Wala na umanong rason para hindi matuloy ngayong taon ang inaabangang bakbakan sa pagitan nina Pinoy ring icon Sen. Manny Pacquiao at UFC superstar Conor McGregor.
Ayon kay Audie Attar ng Paradigm Sports Management, posibleng mangyari ang Pacquiao-McGregor bout bago matapos ang 2021.
“I definitely believe it’s inevitable for 2021,” wika ni Attar. “Both fighters want it, that’s the key. You can’t make something happen or orchestrate it or choreograph it – which is the buzzword of this interview – you can’t fake that.
“If one side wants it and the other doesn’t, it’s not going to happen. But when both fighters want that fight to happen, why wouldn’t it happen? If the fans want to see it – that almost guarantees that it’s going to happen, right? As there’s enough interest to develop something there.”
Ibinulgar din ni Attar na nakipagpulong na raw ito sa pamunuan ng UFC kaugnay sa laban, lalo na’t naka-schedule si McGregor na magkaroon ng comeback sa UFC 257 main event sa Enero 23, tampok ang rematch kay Dustin Poirier.
Ilan umano sa posibleng maging venues ang Middle East.
“The UFC said, ‘Alright, let’s do that rematch [with Poirier]’. We said, ‘OK, well let’s do that rematch first then, but then Manny will be the next fight’. And that’s what both fighters want. So, that’s the plan,” ani Attar.
“We’ve been having amazing conversation with stakeholders across the world, including the Middle East. We’ll see where it goes. I’d be shocked if it didn’t happen in 2021.”
Kung maaalala, sina Pacquiao at McGregor ay kapwa nasa ilalim ng Paradigm Sports Management.
Huling lumaban sa isang boxing match si McGregor noong 2017 nang harapin nito si Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Habang si Pacquiao ay huling tumapak sa ring noong 2019 nang magwagi ito laban kay Keith Thurman.
