So Now We Know The Truth

The fight that the whole world has been waiting for over the last two years or more is between pound for pound king pins Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao. Now we know why up until this point it has yet to happen one word Arum.

Bob Arum the top man at Top Rank Boxing has been marking comments over the week or so that seem to contradict his fighter Pacquiao wishes. Early last week after Mayweather had called out Pacquiao via Twitter, the pacman told his home paper that he was due to meet Arum and discuss his next opponent. Pacquiao stated that he wanted Mayweather and was willing to submit to drug testing as well as take less then a 50/50 split.

Arum has other ideas he has a short list of four fighters for Pacquiao’s next fight none of which are named Mayweather, none of which would come close to generating the money that would be generated by a Mayweather Pacquiao showdown. That statement does not tell the whole story.

You see Pacquiao is the biggest attraction in boxing apart from Mayweather and therefore Arum could not ‘run the show’ Arum would not either get paid ‘twice‘, as he often does because he promotes both Pacquiao and his opponent or if not the opponent is exactly that he is not a name and therefore Arum would still get paid wonderfully well.

It is arguable weather or not it would be more then he would be paid for a Mayweather v Pacquiao fight or not, but the key is Pacquiao is much more likely to beat one of Arum short list of possible opponents rather then beat Mayweather and therefore Arum would be able to repeat the trick and use his cash cow once more. The excuses that Arum and Top Rank are making are laughable, first it was Pacquiao’s eye will not heel in time to fight May 5th, there is not enough time to promote the fight (its been promoted for the last 2 years or more) and that the outdoor 40,000 seat stadium in Las Vegas we not be complete in time. It is Las Vegas if it needs to be build by May 5th it would be. Bob Arum learned fully in Pacquiao ’s last fight against Marquez that Mayweather has Pacquiao’s number and Arum does not want to kill his cash cow just yet.

Freddie Roach has always joined Arum in saying November is the best time for the fight, due to the same excuses as stated by Arum. If you think about it November is the worst time for Mayweather and the Best for Pacquiao, the reason is simple whilst Mayweather is in prison Pacquiao can stay busy and then when Mayweather gets released be the sharper of the two for a November showdown as Mayweather would be rusty and have no time for a warm up fight. Mayweather may only fight once a year but his always in the gym staying in shape and getting a certain about or sharpness. Prison would not allow that.

All hope is not quite lost as Dan Rafael reported earlier today that Mayweather spoke to Pacquiao via telephone and hopefully they can force Arum to make the fight.



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Weekly European Football Report

Spain: LA Liga

The big two both won their games at the weekend Real beating Mallorca 2-1 away from home and Barcelona beating Real Betis 4-2 at home. Villarreal are still struggling being outclassed away to Atlético Madrid 3-0.

Real Zaragoza look to be fighting a losing cause to stay up as they are now 8 points from safety, as mentioned above Villarreal continue to struggle and they currently sit 19th in the table. Athletic Bilbao beat Levante 3-0 to close the gap from 5th to 4th down to 4 points. Look for the 4th place race and relation fight to go late into the season.

Italy: Serie A

The stand out game of the weekend was the Milan derby, which was won by Inter and help them close the gap to the top places. Inter Milan are now only 6 points behind the current leaders Juventus.

The bottom two are beginning to get cut off from the rest, as they are both 6 points from the 17th placed team Sienna. It looks as though the bottom two will struggle to stay up

France: Ligue 1

The French league Montpellier beat Lyon at home to stay within three points of league leaders PSG who beat Toulouse 3-1 at home. The league is still very tight with only 4 points separating 12th place Evian Thonon Gaillar and bottom of the table AC Ajaccio.

The Champions League places are still very much up for grabs, with only 5 points separating Lille in 3rd place to St Etienne in 7th place.

England: Premier League

Manchester United won to keep up the Pressure on Manchester City, in the title race. Tottenham meanwhile dropped their first points at home in while drawing with Wolves, Chelsea closed the gap with a win over Sunderland and Arsenal lost further ground losing to Swansea in one of the two Sunday Games.

Blackburn beat Fulham at home to move out of the relegation zone for the first time in a long time and give manger some breathing space.

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NHL Weekly Report

Boston Bruins

The Bruins are going along very nicely at the moment going 7-3 over their last three games. With 40 games left to play for the Bruins, they are 10 points clear of the 9th placed Maple Leafs.

New York Rangers

The Rangers are having a fantastic season thus far, they are scoring well and not conceding huge amounts. Even at this early stage they are looking certainties for the playoffs.

Detroit Red Wings

The Red Wings have been motoring off late and are comfortably in the playoffs positions, they are scoring a load and their goal differential is huge.

San Jose Sharks

The Sharks were sitting outside the playoff position not that long ago, but a good run of form has seen then shot up the Western Conference and they now sit in a good playoff position for now.

Vancouver Canucks

The Canucks are on a nice run of form at present, in large part due to the fact that they are an offensive goal scoring machine, they are exciting to watch to say the least.


St. Louis Blues

The Blues have the best defensive record in the Western Conference, and that means that on any given night they can win by scoring a very low amount of goals if needed.

Chicago Blackhawks

The Blackhawks are a scoring machine, even though they have been missing Patrick Kane for some games lately it does not look like it has upset their offensive prowless in the slightest.

Ottawa Senators

The Senators are a very strange teams in many ways, they are an offensive machine, that also leak goals. However of late they are on a very good run of 8-1-1, which means they are in the middle of the playoff pack.

Nashville Predators

Nashville have won 5 straight games, which has given them a nice little cushion in the playoffs spots. Can they keep up their great form is the big question.



Philadelphia Flyers

The Flyers are neither in good or bad form at the moment. They earlier form has meant that they are still in a solid position in the eastern conference, but the Flyers would like to be winning more games, then they have of late.

New Jersey Devils

At present the Devils are on a nice run of form losing only 3 of their last 10, they have also when their last two games. They both score and concede plenty and their playoff hopes are likely to be decide very late in the season

Los Angeles Kings

Under their new coach the Kings are on a good run of form, where they have only lost one of their last 10 in regulation. Their great defence enables them to stay in tight games, when they below par offence fails to fire.

Washington Capitals

The Capitals are having a very up and down season at present they are just inside the playoffs position. Ovechkin their star player is struggling and long term they will need him to fire if they are to cause damage, if they make it to the playoffs.

Pittsburgh Penguins

The Penguins have been sluggish of late losing 6 of their last 10. There has also been some reports of certain members of the team question weather star player Crosby is really suffering from concussion symptoms. In order for them to get going again things need to be sorted out

Toronto Maple Leafs

The Leafs are just outside of the Playoff places are have a nice run of form end, with two back to back losses. In order for the Leafs to make easier work of making the playoffs, they need to be more solid defensively as they are leaking goals, given that they are in the top four in scoring in the Eastern conference that should be enough to get them really moving.

Colorado Avalanche

The Avalanche are having a decent run of form lately, nothing more nothing less. They sit a single point out of the playoff positions at present. They are yet another team that leaks goals and if it is not sorted they may find themselves struggling to make the playoffs

Best of the Rest

Eastern Conference

The Panthers although still topping their division are having a bad run of form, which they will hope will not last much longer or it could become a real issue for them. The Jets sit a few points outside of the last playoff position, with a little gap between them and the teams below.

Western Conference

The current 8th seed in the West the Wild are in a terrible run of form losing 6 of their last 10 which has left them with 4 teams within 4 points of them. In order to maintain their position or move up the Wild need to start winning soon.


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Pakistan v England 1st Test Preview

This is the first test of the winter for England and their first since becoming the worlds number one test side after beating India 3-0 in England last summer. India are playing a test series in Australia at the moment and if anything the Australians are beating them even worse then this England team did. That is bound to drive the England team to continue to improve and show they are undoubtedly number one, they have not got a great record on the sub continent and this would be a great time to change things. In the rest of this article we will be comparing the various different parts of each team.

Batting

On paper England’s batting line up is far superior to that of the Pakistani’s, England top 5 are all top class players and average 45 or better and Morgan at number Six is a talent. When you look at the Pakistan batting line up the one stand out performer is that of Younis Khan, who has been a top batsmen for many a year now. The rest of the Pakistan batsmen have yet to really establish themselves on the world test stage and England without a doubt are the better batting team.

Bowling

Whoever England decide to go with in terms of bowlers in their bowling line up it will be filled with experienced wicket taking bowlers, any one of which on their day can turn a test match on its head and they always have currently the world‘s best spinner in Swann. On the other side Pakistan only have to real bowlers of statues in Gul who is a very good quality bowler and will cause many problems for the English Batsmen and Saeed Ajmal who under the right conditions can cause problems with his spin, the rest of Pakistani‘s bowling line up looks to have promise but is inexperienced and unproven. Once again England win in the Bowling department.


Wicket Keeper

In Matt Prior England Probably have the finest wicket keeper batsman in the world today, his keeping on first entering the test arena was a big weakness however it has come on so much that it is no longer even mentioned. Prior Averages over 40 in tests and weather England need quick runs to help set up victory or someone to launch a counter Attack Prior is rarely found wanting. Akmal on the other had it at the start of what Pakistan is a long and Successful Test Career but at this stage bares no comparison to Prior.

Fielding

England’s Fielding and general attitude in the field helps set them apart, they are a well drilled outfit that drop very few catches and they do not give away many runs through poor fielding. Pakistani Fielding seems to have gotten better of late but it is still no consistent, to improve they need to be able to concentrate over longer periods. Once more England have the edge in this area.

Experience

The Gulf in experience between the two teams is huge depending on the exact teams England will have roughly twice the number of tests caps as Pakistan and if things get tight in the test, this could prove a major difference.


Conclusion

In conclusion look for Pakistan in a home series (although its being played in nearby countries) to attempt to push England hard but come up short and lose the Test. England’s overall class and experience should be to make for this inexperienced test playing Pakistan side.


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NBA Weekly Report

Eastern Conference

Chicago Bulls

The Bulls were a 5-0 last week. Perhaps the biggest win of the week for the Bulls came against the Wizards, yes those Wizards that have won one game all season so far. I say this because that win was a very easy one without their star player in Rose and their off season signing Hamilton.

Miami Heat

The Heat were 0-3 last week. The Heat have lost three straight, some will call it a crisis. Others will be more reasonable and call it what it is a bad patch. After the way the Heat started you would not expect them to loss three straight, however in a long season like the NBA these things happen. The Heat will be thinking better now then in the playoffs.

Boston Celtics

The Celtics were 0-3 last week. Unlike the Heat, there could be some serious problems ahead for the Celtic. Their famed big three are old and Ray Allen last week on an ESPN game all but admitted they are not as they once were, saying this is now Rondo’s team and we are here to help. The Eastern conference is not super strong and they should still be able to make the playoffs, at this point it is hard to see them being a major threat.

Atlanta Hawks

The Hawks were 3-1 last week. The Hawks are in many ways the most interesting team in the NBA, they look capable of losing to anyone one night and then the very next night look like they could beat anyone. The Hawks will need to sort out their up and down form to be first taken seriously by fans and experts and secondly to become a force.

Philadelphia Seventy Sixers

The 76ers were 4-1 last week. At the moment they are looking very comfy as the leaders in the Atlantic division. With The Celtics Struggling early and the Knicks not looking like having approved, the Sixers could well be the winners of this seasons Atlantic division.

New York Knicks

The Knicks were 2-2, last week. The Knicks do not seem to be making any real advance’s in their game, if they have a good scoring night they are always in with a shout. If their offence is having a slow night then their defence is not good enough to help sneak a win.

Orlando Magic

The Magic were 3-0 last week. The Magic had a nice road win at Portland last week, at this point in time the Magic are pretty much what most people expected, a team improved greatly by one star player in Howard. They struggle when Howard struggles or does not play, the short term future is linked to his trade or lack thereof.


Indiana Pacers

The Pacers were 3-1 last week. They had to good wins against the Hawks and a struggling Celtic team. They have still only given up 100 points or more once this season, defence like that could hold them in good standing come playoff time where they are certain to be involved.

Western Conference

Dallas Mavericks

The Mavericks were 4-0 last week. After a sluggish start to the season, the Mavericks appear to have found their stride and there is no reason for this not to continue. They should continue to gel better and better, it will be interesting to see how far this Mavericks team can go.

Oklahoma City Thunder

The Thunder were 4-0 last week. The Thunder are a joy to watch with Durant and Westbrook in tandem, they are a young team that could play hard all season, without having to worry about saying energy for the playoffs. Look for them to be a very high seed if not the highest in the Western Conference.

L.A. Lakers

The Lakers were 4-1 last week. The Lakers are performing a lot better then many so called experts believed they would as the season open, with Kobe leading them they will get a high seed in the west, even without any trades. If they were to make a trade it could Make things a lot harder for their title rivals.

San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs were 2-2 last week. The Spurs currently have the second best record in the West this season, so far unlike last season it looks like they are pacing themselves better. For the Spurs it is not what happens in the regular season, but what happens in the playoffs that is important.

Memphis Grizzlies

The Grizzlies were 2-2 last week. The Grizzles have had 2 weeks in which they have gone .500, if they are to make the playoffs in the Western conference they are going to need to be better then 33-33 team. It is still early days and so far, there is no real cause for concern.

Portland Trail Blazers

The Trail Blazers were 2-3 last week. The Blazers had a very average last week, it was by no means a disaster. In a long season like the NBA weeks like the Blazers have had will happen, what will be important is how the Blazers come back from it. I am expecting a strong comeback.

Denver Nuggets

The Nuggets were 2-1 last week. The Nuggets had a good week being the third straight team to beat the Heat, if the Nuggets continue playing with their current confidence there is no reason why they cannot be a top four seed in the Western Conference.

New Orleans Hornets

The Hornets were 1-3 last week. The Hornets had another bad week, last week and things do not look they will be improving anytime soon. There has been talk of contraction in the NBA and the Hornets would be one of the prime Candidates.

L.A. Clippers

The clippers were 2-1 last week. They had a very good week, they started with a loss in Portland but back that up with to massive victories against the Heat and their city rivals the Lakers. In a long season for two seasoned teams, their losses vs. the Clippers will not mean much. However for the Clippers they were huge wins, that should give them confidence to know they can be the NBA’s top team. Look for them to continue to grow.

The Rest

The East

The Cleveland Cavaliers although below a .500 record are hanging onto the final playoff spot at present. Look for this to change if the Celtics find any sort of good form.

The West

The Utah Jazz are having a very nice start to the season and look like they will be in and around the playoff picture all the way.

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NFL Divisional Playoff Weekend Preview

New Orleans Saints at San Francisco 49ers

This game is the ultimate Offence v Defence of this season playoff run, thus far. The Saints were the second highest scores in the NFL in the regular season scoring just over 34 points per game, there were mid table in terms of points conceded with just over 21 points per game. The 49ers on the other were second best in points allowed with just over 14 allowed per game, the 49ers for all of the talk of Alex Smith struggles in the red zone were 11 in scoring with just under 24 a game.

Look for this game to be won by the team that gets to play their type of football, if the 49ers defence can contain the Saints and Drew Brees offence, The 49ers offence would score enough points to win the game. Look for a tight fairly low scoring game (by this seasons standards) and a win for the 49ers.

Denver Broncos at New England Patriots

This game pits Tom Brady and the Patriots against Tim Tebow and the Broncos. If you look purely at stats it is hard to figure out how the Broncos made it here their points differential is minus 5, which is never a good thing. There offence is average at most stages of a game and their defence gives up a fair few points, so far they have managed to come up with key plays on both sides of the ball and a weak division also help.

On the other hand the Patriots lead by Tom Brady are an offence machine and appear able to score at will, whilst their defence with has received a lot of negative press this season is a respectable mid table in points allowed. Look for a big scoring game with the Patriots winning by a fairly big margin.

Houston Texans at Baltimore Ravens

This game pits 2 of the NFL top 5 defences against each other, conceded an average of 17 points per game between. Both offence are functional rather then very good, they both rank in the upper mid table in this area of the game. The Texans won their first ever playoff game last week in their first attempt and confidence should be high. The Ravens are a seasoned playoff team and no what is needed to win at this stage of the playoffs.

With the game being played in Baltimore, look for the Ravens to take the win in a fairly low scoring and tight game.


New York Giants at Green Bay Packers

If you like big scoring football then this could be the game for you. The meeting between the two in early December produced over 70 points and there was only 3 points in it. Aaron Rodgers has had an amazing season and really just carried on from last years super bowl win.

Eli Manning started before the start of the season that he was an elite QB, many experts disagreed. However Manning has had a great season he broke the 4th quarter touch down record and has in many ways carried this team. They have been hot of late and confidence will be high

Both the Giants and Packers rank below mid table in points allowed per game. Look for a high scoring game where both sides score lots, it could well be similar to the regular season game. If it is a shoot out look for Rodgers and the Packers to have the edge and move forward in the playoffs.



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Australian Open Preview

The Favourites

Novak Djokovic

Djokovic only action so far this year has been in exhibitions, there were questions going into the exhibition held just before the new year started regarding Djokovic and the health of his shoulder. In Abu Dhabi he easily defeated by Roger Federer and David Ferrer. The results in these matches like that mean very little if anything at all. The encouraging thing for Djokovic was how his shoulder held up, Djokovic will very likely get to the Semi final of the Australian Open and has to be the favourite going in.

Rafael Nadal

Nadal is a very interesting case coming into the first grand slam of the season, he like Djokovic started off just before new years playing in an exhibition tournament, going 1-1 in Abu Dhabi. He then moved on to the Qatar Open where he lost open to Monfils, where in all honesty he never really looked like winning. Nadal announced before the season started that he would be taking February off, this caused a few eyebrows to be raised. This was for two main reasons the first was that it signal to the rest of the tour, that Nadal was not ready for the start off the season, and then following on from that theory the question is weather or not Nadal is fit enough to go all the way in the Australian Open. In my view even if Nadal is not at his best his willpower will enable Nadal to get to at least the semi finals if not further.

Roger Federer

Federer like the world’s top two started his season at the Abu Dhabi, where he lost both of the matches that he played. Federer has admitted that he was using the opening weeks of the season before the Australian Open, as more a training period rather then worrying about winning matches of tournaments. After going the first year of his career without winning a grand slam, since he won his first one in 2003. Federer with be more hungry then he has been for a while, in an attempt to silence those that say he will never win another grand slam. Do not be surprised if we say a Djokovic Federer final with Federer coming out on top.

Andy Murray

Murray unlike the other members of the top four started his season in Australia winning the Brisbane International, in his first tournament under the wing of his new coach Ivan Lendl. His one goal this year is to win a grand slam for the first time in his career. There is no reason why Murray cannot win this seasons Australian Open, if he does he will have to do it the hard way. His possible run from the fourth round to the championship could be Monfils, Tsonga, Djokovic and Nadal if things go to seedlings.

The outsiders

David Ferrer

Ferrer overall game is very solid and consistent without being spectacular. For Ferrer to win a grand slam tournament especially on a hard court, he would need many things to go in his favour. His game alone is not enough to stand up to many of the worlds top players and he gets by at the very top level on his fitness and willpower. The problem is that to win this tournament Ferrer is likely to need to beat Murray, Djokovic and Nadal or Federer in a row, unless there are some upsets along the way this Ferrer is unlikely to win this or any other grand slam.



Jo-Wilfried Tsonga

Tsonga is a bit of an enigma, 2011 was undoubtedly his most consistent year on the tour so far. He has gotten off to a good start this season by beating his great friend Gael Monfils in the final of the Qatar Open. Tsonga has one of the biggest games today in tennis today, if he gets on a run and keeps his confidence up and does not mentally drop, he has a very good chance of going far in the Australian Open.

Tomas Berdych

Is in many ways Similar to Tsonga, he has a very big serve and his all round game is very strong. Unlike Tsonga Berdych movement is not great and therefore he can be moved around the court out of position by the best players easier then he should. If everything goes in his favour then Berdych may do fairly well in the Australian Open, but is unlikely to win it.


Juan Martin Del Potro

Del Potro had a very good and consistent 2011, and looked to be nearing his best towards the end of the year. Del Potro has the game to win a grand slam and having already one win there is no doubt he has the mental ability needed in big matches. Look for Del Potro to go fairly deep and cause many problems along the way, but Del Potro will probably full short of winning it all.


Gael Monfils

Monfils made a very good start to the season by beating Nadal and making it to the final of the Qatar Open, where he lost out to Tsonga. In his match against Nadal, Monfils looked like a very focused player instead of the player who often appears more interested in entertaining the crowd then winning. He was hitting lots of winners against Nadal, they were very few loose shots and in key movements under pressure he looked solid. If which is a big word when talking about Monfils, he can keep his focus then he could go along way and cause lots of problems over the next two weeks.

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