Pacquiao willing to negotiate with Mayweather if Marquez fight can’t get made

By Boxing News - 02/05/2013 - Comments

pac006By Chris Williams: Manny Pacquiao’s legal adviser Franklin Gacal says they will try to get a fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. if Juan Manuel Marquez isn’t interested in facing Pacquiao in a rematch in September. Of course, that doesn’t mean a Mayweather-Pacquiao fight can be made unless Pacquiao is willing to take less than a 50-50 deal, something that it’s unlikely he would do.

Gacal said to sports.inquirer.net “We’re willing to sit down with Mayweather.”

A Mayweather-Pacquiao fight is possible in terms of the time frame for 2013 given that both fighters plan on fighting in September, but would Pacquiao and his promoter Bob Arum be willing to accept a deal that would be less than a 50-50 one?

Pacquiao isn’t exactly in a good position to bargain for an even split with him having lost his last two fights, and three if you could has controversial decision win over Marquez in November 2011. Pacquiao has been really struggling in the ring lately, and I can’t imagine Mayweather offering him anything more than a 65-35 deal at best.

As for Marquez, according to the Sports Inquirer, Pacquiao’s team would still expect to get a bigger slice of the revenue, so nothing would change much from the last four times Pacquiao and Marquez fought. Marquez would get a better deal, but he’s not going to be given an even 50-50 split. There’s also “Conditions’ that Marquez might have to agree to in order to get the 5th fight with Pacquiao, such as random drug testing.

Would that be a deal killer for Marquez? No, it wouldn’t because he’s been up front about his willingness to agree to drug testing, but the purse split might be the real problem. But besides that, Marquez doesn’t seem interested in fighting Pacquiao again because he already told his wife that his fourth fight with Pacquiao would be the last of the series win or lose.

If Marquez fights Pacquiao in September the chances are the series would keep going on seemingly without end of it hauls in 1.4 million pay per view buys or more. Arum would no doubt ask Marquez to come back for a 6th fight with Pacquiao, and it would just keep going as long as the fight brings in good numbers.

At some point we could see two old men smashing each other in the face and just a fraction of what they once were. Of course, that only works if Marquez doesn’t knock Pacquiao out cold in September because that really would be a show stopper.

Arum can sell a 5th fight between Pacquiao and Marquez now because a lot of boxing fans still saw his KO win coming from a lucky punch, but you can’t call it luck if Marquez knocks Pacquiao out cold for a second time. At that point, it would be cruel to send Pacquiao out for a 6th fight with Marquez because he really could get hurt, if he doesn’t get hurt in the 5th fight.



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