Pacquiao vs. Mayweather: Blockbuster Fight Isn't Only Option for Pac-Man

Manny Pacquiao is hours away from closing one of the most prolific chapters in his boxing career.

His soon-to-be-trilogy of fights with Mexican rival Juan Manuel Marquez is going to be one of the defining moments of his career.

But as we sit on the day of this highly anticipated fight, there is still a cloud of potential excitement hanging over the future of Manny Pacquiao.

It is widely known that he plans to fight for only two or three more years before retiring and focusing on politics in the Philippines.

The question is whether or not he'll fight Floyd Mayweather, Jr. before he hangs up the gloves.

The two have danced and flirted with the idea for far too long, but have yet to agree on terms of blood testing.

The possibility of them ever putting these differences aside varies between slim and none far too often as well.

And while this is the one fight that everyone wants to see, it is not the only option for Pacquiao.

On the undercard of his pay-per-view with Marquez tonight is American fighter Timothy Bradley.

The undefeated 28-year-old is the current WBO Light Welterweight champion. Tonight he'll fight the aging Joel Casamayor before Pacquiao and Marquez take the ring.

The fight marks Bradley's debut with Top Rank, the boxing promotion company run by Bob Arum that represents some of the sport's top fighters, including Manny Pacquiao.

Should Bradley remain unbeaten with a win over Casamayor, the 40-year-old Cuban, he'd be a prime candidate to fight Pacquiao next.

Seeing as Arum snapped up Bradley just when Pacquiao needed another opponent makes a lot of sense.

Bradley will certainly be looking to make a bigger name for himself, and could not pass up the opportunity to take on Pacquiao.

Mayweather, on the other hand, has already booked the MGM Grand for his next fight on May 5th, 2012.

To believe that Pacquiao will be in that fight as of now would be foolish.

And to say that Pacquiao doesn't have other options would also be false.

We all want to see the fight between Mayweather and Pacquiao, but there are a number of factors working against it.

Don't be shocked if Pac-Man's next bout is with Top Rank's newest title holder.