Pacquiao Lines up Comeback Victim?

[SenorPipino]

Manny Pacquiao has apparently lined up his next opponent.

And the apparent intended victim won't get anyone's juices flowing.

Rumor has it that the Filipino will take on shopworn Mike Alvarado on the undercard of the Horn-Crawford welterweight title fight April 14 at Madison Square Garden.

ESPN will broadcast the card, however it's probably going to be a PPV production.

Alvarado, a former junior welterweight champ, lost 3 in a row a few years ago to Provodnikov, Marquez and Rios.

In the one sided KO defeat to Rios, Alvarado appeared shot.

But since then he's managed to reel off 4 straight wins over journeymen.

Apparently that's enough to qualify him as Pacquiao's comeback foil.

[jamamb]

pac on an undercard?

[gilgamesh]

I truly don't understand Pac doing "tuneups" anymore at this stage. Every single fight he takes that isn't a big money maker is a waste of his time, and what little bit of high level fighting ability he has left. Not only that, once you get to where Pac is there's really no such thing as a tuneup at this point. Damn near anybody can potentially beat you at this stage of a Boxing career.

Pac either needs to fight big fights or just call it a career because this sh*t is just a waste of everybody's time including his.

[SenorPipino]

pac on an undercard?

Sad isn't it?

On PPV, the card would figure to be a box office disaster.

Neither Horn nor Crawford are household names (Crawford could become one but that's down the line) and if Pacquiao is an undercard fighter, that shows how far his star has fallen.

Better it go to regular ESPN so that Crawford can get wider exposure.

Hiding him on a lightly viewed PPV card doesn't help his marketability.

Yes fighting Alvarado seems like a waste of everyone's time. But I suppose Arum's thought is to put Pac in with a non-threatening opponent and make it a so-called showcase card.

You'll get to compare Crawford and Pacquiao, who would both be expected to win in April and then meet later in the year.

[gilgamesh]

There's really nothing to compare at this point. Crawford would've been able to dominate Pac head to head if they'd fought 4 years ago. That fight only becomes more and more of a mismatch with each passing day.

[Syntax Error]

I truly don't understand Pac doing "tuneups" anymore at this stage. Every single fight he takes that isn't a big money maker is a waste of his time, and what little bit of high level fighting ability he has left. Not only that, once you get to where Pac is there's really no such thing as a tuneup at this point. Damn near anybody can potentially beat you at this stage of a Boxing career.

Pac either needs to fight big fights or just call it a career because this sh*t is just a waste of everybody's time including his.

On the money.

If this is true, Manny is completely wasting his time.

He's a big enough name/scalp to get big fights against big opponents.

He's pushing 40 now & really ought to quit, but if he wants to fight on, he should just have proper fights against proper opposition, rather than so-called tune-ups.

[SenorPipino]

You're talking as a hardcore boxing fan, Gilgamesh, who's knowledgeable about the realities of the fight game.

But Arum (and all promoters) need to also sell their product to the far more casual fan in order to turn a profit.

These fans are hardly as savvy and probably don't recognize how diminished Pacquiao really is.

But put Pacquiao in with a faded, slow face first fighter like Alvarado and he looks young again.

That makes selling a Crawford-Pacquioa fight to these unsuspecting casuals a much easier task.

[gilgamesh]

You're talking as a hardcore boxing fan, Gilgamesh, who's knowledgeable about the realities of the fight game.

But Arum (and all promoters) need to also sell their product to the far more casual fan in order to turn a profit.

These fans are hardly as savvy and probably don't recognize how diminished Pacquiao really is.

But put Pacquiao in with a faded, slow face first fighter like Alvarado and he looks young again.

That makes selling a Crawford-Pacquioa fight to these unsuspecting casuals a much easier task.

Very true Senor

No fight has ever been a "Superfight" without capturing the imaginations of the general public, and likewise no fighter has ever been a "Superstar" without doing the same. So yes, appealing to casuals is a must to reach the highest of highs in the fight game in terms of money, prestige and notoriety...for Arum and the like I'm sure Money is the bottom line

[Lackeos]

Arum's ability to promote Pacquiao seems increasingly questionable.

[Mexi-Box]

There's really nothing to compare at this point. Crawford would've been able to dominate Pac head to head if they'd fought 4 years ago. That fight only becomes more and more of a mismatch with each passing day.

You're kidding right?

[gilgamesh]

There's really nothing to compare at this point. Crawford would've been able to dominate Pac head to head if they'd fought 4 years ago. That fight only becomes more and more of a mismatch with each passing day.

You're kidding right?

No

Crawford's style is all wrong for Pacquiao. It would've been all wrong for him then, it's all wrong for him now.

[Mexi-Box]

There's really nothing to compare at this point. Crawford would've been able to dominate Pac head to head if they'd fought 4 years ago. That fight only becomes more and more of a mismatch with each passing day.

You're kidding right?

No

Crawford's style is all wrong for Pacquiao. It would've been all wrong for him then, it's all wrong for him now.

Pacquiao was slipping around '14/'13, but he still had enough to beat Timothy Bradley. I've seen nothing at all to indicate that Crawford beats Pacquiao around that time. Saying easily is even more laughable.

[gilgamesh]

Crawford ain't Tim Bradley. Crawford's style is a much more difficult matchup for Pac than Bradley's was.

[Stuarty]

Manny has to retire. Cyclone should try and bring him over here for Josh Taylor at 140! Just so I could go and see him! Guys a legend but he'd be as well wrapping it now!

[brilo33]

Pacquiao for me is a great in boxing, just hope he retires with the respect he built, sam eggington as fight

[Badhusker]

Arum should at least make Pac a co-main event, but to do that they need a decent opponent.

[SenorPipino]

I suppose it would be promoted as co-main events so as not to diminish Pacquiao's reputation.

However, if Horn-Crawford goes on as the last fight of the night, then we all know what the true main event is.

[tiny_acres]

Arum is just keeping Pacquiao safe until he offers him up as a sacrifice to Crawford.

[SenorPipino]

Keeping him safe and trying to make him appear to still be the Pacquiao of old by apparently putting him in with a faded fighter whose defensively deficient style will make the Filipino shine.

Then he matches him with Crawford for the traditional changing of the guard.

[gilgamesh]

Arum should at least make Pac a co-main event, but to do that they need a decent opponent.

Decent opponents are more than Manny can handle at this point. Jeff Horn was supposed to be easy remember?

[klitoris]

Pacquiao is done. Arum is just trying to recycle him to Crawford.
Can totally appreciate Loma refusing to fight a past his prime legend out of respect.

[klitoris]

Pacquiao is done. Arum is just trying to recycle him to Crawford.
Can totally appreciate Loma refusing to fight a past his prime legend out of respect.

[KiwiRider]

Aw heck, at this stage of Manny's career, it's an OK fight.
He has nothing to prove, and if he wants to keep fighting, more power to him. He dosent have to please his fans, hr has done that for more years than all but a select few in boxing.
The guy just wants to keep fighting because he loves the sport. As long as he stays healthy, then I don't care. As a long time fan, I couldn't ask any more from him.

[SenorPipino]

Aw heck, at this stage of Manny's career, it's an OK fight.
He has nothing to prove, and if he wants to keep fighting, more power to him. He dosent have to please his fans, hr has done that for more years than all but a select few in boxing.
The guy just wants to keep fighting because he loves the sport. As long as he stays healthy, then I don't care. As a long time fan, I couldn't ask any more from him.

Well Pac's 39 and has been fighting for 23 years.

After all those years of toil and pain and now diminishing skills, I wonder if Pacquiao still fights for the love of the sport.

I think it was last year that Pacquiao was hit with an approximate $70 million bill from both the Philippines' and the US for an unpaid tax debt.

I recall that Pacquiao was wheeling and dealing to settle the issue, but even if he eventually received a reduction, he was still in hock for a hefty debt.

Call me Mr. Cynical, but I suspect that Pacquiao's reluctance to call it a career has less to do with his love for the sport but rather ongoing financial issues.

[Thomastearns]

Aw heck, at this stage of Manny's career, it's an OK fight.
He has nothing to prove, and if he wants to keep fighting, more power to him. He dosent have to please his fans, hr has done that for more years than all but a select few in boxing.
The guy just wants to keep fighting because he loves the sport. As long as he stays healthy, then I don't care. As a long time fan, I couldn't ask any more from him.

Pacquiao has the greatest legacy of anyone fighting today. As with Roy Jones Jr, we boxing fans should have nothing but gratitude for what they have given to our sport.

They should be allowed to leave the sport on their own terms, (medical authorities permitting). Hopefully those terms will include some measure of financial security and reasonable health.

For all its brutality, boxing seems to be the hardest sport to say goodbye to.