Reports earlier this week that Manny Pacquiao has made his own deal with HBO to televise his November 12th fight with Juan Manuel Marquez were knocked down Tuesday from Pacquiao?s promoters at Top Rank. Pacquiao is coming off a one- fight deal with Showtime that handled his last fight with Sugar Shane Mosley.
Photo: Chris Farina/Top Rank
HBO Pay-Per-View, distributor of prior Pacquiao bouts, of course has been doing what they can to get Pacquiao back in the fold. With the departure of Ross Greenburg from HBO, and the network still involved with Floyd Mayweather Jr., there is every reason to understand HBO and Pacquiao discussing business as the mega fight is expected to happen next year if everything goes to plan.
A source at Top Rank said Tuesday, there still is no definite agreement as to it being either HBO or Showtime televising Pacquiao-Marquez. There is still a process of negotiating and Pacquiao is leaving that part of the fight business, as always is, to his promoter, Bob Arum. Reports that Arum was in New York this week negotiating with HBO are not true. It has been confirmed that Arum is on vacation in France and will return to the Top Rank offices in Las Vegas next week.
HBO reportedly has been pursuing Arum for months, more so now with Greenburg out of the picture. They need to make an impact and Pacquiao, they believe, is their answer. Supposedly, according to what has been heard, HBO made the offer to Arum that tops the one that Showtime presented to the table for the Marquez fight.
As to reports that Pacquiao is negotiating his own deal with HBO, that as well was knocked down as a rumor. When asked to comment, Top Rank Publicist Lee Samuels said, ?There are no truths to reports that have been published that HBO is making a deal with Pacquiao. It?s all about numbers,? he said regarding reports on the internet that will draw numbers when it comes to news about Pacquiao.
HBO still has not named a replacement for Greenburg, leaving all boxing matters, at the moment to, Michael Lombardo and Richard Plepler, and their adviser Kerry Davis. HBO is planning an interview process for the position vacated by Greenburg and there is a report that former New York State Athletic Commissioner Randy Gordon, a former editor at Ring Magazine, will be called in for an interview. When asked for a comment, Gordon denied that he was being considered and that he had a meeting set with HBO executives.
Regardless of who takes over for Greenburg, HBO getting Pacquiao back in the fold becomes an immediate winning situation for the network. Though Top Rank is very pleased with Showtime, partly due to the coverage they receive from CBS television and radio networks, there have been reports that the Showtime camera angles and crews are not HBO quality.
But that should not matter, camera angles, working crews and on air talent. What matters is HBO gets Pacquiao back, and that the ?Pacman? gets what is good for him. The result could be a reunion with Pacquiao and HBO. And we all know why.
Because if Pacquiao holds to the plan, and if Mayweather does his part against Victor Ortiz next month, and with Mayweather and HBO together, well it all makes sense for HBO to have Pacquiao and Mayweather when and if the fight is made.
