A day after the fight was supposed to be dead, Filipino champion says he has signed a contract.
The long wait for Manny Pacquiao's signature on a contract to fight England's Ricky Hatton is over, Pacquiao's promoter said late Thursday, a move likely to resurrect a May 2 junior-welterweight bout in Las Vegas that was declared all but dead by Hatton one day earlier.
"Manny has assured me he's signed the contract, that he's announcing to the Philippines press that he's signed it, and that everything's done," Arum said Thursday night.
Pacquiao advisors have told reporters in the Philippines that the boxer has received a 52-48 split of the purse percentage, and a guaranteed purse of $12 million, figures Arum has declined to confirm.
Arum, in Los Angeles to oversee Saturday's Antonio-Margarito-Shane Mosley welterweight title fight Saturday at Staples Center, said he wouldn't see the faxed and e-mailed proof of signing until Friday morning, when an attorney for Arum's Top Rank promotions in Las Vegas will review the contract before it's faxed to Hatton's promoter, Richard Schaefer, in Los Angeles.
On Wednesday, Hatton (45-1, 32 knockouts) instructed Schaefer to end negotiations with Pacquiao and turn his attention to other opponents, such as Oscar De La Hoya or Floyd Mayweather Jr., for a fight in London. But due to Pacquiao's quick change of heart, a deal appears imminent -- as long as Pacquiao's signature is on the contract.
Schaefer, who has been waiting for Pacquiao to sign the deal since late December, said he won't even contact the Hatton camp about the latest twist in an unpredictable negotiation until he sees Pacquiao has signed the contract.
After Hatton's Wednesday pronouncement, Pacquiao released an early-morning Thursday statement urging Hatton to cut out the "middlemen," and "get it on."
Later Thursday, Arum told The Times he was prepared to board a Sunday night flight to Manila to show Pacquiao the respect he deserved as the world's top pound-for-pound fighter and to secure the signed contract in person.
But Pacquiao, whose camp had complained about a previous oral agreement to a 50-50 split of the purse even though it would give the Filipino icon the largest payday of his career, ultimately allowed Arum to avoid the Pacific-crossing flight by telling him the signed deal was on its way.
Arum said he's confident the signed deal will convince Hatton to accept the fight.
Source: latimes.com
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