The International Boxing Federation yesterday ordered Filipino IBF super-bantamweight champion Manny Pacquiao and his mandatory challenger Jose Luis Valbuena to a purse bid on Jan. 16 at the IBF?s new offices in East Orange, New Jersey.
But Pacquiao, who moved up in weight (featherweight) to fight Mexican legend Marco Antonio Barrera whom he beat in a non-title but highly-regarded bout at the Alamodome last November, seems not too keen on going back to his old division and might ignore the purse bid against Valbuena.
Should Team Pacquiao disregard the IBF mandate, and fight anybody else other than Valbuena, the Filipino boxing champion would be stripped of his title, paving the way for a Valbuena-Israel Vazquez duel for the vacant title, according to Boxingtalk.com.
