Controversy has always been a part of boxing. There is a reason that it is called the red light district of sports. Last week was not exception as some polemical stories came out and hit the boxing landscape in a big way. No surprise that the stories involve some of the biggest names in the sport since they are the ones that make the boxing world go around.
First up is none other than the pound for pound #1 fighter in the world Floyd “Money” Mayweather Jr. Last week it was revealed that Mayweather Jr was being sued by his fiancée Shantel Jackson. Jackson brought out the big guns from the get-go as she hired the most renowned female attorney in the business, Gloria Allred. Ms. Jackson accuses Mayweather Jr of some pretty heavy crimes. The list includes assault, gun pointing, threatening of shooting off a toe, choking, arm bending and keeping her “virtual prisoner” in his Las Vegas home.
Mayweather Jr announced their break up this past May as part as the “All Access” for his first bout with Maidana. He helped promote the PPV by posting a picture of a sonogram displaying twin babies that he claims Ms. Jackson aborted which prompted the end of the relationship. The drama didn’t end there since after Ms. Jackson posted a picture of her and rapper Nelly out for a night on the town made Mayweather Jr go after her again.
In a press conference with her lawyer Gloria Allred beside her, Ms. Jackson announced she was looking for at least $2M in damages from “Money” Mayweather.
The other bombshell that dropped this week was the fact that WBO middleweight champion Peter Quillin was vacating his title on the verge of a career-high $1.4M payday in a mandatory title defense against Top Rank’s Matt Korobov. Quillin is promoted by Golden Boy and advised by Al Haymon. It wasn’t announced too long ago that Roc Nation, the sports management company owned in part by hip-hop mogul Jay-Z and now boxing promoter, won a purse bid with the amount of $1.9M to present the fight. Roc Nation stole it from under not only Top Rank who bid a little over half a million and Golden Boy who went double at $1.2M. The championship bout was planned for November 1st in New York.
No real legitimate reason was given of why Quillin relinquished his title but it is speculated that it was a move by Al Haymon to keep Jay-Z out of his business. Haymon, who made his money in the music industry as an urban artist concert promoter, in the past had sour business experiences with Jay-Z’s wife Beyonce. So much so that Beyonce has entered in litigation with him in the past.
The one that ends up losing is Quillin, not only a large amount of money but his title with no rhyme or reason at the same time. Although Korobov is considered a tough competitor, Quillin was the favorite and might have easily retained his title. Now it is rumored that he might challenge another Haymon client, WBA 160lb champ Danny Jacobs.
If Haymon doesn’t change his mind.
