It appears that 8-division world champion Mann Pacquiao is finally putting his foot down...well, sort of. In a recent interview with Eddie Alinea of PhilBoxing.com, Manny Pacquiao made it crystal clear that he prefers to face undefeated pound-for-pound champion Floyd Mayweather over any of the four names that promoter Bob Arum plans on presenting to him for his next bout. "I've said this over and over before and I'm saying this again,I want Floyd Mayweather Jr. to be my next opponent and I haven't changed my choice despite recent developments," Pacquiao commented. While the news sounds extremely promising, there's only one catch...in the same interview, Pacquiao also explained that ultimately, he doesn't choose his fights; his promoter does.
"I am meeting with my promoter, Bob Arum on Tuesday and I will insist that the fight with Mayweather be given the preference than the four others in the list I will fight next," Pacquiao would tell Alinea in a phone conversation. Feeling as though he's been unfairly blamed for the fight with Mayweather not taking place, Pacquiao explained that he's willing to fight whoever the fans want him to fight, but it's his promoter's job to actually pick the fights. "Whoever the fans want me to fight, I will face him atop the ring. I don't choose fight. It is my promoter who does because it's his job. My job is to fight, everybody must realize that," he continued. I'm not sure if something was lost in translation, but I have to admit, I don't really know what to make of those statements. It would seem almost impossible for Pacquiao to insist that Bob Arum pursue a fight with Mayweather if, ultimately, Bob Arum is the one who decides the fights. Then again, I guess he actually can insist that Mayweather be made the priority, but Bob Arum doesn't necessarily have to listen to him.
Which begs the question, exactly who is calling the shots to Manny Pacquiao's career? According to Bob Arum, he's going to let Pacquiao choose from his list of four opponents - Juan Manuel Marquez, Miguel Cotto, Timothy Bradley, and Lamont Peterson. In fact, prior to arriving to the Philippines, Arum made it crystal clear that Floyd Mayweather was "absolutely not" going to be one of Pacquiao's options. If that's the case, and if Pacquiao is of the opinion that his promoter chooses his fights, does this latest statement even matter? Regardless, Pacquiao insists that he's not to blame if a showdown with Mayweather does not take place. "Whoever says I'm ducking this fighter or that fighter, doesn't know me, or just plainly wants to put me in bad light. I never dodged from fighting anybody. If I did, I won't be where I am now," he continued.
I actually agree with Pacquiao, as I don't think he's the one to blame if the fight does not take place. Then again, if he's of the opinion that his promoter is going to "choose" the fight that he "insists" on, he needs to think again, because according to his promoter, he won't even be available to fight on May 5 due to the cut he suffered in his November 12 bout with Marquez. Nevertheless, if both sides ever do decide to negotiate again, the drug testing and money split should definitely not be an issue, as Pacquiao once again made it crystal clear that they're not. "When Arum sits in the negotiation table, he will be laying on the table all the conditions we want, which , everybody knew already are simple. That I will abide by his demand for drug testing. I am even agreeable to get lesser purse just so the fight would push through," he added.
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