Freddie Roach wants Manny Pacquiao to face Danny Garcia in his comeback fight next year, but Top Rank Promotions CEO Bob Arum has other plans in mind.
Arum told The Philippine Star that they are already working on the next fight of Pacquiao, but he revealed that it will not be against Garcia. "No, not Danny Garcia," he said.
Pacquiao is currently recovering from a serious shoulder injury he sustained while training for his fight against Floyd Mayweather Jr. According to previous reports, the Filipino boxing icon is planning to return early next year.
Aside from Garcia, Pacquiao is also being linked to a showdown with former sparring mate Amir Khan, who also expressed interest in facing the reigning pound-for-pound king after failing to get a fight against Mayweather.
However, Roach said late last month that he is more interested in facing Garcia than Khan because facing the latter could lead to a boring fight. The Hall of Fame trainer thinks that Garcia, who holds a perfect 31-0 record with 18 knockouts, is a more exciting fighter than Khan.
Garcia, who is the current World Boxing Association and World Boxing Council super lightweight champion, is coming off an impressive ninth-round knockout victory over Paul Malignaggi in August. The Philadelphia native also scored a close majority decision win against Lamont Peterson in April.
"I like Danny Garcia, I think he's the more exciting fight," Roach said via BoxingScene. "Amir Khan and [Pacquiao] have too much of a similar style where it might be a little bit boring - with two in and out boxers with good speed and so forth. I think Danny Garcia comes to fight, I think he looks for knockouts. I like his style."
However, it appears that Khan is really on top of the list Pacquiao's possible foe in his next fight. Arum recently said that he is talking to Khan and his camp about possible showdown, which was also confirmed by the Briton boxer.
Khan is under the supervision of Al Haymon, who is a known rival of Arum. However, the Haymon-Arum rivalry will not be a factor. Arum said that he is directly negotiating with Khan, while the former world champion also confirmed that Haymon will allow him to face Pacquiao because he wants the best for his fighters.
Khan, who has racked up 31 victories with 19 knockouts against just three defeats in 10-year professional career, ran away with a unanimous decision win against Chris Algieri in May in Brooklyn, New York.
