By Ronnie Nathanielsz
The world’s No. 1 pound-for-pound fighter Manny Pacquiao has relinquished the WBC lightweight title which he won with a spectacular 9th round TKO over Chicago ’s David Diaz last June at the Mandalay Bay Resort Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
World Boxing Council president Don Jose Sulaiman told BoxingScene.com, insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports in an overseas telephone conversation from his home in Mexico that Pacquiao had sent him “a letter of resignation of his title because he says he is not going to fight anymore in the lightweight division.”
The WBC president said he thought that relinquishing the title at this stage was “foolish” but added “if that’s what they want, what can I do.”
Pacquiao’s Canadian adviser Michael Koncz along with a couple of others in Team Pacquiao has often made it clear that they were against the idea of fighting for a title and paying sanction fees, claiming that no matter who Pacquiao fights even if no title is at stake he would draw big numbers at the venue and on pay-per-view.
Sulaiman said in the letter which he received last Friday Pacquiao informed him that he would “like to fight in the super lightweight division in the future.”
Sulaiman said “I hope that we can give him another opportunity in the super lightweight but we’ll have to see what happens with (Ricky “The Hitman”) Hatton” in their showdown at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas on May 2.
Undefeated KO artist Edwin Valero who has expressed his desire to fight Pacquiao in the future, faces veteran Antonio Pitalua for the Interim lightweight title on April 4 in San Antonio , Texas which is the only place in the US that Valero who recently signed with Top Rank has been cleared to fight at this time.
Arum, In an overseas conversation with us said a possible future fight with newly crowned WBO welterweight champion Miguel Cotto “could be a massive fight for Manny (Pacquiao) but I haven’t talked to Freddie (Roach) about it because there is plenty of time.” Arum disclosed that Cotto is likely to fight on June 13 probably against Joshua Clottey, the reigning IBF champion.
Arum said he had just gotten off the phone with Michael (Koncz) who informed him that Pacquiao was going to the British Embassy on Wednesday to get his visa and is scheduled to leave for London at 6:00 a.m. on Friday which would get him there by 3:00 p.m.
The promotional tour stops in Hatton’s hometown of Manchester at the well-known Trafford Center on Saturday and a Monday media conference in London which may be held at the Imperial War Museum will be highlighted by a side event which would pit Pacquiao vs Hatton in darts.
The Sun newspaper reported that Hatton will meet Pacquiao on the oche (which is the line where they shoot the darts from) with Phil “The Power” Taylor, a friend of Hatton acting as referee at the Rover’s Return which is the set of the TV series Coronation Street.
Knowing Pacquiao’s penchant for playing darts in his Palazzo apartment in Los Angeles almost every evening during training as a means of relaxation, Arum said “Ricky is good at darts but Manny is a real whiz. My man won’t be paying for the beer.”
