Rabbi training may not be the best thing mentally for Foreman's boxing career:

Foreman isn't only training to be a rabbi, he fights like one. Rabbis try to stay above the fray so they can analyze situations with a clear head and open heart, and Foreman acts the same way in the ring. He tries to stay out of the fray, picking his spots with the care that one might use when discussing existential questions of life and rarely throwing himself into fights with abandon. His punches lack the impact of a deeply felt sermon, however, which, along with his generally intellectual approach to pugilism, is why many think his career will stall now that he's reached the highest rungs of the boxing world.

The Times writes the same thing:

Santos, 34, has more experience, against better fighters. He has knockout power in both hands. And, most critical, he is a left-hander. Foreman, 29, has not boxed a left-hander as a professional. Nor has he shown a willingness to use his power: his last knockout came three years ago.

Top Rank matchmaker Bruce Trampler echoes those sentiments: 

"I’m not saying he’s a pacifist, but he fights like one. You can’t be content to win the rounds in a title fight. It could be your only chance. It is the moment, and in the moment, you have to be willing to take guys out"

Foreman (27-0, 8 KO's) versus Santos (32-3-1, 23 KO's) is part of the pay-per-view undercard. According to the New York Daily News, if Foreman, who is Orthodox, beats Santos, who hasn't fought in 16 months, he will become the first Orthodox Jewish boxing world champ in more than 70 years. Jackie (Kid) Berg, a junior welterweight from London, was the last, in 1932.

Watch Arum and Foreman at the Undercard Press Conference:

(BHop and Calzaghe finally agree on something)

You know you have a great fight on the way when guys who have stepped in between the ropes have varying opinion on who will pull out a mega-fight. The fellas who have laced them usually give the fans and media a dose of reality. In the case of Miguel Cotto-Manny Pacquaio, it's a tough call. Jeff Haney from the Las Vegas Sun did a great job polling some of boxing's biggest names.

George Foreman picks Cotto. He liked what he saw out of the Puerto Rican post-Antonio Margarito. Cotto is a smarter fighter now:

"I think there would have been a good opportunity for Pacquiao to win if he faced Cotto before he fought (Joshua) Clottey, but now Cotto is thinking defense. I think Cotto is going to pull out a decision, and now because of the terrible beating he took against (Antonio) Margarito, he knows he can't get into a knockdown, drag-out brawl. He's going to be smarter, and I think Cotto wins in a 12-round decision."

Hector Camacho says Cotto is not a smart fighter:

"I'm a Puerto Rican like Cotto, but I like Pacquiao because he has fought better guys, like (Oscar) De La Hoya. I see him having no problem against Cotto. Cotto is not a smart fighter, he boxes, and he's shown his colors already. He can be beat. So can Pacquiao, but I like Pacquiao. He has an unorthodox style, with punches coming from all over. Cotto tries to box. I see Pacquiao possibly stopping him. Pacquiao's on a roll, he has the confidence, and he has the boxing momentum. I see him winning."

Joe Calzaghe disliked what he saw from Cotto versus Clottey:

"I think Manny Pacquiao is going to be too quick for Cotto. I was ringside when Cotto fought Clottey. He seemed to struggle a bit in that fight and it is hard to say what he will do against a faster, quicker Pacquiao. I know people say Cotto is the bigger guy but I still think Pacquiao beats him in a decision."

Bernard Hopkins agrees with "Super Joe" saying Pacman is from another planet: 

"Pacquiao is going to chop Cotto up. Out of respect, Cotto will get some rounds, but Manny is the Bruce Lee of boxing. His basketball and martial arts background give him that speed and agility. You can't tell where his shots are coming from. Unlike Rocky, Bruce Lee was a real dude and so is Manny." 

It's interesting to see the fighters split down the middle on a fight featuring huge favorite odds on Pacquiao at minus-300.

If Manny Pacquiao suffers a vicious cut in this weekend's fight he may look longingly towards the Miguel Cotto corner. No Pacman won't be begging for mercy but he may wish that trainer Freddie Roach kept his old buddy Joe Chavez around. It's not quite Floyd Mayweather Jr. switching camps but it is significant that the cutman, who has worked often with Roach's fighters is going to help Cotto in this fight.

He was a miracle worker for Cotto, when he suffered a huge gash over his left eye during a summer fight with Joshua Clottey. Cotto wasted no time is locking up Chavez for this fight.

"[Chavez] was very important to me in my win over Clottey," Cotto told Steve Carp from the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "He did a great job with my cuts in that fight, and that's why I wanted to bring him back for this fight."

Chavez is calm under the gun:

"I'm so comfortable when I'm working in the corner," Chavez said. "In that fight, my total focus was making sure I stopped the bleeding and kept the doctor from stopping the fight."

But before Chavez signed on for another assignment, he asked Roach if it was okay.

"Joe's a close friend, and it was a chance for him to make some money," said Roach. "Cotto's going to have one of the best cut men in the world working for him."

Let's hope Chavez's work isn't needed and both fighters get to perform without the distaction of a nasty cut. If there is one, we know from prior experience that Cotto is in good hands. 

Every fighter reacts differently to that first knockout or whipping in the ring. No one knows that better than Manny Pacquaio and his trainer Freddie Roach. Most people are familiar with the unstoppable version of Pacman. A Filipino force, who is 34-1 with 27 knockouts since 2004. But there was a time Pacquaio had to deal with big KO losses (1996 by Rustico Torrecampo and 1999 by Medgoen Singsurat) Those were crossroads moments for Pacquiao:

"After the (Singsurat) fight I was thinking, ‘Oh, I’m going to stop boxing because maybe boxing doesn’t like me,’" Pacquiao told the Las Vegas Sun. “But then I started thinking to use them to focus harder for my next fights."

Roach says his fighter is fine but won't say the same about Miguel Cotto, who suffered his first knockout loss less than 17 months ago. Cotto took a lot of shots during that 2008 fight with Antonio Margarito. Sure it appears Margarito may have had loaded gloves for that fight but it doesn't lessen the mental effect on Cotto according to Roach:

“It doesn’t matter if Margarito did it in that fight or not, a fighter is still not the same following a knockout like that."

He said the only thing that can heal the mental damage is time. Roach thought Cotto looked like a different in his close win this summer against Joshua Clottey. Many more folks would probably say Cotto showed awesome mental toughness when overcame an early cut to post a great comeback victory.

Echevarria got a tip that Tyson, traveling with his wife and 10-month-old child, was arriving at LAX from London. Echevarria followed Tyson, who arrived 30 minutes late, from the international terminal as he made his way to Terminal 7. Echevarria said Tyson was cordial and cooperative until he got agitated while looking for a bathroom. That's when the 43-year-old former champ allegedly lost it grabbing Echevarria by his camera bag strap and striking him:

"I found myself in the street and he was hitting me with fists in the head. People came and got him off me. They basically saved my life."

Echevarria said he needed five stitches to close wounds on the back of his head and forehead:

"He was hitting me, there was just blood everywhere. It was like a water valve," Echevarria said he was struck with four punches that he knew of. Airport police spokesman Jim Holcomb said the photographer told police he was struck once. "When the blood is just gushing around you lose count."

Echevarria still appeared to be shaken during his sitdown with the gossip site:

"It's traumatizing. When you're being hit by Mike Tyson, it's really the worst thing in the world that you can imagine. He claimed that I elbowed him. He claimed that I was aggressive. I'm not an aggressive paparazzi."

That's not the story from Tyson's side.

"Mike acted in self defense as a father protecting his child," said Tyson's spokeswoman Tammy Brook.

Holcomb said witnesses on the scene supported both stories.

Echevarria told TMZ that his new $5,000 camera was destroyed and the remains, including the videotape, are now in police possession.

It was odd to hear Manny Pacquiao called the challenger during Wednesday's final prefight press conference in the Hollywood Theatre at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Miguel Cotto is putting his WBO welterweight belt on the line which means Pacquiao has a chance to win an unprecedented seventh world title in a seventh weight class. Keep in mind that mark is a bit watered down because there's a ton of sanctioning bodies labeling folks world champs but it's still incredible considering the former 112-pound champ is shooting for a 147-pound title on Saturday. Pacman (49-3-2, 37 KOs) is currently the IBO super lightweight champ.

''If I win this fight, it will be history for boxing and for the Philippines,'' Pacquiao said. ''Now to be welterweight, I can't believe it. 'I just thank God every day for what he gave to me.''

His promoter Bob Arum is still amazed by his fighters' growth:

"We are watching a phenomenon unfold before our eyes. I have not, in my 45 or 46 years in boxing, seen anything like this. This should have never happened."

The fighters have agreed on a catch weight of 145 pounds but Arum says Pacman is defying logic at 39 pounds heavier from his original professional fighting weight back in 1995:

"Manny seems to be punching harder now. People have been asking if he’ll lose his speed as he goes heavier, but Manny seems to be faster now."

Cotto is Pacman's biggest test yet. The 29-year-old Puerto Rican is not in twilight of his career like Oscar De La Hoya was when he faced the Filipino. Cotto's also been in there with legitimate, hard-hitting 147-pounders like Antonio Margarito, Joshua Clottey and Shane Mosley. Pacquaio may be the faster fighter but we find out in two days if he can take a real welterweight punch.

"‘I was very hurt and depressed after that (Margarito) fight. Then I redid my team. Now, I’m with the people I wanted. Sometimes you win by losing," told Jerry Izenberg from the Star-Ledger.

Cotto had wanted his second in charge, Joe Santiago to take things over. The loss allowed him to jettison his uncle and original trainer Evangelista Cotto. The fighter and trainer were often at odds about where to train. Cotto was tired of the hoopla of training in Puerto Rico. For his uncle, it was more about convenience:{YSP: MORE}

"‘The best thing we did was to go to Tampa to train for this fight," said Santiago. "The training went perfectly. If he had stayed in Puerto Rico, the distractions would have been even more than in the past because this is Pacquiao. We know fans are excited. And we know they don’t understand he needs his time even more for this one because of what beating Pacquiao means to him. They would have been all over him and what would we have gotten done? Too much adoration gets in the way of a fighter in training. They can love you to death.’’

Cotto first trained in Tampa before his Fight of the Year candidate brawl against Joshua Clottey and he did the same for this fight. 

As his fight against Manny Pacquiao approaches, Miguel Cotto is the side dish so far in Las Vegas. That's for the fans, media and even his own promoter. Cotto arrived at the MGM Grand in Sin City to a lot less fanfare compared to his opponent. Conspicuously absent was his promoter Bob Arum, who is seen in this Pacman arrival video smiling from ear-to-ear.

One has to wonder what Arum's relationship with Cotto and his camp is considering Pacman is the focus of his attention this week. Plus there was the interesting way Arum backed Antonio Margarito around the time when he was nailed for cheating wiith concrete fists before the Shane Mosley fight. It's hard find anyone who believes that Margarito didn't do the same thing before he severely beat up Cotto in their July of 2008 fight.

Arum did turn on the charm during today's prefight press conference stating that Cotto may not be the main attraction but he's one of two great fighters who'll be in the ring on Saturday night. He said the enormity of promotion was not possible without the the prefight efforts of Cotto at various locations around the world. 

Manny Pacquiao may be able to whip Oscar De La Hoya any day of the week but "The Golden Boy" is the Pavarotti of boxing compared to the Pacman. Manny decided to sing during his appearance on the Jimmy Kimmel Show. One can only imagine what American Idol's Simon Cowell would've said if he were on set. For 70's cheeseballs, Manny's choice of "Sometimes When We Touch" by Dan Hill was a nice touch.  

It wasn't the worst public performance by a celebrity. That bar was set beyond reach by Carl Lewis and Roseanne Barr. But we're calling bull if Pacman releases an album in the future that sounds great. Can we say digitally altered?

Imagine if George Steinbrenner owned the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies? Impossible, right? Somehow it is in boxing. Promoter Bob Arum directs the careers of both fighters in Saturday's main event at the MGM in Las Vegas. Arum is the longtime promoter of Manny Pacquaio and Miguel Cotto. He'll have that Steinbrenner-like glow at the postfight press conference in either case. During the prefight he gets to sit back a little not having to pitch the fight by talking about how his guy is going to crush the opponent:

"Anybody who tells you now that they know for sure how it's gonna end up, is not telling the truth," Arum told the Manila Bulletin. "The reason this fight is creating so much attention is because of the fact that people who know boxing are baffled as to how this fight is going to turn out."

I think Arum means "anybody [not involved in the promotion] who tells you ..." We can all certainly make a prediction on the fight. That said, Arum won't: 

"I know how the fight is going to start and the question is can Miguel handle Manny’s speed early on and can Manny handle Miguel’s power early on?" said Arum. "They’re gonna both be aggressive in the beginning. If that doesn’t work for either of them, then you’ll see Miguel resorting to be a counter-puncher and Manny going on the attack." 

Ultimately the guess here is that Arum would love to see Pacquiao win and continue to solidify his reputation as the world's best pound-for-pound fighter. That could potentially lure Floyd Mayweather Jr. into accepting a Pacman fight in 2010 at less than 50-50 terms.

On the surface, you can't make a better impression than Arthur Abraham did with his knockout win over Jermain Taylor to kickoff Showtime's Super Six World Boxing Classic Tournament. Abraham finished Taylor with that 12th KO with less than 20 seconds left in the fight. The Armenian's straight right was so effective that it knocked Taylor stiff. When Taylor hit the mat, his head bounced violently against the canvas. He was admitted to a Berlin hospital with a concussion.

In the tournament's format, Abraham picked up three points, but does it mean he should be a heavy favorite? I beg to differ on that one. Viewers of the Abraham-Taylor fight got cheated a bit by Showtime. Without Compubox stats and listening to the slanted call from Steve Albert, you would've thought Abraham was leading 11-0 entering the 12th round. Far from it. Abraham was virtually inactive in six rounds. Sure the scorecards had Abraham leading handily (105-103, 107-103, 106-102) entering the final round but it could've been a different story if the American wasn't dealing with a homefield advantage. Showtime did a good job in the prefight of warning the audience about Abraham's propensity to beg for low blow calls. His wish was granted early in the fight when referee Guido Cavalleri called a couple on Taylor. It took a lot of the steam out of Taylor's efforts to lower Abraham's hands by going to the body. Without a ringside judge of its own on the scene, Showtime didn't have an objective voice on what the score really was entering the final round. There's no way with the Abraham's low punch output in half of the rounds, that he was leading that fight 9-3 as one judge had it. 

Even with a low punch output, Abraham also looked a bit winded in rounds 9-through-11. Abraham did a get a big win but he'll have to step things up to win the Super Six. If he fights in front of judges who favor volume over power, he may have trouble beating a guy like Andre Dirrell. Abraham faces Dirrell in Round two and said he's ready to take America. Be careful what you wish for. The next time around, on a level playing field, the story may be different.  

"If anyone resorts to force, then I'll resort to force too," the World Boxing Council heavyweight title holder threatened, as a scuffle broke out.

Klitschko, 38, was angered by the session's inability to approve a land redistribution. Klitschko and his allies tried to bring a halt to the proceedings.

"I didn't hit anyone, I just tried to push a few people away," he told television channel 1+1 afterwards. He added that a real fight, "could have led to certain lawmakers being admitted to hospital."

Klitschko, who has a doctorate in Sports Science, has twice run unsuccessfully for Mayor of Kiev. Klitschko and his brother, Wladimir have always been active on the Ukranian political scene. Back in 2004, Wladimir, the WBO and IBF heavyweight champ, led a protest 10,000 strong in Kiev.

Sure, Lewis was a better overall fighter than Klitschko, but there was always a healthy dollop of vulnerability. We saw early on that his chin could be reached, and that threat never really left, even against someone like Shannon Briggs. The Canadian also compounded matters by not always showing up in top-notch shape.

Klitschko gave Lewis a run for his money but in the end an old Lewis shredded the Russian's face and forced a stoppage. In general, he put his punches together much better. And most importantly, Lewis (38-2, 37 KOs) faced much better competition than Klitschko. "Dr. Ironfist" is a solid fighter and his defensive abilities defy logic, but let's not gloss over the fact that this rebirth at 38 has come against Chris Arreola, Juan Carlos Gomez and Sam Peter.

While we're at it, is 38-year-old Vitali even the best Klitschko? Iorfida says so:

Yes, younger brother Wladimir is also a heavyweight titleholder with several defences under his belt, but he's been knocked out twice and doesn't have the "It" factor Vitali does. Wladimir has scored some great KOs, but too often his game plan is mechanical.

Iorfida also says the heavyweight picture is better now than it was five years ago. That's a tough call to make especially since it looks like both Klitschkos have run out of worthy opponents. The good news is Oliver McCall is fighting Lance Whitaker next month in Las Vegas. Kidding. It's no knock on the Klitschkos. They may be all-timers for all we know, it's just tough to gauge what they've done considering the competition.

Cris Arreola broke down in the ring after the fight. He cried uncontrollably after not being able to catch a Vitali Klitschko, 6-foot-7, 252-pound heavyweight for 10 rounds. Klitschko, with his hands down for most of the fight, put on a show nailing Arreola throughout with six and seven unanswered punches at a time. By the end of the tenth, the big Russian was leading 10-0 and 9-1 on most cards, and had outlanded Arreola 301-86. Arreola's trainer Henry Ramirez told referee John Schorle that was it. Klitschko, 38, retains his WBC heavyweight title with a thudding technical knockout victory over Arreola at Staples Center.

"He was taking too much punishment," Ramirez told the L.A. Times. "Arreola was irate. It was not an easy decision, but we had discussed it, and I had to do it."

Arreola, weeping for minutes after the fight, could barely pull it together to speak with HBO announcer Larry Merchant:

"I couldn't get to him," said a sniffling Arreola (27-1, 24 KOs). "He ran when he was supposed to. Whatever I did he found a way to counteract that."

Klitschko (38-2, 37 KOs) was super confident from the start holding his left hand by his side. Arreola stood in front of the big guy the entire fight and got nailed by three and four-punch combinations. When it wasn't three or four punches, Klitschko was masterful pcking apart Arreola with two-punch combos and then sliding to his left or right. Arreola couldn't pull the trigger after getting drilled or would simply swing and miss.

"I don't know [what happened] man. I worked my ass off. [Expletive]!," said Arreola. "Vitali is a strong [expletive]. He hit hit hard."

The 28-year-old from just outside L.A., in Riverside, was distraught about the fact that his corner threw in the towel:

"That's never in me. I didn’t want to quit. I knew he was [expletive] me up. I'm sorry guys."

Schorle had no choice. By the middle of the fight, Klitschko's confidence soared as held both hands at his side and landed almost everything he threw. He mixed together clubbing lead left hooks, straight rights and wicked uppercuts to puff up Arreola's face.

Arreola's best rounds were No. 4 and 8. Yahoo! Sports' writers on the scene in Los Angeles, Kevin Iole and Martin Rogers, each had it 89-82 for Klitschko. I had it a clean sweep for Klitschko. Klitschko led 99-91 on the cards of Anek Hongtongkam and Ken Morita, and Guido Cavalieri had it 100-89.

The final punchstats illustrated just how dominant Klitschko was. He outlanded Arreola by 215 and threw 471 more shots. He also landed 151 power punches (53-percent) to just 24 for Arreola. "Dr. Ironfist" still looked very fresh even after throwing 802 punches.

It's difficult to see what's on the horizon for Vitali and his brother Wladimir (53-3, 47 KOs), who holds the other major heavyweight titles. The brothers have been resistant to the talk that they fight each other. Who else is out there? Arreola may have been the last American heavyweight for a while who can challenge the massive Russians. 

He's a mean looking dude but Cris Arreola has a soft side and a good sense of humor. That said, he should've let poor Dan Goossen in on the joke at yesterday's weigh-in for his fight against Vitali Klitschko. Arreola is always fighting the battle of the bulge. So when he chose to step on the scale in front of Staples Center with his shirt on, first thought had to be, "did this guy train at all?" Then Michael Buffer announced, "272 pounds!" It appeared that Goosen was freaking out that the scale was malfunctioning:

"Everybody keeps bitching about the weight. That's the first question. I [said] I'm going to run with this and put the weight vest on (2:04 mark)," Arreola told Elie Seckbach from AOL Fanhouse. "And make them all believe that 'damn, this is a fat [expletive],' but I'm not."

Arreola removed the vest and weighed in at a trimmer 251 pounds. He averaged roughly 256 for his last three fights up from the 230's he fought at back in 2007. Arreola challenges for Klitschko's WBC heavyweight title tomorrow night Los Angeles.

The one million buy total represents the highest performing boxing pay-per-view event in 2009 and generated $52 million in pay-per-view revenue. The million buys include 525,000 from cable homes and 475,000 from satellite homes. It is only the fifth time in boxing pay-per-view history that a non-heavyweight event has attained the one million buy mark. [Mayweather] has now participated in two events that have reached the one million buy mark.  

HBO PPV chief Mark Taffet was fired up:

"Sept. 19 was an event that connected with sports fans across the country. Floyd Mayweather has clearly reinforced his standing as a top attraction and fans are excited about his return to the sport."

Yahoo! Sports Kevin Iole told Cagewriter that his sources said UFC 103 finished in the 450,000 range. The UFC does not release its PPV buy statistics.

Make sure you tune in on Thursday night, when Yahoo! Sports, The Ring and Versus team up to give you a free night of live-streamed pro boxing action from Club Nokia in downtown Los Angeles. The live stream starts at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.

Fight Night Club is your chance to check out some of boxing's most promising up-and-comers before they become stars. Thursday night's main event is a six-round bantamweight contest featuring unbeaten Charles Huerta against Derrick Wilson. Four other matches will also be broadcast.

So make sure you stop by Thursday night and check out the fights. Follow all the action via the live stream from L.A.

On Thursday, Yahoo! Sports teams up with Versus and The Ring magazine to present a live stream of the Fight Night club event at Club Nokia in Los Angeles. Bell time is 9 p.m. Eastern/ 6 p.m. Pacific.

The card features a co-main main event. In a junior lightweight showdown, David Rodela (12-1-3, 6 KOs) meets Juan Garcia (14-2, 5KOs). And at featherweight Charles Huerta (10-0, 5 KOs) meets Noe Lopez Jr. (4-0, 3 KOs).

And you don't have to pay a dime. So be sure to tune in to Yahoo! Sports and The Ring magazine on Thursday to watch the fights.

"He's taking his time. He is single minded, stubborn if you like, and once he makes up his mind that will be it. We will respect that decision and knowing him it will be final and certainly he won't be a Frank Sinatra, forever making comebacks."

The older Hatton says there's no need rush into the second phase of life at such a young age:

"This is one big decision for a 30-year-old. It's not like old Father Time is catching up on him. It's the biggest decision of his career, even of his life, and he's got to get it right."

Hatton's legacy is at stake if he walks away off a defeat where he was last seen laid out:

"The defeat is still very painful for him even now. He knows he was reckless and his game plan went out of the window. A lot of people who know him well are thinking they can't see him going out and ending his career on the back of that sort of defeat. Some genuine experts and people who know him best reckon he won't want to be remembered flat on his back."

The Manchester Evening News also confirms a story first reported by the Yahoo! Boxing Blog, that Hatton's co-trainer Floyd Mayweather Sr. showed up late on fight night.  Mayweather blames the loss on Hatton listening to others and not him exclusively during training.

Michael Katsidis has been mentioned as an opponent for what could be a farewell fight later this year. The Hattons are busy this evening opening a huge fitness center in Manchester.

Manny Pacquiao may not be boxing's best pitchman but his trainer is certainly making up for it. Freddie Roach has taken on the role of trash-talker extraordinaire. Roach isn't happy that the upcoming Floyd Mayweather Jr.-Juan Manuel Marquez fight is simply being dubbed "No. 1":

"They can call Mayweather-Marquez "No. 1" but it smells like No. 2," said Freddie Roach. "The fight stinks. Two counter-punchers waiting for the other one to make the first move is boring and proves nothing." 

Since the minute the Pacman-Ricky Hatton fight ended, Roach has been ripping the Mayweather comeback effort. He told ESPNRadio1100 that the fight will be terrible. He repeated recently that Mayweather is ducking Pacquiao:

"If Mayweather wanted to prove he was the best all he had to do was wait one day to see who won Pacquiao-Hatton before signing to fight Marquez.  You might as well rename him Fraud Mayweather, Jr.“

Marquez twice fought Pacquiao going 0-1-1. The WBA and WBO lightweight champ is fighting Mayweather at a catch-weight of 144 pounds.

"Bernard is full of [expletive]!"

That prompted Hopkins' camp member Malik Chambers to snap at Shaw during the press conference. Chambers took issue when Shaw said that Hopkins had offered Tomasz Adamek $300,000-$500,000 for a fight. Chambers told Shaw to mind his own business because it was really $1.2 million. For some reason, Hopkins also told ESPNRadio1100 that it $500,000 last week (3:05 mark). There seems to be some disconnect between Chambers and Hopkins or is it possible that in the week since the BHop interview, Adamek was offered $1.2 million?

Dawson told ESPNRadio1100 there haven't been any negotiations with the Hopkins camp (7:00 mark) so it seems a bit odd that Chambers would be yelling out, "get the money right!" during the press conference:

"There's not been one second of conversation. So how can he say it's a money issue? What he should say is, I'm going to have my representatives call Gary Shaw and work out a deal."

Watch Shaw talk about Dawson v. Hopkins with Yahoo!:

Shaw says he's not going to chase Hopkins. Fortunately for fight fans Dawson does have the option of going down to 168 pounds to take on Carl Froch or Mikkel Kessler. Is there any other fight we care about for Hopkins other than Dawson?  

There were plenty of negative cries about this rematch between Chad Dawson and Antonio Tarver. Dawson did beat Tarver the first time around but it wasn't a walkover. There didn't have to be a rematch but it turned out to be a pretty good fight. The fans and the HBO broadcast team seemed to think it was a much closer fight than the judges who gave a unanimous decision to Chad Dawson 117-111 on two cards and 116-112 on the other card. The Yahoo! Boxing Blog scored it 115-113 but there were at least three difficult rounds to score. Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole had it 117-111 for Dawson.

Dawson retains his IBO light heavyweight title in front of 2,156 at the Hard Rock in Las Vegas but sounded disappointed after the fight:

"I was a little bit out of my element. He came back strong in the middle rounds. He said he was going to push the pace. He came forward," said Dawson (28-0, 17 KOs). "He took me off my gameplan. He fought a heckuva fight. My hats off to him."

Dawson outlanded Tarver 209-121 and landed at a higher connect rate (31-percent to 16-percent). He also impressed the judges with his body punching, landing 62 shots to just 14 for Tarver.

Dawson's best rounds came in the sixth and seventh. His combinations of three or body punches followed by a big uppercut were impressive. He did the same in the ninth round to at least lock up a draw at that point in the fight.

Tarver trainer Buddy McGirt thought his fighter closed stronger:

"We thought it was a lot closer. We thought we won the last two or three rounds to pull out a draw."

The Yahoo! Boxing Blog had Tarver (27-6, 190 KOs) winning the final two rounds. Patricia Jarman and Duane Ford gave the final two rounds to Dawson while Alan Davis gave them to Tarver.

Dawson is looking to take a step to the next level and draw Bernard Hopkins or Joe Calzaghe into a fight. His gas tank was running on empty down the stretch and this decision on points and cleaner boxing may not be enough to woo one of the big names into a big money fight.

It was the third win of the year for Topou (17-0, 13 KOs), who was coming off a victory over the one and only Marcus Rhode.

Another unbeaten prospect, Ismayl Sillakh (8-0, 7 KOs) scored a sixth round KO (2:25) win against David Whittom )_in a light heavyweight fight.

Jose Guzman, 25, also remained unbeaten but it wasn't easy. Veteran Jose Lugo was outclassed but was able to sucker Guzman onto the ropes where he did some decent damage to the body, In the end, Guzman (7-0, 5 KOs) was simply too slick in the middle of the ring. He won a majority decision (59-55, 58-56, 57-57) over Lugo (10-8-1, 5 KOs).

Additional undercard results:

Melisa Hernandez (10-1-2, 3 KOs) defeated Jeri Sitzes (14-9-1, 6 KOs) via Unanimous decision (60-54, 59-55, 59-55)

Anna Donnatella Hultin (1-0, 1 KO) defeated Jasica Rojo (0-1) via fourth round KO, 1:08 - Jr. Lightweight

Said El Harrack (5-0, 2 KOs) defeated Hugo Correa (8-3, 4 KOs) via first round KO, 1:55 - Middleweight

Jose Pacheco (1-5-6) and Omar Valencia (0-3-1), Majority Draw (39-37, 39-32, 38-38) - Jr. Featherweight

Hopkins says he's ready to fight someone in September but the terms have to be right:

"I'm not waiting on nobody," Hopkins told Yahoo! Sports. "If it ain't set up by at least June or July, whoever it is, then it's a wrap. It's a done deal. What's the purpose? If a guy's 44 years old, they should be beating his door down."

Listen to Hopkins talk about Dawson and Adamek (2:45 mark):

Hopkins claims that Dawson wants a 50-50 split. Dawson told ESPNRadio1100 on Friday that's not the case:

"We haven't even talked about money. No one's even mentioned anything about money. Let's just fight man. Stop all the bullcrap. I go to the ratings, they have Bernard rated above me. He's one, I'm two. Don't you think one and two should fight? The money will be good for both of us. Let's just fight."

Now word is leaking out that Hopkins is throwing the name Felix Trinidad into the mix. Huh? That set off Keith Idec of the North Jersey Herald:

(Hopkins') penchant for trying to peddle fiction as indisputable fact has become rather ridiculous. No one other than Hopkins, Trinidad and Don King, Trinidad’s promoter, has any interest in seeing Hopkins-Trinidad II.

How, exactly, could this warrant a rematch?

And why does Hopkins think he can conveniently dismiss higher-risk, higher-reward fights against Dawson or cruiserweight champion Tomasz Adamek in trying to convince everyone that a Trinidad rematch matters?

Idec is right but it's all part of Hopkins' negotiating games. We're not exactly sure why the games are needed with Dawson. If he wins tonight, he sounds like he's going to be pretty reasonable to try and seal a deal with Hopkins. At that point, the ball's in BHop's court. Does he really want to play with the 26-year-old Dawson?

Eight months has passed since the first time they met but you'd think it was five years from the recent reports of their first meeting. Chad Dawson rolled to a decision win over Antonio Tarver but it was far from a beating. Yet according to the odds, this is one of the most lopsided title bouts of the year. Dawson (27-0m 17 KOs) was as high as -900 at some Las Vegas sportsbooks on Friday. The number has settled down but it's still at a very high in the -600 to -700 range. What's the deal?

The 40-year-old Tarver (27-5, 19 KOs) has a shot in this fight. He was more dedicated this time around with his training. Tarver got as a high as 233 pounds for the role of "Mason Dixon" in Rocky VI. He's generally cutting from around the 200 pound mark but there time there was no massive weight loss. If anything, he may have overtrained a bit coming in at 172 pounds during Friday's weigh-in. His dedication is from joining forces again with Buddy McGirt:

"Buddy is a great trainer," says Tarver. "We've had a lot of success together, and I think along with Jimmy Williams, two great minds are better than one. Where Jimmy is weak at, as a trainer, Buddy has strengths. And vice versa. They complement each other. And just to be able to have two guys in that corner that I love, and believe in and trust in, I think it just helps me. I know Buddy's going to be cool and calm under pressure and that's what I need between those rounds."

Trainer and fighter are both hard-headed but they put aside their differences for this one:

"It's been a year and a half since I worked with Antonio, and it was difficult at first. But we've worked hard, and I see Antonio winning back the championship Saturday night."

The fight starts tonight at 9:30 p.m. ET on HBO live from the Hard Rock in Las Vegas. This is the first major boxing card to be held at the Hard Rock's new venue concert/fighting venue The Joint. The $60 million facility is configured for 2,900 fans for boxing cards. Let's hope this fight performs better than the first one which sold less than 700 tickets in a similar venue, the Pearl at the Palms.

There's no one better than Steve Kim from Maxboxing.com to cut through the bull. K-9 says enough with Oscar De La Hoya comeback talk. DLH is not "Oscar De La Favre."

Floyd Mayweather's return last week got some people buzzing about a rematch between the two. The first fight was a financial success but a dud for most boxing fans.

Stay retired Oscar! There's plenty of real 147-pounders lining up to take on Mayweather. No need to block Shane Mosley, Paul Williams, Antonio Margarito, Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto.

"Chad throws combinations like the old Sugar Ray Robinsons," said Mustafa Muhammed. "You don't see that no more. These guys throw 1-2 and then they resort to holding."

Dawson and his boys don't believe a knockout is a must to prove you're a great fighter:

"The name of the game is 'I hit you but you don't hit me' not 'I hit you and you hit me back.' It don't work like that. That's not the game," said Mustafa Muhammed extolling the virtues of Dawson's defensive prowess.

It's the rematch that no one was calling for except a piece of paper. Back in October, Antonio Tarver gave Chad Dawson a shot at his title belts (not sure which ones and don't care) but he made sure there was a rematch clause in the contract. To no one's surprise, the younger Dawson was faster, got off more punches and beat "The Magic Man" to the punch during most exchanges. The judges scored it a lopsided 118-109 and a pair of 117-110's for Dawson. But it was far from utter destruction for Tarver. He just needed to sit down on his punches more and stay in the pocket. Tarver (27-5, 19 KOs)says he's going for broke this time around:

"When I look back at the fight, I feel I beat myself, it was nothing that Chad did," Tarver told the Las Vegas Sun. "Basically I’m gonna let my hands go this time. I’m not gonna be in a defensive posture. I’m gonna let my offense be my defense and I’m gonna fight — that’s the bottom line."

Tarver has won all three of his rematches after a loss (Glen Johnson, Eric Harding and Roy Jones Jr.). That was then, this is now for the 40-year old Tarver:

"We corrected our wrongs and you’ll see the difference Saturday night. When I’m determined, I’m a hard guy to beat, history proves that."

Tarver says it's time to swing for the fences:

"I’m gonna put this guy in uncomfortable situations and I’m gonna touch him. I have the power. I’m gonna touch him on the arms, touch him on the body. If I crack him or hurt him, I’m knocking him out. Period."

Tarver is also back with trainer Buddy McGirt. McGirt missed the first matchup working with another fighter. Dawson (27-0, 17 KOs) by most as the No. 2 light heavyweight in the world behind Bernard Hopkins. A big show for Dawson on HBO may coax Joe Calzaghe out of retirement for a big money fight or convince BHop drop some of his demands. 

The swine flu has the world in freakout mode and for good reason, especially if regions aren't prepared to handle a serious outbreak. Manny Pacquiao is dying to get back home to the Philippines after nearly two months in the United States, and his Pinoy brothers and sisters are exploding at the seams ready to greet their national hero. A parade was supposed to happen on Friday but has now been postponed. 

According to Philippine news services, Pacman was told by officials that he must delay his return, originally scheduled for Friday or upon arrival in Manila. He and his huge entourage will be quarantined for five to 10 days to ensure they haven't been exposed to the swine flu while in Southern Nevada and California:

Although there have been no confirmed cases of influenza A (H1N1) in the Philippines, Health Secretary Francisco Duque is concerned the boxer or his entourage could have picked up the virus while in the United States.

Not all Philippine officials are in agreement:

"(Duque) might as well shut down the entire airport if he is planning to quarantine Manny [Pacquiao]," said Environment Secretary Lito Atienza. "Right now, Manny Pacquiao is the healthiest Filipino. He defeated a tough British fighter in two rounds and I think he wouldn’t be able to do that if he’s sick."

Once the quarantine is over, further recommendations were made by Duque:

"The welcome greeters in Manila should be kept at a distance of at least one meter and no handshake or any form of social greetings like hugging or kissing. The team members who are not ill during the time of arrival should be encouraged to observe for any signs of illness for a period of five days and inform immediately the Department of Health if there are any symptoms," said Duque.

"(Pacquiao’s group) is not a small group and they come from different parts of the country."

There are also calls for all Philippine congressmen who attended the Ricky Hatton-Pacquiao fight in Las Vegas to be quarantined as well. There have been two reported deaths and 403 have been infected in the United States.

This movie looks awesome and then reached a new level of awesome with a late cameo from Iron Mike (2:15 mark). You can skip ahead but you'll miss plenty of chuckles especially if you have the sense of humor of a 15-year-old, like me.

The Hangover is out June 5.

Tip via With Leather

His rise from 130 pounds to take out elite fighters at 140 and 147 is amazing. Not only did Manny Pacquiao beat Ricky Hatton and Oscar De La Hoya, he destroyed them and may have sent both to the old folks home. Those conquests were dynamite,, but he does have his limits. Freddie Roach told the ESPNRadio1100/Yahoo! Sports postfight show that he'd like to see Pacman fight Shane Mosley or Miguel Cotto but that they'd have to come down a few pounds. So, basically, Manny is a little too small to fight legitimate welterweights. Pacquiao can only reach so high at barely 5-foot-6.

Meanwhile our buddy MDS at AOL's Fanhouse has lost his mind:

Pacquiao would beat any boxer at any weight class under 160. Yes, you read that right: Pacquiao would have to move all the way up to middleweight before I'd bet against him.

How many fighters under 160 pounds can you name to bet on against Pacman?

I'll go with:

1. Floyd Mayweather Jr. (5-foot-8, 147 pounds)

2. Paul Williams (6-3, 154)

3. Shane Mosley (5-9, 147)

4. Miguel Cotto (5-8, 147)

5. Antonio Margarito (6-0, 147)

The win over Hatton is impressive but let's keep in mind "The Hitman" had two quality wins in his career. I'm thinking MDS is employing an ESPN "First Take" mentality here, making outlandish statements to simply stir up an argument.

New Jersey Athletic Control Board commissioner Aaron Davis and assistant commissioner Sylvester Cuyler watched Camacho spar last week at the Atlantic City Police Athletic League Gym:

"I thought it was important to see them in the gym before I approved the fight," Davis told The Press of Atlantic City. "I'm looking to see if they get tired in the ring, and I wanted to get a gauge of their skill level. I saw Campas spar eight rounds and he looked good."

According to FightNews.com, the NJACB came back today and denied Camacho a license to fight Campas.

It might be good thing after both of his sparring partners said they felt like they needed to take it easy on Camacho:

"I didn't spar him like I would spar someone like (Somers Point middleweight prospect) Patrick (Majewski)," said Shamone Alvarez, 32. "I mean, the man's got to eat. It is what it is. I did what I had to do, so he could show his stuff."

Patrick Perez was a little more positive on Camacho's chances:

"I opened up on him a little bit, but he was hard to hit," said the 36-year-old Perez. "He's got a couple of fights left in him. I sparred with Yory Boy about 10 years ago and I think this would be a decent fight. Hector is faster and has a good chin, but Yory Boy hits harder."

Camacho (79-5-2, 38 KOs) has won 16 of his last 17 fights but had fought only once in the last four years. Maybe he needs to head to Alabama, where they'll license anyone including Kyle Maynard, a congenital amputee, for an MMA fight and 48-year-old boxer Ray Mercer.

Merchant joined Yahoo! Sports and ESPNRadio1100 during our Manny Pacquiao-Ricky Hatton postfight show and did a nice spot. He made salient points about Pacman's place in history and what could be next against Floyd Mayweather Jr.

For some reason, Gawker.com decided to unload on Merchant after viewing the fight. Joshua Stein was livid with the boxing analyst:

"If anyone watched the Hatton v. Pacquio fight last night, the biggest loser wasn’t Ricky Hatton. It was Larry Merchant, the lipid eyed drunkard whose inane commentary damages more brains than Pacquio’s right hook."

The Sports Pig points out that Stein also called Merchant  "tuxedoed stooge," "boxing’s old joke," and a "drunk [expletive]."

The Pig defends Merchant nicely:

However, it’s ridiculous to assert or even imply that Larry Merchant is drunk on-the-air with HBO. However, he is 79-years-old. HBO has brought in Max Kellerman to pick up some of the load from Merchant but, since they’re only doing THREE pay-per-view events this year, it begs the question. Isn’t Larry Merchant semi-retired already?

I don't understand all the hate. Merchant's pacing is slow but he's still in a different league versus Max Kellerman. If you don't believe me, watch Steve Bunce explain why. This fan thought that Kellerman's on-air essay sucked after the Juan Diaz-Juan Manuel Marquez fight.

It was a rough night for his fiance Jennifer Dooley, who was distraught as "The Hitman" hit the canvas. Looking back on HBO's 24/7, Hatton sort of foreshadowed his demise when he talked about not allowing his son Campbell to come see the fight in person:

"I don't want Campbell to come and watch the boxing," Hatton said on 24/7. "You never can tell in a boxing ring what can happen. One punch and it could all be over for you. I wouldn't forgive myself if I said to Campbell 'you want to come watch the fight' and I got knocked out. I know how hard it was for me Mom and girlfriend when Floyd Jr. knocked me out. I wouldn't like it if my little eight-year-old champion sat there watching that."

Hatton is only 30 years old but has 47 fights under belt and likely banked $25-30 million for his six minutes of work on Saturday night.

Bob Arum is one lucky man. Late in life, the 77-year-old has been handed what could be the greatest fighter he's ever promoted. Manny Pacquiao is an action fighter who appears to be able to fight in three different weight classes and has an entire nation of 90 million people behind him.

After each Pacman conquest, Arum beams and is growing with confidence. When asked about Pacquiao meeting Floyd Mayweather Jr. down the road, Arum called out the former pound-for-pound king:

"(Juan Manuel) Marquez shouldn't be fighting Mayweather, he should be fighting (Humberto) Soto or (Edwin) Valero," said Arum. "And Mayweather, if he wants a piece of this little Filipino, just be my guest."

Mayweather announced on Saturday morning that he was coming back to fight Marquez on July 18. Pacman trainer Freddie Roach responded to this by telling the collected media during the postfight press conference he thinks Mayweather is afraid of his guy (3:15 mark):

"Mayweather could fight Pacquaio, he just had to wait one day. I think he's scared of Manny Pacquiao," said Roach. "We not going to wait around. I'd like to keep Manny busy. I'd like to get a fight in November or December."

Roach said if Miguel Cotto or Shane Mosley could come down a few pounds, those fights could be made against Pacquiao.    

Manny Pacquiao really is a national institution. It seems like everyone in the Philippines congregates at arenas and malls to watch his fights. Filipinos literally live and die with his every move. Sadly, three people actually died the moment Pacman landed his huge left hook that knocked out Ricky Hatton.

According to the Inquirer, 64-year-old tricycle driver Francisco Lalongisip, 49-year old Vic Ocampo and 52-year-old farmer Rolando Cabang all had heart attacks as Pacquaio planted The Hitman.

Lalongisip, collapsed in his neighbor’s house at around noon, at the same time Pacquiao knocked Hatton down.

Ocampo, a resident of 1154 Casanas Street in the Sampaloc district, was watching the free showing of the live Pacquiao-Hatton match at the Dapitan Sports Complex along with other boxing fans when he collapsed at around 11:50 a.m., just as Pacquiao knocked out Hatton in the second round

Rolando Cabang fell to the ground gasping for air at the start of the second round.

The Pacquiao phenomenon is amazing in the Philippines. Many cities show his fights for free in the town's malls, theatres and stadiums. One report said the line to get into the stadium in Cavite City was nearly two miles long.

But there was also lots of anger from those who tried to watch it on television. GMA-7 showed the fight on a tape delayed basis but threw in so many commercials that many viewers already knew the result by the time Pacman pulled off his KO:

GMA-7, the official media partner of the Pacquiao-Hatton fight, finally aired the delayed telecast of the main event at 2:03 p.m., two hours after Pacquiao knocked out his opponent.

It began with celebrity Martin Nievera singing the Philippine National anthem then immediately cut to a rundown of nearly 30 major and minor sponsors.

The telecast noticeably skipped Tom Jones singing "God Save the Queen," Britain's national anthem, and (Jasmine Villegas') rendition of the United States anthem,"Star-Spangled Banner".

There were three commercial gaps before the telecast showed Pacquaio enter the arena.

Some gaps were as long as eight minutes and a portion of the introductions to the match lasted for only a minute before another commercial break.

Sources said the television network had to force in more commercials because the fight was sold as a minimum six rounder. When Pacman made it into a two rounder, the network was thrown for a loop.

Just because the fight is in the books, doesn't mean the angst between the Ricky Hatton and Manny Pacquiao camps has been put to rest. Pacman trainer Freddie Roach dropped another bomb last night saying that Floyd Mayweather Sr. showed up an hour and a half late for the fight (1:43 mark).

Sounds ridiculous, right? Don't discard the possibility so quickly considering some of the drama that went down during the week. It started with reports from Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole and several British papers saying that the Hatton camp had already decided to fire Floyd Sr. and reached out to Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer and Roach's lawyer to gauge the trainer's interest in working with Hatton after this fight. Schaefer and Nick Kahn went on the record confirming that calls had been made. Floyd Sr. then confirmed that there were issues with he and some Hatton campers, including Lee Beard. The statement was made to 15 media members during a roundtable discussion:

"I think we had a good camp. Was there a problem there? Yes. But I will say right here that the camp was good," Mayweather Sr. told Gareth A. Davies from the Telegraph. "Why pick on Lee out of everybody? You have all kinds of people coming in (to camp), not just me and Lee. But you could be on the right track."

The Guardian reports that was Floyd Sr. operating on his own schedule during the five week training camp in Las Vegas:

The build-up to the bout was marred by rumours of a split in the Hatton camp, with Mayweather's reportedly inexact timekeeping believed to have been an issue.

There were rumors swirling around the media center during the pre-fight that Floyd Sr. had been fired earlier on Saturday. Iole said on the ESPNRadio1100 postfight show that he was told Floyd Sr. and Hatton barely talked before the fight:

During the same post-fight show, Steve Kim from MaxBoxing.com said he thought Floyd Sr.'s behavior after the fight was bizarre. Kim saw Mayweather signing autographs and taking pictures with remaining crowd at the MGM Grand Garden Arena minutes after Hatton was brutally knocked out:

Floyd Sr. was also in "me-mode" during the postfight press conference telling The Guardian that Hatton blew it:  

"He didn't do as he was told," he said. "He didn't put his hands up. It was an error on his behalf. I was telling him in the dressing room before the fight, 'Make sure you keep your hands up'. Defense is very important. Defense can destroy a fighter."

Mayweather told everyone who'd listen last night that it's time for Hatton to hang up his gloves. After hearing some of the reported and rumored behavior, does Mayweather have any right to comment on the Brit's future?

We kick things off at 1 a.m. ET in the media center at the MGM Grand. Cofield and co-host Steve Kim from Maxboxing.com will speak with the winners, trainers and several media experts.

What happened to Ricky Hatton? Did Floyd Mayweather Sr. chang anything in his game? Did the rift between the Hatton camp and Floyd Sr. this week hurt the fighter on this night?

How good is Manny Pacquiao? How has he gotten more powerful and retained his speed with a jump from 106 to 140 pounds? What happens if he meets Floyd Mayweather Jr.?

Cofield and Steve Kim from MaxBoxing.com - Fight breakdown and calls:

Cofield and Pacman trainer Freddie Roach:

Cofield and HBO's Harold Lederman:

Cofield and Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole:

It was a bloodbath from the opening seconds. Manny Pacquiao came out and stunned Ricky Hatton with blazing speed. By the end of the second round, Hatton was asleep and getting fitted for a neckbrace. Pacquiao landed his huge left with seven seconds left in the second round. Hatton was out cold on the way down to the mat. It was over at 2:59 of the second as Pacquiao won something called the IBO super lightweight belt with his knockout victory. The belt means nothing, Pacquiao simply further secures his spot as the king of boxing.

He can now spend the early part of the summer prepping to view Floyd Mayweather Jr. face off against Juan Manuel Marquez on July 18 in Las Vegas. Another Pacman superfight is likely for November. Keep in mind, it took 22 rounds for Mayweather to finish Hatton (KO) and Oscar De La Hoya (dec.). The "smaller" Pacquiao took out the pair with stoppages inside of 11 rounds.

The problems started early for Hatton (45-2, 32 KOs). He simply couldn't see Pacquiao's right hook.

"I expected my right hook was going to control him," said Pacquiao (49-3-2, 37 KOs). "He's open when he's coming forward and his hands are down. He was very surprised by the right hook."

Pacman blasted Hatton early with rights and floored the Brit just 55 seconds into the fight and then did it again in the closing seconds of the first. Pacquiao landed an amazing 35-of-62 (56-percent) punches in that opening round.

"I'm surprised that the fight was kind of easy," said Pacquiao. "I knew the left hook and right hook were going to be key in the fight."

Pacquiao's trainer Freddie Roach wanted this fight from the second it was mentioned as a possibility last year:

"Everytime Ricky throws his left hand he pulls it back and cocks it, he's open for a right hand from a southpaw stance," said Roach, who had predicted a third round knockout. "We worked on it everyday in the gym and it worked out beautfully. I knew it was over. Ricky doesn't have the ability to adjust."

Pacquiao went off as a -280 favorite. Las Vegas bettors pounded the under 9 1/2 rounds proposition bet. It went from +130 on Thursday to -125 late this afternoon.

This was supposed to be an easy showcase for WBC super feathweight champ Humberto Soto. Benoit Gaudet was anything but a patsy. The Quebec-native gave Soto a good fight for eight rounds but when he tried to mix it up more in the ninth round, he got caught.

Soto floored Gaudet with a huge right uppercut with 1:13 left in the round. When Gaudet got up, he still wasn't all there. Soto landed a thunderous left-right combination that left Gaudet prone on the ropes. Gaudet's hands dropped. He was a sitting duck. As referee Jay Nady was jumping in, Soto knocked him down for the second time in the round with a grazing left. The fight was stopped at 2:25 giving Soto his second successful title defense at 130 pounds.

The fight was relatively even by the punch stats with Soto (48-7, 31 KOs) outlanding Gaudet 159 to 111. Soto landed the harder shots and was more accurate at 36-percent versus 21-percent. Soto was leading on two cards 80-71 and 78-73 but losing on another 76-75. Gaudet (20-2, 7 KOs) earned himself another pay-per-view appearance down the road with his effort.

Follow Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole ringside (twitter.com/kevini).

Listen here after the big fight tonight. Starting at 1 a.m. ET, Cofield will host the ESPNRadio1100/Yahoo! Sports postfight show from the media center at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Callers are welcome at 702-364-1100 and the instant feedback text line is 63532.

Danny Jacobs defines old school. In an era when the elite fighters often have six-to-nine months between each fight, Jacobs, possibly the top middleweight prospect in boxing, took a fight against Mike Walker after having fought last week on ESPN's Friday Night Fights. It was a pretty risky move just 17 months and 15 fights into his career. Walker, coming off a win over former middleweight champ Antwun Echols, was supposed to fight junior middleweight top 10 fighter James Kirkland.

Jacobs (16-0, 14 KOs) was impressive as he boxed his way to a unanimous decision (80-72 on two cards and 79-73) victory. He threw with thunder in the first two rounds. Then realizing Walker wasn't one of the D-level fighters that he faced in racing out to a 15-0 start to his career, Jacobs decided to outbox the veteran. He outpunched Walker (19-2-2) 225 to 82, landing 29-percent of his punches. HBO's new punch stat system "Punchzone" also showed Jacobs landed 49 lefts and 39 rights to the head and another 85 to his face. The 22-year-old from Brooklyn showed versatility and a helluva gas tank, fighting twice in eight days.

Kirkland was scratched from the card after he was arrested two weeks ago on a gun possession charge.

If you want to follow Yahoo! Sports' Kevin Iole ringside (twitter.com/kevini).

Listen here after the big fight tonight. Starting at 1 a.m. ET, Cofield will host the ESPNRadio1100/Yahoo! Sports postfight show from the media center at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Callers are welcome at 702-364-1100 and the instant feedback text line is 63532.

Anthony Bartinelli looked shocked when his fight against Matt Korobov was stopped late in the second round. After all, he'd been outpunched 57-1! That's right, Bartinelli landed one punch in five-plus minutes of boxing while getting smashed by right hooks and straight lefts from the Russian middleweight prospect. Korobov scored a TKO victory at 2:15 of the second round to move to 5-0 in the second fight of the Manny Pacquiao-Ricky Hatton pay-per-view in Las Vegas.

Bartinelli (20-13-2) was rocked late in the first from a beautiful combo. He was knocked down by a left with with one minute left in the second. Bartinelli got up but when he failed answer nine straight punches from Korobov, the referee stepped in.  

The 26-year-old Korobov is a native of Orotukan, Russia, who trains in Florida under trainer Dan Birmingham. 

EARLY RESULTS (via FightNews.com):

Middleweight Erislandy Lara (5-0, 3 KOs) easily outpointed Chris Gray (11-8) 40-36 on all cards. Lara is a former world amateur champion.
 

Off TV Results:
Matthew Hatton W8 Ernesto Zepeda (welterweight)
Mike Alvarado W8 Juaquin Gallardo (welterweight)
Abner Mares TKO6 Jonathan Perez (super bantamweight)
Bernabe Concepcion W6 Yogli Herrera (featherweight)
Omar Chavez TKO2 Tyler Ziolowski (welterweight)
Joe Murray W4 Missael Nunez (featherweight)

Listen here after the big fight tonight. Starting at 1 a.m. ET, Cofield will host the ESPNRadio1100/Yahoo! Sports postfight show from the media center at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Callers are welcome at 702-364-1100 and the instant feedback text line is 63532.

A humble Floyd Mayweather Jr. was on display for a few minutes this morning when he announced his comeback fighting against Juan Manuel Marquez on July 18 at the MGM Grand. He apologized for being disrespectful to the folks at Golden Boy Promotions. After those nice moments, the old Floyd came out swinging (0:45 mark):

"A small man will never retire me," said Mayweather, who undoubtedly will never fight the top three welterweights in the world: Paul Williams, Shane Mosley or Miguel Cotto. "I'm the king. I'm here to stay. I left on top, came back on top. I'm here to reclaim what's mine."

Mayweather retired last June with a perfect 39-0 record.

"I'm the king, nobody has took my throne," said Mayweather. "You got all these fighters who claim they're the best."

It was interesting to hear the British media spin Mayweather's announcement this morning at the MGM as "stealing the thunder" from Ricky Hatton. He also addressed the persistent rumors that he's carrying a heavy tax debt:

"Okay, well, let me see," Mayweather said, when asked about the financial rumors. "If that was the case I would have taken one of those other deals. I've got three cars paid for. I've got the mansion paid for, house costs $15 million paid for, another house costs $5 million paid for, mother's house paid for. The kids got college funds. I'm fine, believe me. When I tell you I'm okay, I'm okay."

Mayweather also claimed that he is the pay-per-view king and that he'd like to do another fight against Oscar De La Hoya because it would make $50-60 million. The opening line is set at Mayweather -350 and the take back is +290 on Marquez.

Listen here after the big fight tonight. Starting at 1 a.m. ET, Cofield will host the ESPNRadio1100/Yahoo! Sports postfight show from the media center at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Callers are welcome at 702-364-1100 and the instant feedback text line is 63532.

"Hatton has a chance if Pacquiao goes in there thinking it's going to be given to him," said Hopkins. "But a bettin' man who's not a promoter will go with Pacquiao based on pound for pound."

The 44-year-old veteran said Hatton's biggest hope is if Pacquiao has changed his mentality and lost of his fire because of his newfound riches:

"If he can fight like he's poor. Like he's living in a box in the Philippines then Hatton has a rough night coming to him," said Hopkins. "But if somehow, the silk underwear has changed Manny's mentality. And the L.A. lifestyle, changes his mentality. It sneaks up on us when we don't even know it. It's hard to fight when you got that money in the bank the way you fought when you didn't have a dime."

Listen to Hopkins talk about the big fight and why he probably won't fight Chad Dawson:

Hopkins (49-5, 32 KOs) hasn't fought since his rousing victory over Kelly Pavlik back in October. He says fights against Dawson or cruiserweight champ Tomcz Adamek won't happen if those fighters are looking for 50-50 splts on money. Hopkins says it doesn't pay for him to split the money with guys when he's taking all the risk and has to be the face of the promotion.

Marquez, ranked No. 2 in the latest Yahoo! Sports Top 10 boxing poll, is currently the WBA and WBO lightweight champ. He'll be jumping nine pounds to a catch weight of 144 pounds to face Mayweather, who will drop down from his fighting weight of 147. Mayweather, 32, last fought in December of 2007 when he defeated Ricky Hatton via 10th round TKO. He retired in June of 2008 when terms couldn't be reached on a rematch against Oscar De La Hoya.

The July battle against Marquez potentially sets up a fight against the winner of tonight's Manny Pacquiao-Hatton fight.

Mayweather (39-0, 25 KO's) started his pro career back in 1996 at 130 pounds and held world titles in four different weight classes. The 35-year-old Marquez (50-4, 37 KOs) has been a pro since 1993.

The only folks picking Hatton were Chuck Johnson and Bert Sugar both from HBO and Chris Maathuis from CBS in Las Vegas. Even the British media members in the poll, Simon Lewis, John Dirs, Mike Costello, John Welsh and Gareth A. Davies all tabbed Pacman. The total was 23-3 for Pacquiao with 13 saying he'll finish the fight by knockout or technical knockout. Most finishes were in rounds 8-10 which makes betting the length of the fight an interesting proposition.

Pacquiao is a big favorite ranging anywhere from -250 to -280. The public is generally  wary of laying a big number so many more shooting for Pacman KO. On Thursday, over 9 1/2 rounds was -150. By Friday afternoon, it had dropped to -130.

Don't forget that this same media poll also had Miguel Cotto winning in a landslide against Antonio Margarito. Cotto may have also fallen victim to Margarito's cement hands shenanigans in that fight. 

Check out the picks:

Al Bernstein, Showtime -- Pacquiao by decision
Kevin Blackistone, AOL Sports -- Pacquiao by decision
Steve Carp, Las Vegas Review-Journal -- Pacquiao by TKO 9
Steve Cofield, ESPN 1100 -- Pacquiao by TKO 9
Dave Cokin, ESPN 1100 -- Pacquiao by KO 8
Mike Costello, BBC Radio -- Pacquiao by decision
Gareth A. Davies, Daily Telegraph -- Pacquiao by TKO 10
Tim Dahlberg, Associated Press -- Pacquiao by TKO 10
Ben Dirs, BBC Sports -- Pacquiao by TKO 8
Bill Dwyre, Los Angeles Times -- Pacquiao by TKO 9
Norm Frauenheim, 15rounds.com -- Pacquiao by decision
Ed Graney, Las Vegas Review-Journal -- Pacquiao by TKO 10
Kevin Iole, Yahoo Sports -- Pacquiao by decision
Chuck Johnson, HBO.com -- Hatton by decision
Steve Kim, MaxBoxing.com -- Pacquiao by KO 8
Simon Lewis, Press Association -- Pacquiao by TKO 10
Chris Maathuis, KLAS Channel 8 -- Hatton by decision
Robert Morales, Long Beach (Calif.) Press-Telegram -- Pacquiao by decision
Kieran Mulvaney, Reuters -- Pacquiao by decision
Lance Pugmire, Los Angeles Times -- Pacquiao by KO 10
Dan Rafael, ESPN.com -- Pacquiao by TKO 10
Mike Rosenthal, ringtv.com -- Pacquiao by TKO 9
Tim Smith, New York Daily News -- Pacquiao by decision
Bert Sugar, boxing historian -- Hatton by decision
John Welsh, Telegraph & Arguis, West Yorkshire, England -- Pacquiao by decision
George Willis, New York Post -- Pacquiao by decision
Total: Pacquiao 23, Hatton 3

Listen here after the big fight tonight. Starting at 1 a.m. ET, Cofield will host the ESPNRadio1100/Yahoo! Sports postfight show from the media center at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Callers are welcome at 702-364-1100 and the instant feedback text line is 63532.

His pound-for-pound title is gone and much of his money may be as well. Floyd Mayweather Jr. has been away from active boxing for nearly 17 months. He retired last June six months after a December win over Ricky Hatton. Gone is his label as the undisputed king of boxing. At this point, it's not even safe to say he's the best welterweight in the world since he won't fight Shane Mosley or Paul Williams. More distressing is the fact that after banking millions of dollars, Floyd may be returning to the ring under the pressure of a huge debt to the IRS.

The Las Vegas Review-Journal talked about what's at stake for Mayweather, who'll be closely watching the outcome of the Manny Pacquiao-Hatton fight. A Hatton win would be disasterous. Realistically a rematch against Hatton cannot be sold to the American sports fan who watched "Pretty Boy" whip the Brit to end 2007. A Pacman win and the world is Floyd's oyster if terms can be reached for a fight in September:

"I have no dislike whatsoever for Floyd Mayweather. I have no like whatsoever for Floyd Mayweather," said Pacquiao's promoter Arum. "My only concern is he has to have someone on his negotiating team I can trust. I don't need any sleazebags. I don't need any Machiavellis."

Arum thinks it would be wise for Mayweather to have someone negotiating on his behalf to remove emotion and ego from the situation:

"If Schaefer came to me with a contract, we can get a deal done in a day," Arum said. "There's no bull with Richard. If Don King were on the other side representing Mayweather, I'd have no problem with that. I understand Don. There'd be a little more posturing, but we would get it done."

Word is that King has been cozying up to Mayweather. The former welterweight does need to get a summer fight out of the way first. It's expected that a July 18 fight against Juan Manuel Marquez held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena will be announced this weekend. That's an interesting date with UFC 100 filling the arena the week before. Mayweather has had difficulty selling out Vegas venues without a huge running mate. One wonders with the down economy in Las Vegas, if the town can support megacards at megaprices in back-to-back weeks.

In Las Vegas, if you speak sans a British accent you are on foreign turf this weekend. The bloaks from the U.K. have invaded Sin City and simply overwhelmed today's weigh-in at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. A gathering of over 7,000 fans sounded like 20,000 and all British. They booed Manny Pacquiao and broke into Ricky Hatton's theme, "A Hatton Wonderland".

There is nothing like this Hatton crowd anywhere in the U.S. A few college football fanbases, like the 95,000 who showed for the Ohio State spring game, may be able to compete. But that's about it. The guess here is that 70-80 percent of the MGM's 14,000 seat arena will be Brits. Plus the Mirage and Mandalay Bay are combining for another 25,000 closed-circuit seats. Guess who will be filling most of those seats?

Hatton (45-1, 32 KOs) weighed in at the limit of 140 while Pacquiao (48-3-2, 26 KOs) was under at 138.

Listen here after the big fight on Saturday night. Starting at 1 a.m. ET, Cofield will host the ESPNRadio1100/Yahoo! Sports postfight show from the media center at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

"Ricky Hatton comes in with his hands down and his head up," Moorer told ESPNRadio1100 in Las Vegas. "He comes in off-balance all the time. When he's coming into Manny, all (Pacquiao) has to do is move his feet and counter him."

Hatton may be a champion but Moorer doesn't think he's at that special level like Pacquaio, who hasn't lost since 2005:

"Ricky Hatton, a good fighter (but) overrated," said Moorer. "He hasn't fought the caliber of fighters that Manny Pacquiao has fought. Manny Pacquiao is a totally different fighter (than he's fought). The footspeed, the handspeed, the power ... woo, it's gonna be a lot of hurt."

Listen to Moorer talk about Manny's lifestyle, Hatton's weaknesses and recently meeting former President Bill Clinton: