LOS ANGELES ? Marco Antonio Barrera reiterated his desire to slug it out with Filipino southpaw Manny Pacquiao on March 11, 2007, but the Mexican expressed concern over the legal battle that is being faced by his promoter Oscar dela Hoya and Pacquiao opposite Top Rank.
Barrera told the sports daily Esto in an article that appeared on Saturday that he “hopes that Pacquiao solves his problem so the fight can be done on March 11,” Barrera said. “In the next few days, I will be meeting with my promoter (Golden Boy Promotions) to know who my challenger is going to be.”
“I hope that if it is not Pacquiao, they can still tell me who is it going to be. I really wish to fight the Filipino, but if it becomes difficult, what can we do?”
If Pacquiao becomes unavailable for the March bout, Dela Hoya will surely tap Juan Manuel Marquez to battle Barrera.
Barrera said a couple of months ago that he will retire in 2007 and plans to fight two more times, including a rematch against Pacquiao, who dealt him a stinging 11th-round stoppage setback in Nov. 2003 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
Pacquiao is on top of the world nowadays following his three-round destruction of Erik Morales last week at the Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao, 27, has since returned to the Philippines where the entire nation hailed his arrival.
Pacquiao has declined to comment on the legal battle between Top Rank and Golden Boy but drools over the prospects of engaging Barrera in a rematch in Las Vegas that could give him a purse of million.
Barrera plans to start his training for the March fight against Pacquiao or somebody else by the second week of December.
Barrera, 32, outpointed Rocky Juarez in their rematch last September.
