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A new year is upon us, so here are some things I'd like to see in boxing in 2011:

• For the historical pound-for-pound showdown between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. to finally happen. At this time last year I (like every other boxing fan on the planet) was wishing for it. Negotiations failed. They both fought other opponents. They both won. Then a second round of negotiations to make the fight for this past fall failed. Now it's like déjà vu all over again as I (like every other boxing on the planet) still hope to see them get together. Who knows if it will happen with all the problems Mayweather has outside the ring and a seeming reluctance to face Pacquiao inside it. We can still hope, can't we?

• For Mayweather Jr. to leave all security guards alone and to stay away from iPhones and video cameras.

• Pacquiao-Mayweather is a huge fight, the biggest in boxing. But I'd also like to see the second biggest fight in boxing, which can happen if David "The Ducker" Haye, the paper titleholder, finally stops running from champions Wladimir Klitschko or Vitali Klitschko, if for no other reason so he can earn a new nickname. "The Ducker" has quacked the quack for years. It's time for him to walk the walk. It seems as though the fight with Wladimir is on the verge of being made, but I'll believe it when I see it.

• For Juan Manuel Marquez to get the third fight with Pacquiao. He sure deserves the opportunity way more than Shane Mosley, who has done nothing to warrant the opportunity he's getting -- unless you count being wiped out by Mayweather and looking abysmal in a draw with Sergio Mora.

• For Devon Alexander and Timothy Bradley Jr. to give us a fight as memorable as the negotiations.

• For Amir Khan to fight the Alexander-Bradley winner this summer. Since Khan intends to fight in the spring first, he might as well set the record straight and have a rematch with Breidis Prescott, who drilled him in one round in his only loss.

• For the winner of the Fernando Montiel-Nonito Donaire bantamweight title fight to face the winner of the Showtime bantamweight tournament final between Joseph Agbeko and Abner Mares.

• Respect for Sergio Martinez and Miguel Cotto from HBO.

• For Paul Williams not to have been ruined by that knockout to Martinez.

• An American heavyweight who matters.

• To finally get the featherweight showdown between Juan Manuel Lopez and Yuriorkis Gamboa before one of them gets licked.

• For HBO's Ross Greenburg and Kery Davis to just buy the best fights their massive budget allows and stop with all the extra promises, side deals and agendas. This isn't rocket science.

• And while we're on the topic of HBO, would it kill them to show the round card girls once in awhile? I mean this is the network that televises "Cathouse" for crying out loud!

• Also for HBO to produce another batch of "Legendary Nights" episodes and to do some countdown shows previewing the biggest fights that don't warrant a "24/7" series.

• A ringside commentary gig for Mike Tyson.

• For Bernard Hopkins to get the rematch he richly deserves against Jean Pascal.

• More tournaments featuring the best fighters in a given division.

• For prospects such as Saul Alvarez, David Lemieux and James DeGale to live up to the hype.

• For Chad Dawson's pairing with great trainer Emanuel Steward to pay dividends.

• For promoters to open the vaults and release their best fights on DVD.

• Lasting peace between Top Rank and Golden Boy. Yeah, I'm talking to you, Bob Arum, Richard Schaefer and Oscar De La Hoya.

• And for Arum to, for once, do what's best for boxing and not only for himself.

• A bigger fight-buying budget for ESPN's Doug Loughrey.

• Even more live foreign fights on ESPN3.com, the internet's gift to fight fans.

• For Alexander Povetkin to spit or get off the pot.

• A strong rebound for Daniel Jacobs.

• An HBO card featuring the broadcast team of Jim Lampley, Larry Merchant and Max Kellerman.

• More Michael Katsidis.

• For Sampson Lewkowicz to keep finding unknown foreign talent and unleashing it in the United States.

• For James Kirkland to have learned his lesson.

• Sobriety and a way back to the top for Kelly Pavlik.

• For Showtime's Ken Hershman to have a headache-free ride through the rest of the Super Six World Boxing Classic.

• For Lucian Bute to meet the Super Six winner -- Andre Ward? -- before the end of 2011.

• For Andre Dirrell to remember the name of his doctor.

• For Carl Froch to get the television deal in England that he deserves.

• For Glen Johnson to get a fair shake from the judges when he faces Froch in the Super Six semis.

• Meaningful fights for Tomasz Adamek and Tavoris Cloud.

• For Antonio Tarver to forget about his doomed heavyweight experiment and stick to his blossoming career as one of the best television analysts in the business.

• For Joan Guzman to stop wasting his time and ours.

• To see Nick Charles beat cancer. He's been fighting it as hard as any boxer ever fought in the ring.

• For Ulises Solis to get a rematch with Luis Lazarte after he was utterly ripped off with a draw (and for Lazarte not to bite him or hit him behind the head again if he gets it).

• The fight for Argentina: Marcos Maidana against Lucas Matthysse.

• For Showtime's "ShoBox" cards to be used as more than just bargaining chips thrown to promoters involved in the Super Six.

• For Andre Berto to stop being protected by Al Haymon and HBO and to fight a prime opponent. The kid is good. He doesn't need to be babied.

• For Main Events' Kathy Duva to build some more ticket sellers.

• All the martinis he can drink, all the cigars he can smoke and all the meatballs he can eat for promoter Artie Pelullo.

• Good health for Robert Guerrero's wife, Casey.

• Proper immigration papers for Alfredo "Perro" Angulo.

• Humberto Soto-Urbano Antillon II.

• Jose Sulaiman to resign as president for life of the WBC again, but this time really mean it.

• For the wretched WBA to go out of business. The sooner, the better.

• For some alphabet outfit to give me a super duper intergalactic emeritus interim championship title belt twice removed in recess -- for a small sanctioning fee, of course.

• The best little fight that can be made in boxing: Giovani Segura against Roman Gonzalez.

• A career rebirth at welterweight for Paulie Malignaggi, who always finds a way to keep things interesting. And a little appreciation for what his former promoter, Lou DiBella, did for him.

• For somebody to take the silver spoon out of Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.'s mouth.

• Happy retirement for Nate Campbell, who bowed out with class at the perfect time, and Israel Vazquez.

• Unfortunately, the same wish as last year: Retirement for Roy Jones and Evander Holyfield.

• For Fernando Vargas to stay retired instead of making a rumored return.

• For Jeff Wald to find a second life for "The Contender."

• Another one from last year: For HBO to bring back the old "World Championship Boxing" music. The new version rots.

• For Dan Goossen to find a heavyweight who can at least go the distance with a Klitschko now that his three contenders have all been knocked out in the last 2½ years.

• Some recognition for the best matchmaker in the sport, Top Rank's Brad "Abdul" Goodman.

• How about some American television exposure for Marco Huck, Hozumi Hasegawa and Anselmo Moreno?

• For Fight Freaks everywhere, great fights all year long.

• And, as usual, for peace on Earth, but not inside the ring.

Happy New Year.

  @danrafaelespn Cameron Dunkin also told me that Kelly Pavlik is scheduled to come out of rehab Tuesday and is anxious to return to boxing. #boxing