Manila, Philippines – Bob Arum wants to get the ball rolling.
The chief of Top Rank Promotions will arrive in Manila tomorrow with the names of Manny Pacquiao?s possible opponent on Nov. 10, and he hopes to get things done this week.
Arum said Floyd Mayweather Jr. is not among the names Pacquiao will choose from, but added that it doesn?t mean the undefeated American is not in the radar screen.
Mayweather just got out of prison, and while he looked like he just got out of the gym it may not be advisable for him to fight in November, against an opponent like Pacquiao.
The same old names are in Arum?s pocket. They are Timothy Bradley, now the WBO welterweight champion, Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez and Puerto Rican Miguel Cotto.
Bradley defeated Pacquiao in the scorecards last June 9 at the MGM Grand, and is more than willing to face the 33-year-old Filipino ring icon in a rematch.
Marquez is dying for a fourth fight with Pacquiao, and prefers Mexico as the venue while Cotto said he will fight Pacquiao at a weight no lower than 150 lb.
Cotto failed to last the distance against Pacquiao in 2009. He bounced back to win the 154 lb title which he lost to Mayweather last May.
Cotto, now a free agent, may agree to fight Pacquiao in the low 150s. If Pacquiao declines, Cotto will continue to move up in weight.
Arum told ESPN.com he will explain all the pros and cons to Pacquiao regarding each fight though he added that Marquez and Cotto offer the bigger pay-per-view numbers.
?I got to tell Manny what I can afford for each fight and we need to talk about each fight, but he makes his own decision,? Arum told Dan Rafael.
?I?ve talked to him once earlier in the summer and he?s been thinking about what he wants to do. He?s going to fight on Nov. 10, but we?ll spend some time talking through everything and getting everything ironed out, and then I talk to the opponents and try to make a deal.?
While in Manila, Arum may also find time to sit down with Nonito Donaire Jr., the reigning WBO and IBF super-bantamweight champion who?s taking on Japan?s Toshiaki Nishioka in Carson City on Oct. 13.
Pacquiao?s third fight with Marquez did 1.3 million PPV buys while the one with Cotto, who has a solid fan base, did 1.25 million. Bradley vs Pacquiao sold no more than 900,000.
Arum also told ESPN.com that he?s already looking at the month of April for Pacquiao?s first fight in 2013 because in May, the fighting congressman will be busy with the elections.
Arum said if Pacquiao makes his decision this week, he?d immediately get in touch with the chosen one, and make him sign the deal. Then it?s on for the press tour in September.
Arum has got everything figured out except the opponent.
