MANILA, Philippines – Top Rank main man Bob Arum said that dispute on the purse share between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. will imperil what could be boxing?s richest showdown this year.
Arum said he?s close to shelving the superfight happening in May or June.
?Yeah,? he told The STAR.
?Unless something comes along,? Arum hoped.
The fight between Pacquiao and Mayweather is the one the whole world wants to see, and twice over the last two years it came close to happening.
?But every time we get close to it there?s another craziness that comes,? Arum said.
First, it was the drug-testing procedure, then the court case, and now the purse split.
?The 50-50 split has been there for two years now,? said Arum.
Pacquiao and Mayweather gave fight fans something to look forward to when they spoke on the phone last Thursday, in which the Filipino champ offered a 50-50 split of the purse.
But things came to a screeching halt when Mayweather reportedly said he has turned down the 50-50 offer. Obviously, he wants more than half of the huge pie.
Arum said it could mean the end of the line, but at the same time hoped that the fight may happen sometime in November.
For the meantime, Pacquiao will have to name an opponent for June 9, and Mayweather to look for his own for May 5.
The problem, now it seems, is they?re both looking at Miguel Cotto, the wide-bodied Puerto Rican, who said he will seek the best deal before making the decision.
Pacquiao was given four names to choose from just in case the Mayweather fight doesn?t happen in late May or June 9 as Arum had planned.
And aside from Cotto, the 33-year-old Filipino had Juan Manuel Marquez, Timothy Bradley and Lamont Peterson to consider.
But it seems that Cotto, who was still with Top Rank when he was stopped by Pacquiao inside 12 rounds in 2009, has the inside track.
Arum said they will make the announcement soon.
?We are going to make the announcement this week regarding Manny Pacquiao?s June 9 fight,? said Arum, who won?t name the opponent yet.
?We have to formalize everything before we make the announcement,? he said.
The guessing game is about to end.
