ShareThisWorld boxing icon Manny Pacquiao has counted out a fight with American champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. this May or June.
This after Mayweather rejected a 50-50 sharing of the revenues of their dream fight which was expected to be the richest fight in boxing history.
The two boxers are expected to get $50 million each in case their dream fight happens.
With Mayweather out, a rematch with Puerto Rican champion Miguel Cotto maybe in the works or a fight with American Tim Bradley.
Cotto will have to fight at a catch weight of 147 lbs. in case he agrees to fight Pacquiao again.
Meanwhile, Pacquiao is set to meet boxing great Muhammad Ali next month. The dinner meeting of the two boxing heroes is being arranged by Top Rank chief executive Bob Arum.
To end the guessing game as to who the Filipino world champion and congressman would fight next, Arum, Pacquiao’s promoter, said he plans to reveal Pacquiao’s next opponent by next week.
Arum told the Boxing Scene that he will announce who Pacquiao will be fighting next after the Julio Cesar Chavez-Marco Antonio Rubio fight and the Super Bowl.
“We won’t announce anything until after the Super Bowl. I don’t want to take anything away from the Chavez fight on February 4,” Arum said.
“We want to wait until the Chavez fight, and after the Super Bowl… probably Tuesday,” he added.
Pacquiao is set to make his return to the ring on June 9, although the venue of the bout has not been finalized.
Arum originally presented Pacquiao with a list of four possible opponents: Juan Manuel Marquez, Lamont Peterson, Timothy Bradley and Miguel Cotto.
Marquez and Peterson are both out of the picture, said Arum and Cotto has refused to fight Pacquiao at the welterweight division, but wants the fight at a 150-pound catchweight.
At press time, Bradley appears as the most likely opponent for the Filipino boxer,
But Arum has refused to count Cotto out of the equation.
“What if Cotto has an epiphany and suddenly calls and says he can make 147?” Arum said.
Pacquiao’s adviser Mike Koncz had to fly to the United States from Manila in a bid to salvage the Pacquiao-Mayweather megabuck match but ended with nothing.
It was gathered that Cotto is hell-bent in avenging his loss in 2009 in a one-sided fight with Pacquiao.
Cotto, however will have to weigh down to 147 or 148 lbs. if he agrees to fight Pacquiao.
Cotto, a super welterweight title holder, actually wants to fight Pacquiao but not at the welterweight limit of 147 lbs or a catch weight way below his current fighting weight of 152 lbs.
The Puerto Rican champion has not weighed lower than 152 lbs in his last three fights and said it would be difficult for him to reduce to 147 llbs.
“It would be an extreme sacrifice for him to give in to Pacquiao’s demands,” a boxing enthusiast said.
An attractive prize money may, however, change Cotto’s decision. Already, Cotto fought Pacquiao and got the biggest prize money in his boxing career.
And his final decision maybe known in the next few days.
Pacquiao was piqued when Mayweather offered a flat rate of $40 million for their megafight, leaving the pay-per-view share and other sources of revenue all for Mayweather to collect.
But Arum hinted that the dream fight may yet happen this November if both fighters agree.
“As long as they win their next fights, Mayweather on May 5 and Manny on June 9, they can absolutely fight in November,” said Arum.
Arum had made it public that he was against staging a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight in May or even June because of the limited time available to promote it and get things done.
“A fight this big deserves a bigger venue,” said the New York-bred 80-year-old Harvard-educated lawyer.
“We just can’t leave too much on the table,” added Arum, referring to the estimated $20 million that will be left out if a Pacquiao-Mayweather super fight ends up being held in a smaller arena.