Manny Pacquiao and Terence Crawford (Photo : Twitter)
The rumored face-off between Manny Pacquiao and Saul "Canelo" Alvarez might not materialize and once again, Bob Arum is to blame.
This accusation was aired by Chris Williams of Boxing News 24 with the implication that there might be "selfish motives" by the Top Rank promoter.
When asked about the possibility of PacMan facing Canelo, who is now the middleweight champion, Arum said he was worried for his fighter's safety.
However, Williams points out that "if you look back at Pacquiao's history, he already fought some big guys in the past like Antonio Margarito in 2010 at a catch-weight handicap of 150lbs." Pacquiao even fought and beat Miguel Cotto, Canelo's opponent on November 21.
The article then takes a shot at Arum, citing that there might be selfish reasons at play. Canelo is not a Top Rank boxer, he is now Golden Boy's flagship fighter. While that is no longer a hindrance, Arum would have full take of the promotions if Pacquiao faced Terrence Crawford, a fellow Top Rank boxer.
Arum actually admitted as much, when he told ESPN about how he hopes that Pacquiao does not choose Amir Khan.
"Would I prefer it not to be Khan? Yes, but this is Manny's last fight," Arum said. "I have a duty to him to present him all of the options. Do I hope he doesn't pick Khan though? Of course [because I don't promote him], but I don't think he will pick Khan."
In a more recent article, Williams said Arum wants to use Pacquiao as a stepping stone for Crawford, who Arum is grooming to be his next "cash cow." Williams believed that it would be better for Arum to let Pacman have the biggest payday as a way of thanking him for all the years of success (not to mention tons of money) he made for Top Rank.
The article surmises that Pacquiao-Crawford would not draw a high Pay-per-view audience unlike a Pacquiao-Canelo match-up. However, establishing Crawford by sending PacMan to retirement works for Arum in the long-run.
