By Ted Sares:
I gave him a chance, up to 14 days out. But my new terms are all the way up to the fight. They can come get us whenever, all the way up to the fight, random drug test. That’s what it is…
—Floyd Mayweather Jr.
“There is no reason to think my fighter is dirty,” We have passed every test ever given to us.”
—Freddie Roach
By now I am just plain sick of all the talk surrounding the PEDS issue and the attendant testing controversy. It’s been going on ad nauseam and it’s time these guys stepped up to the plate. Speaking of “these guys,” both continue to cherry pick. One dos it by choosing his opponents carefully, the other by using long intervals between fights. One does it better than the other. However, in so doing, they avoid one another and that’s not what the fans want.
Some say Mayweather reportedly wants his own version of testing, which is different from the USADA version, but Mayweather’s version has not been disclosed by his camp. Thus, these same people say this might have been one of the reasons Pacquiao has been reticent to fight. As best as I could make it out, both fighters had reached an understanding on a 14-day window during the talks, but this changed so that the tests now need to be done all the way up to the day of the fight. It kind of boils down to he said, I said. But I do understand what offer random, Olympic style blood testing is all about.
In this connection, I don’t buy is Manny’s claim that rrandom blood testing is impractical and dangerous, particularly if it is conducted within days of the actual fight. Losing blood so close to fight time can weaken a fighter. That’s pure hogwash. However, I do buy the argument that Pacquiao should not be mandated to be subjected to unprecedented blood testing procedures when he’s been clean on all tests mandated by the Nevada State Athletic Commission just because Mayweather want him to. At the end of the day, Mayweather is not a Boxing Commission.
Importantly, prior to his beat down, Sugar Shane Mosley agreed to undergo random blood and urine testing in his fight against Floyd. But this is not about PEDS or testing; this is about a way to make the BIG fight happen.
A Proposed Solution
Manny Pacquiao should graciously offer random, Olympic style blood testing for his contest with the very same Sugar Shane Mosley. By doing so, he immediately turns the tables on those who say he is making excuses or even worse. Let’s face it, there were “suspicions” that arose when Manny refused to engage full random testing, though there was and is absolutely no reason to believe that Pac Man was guilty of any wrongdoing—nor has one shred of evidence ever been produce to indicate as much. How better, then, to remove those suspicions (lingering or otherwise) than by offering the very strictest testing terms out there against Mosley?
Then and assuming like most observers that Manny beats Sugar Shane, Pac Man can step up and require Floyd Mayweather Jr. to do the same. Now the leverage shifts to Manny and the onus to fight falls on Junior. Manny saves face (and preserves his great legacy without any question marks attached to it) and Floyd Junior gets the fight for which he allegedly has been clamoring. Oh yes, each combatant also gets 25 million and we the fans get what could well be the fight of the century.
Let’s get it on.