By Edward Chaykovsky
According to eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao, the selection of Timothy Bradley as the April 9th opponent was not completely based on the financial aspects of the event.
A lot of fans voiced their displeasure when the trilogy bout was officially announced a few days ago by Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank.
The other two fighters in the running were British superstar Amir Khan and WBO junior welterweight champion Terence Crawford.
Arum said the selection of Bradley came down to the financial factors, as the cable and satellite distributors felt more comfortable with Bradley as the opponent.
In the eyes of many, Pacquiao has already beaten Bradley twice. The first bout in 2012 was a controversial split decision win for Bradley.
Now wait trainer Teddy Atlas in his corner, Bradley is being pushed as a "new" fighter. Bradley fired career-trainer Joel Diaz in September. Pacquiao agrees with the opinion of his promoter and saw Bradley as the opponent who would provide the most fireworks in the contest. There are many who would argue that Crawford and Khan would also provide their share of drama in the bout, but Bradley was considered to be the most marketable selection for HBO pay-per-view.
"So contrary to what some sectors believe, the choice of Bradley was not based solely on a business standpoint," Pacquiao explained to Philboxing.com. "There were many factors our team, headed by promoter Bob Arum, considered."
"And the most important, of course, was what fight can give fans the enjoyment and excitement they expect, which, actually is my primary criteria in choosing an opponent. Many, indeed, seemed dissatisfied with the choice, but what I can assure everybody is we made that decision having the interest of the boxing public in mind."
