FREDDIE Roach wouldn?t mind whoever among Sugar Shane Mosley, Juan Manuel Marquez or Andre Berto will get the blessing as worthy opponent of Manny Pacquiao when the boxing superstar returns to the ring in 2011.
?Whoever he fights, I?ll have Manny ready,? said Roach in an interview with the Las Vegas Review Journal shortly after guiding Amir Khan to a successful title defense of his World Boxing Association (WBA) super lightweight crown against Marcos Maidana at the Mandalay Bay Hotel.
Roach hardly had rest following the 12-round fight, later boarding a plane bound for the Philippines in the company of Top Rank chairman Bob Arum to join the 32nd birthday celebration of Pacquiao and discuss the nature of the Filipino?s first fight next year penciled for an April 16 date at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Arriving with the two personalities in the country early this morning is former world flyweight champion Nonito Donaire Jr.
Arum has brought with him the terms and conditions including the proposed by representatives of the three fighters currently leading the Pacquiao sweepstakes.
?We?ll present Manny with the information and, ultimately, it?s Manny?s decision whom he fights,? said Arum. ?We?ve talked to the other fighters and their promoters, so we know exactly where we stand.?
Arum has made known that he is leaning towards a possible match with Mosley, whom he thinks still has the name recall and personality to make an interesting fight with Pacquiao, the current world?s top pound-for-pound fighter.
?Don?t forget, Mosley beat Oscar (de la Hoya) twice and had a fight with (Floyd) Mayweather. Mosley has just been on the big stage for a long, long time and people knows who he is,? said the veteran boxing promoter.
Although a third ? and hopefully ? final encounter with Marquez is an intriguing bout given the animosity that surrounded their first two fights the last six years, Arum believes the match up wouldn?t really do good business both at the gates and in pay-per-view sales.
