Hell may not have frozen over, but the temperature down south is definitely dropping.
In case anyone else in the mixed martial arts community felt a slight disturbance in the force, may I direct your attention to an article from the Las Vegas Sun, where fossilized fight promoter Bob Arum is quoted as saying "Thanks" to UFC chiefs Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta.
What a difference a fight makes.
White has been talking up the upcoming Manny Pacquiao vs. Joshua Clottey bout via his official Twitter account, expressing his excitement for WBO world welterweight title fight that takes place at the new Cowboys Stadium on Saturday, March 13, 2010.
Of course the UFC President has always had a soft spot for the sweet science, having started his career in the boxing industry. Anyone requiring further proof of his love for boxing need look no further than the recent (surprising) signing of geriatric pugilist James "Lights Out" Toney.
Pacquiao was originally scheduled to face Floyd Mayweather Jr. in what experts were predicting to be the richest payday in boxing's history; however, "Money" wanted additional parameters for "Pac-Man's" drug tests and the superfight quickly fell apart.
The Filipino may still be a big draw, but there's no comparison to the number of buys a marquee fighter like Mayweather can attract in comparison to Clottey.
Simply put, this change in opponents may have left boxing scrambling for every pay-per-view order they can get -- and the additional exposure from the Zuffa zealots may have been enough to sway some fight-starved fans to change teams this weekend and watch the bout.
Was that enough to convince "Bigot Bob," who in the past referred to UFC fighters as juiced-up homosexual skinheads, to drop his usual anti-MMA tirade and show some gratitude? I'm sure Cowboys owner and mega-mogul Jerry Jones, who hosts Saturday's fight, gave him the motivation he needed.
From the LV Sun:
"We want to thank Dana and Lorenzo for crossing sports to help promote this fight," Arum said, as Jones, the guy who helped make that unlikely visit happen, nodded from the dais.
Bob Arum with kind words. Lorenzo Fertitta and Dana White selling boxing events. Israel and Lebanon co-existing peacefully. Well, not really, but if Arum keeps this up, I'll believe anything is possible.
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