Top Rank Promotions CEO Bob Arum refuted reports indicating that the rematch between Manny Pacquiao and Timothy Bradley has been sealed, saying that the proposed showdown is not yet a done deal.
Multiple reports suggested on Tuesday night that Pacquiao and his camp have already finalized a rematch with Bradley that will take place on April 12 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, but Arum insisted that nothing is final.
The world-renowned promoter admitted though the undefeated American is now the only fighter that they are considering for the April bout of the former pound-for-pound king.
"We are working on the details. We are trying to finalize the fight," Arum told ABS-CBN News. "Are we talking to Bradley? Yes. Is the fight done yet? No. Will it get done? Probably. That's all I can say. Right now, we are only considering Bradley. It doesn't mean we won't consider others, but right now, we are considering Bradley."
But while Arum reiterated that the fight is not yet sealed, it looks like the Top Rank boss is just waiting for it to become official.
In a separate interview with RingTV, Arum sounded like he is just taking a cautious approach on announcing the possible showdown, fearing that the negotiation could go down anytime, and it is the reason why no official announcement is being made by both camps.
"I've been involved in this business for so long that I know until everything is agreed to, then there's no fight," Arum stressed. "If it ends up blowing in our face, and he ends up fighting (Ruslan) Provodnikov, then you look like a horse's ass. So the process is ongoing. It's not done. These things take a long time to finish the negotiations."
Aside from Bradley, Pacquiao and his camp also reportedly considered reigning WBA light welterweight champion Ruslan Provodnikov and Robert Guerrero, but the fight against the 30-year-old American makes more sense due to the bad blood between both fighters.
Bradley scored an infamous split-decision win over Pacquiao in their first showdown in June 2012. Pacquiao looked dominant in that bout, but Bradley ended up stealing the Filipino boxing icon's WBO welterweight title via a controversial split-decision victory.
The decision was later ruled inaccurate by the WBO, but Bradley did retain the belt because the sanctioning body has no power to reverse the decision.
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