An article by Dan Rafael, courtesy of ESPN.com:
—————————————————————-
I’m not entirely sure what to make of the whole Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Jr. negotiations/non-negotiations thing. All I do know is that I have lost sleep over it, which is what a 3 a.m. Saturday conference call with Top Rank promoter Bob Arum will do.
Arum has insisted over and over that he was negotiating a deal with Mayweather adviser Al Haymon, with whom he has a horrific relationship, using HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg as an intermediary. Arum swears by it. He said it to me before the conference call. He said it on the conference call to the world media. He said it to me and others in separate interviews after the call.
Arum has a long history of playing fast and loose with the truth, which is nothing new to anyone who follows or covers boxing. But this would be an all-time whopper. If he is lying, it means he not only threw Greenburg under the bus, it means Arum was the bus driver.
Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather’s other adviser and the one who speaks for him publicly — Haymon fears the media more than Mayweather apparently fears Pacquiao — said no negotiations ever took place. Ellerbe put out a statement, the only official word we’ve heard from Team Mayweather during this whole childish saga. The statement read, “Here are the facts. Al Haymon, Richard Schaefer and myself speak to each other on a regular basis, and the truth is no negotiations have ever taken place nor was there ever a deal agreed upon by Team Mayweather or Floyd Mayweather to fight Manny Pacquiao on November 13. Either Ross Greenburg or Bob Arum is not telling the truth, but history tells us who is lying.”
I’ve known Ellerbe for a long time. As far as I can tell, he’s not the lying type, although he still owes me dinner.
But I don’t know who to believe in this case.
The fighter I’m talking about is George “Rush” St. Pierre… and if you’re just waking up, I suggest you make you’re way from beneath that rock and pay attention… because this guy is by far the most exciting and talented fighter in the world… PERIOD. 
Don’t believe me?… Check his stats! He’s done nothing but beat the best in his weight class, and manages to improve physically with each fight. He’s not fighting a drained De la Hoya, Ricky Hatton (who was never the same after Mayweather exposed his lack of defense), a mentally beaten Miguel Cotto who was still suffering from the effects of being MUGGED by Margarito’s stone-wrapped hands, and “the replacement” Josh Clottey. Instead, “Rush” has been in with Hall-of-Famers Matt Hughes (whom he forced to verbally scream “Tap!” from an arm bar) and BJ Penn (who was being dominated and expired from his corner stool), guys that you’ve probably heard of even if you don’t follow the game. He’s cleaned them all, and surprisingly he keeps improving. 
“Many believe that ‘reasonable men’ (perhaps not the fore mentioned) would have been able to put aside their negotiable differences for the betterment of a sport that has afforded them both the elevated riches and celebrity they enjoy… a sport that has appoints the kind of international stardom that prevents simple privacies, but conversely tends to handsomely compensate several million for your troubles. Most would agree that ‘reasonable promotional teams’ (perhaps not Top Rank & Goldenboy) would have taken advantage of the free mass-media coverage and used the excess publicity as fuel to insure that the deal-flow between “Pac-Man’s” & “Money’s” respective camps went through like tax-cuts in the Bush Administration. After all, this was an opportunity for boxing to demonstrate that it had matured beyond the era of Don King, where good business sense and fan appreciation would generate too high a dividend to allow ego, trash talk, & spooky superstitions to disrupt the business cycle. Besides, ‘reasonable fans’ (perhaps not the skeptical casual viewer who doesn’t care one-way or the other) would assume that such an opportunity would be too great for anyone to pass up… whether you are a tattooed champion with a very suspicious fear of needles, or an undefeated superstar who has been accused of being too defensive & safe not only in the ring, but in his opponent-selection. Either way, up until about a week ago there existed nothing beyond a reasonable doubt that this fight would happen…“
“I mean come on, there was just too much money on the table!! Professional fighters are groomed with a mentality to continue until you are “physically incapable.” So, why would two fighters in their prime venture past each other on the principle of pride, or an unwillingness to compromise when there is so much to gain? There is no way Manny Pacquiao would permit the biggest payday in boxing history to escape him because he felt insulted by a mischaracterization of what he has achieved… nor would a man who garners an intellectual capacity that would make him a viable candidate for public office in the Philippines, pass on an opportunity to earn the kind of payday that would feed several million hungry mouths in his native country. There is no way that Floyd Mayweather Jr., a man who changed his moniker to reflect his obvious love for ‘
On Wednesday, PacMan pressed forward with a defamation law suit aimed at both Floyd Mayweather Jr. & Sr., in addition to Golden Boy Promotions’ head executives Richard Schaefer & Oscar De la Hoya. There have been growing accusations from Team Mayweather that Pacquiao has used/is using performance-enhancing drugs, though the Pound-for-Pound Champion has never failed a drug test. Team Pacquiao threatened to file suit several days ago amidst a barrage of accusations that his success is due in part to performance stimulants; unproven claims that were later followed by rumors that his hesitation to participate in Olympic style testing (which Mayweather initially insisted upon) was rooted in ‘a questioned’ fear of an unscheduled testing cycle administered by the USADA. Although Team Pacquiao proclaimed that they’re refusal to accept these testing terms were in the interest of not wanting to draw blood close to fight night, the public perception of his hesitation for this heightened testing measure was (perhaps unfairly) beginning to sound more & more like an “all too familiar” excuse in the world of sports. 
It appears that the biggest fight-card in the history of boxing will begin its promotional tour in a Nevada State court room, and not in a Las Vegas event center. In my estimation, there is still room for the opportunistic folks at Golden Boy & Top Rank to reach an agreement. But, there is a sense of irony in the fact that men who earn a living competing in violent sport would resort to court filings and legal papers to settle a personal dispute. As L.A. Times columnist J.A. Adande wrote a few days ago in a 
Last night, I began posting 
