HOW CAN FLOYD JR CLAIM HE IS THE BEST P4P WHEN HE CAN”T EVEN MAKE WEIGHT?

Shame on Floyd Mayweathe,r Jr., for not even making the contract weight of 144 lbs.

And shame on Mayweather Senior and his brother Roger for not making sure that their fighter make weight!

And, they still continue to claim that Junior is best pound4pound?

Nah… not even close!

At the weigh-in today held at the MGM Grand before a not so full venue, (compare to the weigh-in of the past Marquez-Pacquiao fights), Mayweather Jr came in at 146 pounds.

Marquez was 142lbs.

Yes, both are within the welterweight limit but definitely, Mayweather’s 146 lbs. is over the contracted fight weight of 144lbs.

There are a few words to describe Mayweather’s excess weight.

One that comes to mind is utter lack of discipline. Then there is lack of respect for the fight game and the people who paid money to see a fair fight.

Collectively, it is best described as “egocentric”.

Mayweather clearly thinks only of himself and does not appear to give a damn about boxing and the people that pay to see a fair fight. He just could not care less.

If he did, wouldn’t he come in at the proper contracted weight?

Mayweather can not make 144 anymore. He has been gone in boxing for so long and his body is screwed up. If he tries to make 144, he will be so weak that Marquez will knock him out.

Therefore, he elected to come in at 146 for the weight in and possibly 152-to 156 at fight night to assure that he is a lot bigger than Marquez and should be able to take the punches of the Mexican dynamite.

What else could it be?

Now Floyd Jr should stop claiming he is still the top P4P. How can he when he can’t even make weight?


Top photo: Six-Time World Champion Floyd Mayweather poses on September 18, 2009 at MGM Grand Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada at the weigh-in for his September 19, 2009 fight against Five-Time World Champion Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand Garden Arena which will be televised live on HBO Pay-Per-View.

Source: http://philboxing.com/news/story-27512.html

Marquez: I will hand Mayweather first loss

Juan Manuel Marquez is confident he will do something no fighter has accomplished: defeat Floyd Mayweather Jr., who is back after a 15-month retirement.

Mainstream boxing fans likely identify Juan Manuel Marquez with two fights in which his arm was not raised in victory.

Nonetheless, Marquez's two close bouts against Manny Pacquiao over a four-year span failed to remove him from the top 10 of most best ``pound-for-pound'' lists.

And although he would welcome a third bout with Pacquiao, who defeated Marquez in a close split decision in March 2008 and fought him to a draw four years earlier, Marquez has an attractive alternative for his 56th career fight Saturday night in Las Vegas.

Marquez will face Floyd Mayweather Jr. in a highly anticipated bout at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. The bout will be Mayweather's first after a 15-month retirement.

At the time of his departure, Mayweather (39-0, 25 KOs) was considered the sport's best fighter. During his absence, fight observers elevated Pacquiao to the top spot after his narrow escape against Marquez and knockout victories over David Diaz, Oscar De La Hoya and Ricky Hatton.

Marquez (50-4-1, 37 KOs) doesn't buy the argument and still rates Mayweather above Pacquiao.

``In my mind, Floyd Mayweather is the number one pound-for-pound fighter, and to be number one, you have to fight number one,'' said Marquez, who remained in the mix for marquee bouts with knockout victories over Miami's Joel Casamayor and Juan Diaz.

``I know people are betting against me, but it doesn't matter to me.''

The odds indeed don't favor Marquez, who now is considered Mexico's best active fighter.

Despite remaining busy during Mayweather's absence, Marquez, a three-division world champion, has never fought above the 135 pound-lightweight limit. Saturday's bout was scheduled to be at a catchweight of 144, although Mayweather weighed in at 146 on Friday. Marquez weighed in at 142.

``This fight is a different weight for me,'' Marquez said. ``I worked very hard. I built up my speed and my strength.''

An adept counterpuncher, Marquez also has worked on prefight strategy. In interviews leading to Saturday's fight, Marquez has stressed the importance of pressuring Mayweather.

``There is no blueprint to beat me,'' Mayweather said. ``There is a blueprint to beat Marquez because he has been beaten before.''

Marquez strongly believes he will tag the first loss on Mayweather's record. So dominant has Mayweather been since his professional debut 12 years ago that he had not lost a fight on a judge's scorecard until he defeated De La Hoya in a split decision in May 2007.

``These are the kind of fights that motivate me,'' Marquez said. ``I'm going to prove everybody wrong.''

The Mayweather-Marquez fight, available on pay-per-view, will start shortly after 11 p.m.. The pay-per-view telecast starts at 9 and also will feature Chris John's defense of his World Boxing Association featherweight title against Rocky Juarez.

Three local movie theaters -- Aventura 24, Dolphin 19 and Miami Lakes 17 -- also will show the Mayweather-Marquez fight and undercard. Admission is $15.

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/story/1240828.html

Mayweather makes weight, pays penalty

LAS VEGAS – Floyd Mayweather Jr. made the contracted weight of 147 pounds for his HBO Pay-Per-View fight on Saturday with Juan Manuel Marquez at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

But when Mayweather weighed 146 pounds at Friday’s weigh-in, he was forced to pay a six-figure penalty to Marquez for coming in at more than 144 pounds, Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer said.

Schaefer said the contract the fighters signed in May was for the bout to be at a limit of 147 pounds. But in that contract, each man agreed to a substantial penalty clause for every pound, or fraction thereof, more than 144.

Mayweather has fought at welterweight since 2005, but Marquez never has and only has fought three times at more than 130. He weighed

134 in a Dec. 9, 1996, bout against Rodrigo Valenzuela. He was 135 when he stopped Joel Casamayor on Sept. 13, 2008, and was 134 when he stopped Juan Diaz on Feb. 28.

On Friday, Marquez weighed 142.

There never was any question whether Marquez could make the weight. It has been more than four years since Mayweather weighed less than 146.

“There were no surprises,” Schaefer said. “The contract the fighters signed for the fight so many months ago called it a welterweight fight. But there was a stipulation that there would be a penalty for weighing over 144.

“Floyd’s team informed us today that he would not be able to make 144, and because of that, there was a substantial penalty. If he would have been 147, it would have been even bigger.”

Thus, Mayweather was in the odd position Friday of making the contracted weight but still paying a penalty.

If either man had weighed in excess of 147, he would have been required to sweat off the excess weight to reach 147 exactly. That is not normally the case unless a fight is for a championship, which Saturday’s fight is not.

Keith Kizer, the executive director of the Nevada Athletic Commission, said there was no issue with the weight from a commission standpoint. Kizer said he went to Marquez’s locker room prior to the weigh-in and asked him if he was aware that Mayweather would weigh more than 144.

Kizer said Marquez told him he had no problem with it.

Mayweather also arrived at the MGM Grand about an hour later than the reporting time given to him by the commission.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/box/news?slug=ki-floydsweight091809&prov=yhoo&type=lgns

Crash Course: Mayweather-Marquez

Former welterweight champion Floyd Mayweather Jr., who retired as boxing's mythical pound-for-pound titlist in 2007, is fighting current lightweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez at a catchweight of 144 pounds on Saturday at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas (9 p.m. ET, HBO PPV).

Since the 32-year-old Mayweather left the sport after an impressive 10th-round knockout of Ricky Hatton in December 2007, junior welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao has inherited the pound-for-pound mantle with a string of electric victories over Marquez, Oscar De La Hoya and Hatton. Since Mayweather never lost that title in the ring, he says it still belongs to him. The prospect of a Mayweather-Pacquiao megafight -- perhaps for early 2010 -- looms over Saturday's fight.

Marquez, the world's No. 2 pound-for-pound fighter according to The Ring magazine, has collected titles at featherweight, super featherweight and lightweight -- becoming the fourth Mexican boxer to earn titles in three different weight classes after Julio Cesar Chavez, Marco Antonio Barrera and Erik Morales. But the durable veteran is perhaps best known for two fights he didn't win: a draw and a split-decision loss in two thrilling fights with Pacquiao -- fights many observers think Marquez won.

Mayweather's decision to quit boxing may have been the least convincing retirement in sports history. No one was surprised when Floyd came back. But the decision to fight Marquez instead of Pacquiao took many observers by surprise.

When two champions from different weight classes enter the ring, the heavier man typically wins. Mayweather is bigger, stronger and faster -- a brilliant defensive mastermind who's never been in trouble in any fight. Many observers have dismissed Saturday's fight as a mismatch, looking ahead to a Pacquiao showdown. But Marquez is a crafty, shrewd counter-puncher capable of spoiling those plans.

Source: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/writers/bryan_armen_graham/09/17/mayweather.marquez.guide/

JUAN MANUEL MARQUEZ PULLS AHEAD IN LOS ANGELES TIMES POLL

LOS ANGELES (September 18)-The people have spoken. In a poll asking "Who Will Win Mayweather vs. Marquez?" posted yesterday on Latimes.com, Juan Manuel "Dinamita" Marquez is ahead of Floyd "Money" Mayweather,who isreturning to the ring after a 21-month layoff. The mega-fight, which is taking place tomorrow, Saturday, Sept. 19 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nev. and will be broadcast live on HBO Pay-Per-View®, falls on the famed Mexican Independence Day weekend which gives Marquez the extra push to pull through for the Mexican people when he steps into the ring.

"I want to dedicate this fight to the Mexican people who are going to be here and all of the Mexican people around the world," said Marquez. "This fight is the most important fight of my career, and I am going to put everything in the ring."

Fifty-percent of those who voted have chosen Marquez, 48% chose Mayweather and 2% of people think the fight will be a draw.

"I am glad people think that Marquez is going to beat me," said Mayweather. "It just gives me more motivation to prove them wrong tomorrow night."

To view the Latimes.com poll please click HERE.

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Mayweather vs. Marquez: "Number One/Numero Uno," is promoted by Mayweather Promotions and Golden Boy Promotions in association with Marquez Boxing Promotions and is sponsored by Cerveza Tecate, AT&T, Quaker State, Dewalt Tools, Affliction Clothing and Southwest Airlines. The 12-round bout will take place Saturday, September19 at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, NV and will be produced and distributed live on HBO Pay-Per-View® beginning at 9 pm ET/6 pm PT.

Tickets priced at $1,000, $750, $600, $300 and $150, not including applicable service charges, are on sale now. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets also are available for purchase at www.mgmgrand.com or www.ticketmaster.com. Tickets previously purchased for the July 18 date will be honored.

Mayweather vs. Marquez closed circuit viewing is now available in MGM Grand Premier Ballroom in Las Vegas. Tickets for the closed circuit telecast are priced at $50, not including handling fees. All seats are general admission and are on sale now at MGM Grand box office, by phone with a major credit card at (800) 929-1111 or by calling Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000.

Source: http://philboxing.com/news/story-27511.html