Floyd Mayweather Is At the Tables: Where Is Ross Greenburg and HBO?

Last weekend UFC got big buzz and big ratings showing a washed up heavyweight boxer and a 47-year-old movie actor get together in Boston. 

The fight wasn't great, but the outcome was pleasing to fans and the rest of the card took the sting out of the the underwhelming co-headliner. For the UFC that meant three crowd pleasing, successful cards in less than two months.

During that time boxing hasn't put on one bout that was even noticed outside hardcore boxing circles. In fact the only boxing talk of late has been outrage regarding Antonio Margarito getting a license in  Texas and Money Mayweather siting at various Vegas tables.

As a boxing fan I think this is an outrage. And I blame HBO for all of this.

HBO is a network that loves to crow about their "quality" programming and their Emmy wins. But the dirty little secret is that boxing has been one of their most consistent money makers for over 25 years. 

They can run that Temple Grandin TV movie with the little girl from My So Called Life until the cows come home, but the way they get real eyeballs is having a couple of top fighters get in the ring. And right now that ain't happening.

HBO got played by Mayweather when they worked so hard to make the Mayweather-Mosley fight that made him rich again. I can almost guarantee you they gave the okay for Andre Berto to back out of the Mosley fight so Mayweather-Mosley could get made. 

Then they promoted the heck out of a fight that most boxing experts knew was stacked against Mosley, making Mayweather a rich man.

Then he did what Mayweather does best. He took his ball and went home. 

Now HBO is hawking a Pacquiao-Margarito fight that looks particularly egregious and wrong after California refused to license Margarito.

HBO's own documentary, Assault In The Ring, raised the question of a what happens when a fighter uses loaded gloves. That widely seen doc makes the acceptance of Margarito as a foe for Manny should have raised concerns from Ross Greenberg and the gang but it didn't.

Showing a Holocaust doc and then giving an HBO talk show to a neo-Nazi group. It just seems wrong.

I guess they just figure boxing fans are stupid.

I'm guessing fight fans are not. And I predict HBO will suffer at the gate because of it.

HBO should have put pressure on Bob Arum to come up with a better opponent for Paquiao.

That's what Dana White would have done. 

White was willing to call out one of his best fighter, Anderson Silva, when he felt the fans were getting cheated. He said he'd let him walk and go to a rival promotion.

If only Ross Greenburg had those kind of cajones. He has the power.

HBO is the biggest power broker in boxing. But they never seem to use that power.

That's why fight fans are looking a boxing slate with few big fights. Why the top fighters either fighting bums or playing 21.

That's why my friends are starting to buy into the UFC.