By: Sean Crose
In a recent video from ESNEWS, Mikey Garcia expressed the fact that there is no opponent in his future. This came after Garcia spoke with confidence some time ago about being Manny Pacquiao’s next opponent. Now, with Pacquiao set to face Errol Spence later this summer, word is out that Paradigm, a sports management firm that represents Pacquiao, is suing the Filipino legend for choosing Spence as his next foe rather than Garcia. According to numerous sources, the 44 year old boxer and senator has a lawsuit on his hands which may cost him upwards of three million dollars.
As is being reported, Paradigm had hoped to arrange a match between Pacquiao and Garcia after a much hoped for battle between Pacquiao and UFC star Conor McGregor fell through. Pacquiao, however, decided to work with Al Haymon’s Premiere Boxing Champions instead. Hence, the Pacquiao-Spence fight came to be, rather than a bout between Pacquiao and Garcia. Needless to say, Paradigm is claiming Pacquiao broke his part of their legally binding deal. It’s also being reported that Paradigm is looking to put the breaks on Spence-Pacqiuao before the fight happens. This, of course, is bad news for fans who recently witnessed a heavyweight superfight between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua fall through because of legal matters.
The truth is that, although Garcia is an intriguing matchup for Pacqiuao, he’s not nearly as intriguing as a match as Spence represents. Spence has made easy work of Garcia, after all. Still, it will be up to the courts to decide where this goes. Even though people may prefer to see Pacqiuao fight Spence, it was clear Paradigm was trying to get a fight with Garcia made after the UFC’s McGregor got bested in the octagon last winter.
The question now, of course, is whether or not Pacquiao illegally broke his deal with Paradigm. That’s something for the Orange County Court in California, where the lawsuit has been filed, to answer. All fight fans can do in the meantime is hope for the best. Pacquiao isn’t getting any younger, and the public is growing beyond tired of the biggest names not facing off. There’s a reason, after all, why Jake Paul is currently one of the hottest stars in the sport of boxing…there’s a void to be filled. With that in mind, a decision will have to be made quickly as to whether or not the Pacquiao-Spence fight can go through, as it’s scheduled to go down in less than two months.