According to Dan Rafael of espn.com, Floyd Mayweather has rejected a potential $5 million penalty if either fighter fails a drug test.
“Today we were informed that Mayweather turned down the request,” said Pacquiao’s adviser Michael Koncz. “Manny had requested that there would be a reciprocal fine of $5 million for a failed drug test.”
“Michael Koncz is an idiot, and Manny Pacquiao should be ashamed to have him as his representative, in my opinion,” Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe told ESPN.com. “It’s obvious he didn’t read the contract. Why would he have his fighter sign something he was not happy with? The deal was negotiated up and down by his promoter [Bob Arum of Top Rank] on behalf of Manny with Floyd and Mayweather Promotions, and it’s been well documented in the media for quite some time.
“If this moron didn’t convey his fighter’s wishes when the negotiation was going on, that’s their problem. This is a lame-ass attempt to generate publicity.”
“They have made derogatory statements for years about Manny [supposedly using PEDs], and now we challenged them by asking for the $5 million fine, and they refused to do it. It’s disheartening,” Koncz said.
“We were still discussing the penalty. We’ve been going back and forth about it for the past three or four weeks. We hoped that we could sign that agreement around the same time as the agreement with USADA,” Koncz said. “[The Mayweather camp] is saying, ‘Why wasn’t it brought up for the main contract?’ Why does it have to be brought up for the main contract? Everything in the main contract pertains to the co-promotion and the promoters. You can argue all day if [a penalty agreement] should be with the USADA contract or the main contract. What do you have to lose or gain in that argument? It’s a simple thing — if you fail, you pay the other guy $5 million. The issue is simple — are you willing to agree to a penalty of $5 million? The drug-testing terms and any penalty, that’s between the fighters not the promoters.
“We have no recourse. We can’t force Floyd into something. But we gave them an opportunity to put their money where their mouth is and they wouldn’t. I won’t speculate why. To me there is no legitimate argument. We know we’re clean. That’s why Manny said he would pay $5 million if he tested dirty. Manny was surprised [Mayweather refused]. He can’t figure out why they wouldn’t agree to it when Floyd is always talking about cleaning up the sport of boxing.”
Added Ellerbe: “If Manny Pacquiao tested positive, it is going to cost him a whole lot more than $5 million. All parties signed a contract agreeing to every term. Where has this idiot Koncz been? It sounds like he didn’t read the documents they signed. No wonder why his fighter is always confused. It sounds like that idiot is suggesting there’s a $5 million price tag if Manny comes up positive. That sounds suspicious. All I know is we welcome random testing as we always have.”
