FLOYD MAYWEATHER'S super-fight with Manny Pacquiao is officially dead in the water. It was Mayweather's demands over drug tests that killed the showdown.
Although I can't remember a fight falling through for similar reasons, it could become more common in the future.
In the States, fighters seem to move through the divisions more freely than Europe. That could provoke suspicions in certain camps.
Interestingly, the best British fighters of the last 20 years or so have tended to stay in and around the same division.
Naseem Hamed, Joe Calzaghe, Nigel Benn, Steve Collins and Ricky Hatton never went much above the weight they made their debuts at.
It's not quite been the same for the outstanding American fighters of the last decade. Oscar De La Hoya and Mayweather began at super-featherweight before meeting at light-middleweight.
Roy Jones Junior and James Toney both started out below middleweight but wound up contesting versions of the heavyweight world title.
Toney has been caught taking performance enhancing drugs while Jones has also been involved in a drugs controversy.
Shane Mosley has gone from lightweight up to light-middleweight, while Pacquiao has gone from being a flyweight to glory at welterweight.
Of course, nothing has ever been proved against Manny and he strongly denies any suggestion of drug-taking. There's no reason to suspect he has been at it.
Meanwhile, Pacquiao is now going to meet Joshua Clottey in March at the home of the Dallas Cowboys in Texas, with a 50,000 gate predicted.
Ghanaian Clottey pushed Miguel Cotto all the way, and he could be a tough fight for Pacquiao if he's still got juice left in the tank.
But I keep saying Manny will be tested - and then he walks through his opponents.
Source: thesun.co.uk
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