Gary Shaw says Bob Arum orchestrated “El Perro’s” immigration issues
Alfredo "El Perro" Angulo’s promoter Gary Shaw has charged Bob Arum with a rather serious accusation - he's accused his promotional rival of having outed the immmigration status of Angulo to benefit his
own promotional company, Top Rank.
Angulo, a boxer, came under fire recently when it was announced in various outfits he faces deportation in light of pending immigration issues. HBO confirmed it would have no part in the fighter until
he can prove his legal status.
The news was first broken by Boxing Examiner’s Michael Marley, and included apparently informed quotes by Bob Arum.
“Nobody is going to touch this guy. Nobody is interested now because of the huge legal problem. He picked the wrong time to be an illegal immigrant in our country, that's for sure," said Arum.
Shaw, responding to the comments, said he doesn’t believe it is a coincidence that it was Arum to speak first about the news.
“Arum dropped the dime on Perro, period. That was a sh*tty move by them,” he told boxingscene.com
Shaw claims the back story to Angulo relates to Top Rank fighter Miguel Cotto, and his recent decision to sit out for the rest of the year. Cotto claimed a lack of desirable competition. He was initially
set to have a high-grossing bout with undefeated Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. in December but the fight fell through. At that point, Shaw claims HBO approached Arum, who promotes Cotto, with the prospect of Cotto-Angulo, and Arum became desperate to avoid it.
"Arum dropped the dime on Angulo to protect Cotto 100 per cent, as HBO asked Bob to have Cotto fight Perro,” Shaw said. “They would have continued to pressure Bob into making that fight.”
The determining motivation for Arum to avoid the bout was the risk factor. If Angulo were to beat Cotto, a projected Top Rank high-grosser between Chavez Jr. and Cotto in early 2011 would be seriously
diminished as a money maker. Therefore, Shaw speculates, Arum uncovered some dirt to tarnish Angulo’s name in order to take a fight with Cotto off the table.
Shaw referenced Cotto’s 2008 fight with Antonio Margarito, which he lost by TKO, and said a bout with Angulo, who resembles Margarito stylistically, would be no different.
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