Filipino boxing idol Manny Pacquiao (left) poses for photographs with Argentina’s Lucas Matthysse after a press conference in Kuala Lumpur on April 20, 2018. AFP FILE PHOTO
With just a little more than a week to go before the WBA welterweight championship bout between Sen. Manny Pacquiao and Lucas Matthysse, there is still no word on the fight’s US broadcast.
Top Rank boss Bob Arum, who was tasked with the match’s TV distribution in the US, told ESPN that the fight could be shown on ESPN and its livestream component ESPN+.
There is a possibility that the bout won’t have a pay-per-view (PPV) component, a huge departure from when Pacquiao faced Floyd Mayweather Jr. three years ago in a blockbuster duel that broke TV records.
Arum has reportedly put the blame on Pacquiao’s MP promotions for missing payment deadlines, thereby hampering a PPV deal. —MARC REYES