Pacquiao in the Driver’s Seat of Boxing World

MANILA, Philippines - Manny Pacquiao can command the terms and conditions for all his fights.

He is, after all, boxing’s new Oscar De La Hoya.

Golden Boy Promotions vice-president Eric Gomez pointed this out, saying that being on top of the sport today – as the world’s pound-for-pound king and boxing’s top attraction - Pacquiao is in the position to choose who is going to be his opponent from a long list of contenders and impose his conditions upon them.

Reigning World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight title holder Miguel Cotto is currently the leading candidate for the Pacquiao sweepstake. Waiting in line are fighters considered among the best in boxing today, from Sugar Shane Mosley, Floyd Mayweather Jr, to Juan Manuel Marquez.

“Manny is driving the car right now," said the soft-spoken Golden Boy official.

“He can say who he wants to fight and that’s a great position to be in boxing. Oscar was in that position for many years and Manny is in that position right now."

Gomez is aware of a possible Pacquiao-Cotto fight, which Top Rank Promotions chairman Bob Arum is now trying to work on. The veteran promoter has already penciled a November 14 duel at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

Latest development on the fight was Arum’s meeting with HBO Sports senior vice president Mark Taffet on the likelihood of televising the bout on pay-per-view.

Taffet confirmed the network talked with Top Rank involving a Pacquiao fight scheduled on November 14, but said no deals have yet been finalized.

Gomez is not about to criticize a Pacquiao-Cotto match – both fighters being under the Top Rank stable – but believes Mosley could make a better match up for the Filipino ring icon.

“Shane is willing to do it. You just can’t forget Shane. When you talk about boxing’s pound-for-pound, there is a guy in Shane Mosley who beat the guy in Antonio Margarito, who is considered one of the top pound-for-pound fighters today," Gomez said.

He added Pacquiao could even look at the winner of the Mayweather-Marquez bout, although that meant the Filipino ring icon would have to wait a little following the postponement of the showdown, originally scheduled on July 18, after the comebacking Floyd Jr. suffered an injury in his ribs during training camp.

Source: gmanews.tv