Mayweather to Face Guerrero for Tune-Up Showdown with Pacquiao in November

Floyd Mayweather is not fighting Manny Pacquiao on May 5, but the unbeaten champion is seriously preparing for a November showdown with the pound-for-pound king by facing Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero for what appears to be a tune-up match with a southpaw fighter before his much talked- about super fight with the Filipino boxing star.

Mayweather's fight with the Mexican-American southpaw is almost a done deal, according to a report by Raymond Markarian of The Sweet Science, quoting a source familiar with the negotiations who told him "the two sides were very close to securing a deal that could be announced as early as this week."

Early reactions from fight fans about the unexpected match were mixed with majority expressing dismay over the decision of the Mayweather camp.

ESPN's report on the "soon to be announced match" generated interesting comments from readers, as shown here.

"There is no way this fight is going to happen, its a complete sham... I like the ghost but hes coming off surgery, a long layoff, and weight he has never fought at in his career... You accept this fight you are not a fan of boxing END OF STORY."

"This is a big mega fight how? I guess when Elerbe said little fella, he meant another ex-featherweight, super feather and lightweight coming up who never weighed more than 138 pounds. If this happens, I lose all respect for Floyd"

I like Guerrero, but this is just a total disgrace. Golden Boy may not realize it, but they are going to put his future in jeopardy by making this fight. Floyd would seriously get tougher fights in jail. I hope that HBO or Showtime reject this fight, because it isn´t anywhere near PPV worthy.

For readers' information, Robert "The Ghost" Guerrero (29-1-1, 18 KOs) is a Mexican-American boxer who is the former IBF super-featherweight champion and a former two-time IBF featherweight champion of the world and may well be Mayweather's next opponent.

On July 31, 2010, Guerrero moved up to the junior-welterweight division and faced Cuban fighter Joel Casamayor on the undercard of the Marquez vs. Diaz pay-per-view at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas. Guerrero defeated Casamayor by a 10-round unanimous decision.

After trashing Casamayor, Guerrero went on to win two successive fights, the last of which was against Michael Katsidis, which he also won via a unanimous decision.

Guerrero, who stands 5'8" and a southpaw, is now on his 13th winning streak since losing to Gamaliel Diaz in 2006.

Fight critics believe Mayweather is indeed seriously preparing for a big fight with Pacquiao in November, and Guerrero is one fighter who could serve him well in his preparation because of his southpaw stance.

Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, who is now in Manila with Pacquiao's adviser, Michael Koncz, said earlier Mayweather isn't included in the shortlist he is presenting to Pacquiao when they meet today in Manila.

But Pacquiao insists he wants Mayweather for his next fight and has told media he will talk to Arum about his intention to face the unbeaten champion.