By Lyle Fitzsimmons

This small-budget guy is dreaming big.

Make no mistake, I’m quite content with my humble life – first-grade teacher by weekday, sports writer by weeknight/weekend, modest four-bedroom house with a cluttered garage – but every now and then the idea of making an ostentatious display of wealth seems like it might be pretty cool, too.

Problem is, unless the heavy hitters in the school’s corner offices get suddenly generous, it’ll be on me to translate that to something beyond splurging for two chocolate milks on Fridays.

But I’ve got a plan.

And over the next 68 days, three lucrative underdogs will put it in motion.

The transition from a decade-old Kia to a new Bentley begins in – of all places – the United Arab Emirates, where aging star Manny Pacquiao risks both his WBO welterweight belt and a chunk of his legacy in an April 23 showdown with former Wild Card training mate Amir Khan.

It’s a fight that’s been suggested at times, but always sidestepped because the Filipino had more appealing (or less threatening) options from which to choose. However, given the collective yawn generated by a would-be springtime bout with Aussie Jeff Horn, the time for a summit has arrived.

Pacquiao is an early 2-to-1 favorite according to a handful of sites, but given Khan’s clear edges in speed and technical boxing acumen – not to mention the fact the champion hasn’t stopped a soul since Barack Obama’s first term – I can’t think of any reason not to take a flyer and back the Englishman.

Go ahead and book it. Khan wins going away.

Then, after six days and 4,400 miles, the checkbook gets another jolt.

Though most of the 90,000 folks cramming into Wembley Stadium will be there to cheer local hero Anthony Joshua, it’s hardly sacrilege to suggest the unbeaten “veteran” of 18 fights faces a daunting task when it comes to toppling former long-time heavyweight king Wladimir Klitschko.

It’ll not only be the first time the new champ faces a legitimate top-10 foe – Klitschko is perched atop the division by the Independent World Boxing Rankings, while Joshua is sixth – but also the first time he’s headlined such a significant event on his home country’s biggest stage.

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Deontay Wilder, in fact, thinks Joshua’s bitten off more than he’ll chew, in spite of his status – at the Bovada online sports book – as a near 2-to-1 favorite.

“My mind goes for Klitschko,” Wilder said. “I really don’t think that they’ve prepared Joshua for a Klitschko fight. Father Time is at his door, but Klitschko is still a smart guy and he’s still a dangerous fighter. I think Klitschko is very confident in this fight, just because Joshua lacks experience. He knows that he hasn’t fought anyone to be prepared for that level.”

I couldn’t agree more. So I’ll be wagering – and collecting – accordingly.

But it’ll get even better another week later.

That’s when, amid Cinco de Mayo revelry at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, former “middleweight” champ Canelo Alvarez is forecast to blow into town like a cinnamon-tinted tornado and demolish what remains of the enigmatic monolith named Julio Cesar Chavez Jr.

Chavez, too, is an ex-title claimant at 160 pounds, but his career has been on life support since Sergio Martinez rose from the floor and finished off a 12-round decision a couple miles down the road in 2012. The Hall of Fame progeny has won four of five since, but hasn’t approached the sort of performance that made him an HBO headliner who avoided defeat in his first 47 pro fights.

Still, he remains significantly taller and longer – standing 6-foot-1 to Alvarez’s 5-foot-9, with a nearly three-inch (73 to 70-1/2) edge in reach – and even his detractors would concede virtuoso body punching and a sound chin. A knockdown by light heavy Andrzej Fonfara in 2015 remains the lone one of Chavez’s career, and it’s hard to imagine Canelo, who was unable to budge little men Miguel Cotto, Erislandy Lara or Floyd Mayweather Jr., landing the sorts of shots that’ll leave a focused, motivated Chavez horizontal.

Somehow, though, the younger man – he’s 26 to Chavez’s 31 – is pegged an 8-to-1 favorite, just a tick less prohibitive than a 40-year-old Mayweather would be against ring novice Conor McGregor.

It’s a ridiculous notion, one that demands a quick dip into the 401K to back Chavez.

Besides, if it all comes together, a frugal retirement will be the least of my concerns.

Step aside, lunch ladies… the chocolate milks are on me.

* * * * * * * * * *

This week’s title-fight schedule:

WEDNESDAY

WBA minimum title – Chonburi, Thailand

Thammanoon Niyomtrong (champion/No. 1 IWBR) vs. Go Odaira (No. 15 WBA/No. 10 IWBR)

Niyomtrong (14-0, 6 KO): Second title defense; One KO in six 12-round fights (6-0, 1 KO)

Odaira (13-5-3, 1 KO): Third title fight (0-2); KO losses in two 12-round fights (0-2, 0 KO)

Fitzbitz says: 30-something lefty Odaira has toiled respectably as a professional, but he’s fallen well short in two tries to reach the championship level. Doesn’t figure to change here. Niyomtrong in 10

THURSDAY

WBC bantamweight title – Kokugikan, Tokyo

Shinsuke Yamanaka (champion/No. 1 IWBR) vs. Carlos Carlson (No. 6 WBC/No. 61 IWBR)

Yamanaka (26-0-2, 18 KO): Twelfth title defense; Eight KOs in 12 title fights (12-0, 8 KO)

Carlson (22-1, 13 KO): First title fight; First fight in Japan

Fitzbitz says: The Mexican challenger will make the long trip for his title shot, but against a dominant champion it seems a guy in his first 12-rounder is in over his head. A dozen defenses. Yamanaka in 8

SATURDAY

WBA/WBC welterweight titles – Brooklyn, New York

Danny Garcia (WBA champ/No. 3 IWBR) vs. Keith Thurman (WBC champ/No. 5 IWBR)

Garcia (33-0, 19 KO): First title defense; Held WBA and WBC titles at 140 pounds

Thurman (27-0, 22 KO): Second title defense; Third fight in New York (2-0, 0 KO)

Fitzbitz says: Thurman may be the more dynamic talent, but the hunch here is that Garcia is just rugged enough to get him into a firefight and to land a decisive shot. Garcia in 8

Vacant WBC flyweight title – Bangkok, Thailand

Nawaphon Sor Rungvisai (No. 1 WBC/No. 4 IWBR) vs. Juan Hernandez (No. 2 WBC/Unranked IWBR)

Rungvisai (36-0, 28 KO): First title fight; Twenty-first scheduled 12-round fight (20-0, 18 KO)

Hernandez (33-2, 24 KO): Second title fight (0-1); Second fight outside of Mexico (0-1, 0 KO)

Fitzbitz says: Thai veteran has been a mainstay on the regional title circuit for many years, and his initial step onto the world stage should result in a convincing victory. Rungvisai in 7

Last week's picks: 2-1 (WIN: Hurd, Wilder; LOSS: McDonnell)

2017 picks record: 14-4 (77.7 percent)

Overall picks record: 836-278 (75.0 percent)

NOTE: Fights previewed are only those involving a sanctioning body's full-fledged title-holder – no interim, diamond, silver, etc. Fights for WBA "world championships" are only included if no "super champion" exists in the weight class.

Lyle Fitzsimmons has covered professional boxing since 1995 and written a weekly column for Boxing Scene since 2008. He is a full voting member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. Reach him at fitzbitz@msn.com or follow him on Twitter – @fitzbitz.