By Mark Vester
Promoter Bob Arum of Top Rank has revealed that Manny Pacquiao has come to his senses and accepted the agreed upon 50-50 split to fight Ricky Hatton on May 2 in Las Vegas. Arum expects the fight to be signed by the end of the week. The media blitz began when Pacquaio's attorney Franklin Gacal told reporters that his fighter would not accept a 50-50 split and wanted a deal with terms for a 60-40 cut. Not long after those words reached the media, Hatton's attorney, Gareth Williams, threatened to sue Pacquiao for backing away from the deal that was verbally agreed upon.
Arum spoke with Pacquiao and explained that unlike Hatton's bout with Floyd Mayweather Jr in 2007, he would received a cut of the British television money. When Hatton face Mayweather, the Manchester fighter kept all of the British TV money.
"By tomorrow, I'll have a signed contract. There was a lot of confusion about why we did 50-50, but everyone now understands why this is a good deal," Arum said to The LA Times. "This thing is going to happen. Yesterday was disarray. Today, everything's back in order. Everybody is now calmed down."
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