A world title, unification bout between Manny Pacquiao and Terence Crawford is still more of a pipe dream than a reality.
Dousing cold water on the rumored clash between the two titans in Macau or somewhere in the Middle East this year or the next, Sean Gibbons, president of Manny Pacquiao’s MP Promotions, wonders on what grounds Bob Arum, founder and chief executive officer of boxing promotional company Top Rank, makes pronouncements on the fictional fight.
“I have no idea what Bob is talking about, and I am not involved,” said Gibbons to The Manila Times in an online interview on Friday while forwarding a screenshot of a @Dailyboxing365 tweet of Pacquiao and Crawford with the caption, “This fight will never happen.”
“The only thing I can say is, that is news to me,” he disclaimed.
While Gibbons declined to say more, it is a matter of public record that under the contractual obligations with Al Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions, the 41-year-old Pacquiao is prohibited from fighting under the boxing outfit of Arum, his former promoter.
With no fights in sight, the eight-division champion with a 62-7-2 win-loss-draw record and 39 knockouts remains in his hometown of Gen. Santos City.
Last June, Arum talked to the media, including The Manila Times, about Pacquiao’s supposed interest in a match with undefeated World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight warrior Crawford, who has a 36-0 win-loss record with 27 knockouts.
But even Arum is uncertain if or when such a bout can occur.
“Obviously, if it can happen, it’ll happen. And if it can’t happen, it won’t happen. But nothing is concrete on that,” Arum said to boxingscene.com writer Keith Idec last Wednesday. “We hope we can do it. We’re trying, but this is not a usual situation.”
Whether it would be against defending WBO titleholder Pacquiao or some other worthy welterweight, Arum assured Crawford there would be a bout by November 14 or 21.
