IS it really final? Manny Pacquiao fighting Jeff Horn on July 2?
If we go by Michael Koncz?s statement, the answer would seem to be a resounding yes.
?We signed the Jeff Horn contract this morning. Fight is July 2 in Brisbane, Australia,? Koncz has told AFP by text message, according to Inquirer?s Roy Luarca.
It was also reported that Horn, unbeaten in 17 fights with 11 knockouts, has likewise signed the fight contract.
If we go by Koncz?s pronouncements, Pacquiao?s purse has been upped from $5 million to $7.5 million.
For his part, Bob Arum, Pacquiao?s American promoter, has told the Los Angeles Times that only the fight?s final details are being ironed out.
?We?re slowly finishing the deal to the fight, people have agreed on essential points,? Arum said.
If it?s Arum talking, we?ve got to believe. He and he alone is the ultimate authority when it comes to Pacquiao?s fights.
But as I keep saying, there is no such thing as absolute in boxing.
So that contracts may have been signed but still, that does not totally guarantee the holding of a fight.
Even when both fighters have already climbed the ring, a fight has not officially begun.
As I said, only when the first bell is rung signaling the start of the fight will a bout be deemed to have finally started.
But isn?t July 2 a bit too close for comfort for Pacquiao, that day being the last day of the Senate recess from May 31 to July 2?
Meaning, Senator Pacquiao has May and June to prepare for his defense of his WBO welterweight crown, which he had recaptured by decisioning Jessie Vargas last November.
Horn, a former schoolteacher, will become Pacquiao?s first challenger when they clash in Brisbane?s 55,000-seat Suncorp Stadium.
The fight?s holding seems safe, purse-wise, as it will be bankrolled by the Queensland Government and Brisbane City Council.
?Horn is an Aussie,? Arum told the Los Angeles Times. ?There?s government behind it. They want the fight. Essentially, to buy the cheese, they wanted Pacquiao against this Aussie fighter.?
Obviously, Horn and his compatriots want the fight more than Pacquiao. A win over the Filipino icon could jumpstart Horn?s career.
