According to promoter Bob Arum, 8-division world champion Manny Pacquiao has made a final decision on his next opponent, but unfortunately for boxing fans, it won't be undefeated pound-for-pound champion Floyd Mayweather. Speaking to Chris Mannix of SI.com, Arum revealed that Pacquiao's next fight will indeed take place on June 9 at a 38,000-seat temporary facility located off the Las Vegas Strip. Although he would not name his opponent, Arum confirmed that it was one of the four candidates - Miguel Cotto, Juan Manuel Marquez, Timothy Bradley, or Lamont Peterson - presented to Pacquiao earlier this month. Earlier today, Arum reportedly met with contractors and officials from the Wynn and Sands Hotel, the two hotels that own the land where the facility will be built.
"They needed until the end of May to get it done," Arum explained, once again justifying why a fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao will not take place on May 5. "Economically, it's a problem that Floyd created. The amount that would be lost by moving it up to May 5th is enormous. The fight is not going to happen on May 5th. We'll do the fight in November." Evidently, the desire to "maximize profits" is far more important to Arum than satisfying the desire of fans, most of which will be at their homes enjoying the maximized cost of the pay-per-view event from their living room.
Apparently, it's a notion that his star fighter, Manny Pacquiao, agrees with. "He realizes that economically the May 5th date is not smart," Arum added. "If you postpone it two or three weeks, you can make so much more money." I must say, it's truly ironic to hear Bob Arum tell us that Manny Pacquiao is more concerned about making "so much more money" than Floyd Mayweather, who happens to be the highest paid fighter in the sport. Regardless, it should be interesting to see what a boxing event will be like at this new outdoor facility.
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