This Week In Sports

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By Blake Oestriecher

Pacquiao vs. Pretty Boy

Negotiations are underway for a fight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr., the world's two best pound-for-pound boxers. Both Pacquiao and the undefeated Mayweather are coming off of lopsided wins over Miguel Cotto and Juan Manuel Marquez respectively and those two fights generated more than 2.3 million pay-per-view buys combined. A Pacquiao-Mayweather showdown is the biggest match boxing could offer and would likely smash numerous revenue records. The potential fight in early 2010 would presumably be boxing's biggest draw since Mayweather fought Oscar De La Hoya in 2007, a fight which set the all-time record with 2.44 million pay-per-view buys. (ESPN)

Shaq shows his support

Former LSU star Shaquille O'Neal paid for the funeral of a 5-year-old girl whose tragic story has garnered national media attention. Shaq footed the bill for the burial services of Shaniya Davis, who North Carolina police say was kidnapped, killed and also sold into child prostitution by her mother. After seeing numerous stories on the heartbreaking tale, Shaq said the story "brought a tear to my eye," and he reached out to help the victim's family. Davis' father, Bradley Lockhart, had set up a trust fund to cover funeral expenses, but Shaq stepped in and offered to pay for it. The funeral home would not comment on Davis' funeral specifically, but said that a child's funeral "averages around $4,500." A small price for Shaq, but a very selfless gesture nonetheless. (Associated Press)

Woodson donates huge sum

While Shaq made the NBA proud with his generous donation, Charles Woodson was doing the same for the NFL, and Woodson took a much bigger hit to his bank account. The Green Bay Packers cornerback donated $2 million to the new University of Michigan Mott Children's Hospital and Women's Hospital. Woodson's donation will help fund pediatric research for The Charles Woodson Clinical Research Fund in the hospital which is scheduled to open in 2012. Woodson hopes the hospital will attract the world's top professionals in a wide array of pediatric specialties. (Associated Press)

No one has The Answer

Not a game, not a game. We talkin' bout...retirement. Allen Iverson, citing a lack of interest among NBA teams, is retiring. The 10-time All-Star signed with the Memphis Grizzlies in the offseason, but only played three games with the team before the two eventually split. Iverson ran into similar problems in Memphis that he did last year in Detroit. He didn't want to come off the bench. Sticking to his desire to be a starter, Iverson was waived by the Grizzlies, but received little interest from any team except the New York Knicks. However, the Knicks decided not to sign Iverson in order to develop their younger players. (Associated Press)

Who will be in the Hall?

There are 15 first-time candidates on this year's MLB Hall of Fame ballot, including Roberto Alomar, Barry Larkin, Edgar Martinez and Fred McGriff. The list also includes some notable holdovers from last year's ballot- Andrew Dawson, Harold Baines, Tim Raines, Don Mattingly and the controversial Mark McGwire. There are 26 players on this year's ballot, up from 23 players last year when Rickey Henderson was elected in his first appearance on the ballot. Also on the ballot for the first time is David Segui, who has admitted to using steroids. (Associated Press)

Originally Published: Issue 825 - December 2, 2009

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