TOP Rank CEO Bob Arum plans to have a heart to heart talk with Manny Pacquiao and will ask for the Filipino fighter’s full cooperation in promoting their upcoming card.
Arum, who just turned 76 last week, is currently in the Philippines where he will attend Pacquiao’s birthday bash on Monday.
Arum arrived Sunday morning and stayed at the posh Shangri-La Hotel in Makati City. He is scheduled to leave Monday morning for General Santos City where Pacquiao will hold his glitzy party.
In an interview Arum expounded on the importance of Pacquiao?s role in helping not only his upcoming March promotion but also the Filipino fighter?s boxing career. He also talked about Pacquiao?s future including a potential bout with Ricky Hatton.
Pacquiao is set to fight Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez on March 15 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.
Watch the video interview with Arum by clicking in the link below
http://sportschat.multiply.com/video/item/20
?One of the reasons why I came is I going to sit down with Manny and have a heart to heart? said Arum in another interview with BusinessMirror at the Hotel’s lobby ?Because from the standpoint of the promotion what’s happening is we do very well with his fights. But we are in the same general area which is good, you make money, but it’s not growing like it should?
Arum pointed out that it is not healthy not only for the promotion but for Pacquiao’s career to fly to the US nearly a week before his fight.
?There’s no time to promote it. When I signed on as his promoter, my idea was to increase his audience, to cross him over? said Arum ?I can’t cross him over if I only have one week to do it, that’s ridiculous. It can only happen in the United States, training in Freddie’s gym, either 6 or 8 weeks before the fight and then I can get him on television programs without interfering with his training. I can have magazine interviews and I can break him out to the general public. Otherwise we are jus fooling ourselves?
Pacquiao’s American trainer Freddie Roach also arrived Friday morning from Los Angeles and flew directly to General Santos City.
?What am I going to do? I can’t go on television and continuously talk about him. People don’t want to hear that. They want to hear him? added Arum. ?We can get him to programs where he can sing, where he can play music. Where he can show himself as a personality like he’s known here in the Philippines.?
