Rematch vs Cotto up next for Pacman?

MANILA, Philippines - Miguel Cotto seemed to have found the inside track in the Manny Pacquiao stakes race.

No less than Pacquiao’s wife, Jinkee, has told the media that the reigning WBO welterweight champion prefers Cotto as his next opponent.

Jinkee said his husband went through the tapes of his potential opponents the other day, and ended up by saying he wants a rematch with Cotto.

“He watched the tapes of (Lamont) Peterson and the others. Pero ang choice niya si Cotto,” said Jinkee as she celebrated her 33rd birthday in an isolated island off Sarangani.

Pacquiao fought Cotto, the reigning WBA light-middleweight champion, in 2008, and pounded the Puerto Rican into submission.

But Cotto came back from that defeat and impressed a lot of people when he knocked out Antonio Margarito last December in New York.

Aside from Cotto, the other names in the list are Juan Manuel Marquez, Tim Bradley and Peterson.

But these names will only be considered if the fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr. doesn’t happen soon.

“Nothing is final yet,” said Pacquiao, who gifted his wife with the island they have rented from the government for 25 years with plans of developing into a tourist spot.

“There are other choices (than Cotto). There’s a rematch (actually a fourth fight) with Marquez. We have Peterson, Bradley and Mayweather,” said Pacquiao.

The reigning WBO welterweight champion will sit down anew with his promoter Bob Arum today regarding his next fight.

Pacquiao and Arum sat down last Tuesday.

Arum said he wants Pacquiao to decide today whom he wants to fight outside of Mayweather. But the Top Rank chief said once he gets the name, he won’t announce it yet.

Arum said he needs to take it with him when he flies home this afternoon and take a deeper look on the potential of the fight that Pacquiao chooses.

“I’d kill him if he announces his choice tomorrow,” Arum told a veteran boxing scribe yesterday.