After a successful ring return following his two straight losses in 2012, Filipino boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao is once again becoming the object of aspiring pay-per-view (PPV) fighters for a lucrative career fight.
Any aspiring boxer who has the potential to become a future PPV attraction can be an overnight celebrity and quickly become a millionaire if he gets the nod of Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Arum to take the center stage with Pacquiao. A case in point is Chris Algieri, who shot to stardom faster than he could imagine. Though unbeaten in 20 pro fights, Algieri’s last guaranteed purse was a measly $100,000 which he got when he faced former Pacquiao’s sparring partner Ruslan Provodnikov last June. For the Pacquiao fight, Algieri is reportedly getting a whooping $1.5 million, making him an instant millionaire. This does not include his share in the PPV , the amount of which is dependent on the PPV sales for the Nov. 22 fight in Macau, China. Algieri is one typical example of a virtually unknown fighter who becomes an overnight millionaire, courtesy of Pacquiao. Other PPV fighters who got paid millions when they fought Pacquiao include Juan Manuel Marquez, Marco Antonio Barrera, Antonio Margarito, and Miguel Cotto, among others. Pacquiao is yet to dispatch Algieri in their upcoming fight but several high-level fighters have already telegraphed their intention to partner with Pacquiao for another lucrative fight. One of the high-level fighters who wants a big chunk of the purse in a Pacquiao fight is Marcos Maidana, who lost twice to pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather, Jr. last May. He said Top Rank has offered him a fight with Pacquiao before but he chose to face Mayweather instead. Another fighter who has been calling out Pacquiao is Adrien Broner, who was unbeaten before he succumbed to the assault of Maidana last year and lost his WBA welterweight title. Broner is a natural light welterweight and with Pacquiao’s impending decision to go down to the light welterweight limit of 140, there is a good chance for him to have a crack at the eight-division world titlist.
Filipino boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao With permission from Jun Aquino Like this image One of the fighters in the undercard of the Pacquiao-Algieri fight in Macau, China is Jessie Vargas, Pacquiao’s stablemate at Top Rank. Vargas has been eyeing a future fight with Pacquiao and if he performs impressively against Antonio de Marco on Nov. 22, he could be in the Pacquiao sweepstakes next year. Arum, who promotes both Pacquiao and Vargas, has promised the unbeaten Mexican-American a crack at Pacquiao should he dominates deMarco in their upcoming fight. One of these aspiring light welterweight contenders will have a rare opportunity to become a millionaire should he land a lucrative fight with Pacquiao next year. Only Floyd Mayweather can prevent the Filipino star from facing anyone of these aspiring fighters and that will happen the moment Mayweather finally signs a contract to face Pacquiao in the ring.
