Clarifying Status of Pacquiao and PBC, And Pondering Where Welter Chips Will Fall

One might think that the time is ripe, or nearly there, for some chips to fall, and for the welterweight division to see some action, in terms of making matchups for the the next few months.

Depending on who you really dig, you are curious about hitters like Manny Pacquiao, Errol Spence, Terence Crawford, Keith Thurman, Shawn Porter, and heck, maybe even Floyd Mayweather. (We put him on this list recognizing that the almost 43 year old “Money” man likely wouldn’t be gloving up again as a welterweight, but more so because when he decides to do it one more time, it will affect, to an extent or another, those others who excel at 147.)

Maybe the person on that list I’m most curious about is Pacman.

The Senator is making moves, and one made the news on Tuesday. Manny latched on with an agency that wasn’t on my radar, Paradigm. The Cali outfit boasts footballers and MMAers, with Conor McGregor, the compelling and oft combustible Irishman the most intriguing being on their client list. Or, he was, to me, until Pacquaio became the first boxer added to the Paradigm roster.

On Wednesday afternoon, I put in a call to the Paradigm switchboard, looking to speak with Paradigm decision-makers. I sought clarity about this addition to the Paradigm slate, and wanted to get some info on the meaningfulness of the Manny move.

Part of my curiousity came from the alert I received on Wednesday afternoon. Someone who generally knows which end is up in the pugilism business sphere said that they were told that in fact Pacman is NOT signed to PBC for his next fight. If that were the case, that certainly changes up the possibility list for the Filipino icon, doesn’t it?

I messaged Sean Gibbons, who has acted as a Pacman emissary, filling the seat held by Michael Koncz, who was ejected from the MannyMobile around the time MP hopped on board the Haymon train, in fall 2018. Is he still on board, I asked him, and has Manny’s status with PBC changed? “Yes,” said Gibbons, Manny is still a PBC fighter. And he passed on a pic of him sitting next to the fighting politician, who is on track to in the near future be elected President of his nation. Both are sitting with a chess board in front of them.

To be thorough, I messaged a PBC spokesman to get clarity on that rumor, to verify that Manny is indeed still part of the PBC platform. When I receive a confirm or deny, I will furnish that material.

Back to Paradigm; a PR release has founder Audie Attar quoted as saying, “I’m honored to have the opportunity not only to maximize Manny’s boxing career but to help him continue to leave a legacy he is proud of through the lens of business and sport. My approach is to focus on each client and their goals always, and I look forward to fighting on his behalf.”

Do you believe in coincidences? I’d not bet your house that this hookup is coincidental, that Pacquiao and McGregor are now within the same management house and no other shoe will drop from that.

You might need to be patient for a bit more to see if this is nothing but a coincidence. But in the next couple weeks, I’d expect to get a better sense of what/who a Danny Garcia will be placing on his To Do list. Danny is waiting on a dance partner, and so are all the men mentioned up top this piece.

Will a Dana White have a say in these chips falling? Will we see if Manny could stop Conor McGregor quicker than Floyd Mayweather did, and if he does, would we see Manny versus Floyd 2 in the fall?

Did that Anthony Joshua-Andy Ruiz deal in Saudi Arabia get gears whirring?

This region is now open for business aside from oil and other traditionals. Qatar, you should know, has the highest per person income on the planet.

Might Pacman like to branch out as more a truly global entity, and look to place a bout in that Saudi Arabia/United Arab Emirates zone, which seems to be more open to business in the sporting realm?

2 are running fast and furious.