Bob Arum confirms Floy Mayweather not in the picture for Pacquiao’s next fight

Bob Arum says that Mayweather Jr. is not one of the names he is looking at for Manny Pacquiao’s next fight on April 12th. Arum says that the two names that he’s looking at to match against Manny Pacquiao are Tim Bradley or Juan Manuel Marquez.

For fans hoping to see a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight in April or May, you’ll have to be satisfied with either a Pacquiao-Bradley rematch or a Pacquiao-Marquez rematch. Either way, we’re talking retreat opponents for Manny  Pacquiao.

“There is nothing with Floyd Maywether,” Arum said to the Manila Bulletin.

I’m not sure why Arum is still mentioning Marquez’s name as a possible opponent for  Manny Pacquiao because he’s repeatedly said that he never, ever wants to fight Manny  Pacquiao again in this lifetime. With Bob  Arum still including Marquez’s name as a possible candidate for Manny  Pacquiao, it gives one the impression that Marquez’s name is being used to keep Timothy  Bradley from asking for too much money in the negotiations. Juan Manuel Marquez is not even in play for this fight, yet his name is still being mentioned. The only guy in play for Pacquiao’s next fight is Bradley and that to me is incredibly boring.

I just hope for Manny  Pacquiao’s sake that this will be the last time that he has to fight  Timothy Bradley, because it would be disappointing if Bob Arum keeps trotting out Bradley as Pacquiao’s future opponent, if for no other reason because he’s pretty much got no one else to match him up against in his stable. Once Manny Pacquiao badly whips one of Arum’s Top Rank stable fighters, it’s pretty much impossible for Arum to keep matching him up against that fighter over and over again. But when it’s close like it was with Bradley and Manny Pacquiao, then that fighter gets trotted back out again rather than having Manny Pacquiao move on to more interesting opponents.

I suspect that Floy Mayweather won’t be in play for Pacquiao’s second fight in 2014 in September either. I just don’t think Floy Mayweather will ever be in play for Manny Pacquiao as long as he’s with Arum. My guess is Manny Pacquiao will either fight Bradley for a third time in September or face Mike Alvarado or maybe Ruslan Provodnikov.