LOS ANGELES — Manny Pacquiao may have to wait a little longer if he hopes to meet Juan Manuel Marquez in a highly anticipated grudge match as promoter Bob Arum virtually shut the door on the proposed September battle, saying that the Mexican will face a fellow Mexican in his next fight.
Instead, Pacquiao could probably get a megabuck payday with his team’s Plan B already fast shaping up as a bigger option—a return match with Marco Antonio Barrera.
With three more days left before Barrera’s much-awaited return to the ring, a 12-round non-title encounter with dangerous Paulie Ayala of Texas on Saturday at the Home Depot Center in the city of Carson here, Pacquiao could finally get a specific answer as to who will he face next.
