Bob Arum is confident that eight-division former world champ Manny Pacquiao will be back in the boxing ring– and that should be good enough to pretty much bank on his return. After all, few know Manny better than Arum and, more importantly, nobody pulls Manny?s strings better than Arum.
So, let?s assume that Arum?s recently-stated October target date for the comeback bout is right on the money. And, if that?s the case, then the big question isn?t who Manny will be fighting, but, rather, who he will NOT be fighting.
In a tug-of-war over his career self-determination, Pacquiao, whose promotional agreement with the aged promoter runs through the end of 2017, could present quite a challenge to Arum, who will be looking to engineer a passing of the torch to one of his young lions.
With that in mind, here?s a look at who will be absolutely off the table if Team Pacquiao has its way.
Terence Crawford
Despite attempts at damage control for passing on the highly-skilled Crawford last April, the actions of Manny and his team all point to the fact that the rising star from Omaha, Nebraska is not on their radar (if they can help it). Team Pacquiao knows that Crawford is just a bad styles match-up and the risk of an ugly loss is high.
Kell Brook
Arum has no piece of Brook, so that right there likely excludes the talented welterweight titlist from the UK. Aside from business, Brook, like Crawford, represents a styles match-up that would be an absolute nightmare for Manny.
The Winner of Keith Thurman-Shawn Porter
Arum may have buried the hatchet (supposedly) with hated business rival Al Haymon, but nothing, but nothing would convince him to risk matching Manny against either one of these athletic and talented welterweights with Haymon reaping the benefits of a win. Pacquiao?s opposition, especially at this stage of his career, will simply have to be ?in house” no matter what.
Vasyl Lomachenko
Lomachenko?s name has been tossed around by Arum recently as a possible foe for Pacquiao at some point in the near future. And while the talented world champ and two-time Olympic Gold medalist may someday be pitted against the Filipino icon, it won?t be this year and it won?t happen without a fight from Team Pacquiao. Despite having to add 17 pounds to his frame to fight Manny at welterweight, Lomachenko would still be a tough out with speed, power, and footwork similar to what Pacquiao displayed in his prime. Expect a passing of the torch should the two ever meet, so don?t count on them meeting for awhile.
