Most boxing fans are anticipating the upcoming Manny Pacquiao vs Miguel Cotto fight on the 14th, and rightly so. It has potential to be one of the best fights of the last few years(That's the thing about boxing, it's always about potential). Both guys are promoted by the same man, Bob Arum. That fact leads me to believe that everyone will come out financially better than they went in, however it plays out.
Paul Williams was scheduled to face Kelly Pavlik next month. It was cancelled a couple weeks back, and now Williams will instead face Sergio Gabriel Martinez. The bout will take place on December 5th at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. Williams was until Wednesday the interim WBO light middleweight champion and Martinez is the WBC light middleweight champion, however it's a nontitle bout and it will be fought at a weight above 154 pounds.
Williams was anticipating his next fight to be for the middleweight title. The Pavlik bout was going to expose him to a new fanbase and be the springboard to mega-money fights. That dream for the moment is on hold for Paul "The Punisher" Williams, but it shouldn't be.
For Williams, his style has created some exciting fights so far in his career, so why not let him have a shot against Floyd Mayweather. Pavlik vs Williams was going to be a huge night for HBO, even though it wasn't scheduled to be a pay-per-view fight. I feel confident in saying Home Box Office was anticipating a nice Nielsen rating. At this point Williams has a larger name than ever before because of the Pavlik cancellations. This would be a prime opportunity for his promoter, Dan Goosen to really push the Mayweather camp for a fight next year.
A lot of you boxing fans have already heard the interview Floyd recently had with a radio host on the East Coast. It wasn't pretty. Mayweather says he wants to continue to fight, but I've been asking myself who exactly is he gonna fight against?
He claims Bob Arum won't put Pacquiao or Cotto in there with him because of a personal vendetta. Shane Mosely is a freak on steroids, who supposedly ducked him way back when, so he gets dismissed. The list of good welterweight contenders is long. You've got guys like Josh Clottey, Luis Collazo, Andre Berto, and Kermit Cintron. Those guys won't draw enough money for 'Money' May though. Even if you step up to 154, the list of candidates thins out some, but there are still bouts that could be made. Most people, and I can't blame them, tend to forget about my hometown champion, Cory Spink. That bout is a stretch, but so is this post.
Paul Williams is a real opponent for Mayweather to not only collect a nice payday, but to also prove that he is as good as he claims to be. His last seven fights have been rather one sided for a couple of reasons. He was faster and bigger. In this bout the weights match up perfectly. Floyd stays at or around 147-149 pounds generally and Williams still claims that he can get down to 147 with no problem. When Mayweather fought De La Hoya it was at jr. middleweight and Mayweather came in at 149, five pounds under weight.
The fact that Williams is tall shouldn't mean much. Antonio Margarito wasn't exactly a small welterweight himself. Williams matched up against him and came out the victor. Floyd's defense would be a nice alternative to Paul's height.
I can go on for days about the physical matchup. My point is this. As we speak Floyd Mayweather still wants to box and draw big dollars. Paul Williams has become a name, a name that is bigger than it was a year ago, when he shyly said he would like a shot at a retired Mayweather. He's an actual draw. The time has come for the whispers to become roars for this fight between the Punisher and The Pretty Boy.
I've always heard that styles make fights and it's very true. These two certainly have styles that can make this a classic bout.
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