With less than a month to go before Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. step into the ring, a snag has been hit that has put the two camps in an extremely awkward situation.
Top Rank CEO Bob Arum, who is Pacquiao’s promoter, said in a report in Yahoo Sports that no no contract exists between the fight promoters and MGM Grand.
Arum, who is one-half of the promotion for boxing’s biggest fight, is in a situation all different from what he has handled before.
“I don’t know any more. I’ve never been in this area before,” Arum said in the report.
Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe, however, said that the possibility of the fight going into shambles is “ridiculous.”
Ellerbe is the one handling the negotiations with the swanky MGM Grand Garden Arena where the May 2 fight will take place.
He ripped Arum saying that he has done everything in his part to make the fight live up to the hype that it generated.
Yahoo said in the report that a deal terms memo has been signed between the parties before Mayweather announced the fight on Feb. 20.
READ: Pacquiao, Mayweather use social media to confirm megafight
Items such as how many tickets and how many rooms will go to MGM and how many would go to the promoters were covered in the memo.
Yahoo added in its report that the memo wasn’t included in the contract that Pacquiao and Mayweather signed, leaving Arum in a state of confusion and anger.
“Fight?” he said in a thunderous tone. “We’ve got nothing. They’re [the MGM] going around saying, ‘The fight, the fight, blah, blah, blah,’ but they got nothing. They have no contract. Nothing. We haven’t even seen a draft. … What is happening now is absolutely intolerable. For the MGM to think that everything is resolved and so forth, when nobody has even discussed terms, is the most insane thing ever.”
Ellerbe, however, said that the tickets have been delivered to MGM on Wednesday (Las Vegas time).
No date on the selling of tickets yet but, Ellerbe said, it will be soon.
Ellerbe added that Arum is on an anger-induced roll because the Top Rank boss can’t dictate the terms and doesn’t have full control of a fight.
“The reason this fight is in Las Vegas is because Floyd Mayweather insisted it be in Las Vegas,” Ellerbe said. “It’s no secret that Bob is the one who wanted to shop the fight around. You have to remember, he went on a profanity-laced tirade ridiculing the MGM and its management. We’re not falling for those tactics. Every time he doesn’t get his way, he goes running to the press misrepresenting the facts.
Arum did say some harsh words directed at Richard Sturm, president of MGM Grand Entertainment and Sports, calling him “a moron” before a 2014 Pacquiao fight in MGM.
READ: Angry Arum takes aim at MGM Grand
Mayweather posters were all around the MGM before Pacquiao’s fight which angered Arum.
“He doesn’t have a [expletive] clue what the [expletive] he’s doing,” Arum said at the time.
Ellerbe said that there was no controversy leading up to the fight, it was just that Arum created one out of his diminished role in the promotion.
“The bottom line is this: Bob cannot stomach the fact that he is not the lead promoter. Reality has set in, and this is typical Bob. My responsibility is to ensure every deal is done properly, to benefit the fighters and the event.”
Ellerbe added that Arum knows all of the developments between Mayweather promotions and MGM since he has updated Arum every step of the way and has even asked the Top Rank boss for his feedback.
“He is without a doubt, a great promoter. But he’s also known for erupting when he doesn’t get his way and the reality is setting in that he’s not the lead promoter.”
Yahoo added that Arum has received a copy of the draft which he then sent to his lawyers to make sure everything is in order. CC
For more updates on Pacquiao-Mayweather “Fight of the Century,” visit The Pacquiao Files.