Dan Rafael: "After election, who is next for Manny?"

Now that pound-for-pound king Manny Pacquiao has easily outpointed Joshua Clottey in a stunningly one-sided decision win on Saturday night at Cowboys Stadium, he's headed back to the Philippines to run for congress. The reason he insisted on fighting in March was so he would have enough time to campaign for the May 10 election, which he's apparently serious about. "Now it is time for a more serious fight for me and that is my campaign for congress," Pacquiao said. "The people of my province are among the poorest. They have been underserved for too long. I want to give a voice to those too weak to speak. They deserve better schools and a higher standard of living. I know how my people have suffered because I have too. That is how I grew up and because I am one of the fortunate ones to have escaped poverty I am compelled to be a public servant for them. If my being in public office can attract new businesses to relocate to my province and to shine a light on the neglect my people have endured, I am only too happy to serve. "One of the biggest advantages I have is that every fight is an opportunity to give honor to the Philippines. The Filipino people don't just give me their support, they also give me their strength, their pride and their love. Running for congress is a way for me to repay them." Top Rank's Bob Arum anticipates Pacquiao's ring return in the fall, likely November, regardless of the outcome of the election. So Arum is already looking ahead and thinking about possible fights for Pacquiao. Obviously, Pacquiao against the winner of the May 1 Shane Mosley-Floyd Mayweather Jr. fight makes the most sense and is the most lucrative, by far. But Arum was quick to point out that if Mosley wins, it's an unlikely fight because Mayweather has a rematch clause in the contract. "So any talk of Shane Mosley beating Mayweather and then fighting Manny is poppycock," Arum said, adding that he believed the rematch clause was "strong." Of course, a Mayweather win would put the sides in the same position they were in a couple of months ago, when Pacquiao-Mayweather imploded over drug testing procedures. If Mayweather beats Mosley and there are again issues -- which you just know there would be -- Arum said he has three opponents in mind that he would give a shot at Pacquiao: • Antonio Margarito, the disgraced former welterweight titlist whom Arum anticipates will eventually get his license back after having it revoked for trying to fight Mosley with loaded hand wraps 14 months ago. • Edwin Valero, the former lightweight titlist who is moving up to junior welterweight for his next fight. Valero, who has had licensing issues because of a past medical problem, is licensed in Texas, so maybe we'll see a return to Jerry Jones' Cowboys Stadium if that fight is made. • Juan Manuel Marquez, the lightweight champ who would have to move up in weight. Marquez and Pacquiao have fought two memorable battles with Pacquiao going 1-0-1 in two terrific and close fights in which both decisions were highly controversial. If there is Pacquiao-Marquez III it would mean Top Rank would have to work with Golden Boy, Marquez's promoter, which is always a dicey proposition. If you missed Pacquiao-Clottey, fought before a crowd of almost 51,000, HBO will replay the pay-per-view bout Saturday night (11 ET/PT). The pay-per-view numbers aren't out yet because Arum and HBO PPV only have totals from the satellite services. "All we have is the satellite numbers and they are very strong," Arum said. "We're not giving out any numbers yet because we have very little from the cable systems, which you need. The cable numbers are very fragmented, so it could be a few days. But the number that you can't go any lower than is 650,000 for the fight. That is the worst it would do, but it should be a lot higher."