Manny Pacquiao will reportedly face Jessie Vargas in his comeback fight on Nov. 5 in Las Vegas. However, Top Rank Promotions CEO Bob Arum reiterated that nothing is finalized at this point.
News about Pacquiao's next fight against Vargas spread like wildfire on Thursday after the Filipino boxing icon's adviser Mike Koncz said that a decision has been made. When asked to confirmed the agreement, Arum said that he has yet to talk to Pacquiao about his plan.
"No, not so fast," Arum told Manila Times. "Everybody is jumping the gun about Manny fighting Jessie Vargas on November 5 after learning that there is a negotiation but no agreement has been reached yet because I need to talk first to Manny when I go there in Manila."
Vargas, who holds a 27-1 record with 10 knockout victories, has long been linked to a showdown with Pacquiao. The 27-year-old is coming off a ninth-round knockout win over Sadam Ali in March to capture the vacant World Boxing Organization welterweight title.
Arum confirmed that Vargas is among the frontrunners for Pacquiao's next fight. The veteran promoter reiterated, though, that undefeated champion Terence Crawford remains an option at this point.
Crawford, who has a perfect 29-0 record with 20 knockout victories, is coming off a unanimous decision win over Viktor Postol in July. The reigning World Boxing Council and World Boxing Organization super lightweight champion was considered favorite to face Pacquiao before Vargas' name surfaced.
It is worth noting that trainer Freddie Roach said that Pacquiao should think twice of facing Crawford in November. If he will have it his way, the Hall of Fame boxing coach said that he wants a tune-up fight for Pacquiao before colliding with Crawford. Roach trained Postol for his fight against Crawford.
"Manny in the senate and I have to go to the Philippines and so forth to train him and with all the confusion going on," Roach said via BoxingScene. "I don't think I'm going to accept that fight or want that fight right away. I mean give me one warm-up fight and give me a fight right after that and we can talk."
Pacquiao, an eight-division world champion, owns a 58-6-2 record with 38 knockout victories. Watch his career highlights in the video below.