Bob Arum: Manny Pacquiao “is there” to fight McGregor if Mayweather isn’t

The biggest ongoing story in combat sports today surrounds a possible boxing mega fight between undefeated great Floyd Mayweather and UFC lightweight champ Conor McGregor.

At first, of course, this fight looked like a near impossibility. As the months have passed, however, red tape has been bushwhacked and roadblocks have been cleared, and the fight looks more and more like one that will actually happen.

Perhaps the biggest development in this story thus far occurred earlier this month, when McGregor announced that he’d agreed to his end of the deal.

“It is an honour to sign this record breaking deal alongside my partners Zuffa LLC, The Ultimate Fighting Championship and Paradigm Sports Management,” McGregor said in a statement to TheMacLife.com.

This of course, leaves the ball in Mayweather’s court. UFC President Dana White is apparently now working diligently to reach an agreement with the boxer and his team.

If Mayweather isn’t able to come to an agreement with White and the UFC, however, there seems to be a pretty solid backup plan in the pipe: a boxing match between McGregor and another great of the boxing world, Manny Pacquiao.

Pacquiao has expressed interest in this fight previously, and more recently, his promoter Bob Arum has reiterated his interest in being Mayweather’s understudy.

“If McGregor is still looking for an opponent, Manny Pacquiao is there,” Arum said in a recent interview TMZ.

During his interview with TMZ, Arum also touched on the turbulent Mayweather-McGregor negotiations, and suggested the fight could well happen if the parties involved are patient and persistent.

“Be patient, don’t give in,” He said. “Dana’s a good negotiator, and he’ll get the thing done. But he can’t be pushed around by Mayweather and his people.”

How do you think a fight between Conor McGregor and Manny Pacquiao would go? Would it be more or less competitive than a bout between McGregor and Mayweather?

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 5/29/2017.