Pacquiao not yet ready to name foe for April bout

Manny Pacquiao’s ring return has already been set, but the announcement of the name of his next opponent will have to wait.

Pacquiao was expected to unveil who his next foe will be during a truTV broadcast Saturday (Manila time), before having a change of heart.

“I was asked to tell you on Bob’s behalf that, unfortunately, Top Rank will not have an announcement on truTV as originally planned as Manny is not ready to make a decision on his opponent yet,” Top Rank’s Fred Sternburg said, as per ESPN’s Dan Rafael.

The 36-year-old Pacquiao is scheduled to climb back in the ring on April 9 in Las Vegas in what could be his farewell fight, nearly a year after his unanimous decision loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Timothy Bradley, whom Pacquiao beat convincingly in their second meeting in 2014,
and Terence Crawford are the two fighters reportedly in the frontrunner to get a crack at the former welterweight champion.

The 28-year-old Crawford, undefeated in 27 professional fights with 19 knockouts, is the current WBO junior welterweight champion.

Pacquiao lost to Bradley in a highly-controversial bout in 2012.