Where have all the (good) fighters gone

There’s nothing going on next weekend that is worthwhile wagering on, or even worthy of much discussion. Okay, Ivan Calderon will give another demonstration perhaps of his pure boxing ability in a junior flyweight unification bout against some other 108-pounder, but it really is just another wasted week in what has become a wasteland year.

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Instead of arguing about the 2010 "fight of the year," the Boss Scribes will probably reach a unanimous decision about the non-fight of the year, the showdown between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. that has failed to happen.

The category for fighter of the year should also be scrapped, perhaps in favor of "duck of the year." Pacquiao and Mayweather have competition here from such as David Haye and even Paul Williams, unless the Punisher finally accepts a rematch with Sergio Martinez.

And just when you start to believe that there is a new generation on the rise, disappointment strikes again, as in the recent poor performances by Devon Alexander and Chad Dawson.

It may not be time to join the bandwagon for mixed martial arts, but where is roller derby or six-day bicycle racing when you need them?

And as poor as the year has been, the alphabets have reliably made it worse by their greed that increasingly devalues all titles by creating more and more of them.

The promoters don’t help, either. Take Bob Arum – please. With Mayweather determined to remain on the sidelines for the rest of the year, instead of putting Pacquiao into the next most appealing match, Arum has snaked his way into forcing his star into a meaningless match with the most undeserving boxer in the world, Antonio Margacheato.

Unless you have a desire to watch the man who had loaded wraps inside his gloves before going out to face Sugar Shane Mosley take a well-earned beating, there can be no reason for this proposed contest, not when Juan Manuel Marquez is willing and able to oppose Pacquiao a third time.

Margacheato should not be allowed to fight, PERIOD, despite his contention that he knew nothing of the Plaster-of-Paris traces in his mitts, that it was all the doing of his since-fired trainer. The California commission, which pulled Margacheato’s license for a year and has just refused to give it back, means Arum will have to slither off and find another toilet to put this drek. Hey, that’s why he’s in the hall of fame, right?

Excuse the rampant negativity, but don’t blame the messenger. At least in my dotage, I no longer have to deal on a daily basis with the key players in this miserable exercise in futility.

NOTES: Maybe Chad Dawson wasn’t so Bad, but Jean Pascal was better than expected – and the same can be said about Andriy Kotelnik the week before against Devon Alexander….At least, that’s an attempt to say something positive….And if Alexander and Timothy Bradley do fight Jan. 29, maybe 2011 can qualify for comeback of the year, though it would help if Pacquiao and Mayweather finally agreed to settle matters.