MANILA, Philippines – Kung ipinalalabas ni American world welterweight champion Sugar Shane Mosley na itinakda na sa Oktubre 17 ang kanilang upakan ni Filipino boxing superstar Manny Pacquiao, wala pa itong basehan.
Nilinaw kahapon ni Bob Arum ng Top Rank Promotions na wala pa silang napag-uusapan ng Golden Boy Promotions, nanga-ngalaga kay Mosley.
“This has absolutely no credibility to it. Manny hasn’t decided who he’s going to fight,” ani Arum sa panayam ng Los Angeles Times. “It could be Mosley, or it could be (Miguel) Cotto, (Floyd) Mayweather Jr., (Juan Manuel) Marquez or (Edwin) Valero. They’re all in the mix.”
Sa sarili niyang press release, sinabi ng 37-anyos na si Mosley na nag-uusap na sina Arum at Golden Boy Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Richard Schaefer ukol sa kanilang laban ng 30-anyos na si Pacquiao.
Handa rin si Mosley, ang bagong World Boxing Association (WBA) welterweight titlist, sa isang catch weight kasama ang 40-60 percentage split para makaharap si Pacquiao.
Ayon naman kay Arum, hihintayin muna nila ni Pacquiao ang resulta ng title defense ni Cotto kay Joshua Clottey sa Hunyo 13 sa Madison Square Garden sa New York City.
“Shane’s a good guy, he’s definitely in the picture,” sabi ni Arum. “Why would I eliminate options?”
Bukod kay Mosley, pinagpipilian rin ng kampo ni Pacquiao sina Mayweather at Marquez, maglalaban sa Hulyo 18 sa MGM Grand Garden Arena sa Las Vegas, Nevada.
“I’ve also heard from Manny’s people that he wants to wait and see the Mayweather-Marquez fight before he agrees to anything,” paglilinaw ni Arum. “That would mean we won’t be ready until November.”
Sinabi na rin ni Pacquiao, ang bagong International Boxing Organization (IBO) light welterweight king, na handa siyang harapin si Mosley.
“Now that Manny has stated that he is ready to fight me, the only thing left to finish are negotiations. Richard Schaefer and Bob Arum are working out the details now,” ani Mosley sa kanyang press statement. “I will be ready to fight Pacquiao on October 17th.” (Russell Cadayona)