WBC titlist Devon Alexander could be involved in a four-man HBO tournament at junior welterweight in 2010. (Photo via www.boxnews.com.ua)

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Ben Thompson of FightHype reported a couple of days ago that he'd had sources tell him that HBO was looking to put together a four-man tournament at 140 pounds, with some major names and three titleholders involved. WBA titlist Amir Khan, WBC titlist Devon Alexander, interim WBA titleholder Marcos Maidana and Victor Ortiz have been the fighters named.

Today, Rick Reeno and Altaf Mubarik followed up at BoxingScene.com with confirmation that there has been discussion, though nothing concrete at this point, and that includes money, locations, fighters involved, etc.

This isn't surprising, really, as one of the key points that came up in some recent speculation over the security of HBO Sports head Ross Greenburg's job was that the honchos at HBO were wondering why they didn't have something like Showtime's Super Six. You have to remember that HBO has a lot more money than Showtime; that's just a fact. The HBO boxing budget is way, way bigger than Showtime's, because HBO is a much bigger network. Meanwhile, HBO had paid mega money for Chad Dawson to land two fights on the network, which have turned out to be rematches of fights that already took place on Showtime, and there were other things of that nature named.

The Super Six is a revolution in boxing promotion. This doesn't seem like it would necessarily be on the same scale, and the idea appears to be similar to what HBO did back in 2001 with Bernard Hopkins, Tito Trinidad, Keith Holmes and William Joppy at middleweight. Hopkins beat Holmes, Trinidad beat Joppy, and then Hopkins beat Trinidad. All the while there was a clear agenda to make a Hopkins-Trinidad fight, which worked out. But there's no particularly big fight that could come out of the four names involved here.

What you have are good, young fighters. Maidana, at 26, is the old man. The other three guys are 22 years old. Maidana already waxed Ortiz and made him quit, but Ortiz seems intent to come back strong from that. Three of them currently have fights scheduled, too. Khan faces Dmitriy Salita on December 5, Maidana faces William Gonzalez on November 21, and Ortiz faces Antonio Diaz on December 5. Only Alexander has no fight scheduled right now, which is pretty much par for the course for his career under Don King.

It might wind up tough to get the promoters all working together. Even with the Super Six working out, that's always going to be hard. You'd have Golden Boy (Ortiz and working with Maidana now, too), King (Alexander), and Frank Warren (Khan). Plenty of egos there, especially with King all jacked up on Mountain Dew after the success of the Agbeko-Perez card last weekend.

It's very, very interesting, but this is also very, very, very preliminary stuff. It's mostly speculation at this point, and if nothing ever comes of it, don't be surprised.

(AP Photo/Isaac Brekken)

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Since we've talked a lot about the potential mass success that's floating around as a projection for the pay-per-views sold this past Saturday, it really is only only fair that tonight we talk about the other possible outcome.

What if it's a more normal number, even if it's what would have been considered a success? Has the talk that has floated now ruined what would have been seen as a nice result for this fight?

Yahoo's Kevin Iole has been the source in the media for every rumor and report you've seen out there referencing the great success of the show, as projected by sources that are high up and would have an idea. The first report was just a blurb in Iole's MMA mailbag about the success of the head-to-head shows on Saturday, and this is what he had to say:

The UFC is a privately owned company and does not have to release its pay-per-view sales, which it chooses not to do. Occasionally, we’re able to find out what a particular fight sold, but it’s not often. From what I’m hearing, though, the Mayweather fight had a convincing victory. I’m hearing the Mayweather-Marquez pay-per-view is going to come in at or near 1 million sales. I don’t have a verifiable figure for the UFC, but I believe it will be far lower than 1 million. The boxing number should be released by Thursday at the latest and perhaps on Wednesday.

Later last night, I got in touch with Kevin and asked if he had any follow-up. He said then that he was hearing it could go as high as 1.6 million when all is said and done, and to expect an official announcement today or tomorrow. He also Tweeted about it. One million buys, he said, was "definite" according to his sources. Today's business hours have passed, and nothing has come from HBO, Golden Boy, "Mayweather Promotions" or anyone else.

Now, that in itself means nothing. There's still all of tomorrow while they get things together, and if I had to guess, they're going to throw in every buy they can count, from cable/dish orders and the 230-theater strong movie screen campaign. It'll all mash in, even though the theater customers didn't have to pay $50 and what have you.

As we talked about earlier, initial giddiness about PPV buys often tempers off into more realistic, more sensible territory. In May, Bob Arum was telling everyone who would listen that Hatton-Pacquiao did 1.6-2 million buys on pay-per-view, and it did, according to Dan Rafael, about 825-850,000 in the States. This was still an outstanding number.

We all find the projected numbers stunning, believe me, and I said earlier today that I remained skeptical. We talked about it because it's good discussion. Kevin Iole himself told me that the numbers he was hearing were, to him, "shocking."

I can say this: The numbers I've heard tonight are a far cry from that 1.6 million high-end estimate.

But again: None of this is official. It's speculation, it's people talking, and it's discussion fodder. If a number doesn't come out tomorrow, start getting really skeptical.

Reports are optimistic about the Mayweather-Marquez pay-per-view buys. Sources close to the numbers are saying it could reach as high as 1.6 million, with a million a "definite."

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As if Kevin Iole saying last night that one million buys was possible for Mayweather-Marquez didn't kick off enough of a strange, near-violent reaction, I did some asking around myself last night after being somewhat perplexed by the venom the very idea of this brought forth. In short, I went straight to the man who had the sources: Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports.

The number could go as high as 1.6 million, as Kevin Iole told me last night over some back-and-forth messaging. Iole told me that a million is "definite," and says that HBO will release the numbers either today or on Thursday.

Some will be skeptical, and I am, too. But when I compare this to how the Hatton-Pacquiao numbers came out, it's a bit different. You'll recall, probably, that the first numbers we heard for that fight were supposedly between 1.6 and two million buys, that being the number that Bob Arum threw out there. Arum had previously stated during the press build-up that he felt the fight could break the all-time PPV record, which is 2.4 million, as set by Oscar de la Hoya and Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2007.

That came down to about 825-850,000 buys in America when Dan Rafael of ESPN did some digging in the following days, after Arum, perhaps feeling a bit embarrassed by his leap of faith coming down at about half of what he was saying, didn't want the numbers to be released, claiming it was nobody's business but that of the promoters and fighters. He did not address the fact that he was so giddy to proclaim massive numbers just days before, but that's another story for another time.

Golden Boy and HBO were not pleased with Arum's insistence that the fight's buys not be released to the public. They felt good about what everyone accomplished, but for Arum, it could have been seen many ways. Negotiating tactic with Mayweather and Pacquiao down the line, for one. That number didn't beat Mayweather's number with Hatton, and it sure doesn't look like it's going to beat this one.

This is, again, not official. But if this turns out as it looks right now, a lot of people may need to re-evaluate how they're looking at Mayweather as a draw. This fight may have seemed limp on paper to the diehards, but the casual audience didn't really know that.

This is not promoters throwing numbers around, like with Arum and the Hatton-Pacquiao fight. This seems like it's coming out much differently than that. We'll keep you posted on any developments, but for the time being, everything is looking very good for Mayweather-Marquez.

Early indicators say that around one million people saw Floyd Mayweather Jr. make Juan Manuel Marquez miss on pay-per-view. The number is a massive success for boxing. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

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Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports reports in his latest MMA mailbag that while we're likely to hear numbers by Thursday, he's hearing very, very good things about the success of Mayweather-Marquez on pay-per-view:

The UFC is a privately owned company and does not have to release its pay-per-view sales, which it chooses not to do. Occasionally, we’re able to find out what a particular fight sold, but it’s not often. From what I’m hearing, though, the Mayweather fight had a convincing victory. I’m hearing the Mayweather-Marquez pay-per-view is going to come in at or near 1 million sales. I don’t have a verifiable figure for the UFC, but I believe it will be far lower than 1 million. The boxing number should be released by Thursday at the latest and perhaps on Wednesday.

This would be a huge success for Mayweather, for HBO, for boxing in general, and for everyone involved in this fight on any level. I really never expected they could get near this number, and I recall correctly off the top of my head, this would be the first non-Oscar de la Hoya fight to get to 1,000,000 buys in boxing since Lennox Lewis-Mike Tyson in 2002.

It's really amazing if the numbers are true. I expected this show and UFC 103 to split audiences a bit, and the UFC estimates I've heard are around 400,000 for their show, which is a great number considering there weren't any of the UFC's major stars on that card. It was just a good fight card.

I don't want to go into who "won," because if these numbers are accurate, the fact of the matter is everybody won. That's a WHOLE lot of people watching boxing and MMA on one night, especially considering how much they had to pay to do it.

This will also validate Floyd: If these numbers are true, you're damn right he's a superstar, and maybe we diehard fans blinded ourselves a bit by not being terribly excited about this matchup. The casual fan that digs Floyd probably didn't really even care who Juan Manuel Marquez was when this was signed, they were just happy that Floyd was back.

Editor's Note: Just so everyone understands, this is nothing more than a rumor and meant for discussion. It is posted only so that we can gauge what people think about this number. Thus far, many of you aren't buying it. That is understandable. Hatton-Pacquiao was reported much higher at first than it wound up being, too. The bit of "analysis" I give the numbers is just what the affect could be if this number comes back as solid from someone at HBO. It is not yet fact whatsoever. This should be clear.

IRS problems have been reported for months regarding Floyd Mayweather. Nevada official Keith Kizer is saying that $5 million of Mayweather's purse on Saturday will go to the IRS. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

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David Mayo of the Grand Rapids Press is reporting that despite the constant claims to the contrary by both Floyd Mayweather Jr. and his business manager, Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather's tax problems look very real. Real enough that the IRS will be taking about $5 million of his purse on Saturday night when he fights Juan Manuel Marquez. But there are conflicting statements coming out of the people around the fight that are talking about this situation.

Nevada Athletic Commission head Keith Kizer says that the IRS is taking the money:

Keith Kizer, the top official in Nevada's boxing governing body, said he understands that there "has been a levy against the purse and there is an agreement between Floyd Mayweather and the IRS, in an amount of approximately $5 million."

Kizer added that the IRS has not formally attached Mayweather's purse and he didn't know "exactly how it will be handled."

But Golden Boy Promotions financial man Raul Gutierrez counters with this statement:

Raul Gutierrez, CFO of Golden Boy Promotions, said in a telephone interview from Los Angeles that he had received notification from the IRS that part of one purse must be withheld for back taxes but that the fighter involved in that action, whom he refused to identify, is not Mayweather.

"I asked if I should expect a notification for anyone else, because Mayweather's tax situation has been all over the news, and they said, 'No,'" Gutierrez said. "Obviously, if they give me something at the weigh-in, I'm obliged to do what they say. At this point, nothing has happened in relation to Mayweather."

It's odd that Golden Boy is handling all the money considering "Mayweather Promotions" was supposedly the lead promoter here. You'd expect that, at the least, any questions regarding Mayweather's purse would not go to Gutierrez but to Leonard Ellerbe.

Mayweather continues to be very vocal about owing nothing, despite the Associated Press investigation a while back that said he owes $6.1 million overall, and also despite the fact that JP Morgan Chase Bank has just sued him for the remaining balance on a Maybach that he never paid off.

Even though his long-delayed fight with Fernando Montiel is off again, Eric Morel may still find himself featured on the undercard of Cotto-Pacquiao on November 14. (Photo via cache.daylife.com)

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Primera Hora (via BoxingScene.com) reports that even though a bad cut suffered by Fernando Montiel on Saturday night will yet again postpone his fight with Eric Morel, the would-be challenger could find himself featured on the November 14 Cotto-Pacquiao undercard anyway. Morel might face Alejandro Valdez instead. Valdez was the man that caused the cut, and the man many feel was robbed of a would-be stoppage of Montiel due to shady officiating.

Morel (41-2, 21 KO) is Puerto Rican, so he'd "fit" on the card with Cotto headlining. The 33-year old has gone 6-0 with three stoppages since he returned to the ring in 2008 after his stint in prison. The Montiel fight has been postponed several times now, and was to be on the 11/14 card, but with Montiel out, we'll see. The idea to fight Valdez (21-3-3, 15 KO) comes from the WBO, who would sanction it as an interim title fight while Montiel recovers. It's rare, but this is a situation where an interim title kind of makes sense.

As for the rest of the undercard, here's what seems to me to be playing out:

• Confirmed: Yuri Foreman (27-0, 8 KO) will test not just WBA junior middleweight titlist Daniel Santos (32-3-1, 23 KO), but the ability of viewers to stay awake. Why the organizers thought this card was a great place to showcase Foreman and Santos is beyond me. Yes, it's a major title fight, but Santos spends more time deciding not to fight someone than he does actively participating in the sport, which to be fair to him might be just as much Don King's fault. And Foreman is like televised Tylenol PM. He's got skills, but the man can't break an egg and fights with less urgency than just about anyone I've ever seen.
• Confirmed: Jesus Soto Karass and Alfonso Gomez will bang it out in what could be a thriller of a fight between the two fringe welterweight contenders. Gomez was once nearly decapitated by Miguel Cotto, and Karass would be, too, but both guys have guts to spare and are in a must-win situation with this fight.
• Probably Won't Happen: Bob Arum desperately wants a 135-pound title fight between Edwin Valero and Humberto Soto, but as much as we'd all crap our pants to see that barnburner paired with Cotto-Pacquiao, I just don't think it will. It is a feeling fed by absolutely nothing and I have no clue whether or not it's true, but I sort of get the impression Soto doesn't want this fight as much as he might let on, and that Valero isn't exactly itching to fight a non-star that stands a much better chance of fighting back than a lot of the schlubs he's drilled thus far.

In all honesty, unless Arum and Top Rank simply can't come up with a better fight than Morel-Valdez no matter how hard they try, I wouldn't expect to see that fight make the show. Neither guy has any name in the States whatsoever, despite that Morel is a pretty legit contender and Valdez was arguably robbed of what might have been 2009's biggest upset. It's not a bad fight by any stretch, but surely Top Rank could come up with something better. If you look at the other fights, you have Foreman (who Arum loves as a promotional tool, as harsh as that might sound) going for a title; Gomez was a "Contender" star who's been on TV a lot; and Valero-Soto is half a wet dream for a boxing diehard. Morel-Valdez is really none of these things.

Did Lamont Peterson more than hold his own against Floyd Mayweather in sparring? via www.boxinginsider.com

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Leave it up to Rick Reeno to dig up the dirt, and he appears to have gotten it good this time.  It may just be an internet rumor, and it may just be a smokescreen from one fighter or another, either to build up hype for Mayweather-Marquez or to build up hype for Bradley-Peterson, but this is certainly interesting from the perspective of both fights.

Reeno is reporting that in sparring, Lamont Peterson did his thing and stayed even with Floyd Mayweather in one day of sparring, and pretty much kicked his butt in another.  It's interesting, because Mayweather's camp put out information that Floyd had made Peterson quit in sparring.  Evidently, this was enough for Peterson to fire back.  From Peterson's trainer, Barry Hunter:

Keep in mind, Lamont was out of shape with 18 ounce gloves on.  I have to tell you, it was unbelievable to watch.  I wish I had a tape to show you.  They thought after the first day we weren't coming back but we went right back.  THe second day, Lamont was off the chain.  It was raw, uncut and the things they said to each other you certainly wouldn't want to say in a church.  They, meaning the uncle and father, thought it was the best work Floyd ever got.  The combinations, the skill, it was unbelievable to watch those two.

Of course, Mayweather has had some problems in sparring before, and that's never hurt him on fight night.  There is that famed sparring session between Floyd Mayweather and Paul Spadafora that many believe led to Floyd never facing Spadafora, despite being the other prominent undefeated fighter in his weight class.

For whatever it's worth, former real warrior come-internet warrior Anthony Thompson is saying that he spoke with Lamont himself (who was in Vegas specifically to see Thompson's aborted fight with Grady Brewer), as well as another guy who was at the gym, and that Floyd got his butt kicked. 

For all the hard work and puffery we see on 24/7, there sure are a whole lot of horror stories floating out of both camps for next week's huge matchup.  And if Peterson is beating Floyd Mayweather in sparring, then Timothy Bradley might be in serious trouble.

Ricardo Mayorga appeared at a small MMA show in Florida and it was hinted that he might make his debut in that sport soon. (Photo via ESPN)

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UPDATE: Another e-mail from Chris said the following:

They confirmed it later in the broadcast - Mayorga vs. "a big surprise opponent" at the next Shine Fights event.

So, uh, who knows? Weird, weird, weird. Chris figures Mayorga is hard up for cash, and given his legal troubles in the last year, yeah, probably.

* * * * * * * * * *

Chris Nelson of Bloody Elbow e-mailed me tonight while watching Shine Fights II, and had this weird bit of information:

Watching the Shine Fights online PPV right now, and Ricardo Mayorga is in the (very sparse) crowd. Dorian Price (one of the promoters; also a cast member on TUF a few years back) is doing commentary, and said we can expect to see Mayorga in his MMA debut at Shine's next show.

The only news we've heard of Mayorga in months came the other day when he decided to sue Don King. It would seem unlikely he'll be doing any fighting at all, but who knows? Maybe his ambitious lawyer found some type of loophole that would allow him to take paydays in MMA without King's involvement.

The last year or so of Mayorga's career has been really bizarre, so even if we can be certain that it's 99.9999% that Mayorga won't be fighting MMA any time soon, or ever, it's not surprising that it's being talked about.

Other fun tidbits from Chris' Shine Fights commentary:

Announcers are chatting but I don’t think they know their mics are on…

“Me and this girl got this deal, if we aren’t married by the time we’re 40, we’re gonna marry each other…”

Dorian Price just walked up and said something about he’d rather be anywhere else right now. The announcers said “we’re gonna make the best of it.”

The ring announcer, trying to get the crowd hyped up, yells “y’all ready to have some fun tonight?!” and the play-by-play guy mutters into his mic “not really.”

Oh dear.

I love shows like this.