• Welterweight

Pacquiao promoter fires back in Mayweather row

ESPN staff
May 6, 2012

The torrent of claim and counter-claim in the Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jnr saga rumbles on, with Pacquiao's promoter Bob Arum accusing Mayweather of not wanting the super-fight to happen.

After Mayweather beat Miguel Cotto on points this weekend to claim the WBA light-middleweight crown, he insisted the Pacquiao battle would only take place if the Filipino split from Arum.

Arum has taken the bait, firing back at Mayweather by suggesting that, at the age of 35, he showed signs of decline against Cotto.

Arum told boxingscene.com: "[Mayweather] looked very, very vulnerable. It was a good fight and I had Cotto winning five rounds to four after nine rounds and then Cotto faded down the stretch and Mayweather won the fight, but not as widely as the scoring [suggested].

"[He] is great with that shoulder roll that just blocks the right hand but he can't defend against the left hand. You see how Cotto was hitting him with that left hand almost at will, and if he's fighting a southpaw who has a punch like Pacquiao, he'll suffer. He doesn't want to fight Pacquiao.

"He will not fight Pacquiao because there is one thing about Floyd, he knows boxing and if you solve one problem there'll be another."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
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