Manny Pacquiao, WBO Welterweight king, has already announced that his next fight is happening on April 23, in the United Arab Emirates. Who he will fight in the ring, after his 2016 title bout against Jessie Vargas, is still a mystery. Pacquiao and his team have not made any announcements about his opponent yet.
Manny Pacquiao On Jeff Horn: ‘This Is My First Time To Hear His Name’
A week ago, Pacquiao took to Twitter to ask his fans who they think he should fight in his next bout. The choices included Amir Khan, Jeff Horn, Terence Crawford and Kell Brook. With over 44k voting via Twitter, the results showed that most people want him to go against Amir Khan.
Pacquiao was not too excited about going up against Jeff Horn. In a report by the Asian Journal, Pacquiao was asked to comment about Jeff Horn being a potential challenger, he said, “This is my first time to hear his name.” Horn is a relative unknown in the boxing world having first won at the 2012 Olympics and has only been a professional for 4 years. This choice would not make any sense for Pacquiao, as it is a “step down” from his previous roster of opponents.
Amir Khan Says He Is Fighting Manny Pacquiao
Amir Khan, a British professional boxer and Pacquiao’s former “stablemate” when both of them were training under Freddie Roach, topped the Twitter poll, with 47 percent picking him over the three others.
In a recent report in the Mirror, Khan claims that he is close to sealing the deal that will let him fight Pacquiao. The report says that Top Rank, through Bob Arum, has started talking terms with him. The Filipino fighter, however, has yet to agree to the deal before it can materialize.
Khan, however, believes that it is happening soon. Both fighters in talks to meet in the ring two years ago, but Amir pulled out of negotiations because Manny was taking too long to decide.
The match up between Manny and Amir makes better sense, especially in the financial side, according to the Rappler report. But with Manny still mum about his opponent, he may end up surprising his fans with his choice.