Ken Hershman sprang from his desk and took a seat a few feet away on a plush white couch under a framed picture of Mike Tyson unleashing a punch at Evander Holyfield.
?I need to sit by the phone in case Floyd Mayweather calls,? Hershman said, as he lifted the receiver of a telephone nearby. ?I have to be on call.?
It was a joke, of course.
The possibility of Mayweather Jr. ringing Hershman, the president of HBO Sports, was about as likely as Mayweather announcing on Thursday that he will fight Manny Pacquiao next year.
But there have been strong signals in recent days that both sides are talking and in negotiations, providing at least tepid confidence the super fight could happen.
Les Moonves, CEO and president of CBS, the parent company of Showtime (which broadcasts Mayweather?s fights) has been speaking to Bob Arum, who promotes Pacquiao, according to Arum.
Arum also said that Moonves and CEO and Chairman of HBO Richard Plepler (the network for Pacquiao?s fights) recently had lunch together to ?talk about a number of topics,? presumably one of them being the fight.
?The talks continue with Les and he?s continuing to tell me what the Mayweather’s camp?s position is,? Arum told the Daily News in a phone interview on Thursday. ?And hopefully we?ll be able to come to some type of resolution.?
Arum said he last talked with Moonves on Thursday morning and he expects to talk again with him on Thursday night about the fight, while declining to go into specifics.
Arum also said that Mayweather?s powerful advisor Al Haymon has been in talks with Moonves and that Arum also spoke with Plepler on Wednesday about the bout.
?While there?s life, there?s hope,? Arum said of making a deal for the fight to happen. ?As far as the Pacquiao side is concerned, we want to make this thing happen. As far as the Mayweather side, we?re still talking.?
Arum did admit that he is suspicious of the fight taking place, however.
?I have serious questions in my mind whether Mayweather wants to do the fight,? he said. ?If I knew both guys wanted the fight, then that?s one thing. But I?m not sure he wants to fight Pacquiao. Deep down, I always felt that he didn?t want to fight him.?
Mayweather’s behavior seems to contradict that viewpoint.
During a Friday interview on Showtime, Mayweather said that he?s ?just waiting? on Pacquiao?s camp and that he wants to fight him, even proposing the match take place on May 2.
Pacquiao responded on Twitter on Tuesday, saying: ?Let?s give the fans the fight they want.?
Hershman politely declined to comment on any of these happenings.
?Nope,? Hershman said laughing in his midtown office as a public relations flack sat nearby.
?Not going to talk,? Hershman said. ?I?m not even going to confirm (that talks are ongoing).?
Finally after several more attempts, Hershman said, ?I think it?s best that we move to a different question. I don?t think talking about it publicly will help it get done and if our objective is to have the fight come to fruition somewhere down the road, it?s best we stay out of the media and let it naturally occur or not.?
In other words, talking about the talks might upset the people involved in those talks, a situation that speaks to the fragility of the dialogue.
If the fight doesn?t happen, will it harm the sport, since so many fans are calling for it?
?Again as a fan, there would be some level of disappointment but it?s a business call on everyone?s part,? Hershman said. ?But you have to respect it and move on to other options.?
As a result, Hershman and Arum said there were contingency plans being made for Pacquiao?s next fight that don’t involve Mayweather.
?There are conversations taking place,? Hershman said. ?Nobody is sitting here waiting for one particular fight to be made. His business goes on, just like Floyd?s goes on. There are some good opportunities for Manny Pacquiao if we have to go in a different direction and we?re prepared to do that.?
A Heavyweight Grows in Brooklyn: Hershman confirmed that heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko will fight at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on April 25, probably against undefeated Bryant Jennings. It?s the first time since 2008 that Klitschko has fought in the U.S. and will be the first time a heavyweight has fought at Barclays Center.
