The “partnership,” just slightly over a year old, is already melting like ice cream left unattended in the desert.
On Feb. 8, 2020, boxing icon Sen. Manny Pacquiao entered into a contract with Paradigm Sports Management (PSM) with the end in view of securing a megabuck showdown with one of PSM’s prized clients, mixed martial arts superstar Conor McGregor.
Alas, the fight with McGregor did not push through after the Irish man was knocked out by Dustin Poirier in January 2021.
With McGregor out of the picture, Pacquiao’s business manager Arnold Vegafria announced sometime in April 2021 the Filipino champ was going to fight American Mikey Garcia, a former multiweight division titlist.
However, just a few weeks later, Pacquiao set aside Vegafria’s announcement and personally informed fight fans, through his social media accounts, that he was fighting WBC-IBF welterweight champ Errol Spence Jr. on August 21 in Las Vegas.
Garcia suddenly found himself out of the picture, too.
Garcia thought the Pacquiao fight was a done deal and later disclosed negotiating with Team Pacquiao was like going through an endless maze.
“There’s a lot of people regarding Pacquiao. Everybody around him is a manager,” Garcia told World Boxing News. “Everybody around him is the one adviser you got to talk to.”
Garcia’s lament is not entirely unfounded.
PSM claimed Pacquiao was to receive a $5 million purse in advance.
The deal fell apart after Pacquiao tried to make the $5 million advance a guarantee. This means Pacquiao gets the money even if he decides not to compete.
PSM claimed it was left with no other recourse but to file a complaint for breach of contract against Pacquiao.
PSM claimed it has already paid Pacquiao $3.3 million of the supposed $5 million advance and that Pacman has refused to return the money.
To aggravate the situation, Pacquiao instead announced he was going to fight Spence Jr., not Garcia.
“Pacquiao knew fully well Paradigm had exclusive rights to schedule his next two immediate fights. Nevertheless, in bad faith and material breach of the parties’ contracts, Pacquiao, upon information and belief, had surreptitiously entered into a fight contract with Spence Jr.,” wrote PSM attorney Judd Burstein in the complaint.
Of course, the issues raised by PSM are not without its infirmities.
PSM claimed “exclusive rights” but PSM cannot deny knowledge of the fact that Pacquiao also had a deal in place with Al Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) before it entered the picture.
Pacquiao inked a deal with PBC in late 2018 hoping Haymon can arrange a rematch with Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Pacquiao already had two fights under PBC, against Adrien Broner (January 2019) and Keith Thurman (July 2019), before PSM brokered a deal with Pacquiao.
Pacquiao’s fight with Spence Jr. is supposedly part of the PBC deal, which makes it above board since his contract with PBC is still valid. There is thus nothing “surreptitious” because PSM knew from the outset Pacquiao also has a contract with PBC.
If PSM’s claim of “exclusivity” is successfully rebutted, the only issue to resolve is the return of the $3.3 million allegedly “advanced” by PSM to Pacquiao for the Garcia fight.
Burstein argued that Pacquiao cannot just receive $3.3 million from PSM and suddenly forget the reason why the money was given to him in the first place.
Burstein stressed PSM is seeking a significant amount of money to answer for the damages it supposedly sustained.
PSM is also seeking an injunction order, arguing the Pacquiao-Spence Jr. fight should be put on hold because PSM stands to suffer great economic loss if it pushes through.
Dale Kinsella, Pacquiao’s attorney, denounced PSM’s complaint, calling it “frivolous.”
Kinsella averred that Pacquiao will “vigorously defend himself” and “assert his own claims against Paradigm Sports.”
It appears Pacquiao already has his hands full even before the fight with Spence Jr.
Pacquiao, a senator who may be aspiring for a higher post in the next elections, is also dealing with another “fallout,” this time against President Rodrigo Duterte.
Now, more than ever, Pacquiao needs to work on some nifty “counterpunches” to address all the issues.
