OnThEGRiND BoXiNG

Friday May 22nd, 2009
by Irish Paddy Cronan, - OnThEGRiND BoXiNG Ireland

Just as I predicted Guillermo Rigondeaux’s debut will go ahead tonight at the Fontainbleau Hotel, in Miami Beach, Florida, USA. However Rigondeaux’s purse will be withheld until the now pending legal matter regarding his managerial contract has been ironed out.

Those who have been following the developments in the Rigondeaux debut saga as they have been reported (and prior to them being “reported”) on OnThEGRiNDBoXiNG RaDIo and at OnThEGRiNDBoXiNG.coM are aware that Gary Hyde is contractually bound to Rigondeaux as his manager. In complete disregard of this fact, Arena signed Rigondeaux to a promotional contract without Mr. Hyde’s involvement, creating the muddled picture one now sees when trying to assess the legal and contractual situation of Cuba’s most decorated amateur boxer.

Now, another person has come forward making claims of signing Guillermo Rogondeaux to a managerial contract which predates that of Gary Hyde’s, one Tony Gonzalez. The contract Mr. Gonzalez is referencing is dated July of 2006, however worth noting is the fact that Mr Gonzalez is also Arena Box’s attorney. I can’t help but find it amusing that this contract has only come to light within the last week. Why would Arena have referred to their promotional contract with Rigondeaux in the past as their legal ground to stand on, so to speak ? Now in the face of the threat of Mr. Hyde’s contract, Arena realizes that their attorney had a contract with the boxer all along. I will withhold my opinion on that issue, and leave it for reader to decide. I would point out though, that Mr Gonzalez was dismissed as a representative of Arena by the court, as he is a defendant himself.

Gary Hyde is exceptionally pleased with the outcome of Friday morning’s Miami court proceedings and is looking forward to the next court date. He feels confident that his contract will be the one to hold true. While it’s a shame that the situation had to go this far, Arena Box could have resolved this dispute months ago, and showed a lack of planning and business savvy that is unfitting of the fine boxer they are seeking to promote. They simply decided to ignore Mr. Hyde with the hope that he would not have the financial muscle to challenge in the U.S. courts.

It is this writer’s opinion that Gary Hyde will not want to work with Arena in the future.

I would imagine all of the big promoters in the United States will be licking their lips awaiting the outcome of the June 9th court case. On a separate note, it is refreshing to see somebody like Gary Hyde take on one of the big boys. Surely, it would have been easy for Gary to cut his losses and move forward, but instead he chose to hire a legal team in America who worked like Trojans in the lead up to today’s court date. It seems Gary’s fighting spirit would not allow him to yield as easily as some might have thought.

I leave you with an Irish motto…Riamh nár dhruid ó spairn lann.

It roughly translates as, “Those who never run from a fight.”

For all the latest news regarding the Rigondeaux contract saga, and news on all of the Cuban exile boxers keep your browser locked to Www.OnThEGRiNDBoXiNG.coM.

Follow Paddy on Twitter.