No longer ‘Horny’
Credit to Author: ED C. TOLENTINO| Date: Thu, 07 Feb 2019 16:11:16 +0000
Manny Pacquiao understandably sounded a bit peeved when former tormentor Jeff “The Hornet” Horn recently challenged him to a rematch of their controversial July 2017 match in Brisbane.
Pacquiao shot down with a verbal Uzi Horn’s pronouncement that he is ready to face the Filipino ring icon in a rematch as early as May. Pacquiao claimed he wanted an immediate rematch with Horn after their first meeting but the Australian’s camp didn’t want it. Horn denied turning down any proposed rematch with Pacquiao, but just the same the Pacman expressed no interest in a return bout.
Truth be told, Pacquiao’s time in the punch-for-pay business is already winding down and the last thing he wants is to be embroiled in a meaningless rematch with Horn. There is really no pressure on the part of Pacquiao to face Horn again considering that he won the first fight and was only robbed by the judges.
It is Horn who is under pressure to lure Pacquiao back in the ring because his career needs a major boost following the technical knockout loss he suffered to Terence Crawford last year. Horn won the WBO welterweight title with the upset win over Pacquiao but held the belt for less than a year as he was eventually bludgeoned in nine rounds by Crawford.
Horn (19-1, 1 draw with 13 knockouts) is trying to pull all stops to convince Pacquiao to fight him again. He bragged about giving Pacquiao a tougher time in the ring should they meet again.
From where this writer sits, there is another reason why a Pacquiao-Horn rematch cannot be made and it has to with a legal imbroglio.
It will be recalled that Pacquiao found himself in a legal tussle with Bob Arum last year over his contract with Top Rank Promotions. Pacquiao wanted out of Top Rank and was looking to work with Oscar De La Hoya’s Golden Boy Promotion, but Arum insisted that the Pacman owed him one more fight.
Pacquiao countered that he agreed to only five fights in the 2014 deal he signed with Top Rank and the fifth and final fight of the contract was the July 2017 fight with Horn in Brisbane. Arum insisted that there was still one fight left in the deal, but Pacquiao refused to budge.
The “extra fight” may very well refer to the rematch clause Pacquiao consented to when he signed to fight Horn in 2017. But the rematch clause is contingent on Pacquiao exercising said option. Here lies the gray area: If Pacquiao gives in to Horn’s provocations and agrees to a rematch, such will give rise to the “extra fight” Arum was talking about. Top Rank may re-enter the picture and argue that it is the one that should promote the Pacquiao-Horn encore considering that the rematch traces its roots from the contract of the first fight.
Things figure to be more complicated considering that Pacquiao is now aligned with Al Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) stable. Pacquiao joined the PBC last October with the end in view of securing a megabuck rematch with Haymon’s prized client Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Given the legal complexities, Pacquiao is really better off skipping a return bout with Horn. Horn no longer holds a world title and does not command big money on the table. He clearly does not deserve an iota of attention from Pacquiao.
Horn apparently forgot that the tables have been turned; it is now the Pacman who calls the shots.
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