Manny Pacquiao says next fight set for June 24, promoter begs to differ

It’s always confusing when a boxer says he’s got a fight lined up and his promoter isn’t on the same page, which is exactly the situation with Manny Pacquiao right now.

Even though many people, even some of his most loyal fans of Filipino descent (this writer included) would like to see him retire, Manny Pacquiao hasn’t stepped away from boxing just yet. It’s just a little unclear when and where his next fight will be.

While continuing to serve as a senator in the Philippines, Pacquiao recently announced that he would be fighting Lucas Matthysse in Malaysia on June 24. There’s just one problem: His promoter says there’s no fight set as of yet.

It’s one of those “only in boxing” situations, and ESPN’s ace reporter Dan Rafael got one side of it from Pacquiao’s longtime promoter, Bob Arum. He seemed unsure about both the location of the proposed fight and whether Matthysse was even guaranteed to be Pac-Man’s next opponent.

"For years we’ve had these proposals from people in the Mideast, whether it’s Abu Dhabi, or the Emirates, or Saudi Arabia, and we’re still waiting for the first deposit for the fight to happen. It didn’t, so now we’ve shifted our attention from the Mideast to the Far East and we’re looking for Malaysian money.If the money comes up then I’ve agreed to sign on."

More from Boxing

• Limited-Time FanDuel Boxing Promo: $200 Bonus for ANY Bet on Baumgardner vs Linardatou
• Rays vs. Diamondbacks prediction and odds for Thursday, June 29 (Take the OVER)
• DraftKings Boxing Promo GUARANTEES $200 on Lopez vs Taylor (Plus, Win an Extra $200+ in Five States!)
• Industry’s BIGGEST Boxing Promo Unlocks $2,500 Bonus Betting on Lopez vs Taylor at FanDuel
• Turn $5 Into $200 Betting on Claressa Shields With DraftKings Boxing Promo (-8000 Odds Usually Pays out 6 Cents!) 

The really interesting part of Rafael’s piece, though, comes via the suggestions that Pacquiao may not want to continue on with Top Rank Boxing, preferring to promote himself, and that he may even split with trainer Freddie Roach. Then again, there have been whispers of these same breaks for years now, and boxer, trainer and promoter always seem to find their way back together again.

If this time proves an exception, it really would be something of a new chapter in the career of Pacquiao, the only boxer ever to win world titles in eight different weight classes. Now 39, he sports a 59-7-2 professional record, but is just 7-4 this decade. His most recent fight was a controversial decision loss to Jeff Horn in Australia last July.

There’s very little doubt that Pacquiao will step in the ring again, as he declared he would even in the immediate aftermath of that defeat. But there’s a whole lot of doubt, for now, about whether he’ll really take on Matthysse, where the fight will take place and if it’s really going down in June.