By William Mackay: If the IBF or WBA don’t force Lamont Peterson to fight an immediate rematch against Amir Khan, trainer Freddie Roach says he’d like to see Peterson be matched against another one of his fighters WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao, according to ringtv.

Roach sees Peterson as a better fighter now than Victor Ortiz and Timothy Bradley due to his size and inside game. Bradley is being considered as a potential opponent for Pacquiao to fight in early 2012.

Roach said to ringtv “I think Lamont Peterson is a great opponent for Manny Pacquiao…That is, if Lamont really doesn’t want to take the fight with Amir Khan.”

Peterson is being offered $1 million to fight Khan in a rematch, although that could drop down by several hundred thousand if the IBF or WBA reverse Khan’s loss. Richard Schaefer, the promoter for Khan, started stuttering when he was asked if the $1 million dollar offer would still be there if Khan’s loss was erased and he was given a victory or a no contest by either the IBF or WBA.

If that’s the case, Peterson would be better off vacating his two titles to with the much bigger payday against Pacquiao. That’s obviously the much bigger fight anyway, so if it’s an option for Peterson, he needs to dump the titles if the IBF and WBA side with Khan and Golden Boy Promotions in their appeal.

Peterson could bring in twice as much for fighting Pacquiao than he’s being offered to fight Khan again. And the best thing about Pacquiao is he fights cleanly, and doesn’t shove his opponents all around the ring like Khan and doesn’t yank them by the back of their heads to pull them forward the way that Khan does.

All Peterson would have to worry about in a fight against Pacquiao are his fast fists and big power. But at least he wouldn’t be getting pushed around the ring by Khan or have to deal with Khan fouling by pulling down on his head.

I bet Khan won’t be happy that Roach is talking about wanting Peterson for Pacquiao, because it seems like a conflict of interest for Roach.