Oscar De La Hoya said his star fighter Amir Khan is ready and eager to fight Cathedral City boxer Timothy Bradley in a unification bout between the two best fighters in the 140-pound class.
But De La Hoya, the head of Golden Boy Promotions, said the obstacle would be Bradley’s promoter, Bob Arum. Judging by the answers from De La Hoya, it appears the leaders of boxing’s top two promotional companies will have a hard time working together as their feud is re-ignited.
?We would definitely love (a fight against Bradley) and Amir Khan wants to fight the best,? De La Hoya said Wednesday while promoting Friday’s fights at Fantasy Springs. ?The truth here is, will Bob Arum want it? That’s the question and that’s been the stumbling block.
?Bob Arum doesn’t want to make the fights. We’re open to any fights, Golden Boy wants the best fights, and we want to match up our guys with the best.?
De La Hoya, who will have a meet-and-greet with fans Friday at Fantasy Springs, and Arum have long feuded, which resulted in many of the top fighters not facing each other as both promotions have kept their boxers fighting in-house. There seemed to be a peace between the two when Arum’s top star, Manny Pacquiao, fought Juan Manuel Marquez, a top Golden Boy fighter.
But the two promoters began throwing verbal jabs toward each other again last week through the media and Twitter.
When it came to talking about a potential Khan-Bradley fight, De La Hoya said the ball is in Arum’s court.
?Top Rank has their plans,? De La Hoya said. ?When you have a man like Bob Arum who only makes in-house fights, it’s very difficult to deal with.?
Even before Bradley signed with Top Rank, a fight with the British star Khan was difficult to make. There was a plan to have the two stars fight in July, with Khan offering half of his European TV money. But Bradley turned down a deal that would have been the richest payday in his career.
Since the fight broke down, Bradley switched from Gary Shaw Promotions to Top Rank. Although Golden Boy has many of the top 140-pound fighters in the world, such as Marcos Maidana, Lucas Matthysse and Erik Morales, Bradley signed with Top Rank. One of the reasons, people speculate, is for the opportunity to fight Manny Pacquiao, one of the two biggest box-office attractions in boxing.
