VIDEO: Rey Mysterio Jr. flying kick kills Mexican wrestler; manslaughter charge possible

In this May 27, 2010 photo, Mexican wrestler Pedro Aguayo Ramirez, known as Hijo del Perro Aguayo, poses for photographers at the start of a news conference in Mexico City. Ramirez, the son of a wrestling legend in the country, died early Saturday March 21, 2015, from a hit suffered in the ring in Tijuana, the Baja California state prosecutor's office said. (AP Photo/Enrique Ordonez)

WATCH:



MEXICO CITY -- Professional wrestler Rey Mysterio Jr. expressed stunned sympathy Saturday after authorities said his blow during a wrestling match the night before killed the son of a Mexican wrestling legend.

Pedro Aguayo Ramirez, known as Hijo del Perro Aguayo, fell unconscious on the ropes Friday after receiving a flying kick from Mysterio, according to video of the match in a municipal auditorium in Tijuana, Mexico.

The Baja California state prosecutor's office said Ramirez died from the blow in the ring. TMZ reported that cause of death appeared to be a snapped vertebrae when Ramirez's head hit the ropes.

The state prosecutor's office said it is investigating whether to file a manslaughter charge, The Associated Press said.

In several tweets posted in Spanish, Mysterio, whose real name is Oscar Gutierrez, said he was left wondering how God allowed such a tragic accident to occur.

According to wrestlezone.com, two of the tweets translate as: "Just formed a friendship between brothers who opened years ago and we should not question the designs of God. But in this occasion I wonder why and I do not understand it...I take you with me for the rest of my life, rest in peace HijoDelPerro." The match continued for about two minutes until other participants and the referee realized Aguayo was seriously injured and began to tend to him, AP said.

He died at the hospital at about 1:30 a.m. Saturday, prosecutor's spokesman Raul Gutierrez said.

The Crash, the company that reportedly organized the event, couldn't be reached for comment.

"I have no words for this terrible news," Joaquin Roldan, director of the AAA wrestling federation, said on Twitter. "My sincerest condolences for the Aguayo Ramirez family."

Mexico is famous for its colorful characters and costumes in professional wrestling, popularly known as lucha libre. The fighters perform daring aerial maneuvers inside and outside the ring.

Aguayo, 35, had wrestled for 20 years and was the son of the legendary Pedro "Perro" Aguayo, now retired and a member of the Aztec lucha hall of fame.

The younger Aguayo was also popular and led a group called "Los Perros de Mal," or the bad dogs. He won numerous titles, including national pairs with his father, a national heavyweight championship and the Consejo Mundial Lucha Libre world trios championship.

"It makes me very sad because he was a professional colleague and I have great affection for his father," the wrestler Hijo del Santo said in a telephone interview. "I think the fans in Japan, the U.S. and Mexico, of course, where he was very popular, must be in mourning, especially because of his youth. He had much ahead of him."

Source: Syracuse

Read More

Australian boxer Smith dies following fight with Filipino

Despite his bruises, Brayd Smith (C) showed no signs of distress until well after his ten-round fight with John Vincent Moralde (L). Photo from Team Moralde

MANILA, Philippines - Braydon Smith, the Australian boxer who collapsed shortly after losing a ten-round boxing match to Filipino fighter John Vincent Moralde, has died after being taken off life support on Monday, March 16.

Family spokesman James O'Shea confirmed the news two days after the ill-fated bout, which occurred at the Rumours International in the 23-year-old Smith’s hometown of Toowoomba, Australia.

Smith, whose final record rests at 12-1 (10 knockouts), was thoroughly outfought in the bout, though observers say there was no point in the bout when it appeared to be a desperate situation that needed to be halted.

John Vincent Moralde wears a shirt from Braydon Smith's Gym upon his return to the Philippines. Photo by Ryan Songalia

"He really wanted to change the image of boxing," said O'Shea. “A lot of times in this country the sport gets a bad rap."

Smith took photos with his opponent and mingled with fans in the crowd afterwards but collapsed in his dressing room approximately 90 minutes after the fight. His father is trainer Brendon Smith, who guided Michael Katsidis to a lightweight championship. Brendon Smith also promoted the event.

He was initially taken to the local Toowoomba Hospital before being airlifted to Brisbane’s Princess Alexandra Hospital, where his family held bedside vigil before the decision was made.

The Davao City, Philippines native Moralde, 20, arrived in Manila on Sunday evening before traveling to General Santos City on Monday morning.

“We offer our prayers to Brayd’s fiancé and the whole family,” said Jim Claude Manangquil, Moralde’s promoter. “It’s a tragic time for everyone involved but I pray that God watches over them.

Smith was in his final year of studies for his Bachelor of Law degree at University of Southern Queensland.

Source: Rappler

Read More

Sources: Unbeaten world champ Rigondeaux sparring with Pacquiao

Getting a world-class sparring partner who has a similar style to Floyd Mayweather is beyond difficult to find, but Manny Pacquiao may have found just the perfect guy for the job.

Sources told GMA News Online that unbeaten world super bantamweight champion Guillermo Rigondeaux has been tapped to spar with Pacquiao in preparation for his long-awaited showdown against Mayweather on May 2.

One source said that Pacquiao and Rigondeaux have already started to spar with each other at the famed Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles this past week. Pacquiao was said to not have worn a headgear during the sparring session while Guillermo was equipped with full boxing gears.
A pugilist who possesses excellent speed, power, footwork and boxing skills, the 34-year-old Cuban is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and a three-time amateur boxing World Cup gold medalist.

He has a perfect record of 15-0 with 10 knockouts and holds a dominant victory over Nonito Donaire in 2013.

Perhaps more importantly, Rigondeaux possesses the quick reflexes and defensive style that could help Pacquiao get an idea of how it would be to face Mayweather inside the ring.

Rigondeaux had previously trained under Roach, drawing high praise from the Hall of Fame trainer.

GMA News Online got in touch with Rigondeaux's manager Gary Hyde to confirm the report but he respectfully declined to comment on the matter.

Source: GMA News

Read More

WATCH: Ronda Rousey beat Cat Zingano in 14 seconds

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

On Saturday night at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Ronda Rousey fought Cat Zingano as the main card in the highly-anticipated UFC 184. Both MMA stars put their undefeated records on the line in the contest.

And who came out on top? Rousey. In a mere 14 seconds. And how’d she do it? With an armbar, of course. Watch below:


Source: USA Today

Read More

It's official: Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao to fight on May 2

The fight is on as Pacquiao and Mayweather will fight May 2. (Getty Images)

After weeks of speculation, it's finally done. Floyd Mayweather confirmed what had been rumored, that and he will fight Manny Pacquiao. The two will fight on May 2 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas with a reported purse of over $100 million.


Mayweather made the fight official by posting the contract on the shots app.

Pacquiao is happy the two will finally square off.

"I am very happy that Mayweather and I can give the fans the fight they have wanted for so many years," said Pacquiao, who signed the contract for the bout Thursday, according to Yahoo Sports. "They have waited long enough and they deserve it. It is an honor to be part of this historic event. I dedicate this fight to all the fans who willed this fight to happen and, as always, to bring glory to the Philippines and my fellow Filipinos around the world."

Full details have not been announced, but there is expected to be a 60-40 revenue split with Mayweather earning at least $120 million and Pacquiao making $80 million.
Mayweather, 37, has a career record of 47-0 with 26 knockouts and last fought Marcos Maidana in September of 2013. Meanwhile, Pacquiao, 36, is 57-5-2 in his career with 38 wins by knockout. The southpaw's last fight came in November against Chris Algieri.

"I promised the fans we would get this done and we did," Mayweather said.

Source: CBS Sports

Read More

Stephen Curry wins his first 3-point shootout championship

Stephen Curry was the fifth competitor to take the floor for the shootout, and he had a first round score of 23.

(NBAE/Getty Images)

It has become popular, considering the NBA’s marked improvement in 3-point marksmanship, to call the 3-point shootout the marquee event of not only the All-Star Saturday night lineup, but the entire weekend. This year’s competition didn’t bust any records, and it did have some NBA-influenced mitigating factors, but the contest did follow through on its promise. Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry hit for 27 points in the final round in a fantastic display to win his first Shootout trophy.

With a lineup featuring the NBA’s leading scorer, last year’s All-Star Game MVP, a player who recently set a record for points in a single quarter, last year’s champion, two MVP candidates, and perhaps the greatest 3-point shooter ever, the shootout figured to be a sound draw.

By nature of the talent behind this group, however, James Harden (the league’s leading scorer and an MVP candidate), the defending champion Marco Belinelli, Los Angeles Clippers sharpshooter J.J. Redick (who in a rare instance had two makes waved off after he stepped on the 3-point line, costing him three points), and even Kyle Korver (on pace to shatter the NBA record for 3-point percentage) were out in the first round. Portland’s Wesley Matthews scored 22 points in his first round, enough to usually win the shootout in some years, and he was still knocked out after his first go-round.

It was fellow Warrior Klay Thompson (24 points in the first round), former shootout champion and 2014 All-Star Game MVP Kyrie Irving (23) and Curry (23) who would gear up for the final round. Irving managed just 18 points in his last turn, Curry caught fire to the tune of scoring 27 out of a possible 34 points (including 13 straight makes) just after, and Thompson disappointed by only hitting for 14 points as his fellow Splash Brother watched from the sidelines.

Curry leads the NBA in 3-point makes this season, and he led the league in both makes and attempts in 2013 and 2014, but oddly his current 3-point percentage would rank as the worst of his career if it sustains. At 39.9 percent, Stephen’s mark would rank him as a lights-out sharpshooter in any other context, but after entering the season shooting a white-hot 44 percent from long range on his career, he’s actually taking a small step back.

The Warriors don’t mind. Not only is Curry the go-to scorer on what at times has ranked as the NBA’s best offense, his all-around game has pushed him into the MVP discussion. Golden State entered the All-Star break with a fantastic 42-9 record, league-best mark that puts the team on pace for 68 wins. It should also be noted that Stephen Curry is also a really great guy.

One drawback during an otherwise fun time out was the NBA’s move to run the TNT commentary of Kenny Smith and Reggie Miller into the Barclays Center’s public address feed. Not only did their insipid back and forth reek of pointless radio-chat-show yammering, but the league did the festivities one step worse – there was actual canned crowd noise, obviously fake applause, being fed into the speakers and/or TNT broadcast feed after every make.

The 3-point shootout is just fine where it is. It will never inspire the sort of immediate cheers and gusto reserved for even the lamest of dunk contests, but that’s just fine. The NBA doesn’t need to create a spectacle out of the event, especially when helmed by some of the league’s least-loved in-game commentators. The fake splash of applause on top of it all was just embarrassing.

The NBA’s 3-point shooting is as good as it has ever been, as evidenced by a shootout-high 27 points being saved for the final round by the best player on the NBA’s best team. The only change we’d ask, beyond the PA commentary nonsense and obvious fake crowd noise, would be to add a few more rounds – because it is so damn fun to watch this bunch let fly from 24 feet.

Source: Yahoo! News

Read More

Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather agree $250m Las Vegas mega-fight

Showdown: Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather have agreed to fight - at last.
Photo: FameFlynet.uk.com

The richest match-up in boxing history between Floyd Mayweather and Manny Pacquiao has finally been agreed after years of haggling.

A source close to the Filipino boxer and congressman revealed to The Sunday Telegraph that Pacquiao completed his contractual agreements on Saturday and that Mayweather is set to sign and will announce the contest which is expected to be worth $250 million (£162 million) in the coming days.
Mayweather was in New York on Friday, buying hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of jewellery, and there are indications that the unbeaten American boxer could even decide to announce the superfight officially at the NBA All-Star Game tip-off, which takes place on Sunday at Madison Square Garden.

“Manny has 100 per cent signed his side of the deal,” the source told Telegraph Sport. “It is now over to Mayweather to close the deal and announce the fight.” Pacquiao himself revealed Friday that he has started training in General Santos City, Philippines for his next fight.

Before his face-to-face meeting with Pacquiao last month at a basketball match in Miami, where the pair later met for an hour in the Filipino's hotel suite, Mayweather had appeared on CBS coverage of a boxing event in December and announced that his decision was to face Pacquiao in the ring on May 2.

Through January, however, leaked comments from both sides led to claim and counter-claim over negotiations, which appeared to have stalled again.

But the meeting in Miami re-ignited the deal. Both parties agreed that MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas would be the venue of the fight.

Mayweather has had his past 10 fights there, while Pacquiao has had five of his past seven bouts there.

The fight the world has waited for, on and off for almost six years, now looks set to take place at the MGM Grand on May 2, although it is believed that there are two other dates on the table.

Behind the scenes, the talks have been complex. Top Rank chairman Bob Arum, Pacquiao’s promoter, has overseen his side of the negotiations for the bout since November last year through Leslie Moonves, the president and CEO of CBS, whose subsidiary network Showtime has two more fights left on a six-fight deal with Mayweather.

It is understood that Mayweather's adviser, Al Haymon, has secured a 60 per cent cut of the revenue for his fighter, with Pacquiao, 36, having agreed to a 40 per cent cut.

Mayweather, unbeaten in 47 fights with 26 knockouts, who turns 38 in nine days' time, will take his career earnings to over half a billion dollars from this contest. But the greatest risk to 'Money' Mayweather in this fight is the loss of his status as an unbeaten fighter.

The megafight between the pair of welterweight world champions is expected to shatter all boxing's box-office records, including the all-time pay-per-view buy record of 2.4 million (Mayweather-Oscar De La Hoya), the pay-per-view revenue record of £100 million (Mayweather-Canelo Alvarez) and the all-time gate record of £13 million (Mayweather-Alvarez).

The teams, according to the Pacquiao side, have also agreed on the policy for the 8-ounce gloves they will wear, and have concurred on a pre and post-fight drug testing programme, the latter issue having scuppered talks in 2009, and then in 2010.

The United States Anti-Doping Agency will be assigned for random drug-testing leading into the fight, with all other matters for the bout to be overseen by the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

Pacquiao is under contract with cable network HBO/Time Warner, and it understood that both broadcasters will air a joint pay-per-view event.

The rival television networks had a similar agreement when heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis fought Mike Tyson in 2002.

Source: The Independent

Read More

WATCH: Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather come face to face at NBA match

Miami: Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao have finally met in person.

And now talks might get serious about them meeting in the ring.

The fighters were both sitting courtside, directly across from one another, at a Miami Heat game on Tuesday night. Mayweather went over to Pacquiao at halftime, the men shook hands and chatted briefly, then exchanged phone numbers.

“He gave his number to me and said we will communicate with each other,” said Pacquiao, adding that he had never before met Mayweather in person.

Asked to clarify if the exchange meant the two would negotiate directly about meeting in the ring, Pacquiao said that was the case.

Mayweather did not respond to a question asked by an AP reporter. “Not now,” one of his security guards said, as Mayweather fiddled with his phone.

A bout between the two would almost certainly be the richest ever in boxing, potentially grossing as much as $250 million. Mayweather’s take alone could exceed $100 million.

Mayweather said last month that he’s ready to make the fight happen May 2. Asked Tuesday if that date can finally be the one, Pacquiao — who has said it’s time to give boxing fans what they want — nodded and said “yes.”

When Mayweather said he wanted the May 2 fight to happen, he said Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum had been the main obstacle for it not coming together in the last five years. Mayweather repeated his old charges about Pacquiao not wanting to do blood tests prior to the fight for it not happening five years ago.

He also has no doubt that he could beat Pacquiao.

“I know that he’s not on my level,” Mayweather said last month.

Pacquiao has a similar confidence, saying on Twitter recently that “I can easily beat @FloydMayweather, I believe that.”

It appears to be happenstance that Mayweather and Pacquiao were together on Tuesday.

Pacquiao has been in Miami for several days, after serving as one of the judges in the Miss Universe pageant at Florida International University. He was supposed to leave Tuesday night but said his flight was canceled - as many were in South Florida because of the crippling effects felt nationwide by the havoc a winter storm caused in the New York and Boston areas.

So Pacquiao decided to come to the Heat-Milwaukee Bucks game. He’s a noted basketball fan and has a good relationship with Heat coach Erik Spoelstra, who is of Filipino descent.

Mayweather has been a regular courtside attendee at Heat games for several years.

And it just so happened they picked the same game. Pacquiao said he didn’t expect to see Mayweather - who had a seat just a few feet from Spoelstra’s spot on the side of the court where the Heat have their bench.

Spoelstra met with Pacquiao before the game and said he was “totally shocked” to see Mayweather on the same night. If the fight happens May 2, it would occur somewhere around the end of the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs.

“I hope we’re extremely busy at that time, May 2,” Spoelstra said, “and I hope they’re very busy as well.”

Mayweather, the WBA and WBC welterweight champion, hasn’t lost in 47 fights. Pacquiao, the WBO welterweight titleholder, is 57-5-2 in his career.

Even the Heat in-game marketing arm weighed in on the buzz surrounding the potential fight. They put photos of both fighters on their video screens during a first-half stoppage in play, with the caption “Coming in 2015?”

There’s no sure answer — yet.

Source: Gulf News

Read More

WATCH: Pacquiao shows off Scottish accent

MANILA - Sarangani congressman and boxing champ Manny Pacquiao's English skills seem to be growing by leaps and bounds.

An Instagram post showed the Pacman making an appearance at the NBC shorts show Men in Blazers to talk about football, boxing and his upcoming film.

Pacquiao told hosts Roger Bennett and Michael Davies that he is from Scotland and he was "fighting for freedom against the Englishmen."

This is not the first time that Pacquiao has imitated a Scottish accent. A YouTube video posted in 2010 showed the Pacman talking with a Scottish accent.

"I am from Scotland. Our hero is William. William Wallace," he said.

Pacquiao is promoting his documentary “Manny", which recently had a star-studded premier at the Chinese Theater in Hollywood on Tuesday night.

The event was attended by several showbiz and sports personalities including Jeremy Piven, “Sugar” Ray Leonard, Chuck Liddel, Arianne Celeste, and several others.

Pacquiao earlier told TMZ staff that he no longer wants to pursue a career in music.

“My first album in the Philippines is platinum so that's good enough,” Pacquiao said, referring to his album “Laban Nating Lahat Ito” that featured the hit single, “Para Sa Yo ang Laban na ‘To.”

The boxing superstar also held concerts, usually after his victories in the ring.

But after his remake of Dan Hill's popular 1970's ballad, “Sometimes When We Touch,” Pacquiao stopped recording songs.

The boxer said he no longer sings frequently like he used to.

“I like singing, I love music,” said Pacquiao. “But I don't think music loves me.”

Source: ABS-CBN News

Read More

Mayweather lays blame on Bob Arum for delay in signing Pacquiao fight

After Manny Pacquiao set a deadline for Floyd Mayweather Jr. to sign the contract by the end of the month, the American boxer finally spoke up to air his side of the negotiations.

In an interview with Shade 45 Radio, Mayweather said he wants to fight Pacquiao and said that the deal is still ongoing but they are yet to reach an agreement.

"We’re trying, but it’s been extremely difficult dealing with Top Rank," said the undefeated pound-for-pound king. "I don’t want to sit right here and point the finger at Pacquiao and say that it’s him, because it’s not Pacquiao. It’s his promoter."

Top Rank promoter Bob Arum said that Pacman had already agreed to the terms of the fight but Mayweather has yet to put down his signature to the contract.

The American boxer, however, said that Pacquiao has no say at all in the negotiations.

"Lot of times when Pacquiao says, ‘I agree,’ you don’t have nothing to do with this. You’re not a boss. On the chessboard, you’re a pawn," he said. "They want to point the finger at the other guy, which is me."

Mayweather said he is committed to making the fight happen, but expressed concerns about  Pacquiao's ability to attract an audience and generate revenue.

"Once again, we have to look at his pay-per-view numbers. His last fight didn’t even do 300,000 homes," he said. "So let’s make this make sense. I mean, he did get knocked out not too long ago."

The boxers will reportedly split the purse 60/40 for the potential May 2 fight, with the lion's share of around $120 million already assured for Mayweather.

Mayweather hinted that he is the bigger of both fighters and the one who will bring the money on the fight due to his unblemished 47-0 professional record.

Source: GMA News

Read More

Getting closer: Pacquiao, Mayweather agree on fight venue

The Associated Press - Floyd Mayweather Jr., Bob Arum and Manny Pacquiao remain hugely influential figures. (AP/Special to Yahoo Sports)

The camps of WBC champion Floyd Mayweather (47-0-0) and WBO champion Manny Pacquiao (57-5-2) got through one hurdle for the highly-anticipated mega-fight as they both agreed that it would be held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, in Las Vegas.

“We’re making progress,” a boxing authority involved in the talks told the Los Angeles Times’ Lance Pugmire on Friday.

In Pacquiao’s last fight at the MGM, Top Rank Promotions boss Bob Arum lashed out at the venue for their lack of support. Arum blasted the arena’s management as they had promotional materials for the fight between Mayweather and Carlos Maidana even though it was already the weekend of the rematch between Pacquiao and Timothy Bradley.

However, this is apparently water under the bridge now as the two camps moved on to other parts of the fight contract.

A highly contested issue is the purse and Pugmire’s source added that Mayweather wants a 60-40 split in his favor and that Pacquiao’s side has expressed willingness to be the B-side.

The drug testing, fight date, and the deal between Showtime and HBO also need to be addressed before the fight could be finally signed but the source added that this could be done in the next seven to ten days.

Source: Yahoo! Sports

Read More