Stage two of the suddenly even more compelling Super Six World Boxing Classic is starting to take loose form, as dates for the next batch of fights have started to float around.

January 23 is being looked at as the date for Arthur Abraham's fight with Andre Dirrell, for which Abraham will come to the United States. Of all the fighters, Dirrell has the weakest chance at hometown advantage. Being from Michigan gives Dirrell very limited options, and he's got the smallest following of anyone in the tournament. There hasn't been a major fight in the Great Lakes state for a good while now, and I don't see the interest being there out in Flint (Dirrell's hometown) or in Detroit. The closest he might be able to get is Chicago, which is a long drive from Dirrell's side of the state, or maybe Cleveland. Or they could just say, "What the hell? Stick it in New York," which is probably most likely.

But the New York thing would depend on the date. Bob Arum and Top Rank will be running at WaMu Theater at Madison Square Garden that night with their HBO double-header (Luevano-Lopez, Gamboa-Mtagwa). If Showtime could move the date up a week to January 16 (their TV graphic this past weekend did have Abraham-Dirrell coming in January, and nothing more), everything could be hunky dory. They also wouldn't face any TV opposition. Going to January 30 is surely out of the question, what with HBO having the Shane Mosley-Andre Berto fight that night. There's splitting audiences, and then there's scheduling two major fights people are interested in on the same night. The latter almost never happens, and there are good reasons for it. Both Mosley-Berto and Abraham-Dirrell are too expensive to lose viewers. Maybe even move it to early February if need be.

It appears likely, too, that the Carl Froch-Mikkel Kessler bout is going to take place on March 6 in Denmark. This fight has such an interesting dynamic, and so many angles. Froch deserved to lose the fight he won over Andre Dirrell, in the opinion of many, but he didn't, so he remains unbeaten and holds the WBC title. Kessler was routed by Andre Ward on Saturday to lose his WBA title, but if Kessler beats Froch, not only is he right back in the tournament, but he's right back in the title mix with the WBC strap. Kessler is still going to be favored by a lot of people in this fight, I expect.

There's nothing rumored yet for Andre Ward-Jermain Taylor, and I'd assume Taylor gets "home field" for that one, which would probably put the bout in Memphis.

Marcos Maidana retained his interim 140-pound title with a win in Argentina.

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You surely know the particulars from Oakland by now, as Andre Ward routed Mikkel Kessler, and if you go one post down from this one, you'll find out that Rodel Mayol upset Edgar Sosa to shake up the 108-pound division, and that young Marvin Sonsona had an off-night in Ontario, drawing and leaving the 115-pound division behind.

It was a busy Saturday around the boxing world, so let's look at some of the other results.

Marcos Maidana KO-3 William Gonzalez (Sunchales, Argentina)

Maidana (27-1, 26 KO) acquitted himself quite nicely as a known commodity, stopping his Panamanian challenger in three. Maidana retains the interim WBA junior welterweight title he won against Victor Ortiz in June. Gonzalez falls to 22-6-1 (7).

Jorge Barrios TKO-5 Michael Lozada ... Lucas Matthysse KO-4 Florencio Castellano (Buenos Aires, Argentina)

Barrios' improved to 2-0 on the year by stopping the veteran Lozada in five. The big-mouthed Argentine wants a fight next with lightweight titlist Edwin Valero, but we'll see. I think he's exactly the type of guy Valero torches, but Barrios on paper does not lack for guts, nor has he in the ring. I'm not sure he really wants to fight Valero, though. Barrios is now 49-4-1 (35). Matthysse (25-0, 23 KO) continued his impressive streak of beating up nobody.

Chad Bennett UD-10 Aldo Rios (Newcastle, Australia)

Not really a notable fight, to be honest, but you might remember the 35-year-old Rios, another Argentina fighter, from past losses to Stevie Johnston (1999), Artur Grigorian (2001), Ricky Hatton (2003) and Isaac Hlatswayo (2006). Throw in Bennett, 36, a regional fighter, and you've got all of the losses on Rios' sheet. You also have pretty much the only notable fighters he's ever fought. If the Bennett win wasn't home cookin', Aldo should probably stick to Argentina from now on, because Bennett isn't quite in league with the rest of those guys.

Giovanni Segura KO-1 Sonny Boy Jaro (Merida, Mexico)

That should just about do it for Jaro in top-level fights. The Filipino is only 27, but going down in one to Segura -- a good fighter, no doubt -- is pretty rough. Segura is, in my view, one of the more underrated fighters out there.

Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. could meet on May 1, 2010. Serious negotiations are set to begin for the fight. (Photo by Al Bello / Getty Images)

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Ronnie Nathanielsz reports that Bob Arum is hearing May 1 as the date everyone wants to target for a potential super fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao.

Pacquiao was originally tentatively scheduled for a March 13 return. Had Pacquiao-Cotto been a great, hotly-contested fight, I'd almost guarantee we'd be seeing a rematch on that date. Arum had talked about doing just that as a next step. But since Pacquiao clearly won, the only fight to be made now is Pacquiao against Mayweather.

Richard Schaefer recently disclosed that should both Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones Jr. win on December 2, those two living legends will meet in a rematch 17 years in the making on March 13, on HBO pay-per-view.

The first weekend of May is a traditional superfight weekend, with Cinco de Mayo playing some part in that. In 2007, Oscar de la Hoya and Floyd Mayweather Jr. broke all the records with their fight, and this year Pacquiao met Ricky Hatton on that same weekend. May 1 is just logical. It gives them time for a massive promotional effort and plenty of time for what surely will be some drawn-out negotiations, too.

Marvin Sonsona missed weight for his 115-pound title defense tonight in Rama, Ontario. His WBO title is now vacant.

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Filipino wunderkind Marvin Sonsona missed weight this morning in Rama, Ontario, meaning his fight tonight against Alejandro Hernandez will be non-title. Sonsona has vacated the WBO 115-pound title, but the strap will be up for grabs for Hernandez to win.

Sonsona weighed in at 117.6 pounds. At 19, he's just not going to be able to cut to 115 anymore. He's still maturing, his body is still changing, and apparently he's grown three centimeters of late. His promoter Allan Tremblay says Sonsona will skip bantamweight and go straight to the 122-pound division.

"He's a young guy exploding into a man," Tremblay said after Saturday's weigh-in.

Even after giving up solid food mid-week Sonsona couldn't slim down any further. When a Friday night workout only got him to 117, Tremblay decided to forfeit the title rather than try something drastic to make weight.

"He could have drained himself down to 115, but after six rounds he would have been a depleted fighter," he said, noting the danger in sending a dehydrated fighter into the ring. "Why kill him? Why take a possible loss when we have another plan for him anyway?"

I know what he's saying, but it sort of stings to read, "Hey, why make weight? Why bother making weight? We'll just give up this meaningless belt and fight anyway with an advantage. Big whoop, y'know? Besides, we have other plans."

But when all is said and done, it's not unexpected. Sonsona was reportedly having some trouble making the weight, and staying at the weight wasn't in their plans. They knew they were moving up, and soon. It's just coming a little quicker and with a bit of a hiccup.

Shane Mosley won't "chase" fights with Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather Jr. next year. He feels he's done enough to let them known he's ready to fight. (Photo by Al Bello / Getty Images)

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Shane Mosley told BoxingScene.com that he won't chase after fights with Floyd Mayweather Jr. and/or Manny Pacquiao in 2010, feeling he's made it more than clear he's ready to fight either man.

"I want to fight Mayweather but I want to fight anybody who wants to get in the ring with me. I'm not going to chase anybody. I'm not going to chase Mayweather and I'm not going to chase Pacquiao. I already said what I said and I already did what I had to do to as far as telling them that I want to fight them. It's up to them now to step up and say 'I want to fight you' and I'll make it happen," Mosley said.

You really can't say Mosley is fronting the way some fighters do. He had a fight lined up with Joshua Clottey that HBO fudged up, and when that happened, he made one happen with Andre Berto, an unbeaten young titleholder.

As for Pacquiao's win over Cotto, he still feels that he (Mosley) is the best welterweight out there:

"If Pacquiao wanted to fight the number one welterweight, he would have fought me first - he wouldn't have fought Cotto."

I know he needs to say these things, but it's pretty easy to have made a case for Cotto being ahead of Mosley, considering when they fought in the not-too-distant past, Cotto beat Mosley.

He also weighed in on Antonio Margarito's potential return to boxing. I know it seems like we've been talking about this a lot lately, but there's are reasons for that. Miguel Cotto just fought, and that fight will always come to mind when Cotto fights, plus Margarito's team spoke on his behalf about a rematch next year. Also, with welterweight being as hot as it is right now, a Margarito return shakes things up (in theory anyway). And we're starting to barrel toward a reinstatement hearing in just a few short months.

Anyway, Mosley said nothing new, just repeated what he's said before:

"With Margarito, I think if anything they should get the coach, because the trainer is the one who put the stuff on his hands. I'm not saying he's innocent. I'm not going to say that he's innocent. He probably knew what was going on."

It always bothers me when people answer with something like this, because nobody's saying Capetillo should come back, either. In fact, the entire defense strategy was built around throwing Capetillo under the bus and making him out to be some sort of evil mastermind that took the career of Antonio Margarito and attempted to flush it down the toilet with underhanded tactics the fighter knew nothing about. For all intents and purposes, it seemed to me like they tried to excuse Margarito based on ignorance of the events, and get Capetillo banned for life. It makes sense, since there's money to be made on Margarito and none on Capetillo, but this is not an "if anything" situation. It doesn't need to come down to just one. I doubt they're going to keep Margarito on the sidelines while Capetillo runs along merrily, loading fighters' handwraps in the shadows of the coliseum once again.

With Zsolt Erdei moving up in weight tomorrow, he has vacated the WBO light heavyweight title. Juergen Braehmer (pictured) is now the full titleholder. (Photo via www.boxing.de)

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Rumble at Rama X - Marvin Sonsona vs Alejandro Hernandez Preview (The Boxing Bulletin)
Andrew Fruman previews Saturday night's 115-pound title matchup between Marvin Sonsona and Alejandro Hernandez. Andrew will be giving some live updates from ringside tomorrow night. If you're yet unfamiliar with the phenom Sonsona, you can watch his last fight with Jose "Carita" Lopez here.

Q&A: Zsolt Erdei (Fightnews)
Zsolt Erdei challenges Giacobbe Fragomeni tomorrow for the WBC cruiserweight title. Erdei is undefeated and has held the WBO light heavyweight title since 2004. He's vacated the belt, and is going into tomorrow's fight with a black eye suffered in sparring.

Barrios va por el título ante Lozada en el Lawn Tennis (Agencia NOVA)
Story's in Spanish obviously. Jorge Barrios returns to action against Michael Lozada in Argentina. Barrios talked a lot earlier this year about fighting Edwin Valero, then pulled out of the Lightweight Lightning show, and now he's talking a lot about fighting Edwin Valero, which probably still won't happen.

¡González viajó con seguridad a Argentina! (NotiFight)
Also in Spanish, and also in Argentina. Marcos Maidana will defend his interim 140-pound title against William Gonzalez. Different card from the Barrios fight. Big weekend for Argentinian boxing.

Sadinas de Tuxtla - An Anecdote About the Sosa-Mayol Weigh-In (PhilBoxing.com)
108-pound titlist Edgar Sosa makes another defense of his crown, against Rodel Mayol. Mayol drew and lost to Ivan Calderon in two truncated fights this year. This article tells a tale of Mayol's frustrating experience with the weigh-in in Mexico.

Juergen Braehmer named full WBO light heavyweight titlist (Boxing.de)
With Erdei's move up, stablemate Juergen Braehmer moves into his spot as WBO titlist. Erdei's vacating of the belt also means that his argument as lineal champion is dead and gone, which is kind of a relief, really.

Karim Mayfield: "This Time, I Will Make It More Decisive" (FightHype)
Welterweight prospect Karim Mayfield (10-0-1, 6 KO) rematches Francisco Santana (11-1, 5 KO) on the Kessler-Ward undercard in Oakland. Mayfield beat Santana via split decision in March 2008.

Vazquez Jr. Stops Genaro Garcia; Title Fight Within Reach (Boxing Scene)
Wilfredo Vazquez Jr. won a seventh round TKO over veteran Genaro Garcia in Florida. Jake Donovan reports.

Humberto Soto meets Jesus Chavez in the Top Rank pay-per-view co-feature on December 19. (Photo by Ethan Miller / Getty Images)

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Top Rank is putting together a full PPV lineup for December 19 that might not make you want to shell out 40 bucks, but isn't for a lack of trying to get some interesting names out there.

We all know that the night's main event from Youngstown, Ohio, will pit middleweight world champion Kelly Pavlik against Miguel Espino, a fight that has not been well-received by fans or media at all, really. The show's main co-feature will main event the Mexico part of the card, as Humberto Soto moves up to lightweight to take on former titlist Jesus Chavez.

Soto calls Chavez "very dangerous," but I don't see that claim going over so hot, either. Jesus Chavez was a hell of a fighter in his prime, but he's not in his prime anymore. The 37-year-old Chavez has already lost fights to Michael Katsidis (Chavez quit on his stool) and David Diaz this year. Diaz had been out of action for over a year. Honestly, and I always hate even bringing it up, Chavez has not been the same since the Leavander Johnson incident, and that was over four years ago. He's also had a bad knee injury that has taken a lot out of him. Soto is the one going up in weight, but Chavez is just a name. He's not a legit contender anymore.

The best fight on the card might be interim WBA bantamweight titleholder Nehomar Cermeno defending against Alejandro Valdez. Valdez was involved in a very controversial fight with Fernando Montiel earlier this year, which it initially appeared he had won. That would've been a strong contender for Upset of the Year, but the fight was changed to a technical draw.

Also appearing on the card will be Jose Luis Castillo, who just helped Manny Pacquiao in training camp, and unbeaten flyweight prospect Hernan "Tyson" Marquez.

HBO has released the numbers, and the Miguel Cotto-Manny Pacquiao fight last Saturday generated 1.25 million buys on pay-per-view, beating out Mayweather-Marquez as the biggest boxing event of 2009. The fight generated $70 million in pay-per-view revenue to go along with its $8.84 million live gate.

The 1.25 million number equals what Pacquiao did a year ago against Oscar de la Hoya, though it doesn't quite reach the larger numbers that were being bandied about this week. Bob Arum said he thought it was looking like about 1.3 million, and he turned out to be correct. Usually, Bob is one of those going high, but I think this number more than pleases everyone involved.

Hatton-Pacquiao in May was a big success. Mayweather-Marquez was a phenomenal success. And this fight -- bigger than both -- is just more proof that if you put together fights and build guys right, boxing is far, far from dead.

I would have said six months ago that a Mayweather-Pacquiao fight approaching the all-time PPV record set by Oscar and Floyd back in 2007 would have been impossible, but now I think there's a real chance there. Breaking two million buys is damn hard. In fact, Oscar-Floyd is the only fight that has ever done it, with Lewis-Tyson being No. 2 all-time at 1.99 million.

But I think Mayweather-Pacquiao can do it. I don't know if they will, but HBO has already said they'll be putting unheard of backing behind this must-see event should the parties work out a deal, and it seems to just about all of us that a deal not getting worked out is almost unthinkable. Way too much money to be made.

Boxing is on a nice little roll this year, and really has been the last few years or so. Slowly but surely, the mainstream media is starting to get over their "boxing is dead" obsession, and I'm hoping that a Floyd-Manny fight will be the last time I ever have to read articles from basketball writers titled, "The fight to get boxing off the ropes," or what have you.

Congratulations to HBO, Top Rank and of course, the fighters.