If you shuffle the Big Fight boxing deck, you might think that Manny Pacquiao only has two cards to draw. Most lucrative, of course, is the one for the Megafight against Floyd Mayweather Jr. Second is to make fourth fight against Mexican nemesis, Juan Manuel Marquez. But Pacman, who turned 33 Saturday night and celebrated at a lavish, choreogrpahed birthday bash at a shopping mall in General Santos City, actually has a third option for his first bout of the New Year. I should’ve thought of it before, maybe you did and I believe that this “wild card” has not escaped the attention of the Pacquiao Braintrust. His name is Lamont Peterson, he’s hot coming off a spirited and controversial decision victory over the also Freddie Roach trained Amir Khan. More importantly, Barry Hunter’s fighter is eminently available as he is a promotional free agent. In a Peterson-Khan prefight piece I wrote for Glyn Leach’s UK Boxing Monthly, promoter Bob Arum was careful to praise both Hunter, Lamont and the fighter’s brother, Anthony, as being classy people. The Peterson Bros. were formerly promoted by Arum’s Top Rank and their parting was more than amiable. Now I’m not saying Peterson-Pacquiao has the pizzaz of Mayweather-Pacquiao or anything like the fistic telenovela appeal of Marquez-Pacquiao IV. And, sure some will rap Manny for picking a smaller man. But Lamont is really about the same size as Pacquiao in terms of walking around and in fighting weight. But, unlike the raw emotions and bad blood that can block Mayweather-Pacquiao, it is simple for Arum or Todd duBoef to ring up Hunter and to make a deal for the biggest purse in Lamont’s pro career.
