Manny Pacquiao Deserves New, Fresh Opponents, Not Rematches

Instead of Floyd Mayweather, Jr., promoter Bob Arum has set his target on three former Pacquiao opponents for his November scheduled fight.

They include Timothy Bradley, Juan Manuel Marquez and Miguel Cotto. All of them have fought Pacquiao in blockbuster fights which brought in millions of dollars in pay-per-view (PPV) revenues to Arum's Top Rank Promotions.

A rematch with any of these fighters for Pacquiao's November engagement would likely generate no less than a million in PPV sales for the promoter.

Arum started talking about a rematch with anyone of these fighters after meeting with Pacquiao over dinner in his house in Los Angeles a few days ago.

As a businessman whose primary motivation is to make substantial returns on his investment, Arum will likely push either Marquez or Bradley. Boxing insiders say a Pacquiao-Cotto rematch is a long shot as the Puerto Rican is no longer under Arum's umbrella. Besides, Cotto is reported to be making progress with Saul "Canelo" Alvarez, who, like Cotto, is also fighting under Golden Boy Promotions.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Arum has included Cotto in the list because of his large Puerto Rican audience, which could bring in substantial PPV sales for the fight.

"I've always been impressed with Cotto by what he brings to the table as a fighter and his large Puerto Rico audience," Arum said

But fans are not happy with recycled matches. They want Pacquiao to face a new, fresh and capable opponent for his November scheduled fight.

Still, a new face is hard find at this time as Pacquiao seems to have ran out of worthy opponents. Except for Mayweather, no one in the weight class is capable of drawing huge crowd to make a PPV success and to make the fight feasible.

Arum is saying Mayweather won't be prepared to face Pacquiao in November because he needs to complete his time in jail.  Mayweather will need more time for a November showdown with Pacquiao, Arum said in a report by GMA News.

“He [Mayweather] probably won’t be ready until next year. He’s spending time in prison,” he said.

With the apparent lack of viable opponents, it appears Pacquiao will again have to succumb to the wishes of his promoter and settle for a rematch with either Marquez or Bradley