Unless he agrees to a more reasonable paycheck, Juan Manuel Marquez might as well kiss his hopes of facing Manny Pacquiao in a rematch goodbye.
?He wants a big percentage of the money and that would be a huge sacrifice on Manny?s part,? said Top Rank president and Pacquiao promoter Bob Arum.
?Marquez brings nothing on the table. For a few pay-per-view buys he?s asking a big percentage of the money,? added Arum during an overseas conversation.
?He should be ready to take a flat amount. Or he has disqualified himself,? added the legendary promoter amid reports that negotiations are on for a Pacquiao-Marquez rematch.
World Boxing Council president Jose Sulaiman said the other day Pacquiao should face Marquez, and finally go for a title than stage fights with nothing but money at stake.
Sulaiman said if Pacquiao continues to refuse to face Marquez, it only means that the Filipino southpaw doesn?t want to fight the Mexican who rose from three early knockdowns to force a draw in 2004.
But Arum said Pacquiao should fight whom he wants to fight, and in the growing list are Edwin Valero, Humberto Soto, Juan Diaz, David Diaz and Joel Casamayor.
Valero, the WBA super-featherweight champion who has knocked out all his 22 opponents, will defend his crown again Juan Carlos Salgado on Dec. 15 and should be ready to face Pacquiao in March.
But Arum, this early, is stepping on the breaks.
?The problem with Valero is that he can only fight outside of the United States,? said Arum of the Venezuelan who failed a medical in the US due to a speck in the brain resulting from a motorcycle accident in 2001.
?He can fight in Macau. But the problem is that the US-based corporation that might carry the fight there doesn?t want to get involved with anything that could happen inside the ring.
?So there?s some explaining to do. Fighting Valero is very questionable,? said the Top Rank boss.
Arum did not talk about Soto or Casamayor, but the possibility of staging fight between any of the Diazes ? lightweight champs Juan of the WBA, WBO and IBF, and David of the WBC.
?Juan Diaz just came off the lowest rating of an HBO fight. Nobody was at the fight,? said Arum of last Sunday?s bout in Chicago where Juan beat another Diaz, Julio, to keep his crown.
?Juan is a great fighter and he?s intelligent. But they have to build him up. People have to see that. For me he?s a fighter Manny can face later and not now,? he added of Don King?s prot?g?.
Arum pointed to David as the most logical candidate.
?David is available. And I can make that fight and stage it in decent terms (for both boxers). But it?s up to Manny if he really wants to climb to 135 pounds,? he said.
David, like Pacquiao, is also under Top Rank. No other fight should come easier for Arum than one involving two of his boxers.
