By Ronnie Nathanielsz
No decision has been made as yet on who Manny Pacquiao’s next opponent will be according to celebrated trainer Freddie Roach.
In an overseas telephone conversation with Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today, Roach said that Pacquiao and Top Rank promoter Bob Arum “ sat down and had a little lunch” during the shooting of a Nike commercial which features the Filipino ring idol in training at the Wild Card Gym of Roach.
However, Roach said “no decision has been made as yet, though” and that Arum would meet with Golden Boy Promotions CEO Richard Schaefer this week to look at the numbers.
The celebrated trainer said the Nike commercial was “a big shoot and went well. It was a lot of fun.”
Roach has indicated he would prefer that Pacquiao fights WBC super featherweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez in a rematch before moving up to the lightweight division to fight WBC champion David Diaz whose contract with Top Rank will reportedly run out soon. Besides, Diaz who earned a mere $350,000 for his title defense against Erik “El Terrible” Morales in his last fight is looking for a possible $1 million payday in a Pacquiao showdown.
Indications are both Arum and Pacquiao are leaning towards David Diaz. In his newspaper column in the tabloid Abante which was posted on philboxing.com Pacquiao hinted at his preference for Diaz by posing the question “isn’t it better if we fight when we are both champions?” Pacquiao stressed that negotiations for a Marquez rematch are ongoing and that they will ultimately get there. The Filipino ring warrior at the same time emphasized that he has never been afraid of any fighter in response to allegations that he was afraid to give Marquez a rematch. ”I am a boxer and my job is to fight” he wrote.
Pacquiao said he would have some news on his next opponent on his return. He is scheduled to leave Los Angeles for Manila today. At the same time he allayed fears of his fans about his focus on boxing saying “boxing is my top priority. Don’t worry.”
Pacquiao said he plans to “start sweating in December” to get into physical condition and will begin training in the US in January. He said the conditioning process will ensure that when he begins working out at the Wild Card gym it wont be sudden.
After the Nike shoot, Pacquiao was whisked away to the Los Angeles airport in a vehicle of Arum so he could catch the Philippine Airlines flight back to Manila and is scheduled to arrive very early Monday morning.
