Manny Pacquiao Will Pursue Eighth Crown if Floyd Mayweather Balks -- FanHouse

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

WBO welterweight (147 pounds) champion Manny Pacquiao could pursue an eighth crown in as many different weight classes against WBA junior middleweight (154 pounds) king, Miguel Cotto, or, ex-world champion, Antonio Margarito -- the latter for the WBC's junior middleweight crown, according to Top Rank Promotions' CEO Bob Arum.

If a deal can not be reached for the 31-year-old Pacquiao (53-3-2, 38 knockouts) to face 33-year-old Floyd Mayweather (41-0, 25 KOs), Arum said that he would move ahead with options of matching the Filipino star against the 32-year-old Margarito (38-6, 27 KOs) or the 29-year-old Cotto (35-2, 28 KOs).

Pacquiao, who dethroned Cotto as WBO welterweight champion with a 12th-round knockout in November, could face Margarito or Cotto in a Middle Eastern country or Mexico, said Arum, who did not specify which of the two fighters Pacquiao would meet first.

"That's still to be decided which of them Manny fights first. That depends where the fight will be. But I will say that we had another very good meeting with representatives from the Mid-East country, and it's going to be wild," said Arum, who has mentioned Monterrey, Mex., as one site, but would not reveal which Middle Eastern country he is referring to.

"They're now willing to do the fight in the morning over there, which will coincide with a regular evening time here in the United States," said Arum. "So pay per view wouldn't be much affected. It's going to be a blockbuster if that's what happens."

Arum and Pacquiao adviser Michael Koncz said that their fighter has agreed in principle to put his crown on the line against Mayweather, whom they have given until mid-July -- or this coming weekend -- to sign the contract for their Nov.k 13 bout.

"We're waiting on our options with Floyd Mayweather before considering either of those two as opponents. And we have not made a decision as to whether Manny would be going to fight Cotto or Margarito. If we thought that we were going to receive a contract next week, do you think that I would be looking around to see what our options are? Probably not," Koncz told FanHouse last week.

"So we're considering all of our options because, in another week, we don't want to be caught with our pants down," said Koncz. If the fight is made with Floyd, and if he signs the contract, then so be it. And if he doesn't sign it, we're not sitting around waiting, as I have said many times. So we're preparing to move on, looking at our options in the event that we don't receive a contract from Floyd."

Pacquiao will fight on Nov. 13 likely "no matter what," said Arum, adding that a bout with Mayweather could happen "next year in May" if not in the fall.

"Whether Manny fights Margarito or Cotto, either way, it's for a super welterweight [154 pounds] championship. Either way, Manny would be fighting for his eighth title," said Arum, adding that Pacquiao-Margarito would be for the crown vacated by Argentinian-born southpaw, Sergio Martinez, who is also the WBC's middleweight (160 pounds) belt-holder.

"The WBC super welterweight championship is against Margarito because he's [No. 1] at that weight," Arum said . "And Sergio Martinez had that title and he vacated that WBC crown to keep the WBC middleweight title. So Margarito and Manny Pacquiao would be fighting for that title."

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com