Inamin ni Top Rank big boss Bob Arum na gusto niyang hamunin ni WBC at WBO light welterweight titlist Terence Crawford si eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao bago matapos ang taong 2017.
Ngunit bago itong magkatotoo ng dahil, dapat maidepensa ni Pacquiao ang WBO welterweight title kay Jeff Horn sa Hulyo 2, sa Brisbane, Australia habang kailangang maipagtanggol ni Crawford ang kanyang titulo kay Felix Diaz ng Dominican Republic sa Mayo 20, sa Madison Square Garden sa New York City.
Don’t like to project too far ahead,” sabi ni Arum saboxingscene.com. “[Pacquiao-Crawford] may be two fights ahead. I am not content with guys fighting once or twice a year. That is bullsh*t. I mean, guys have to fight regularly.
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Terence will fight in May. Manny is fighting in July. Terence would love, I think, if he gets through this fight well, to get back in the ring sometime this summer. And then we’ll look to the fall.”
Kumpiyansa si Arum na mananalo si Crawford laban kay Diaz at magkakaroon pa ito ng unification bout kay WBA, IBF at IBO super lightweight champion Julius Indongo ng Namibia, bago hamunin si Pacquiao.
“Would Pacquiao and Crawford be a good fight, a big attraction? You bet your ass it will. And we will, all things being equal, we will do our best to make that fight because I think the public wants to see it and the public will support it. Manny Pacquiao has been a great fighter, a great attraction,” ani Arum.”I love Manny Pacquiao. Manny Pacquiao is the kind of guy that’s not afraid to step up and fight anybody. Terence Crawford is the rising star in boxing. Everybody would love to see that fight. But that’s all I can say about it. Yeah, I agree with [the] assessment that it’s a fight that the fans wanna see. And if it’s a fight that the fans wanna see, a promoter has the obligation to make it happen.”
Para kay Crawford, saka niya aalalahanin ang laban kay Pacquiao kapag nagtagumpay sa depensa kay Diaz na gold medalist sa 2008 Summer Olympics sa Beijing at kay Indongo.
“Of course Pacquiao is somebody that I would like to fight,” diin ni Crawford. “But at the same time, if it’s not in front of me then I’m really not worried about it. (Gilbert Espeña)
