Pacquiao vs. Vargas PPV: Stephen A. Smith & Brian Kenny Call The Fight

Pacquiao vs. Vargas PPV: Stephen A. Smith & Brian Kenny Call The Fight

Sports commentating stars STEPHEN A. SMITH, BRIAN KENNY and CHARISSA THOMPSON will join former two-division and five-time world champion TIMOTHY “Desert Storm” BRADLEY as the ringside broadcast team for the MANNY “Pacman” PACQUIAO vs.. JESSIE VARGAS world welterweight championship fight which will take place Saturday, November 5 at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The broadcast team will also feature TopRank.com’s CRYSTINA PONCHER who will be the telecast’s roving reporter.

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Manny Pacquiao vs. Jesse Vargas Tickets

Manny Pacquiao vs. Jesse Vargas Tickets

Boxing’s only eight-division world champion and the reigning Fighter of the Decade, MANNY “Pacman” PACQUIAO, will be campaigning to become the only sitting Congressman and Senator to win a world title when he collides with two-division world champion JESSIE VARGAS in a 12-round battle for Vargas’ World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight crown. While Pacquiao will be looking to become a three-time WBO welterweight champion, Vargas will be resolute in enforcing a term limit on the future Hall of Famer’s boxing career. Pacquiao vs. Vargas takes place Saturday, November 5 at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Pacquiao vs. Vargas and its co-main event fights will be produced and distributed live by Top Rank® Pay-Per-View, beginning at 9:00 p.m. ET / 6:00 p.m. PT, and will be available on all conventional platforms, including all major cable and satellite systems, as well as Top Rank’s digital distribution via www.TopRank.tv and mobile devices.

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So who will televise Manny Pacquiao-Jessie Vargas?

So who will televise Manny Pacquiao-Jessie Vargas?

Manny Pacquiao’s November 5 comeback fight with reigning WBO welterweight champ Jessie Vargas, while a solid fight, has not caught fire with the majority of fight fans. Pac-Man, who will end the retirement from boxing he announced after his rubber-match win over Tim Bradley in April, is a fighter fans will always want to watch, but it was hoped he would face a bigger, more marquee name than Vargas in his return – Terence Crawford for example (a match-up that could still happen next year some time).

HBO, who televised many of Pac-Man’s greatest hits, will not be showing the November return bout, and promoter Bob Arum now has the job of finding a network that will carry the fight. Currently in The Philippines, Arum told RingTV.com that as soon as he returns to the states he will be working on finding the fight he himself says will be a great fight a home. It’s possible, Arum said, that the fight could end up being televised by either Showtime (HBO’s major rival of course), ESPN or a Turner network. It’s unclear how many fans will be eager to tune into the fight wherever it is shown.

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Arum says Pacquiao will fight twice next year, says a Mayweather rematch “may be a possibility”

Arum says Pacquiao will fight twice next year, says a Mayweather rematch “may be a possibility”

Promoter Bob Arum has made the long trip to The Philippines, again, and he outlined his plans for the soon to return Manny Pacquiao to the media. According to Arum, Pac-Man, who turns 38 in December, will fight WBO welterweight champ Jessie Vargas next (as everyone knew anyway, with the fight set for Las Vegas on November 5) and will then close out his “brilliant boxing career” with two more “big fights” next year.

Arum even tried to get the people listening to him excited by saying that a Pacquiao rematch with Floyd Mayweather Junior could possibly happen some time next year – even though Floyd himself has not said he will even box again.

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Manny Pacquiao vs. Jessie Vargas on November 5!

Manny Pacquiao vs. Jessie Vargas on November 5!

Manny Pacquiao’s personal adviser Michael Koncz is reporting that they’ve made their decision about who they’ll be fighting next on November 5 and they’ve selected World Boxing Organization welterweight champion Jessie Vargas (27-1, 12 KOs). The fight will be televised on HBO pay-per-view. Koncz says the reason why he didn’t go with unbeaten Terence Crawford, a fighter that Top Rank promoter Bob Arum is really high on, is because he didn’t like his boxing style of fighting. Koncz thinks that Crawford’s style of fighting isn’t a good one for Pacquiao.

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Arum to meet with Pacquiao on August 9 to discuss Crawford/Vargas

Arum to meet with Pacquiao on August 9 to discuss Crawford/Vargas

Top Rank boss Bob Arum is set to fly out to Manila on August 9, to meet up with the soon to return to the ring Manny Pacquiao and discuss his planned November 5 return to action. According to The Manila Times, Arum says Pac-Man’s opponent will likely be either unbeaten, recently unified WBO/WBC 140-pound champion Terence Crawford or once-beaten reigning WBO welterweight ruler Jessie Vargas.

“I have already booked my flight to Manila, I’m looking forward to that meeting” Arum said. “So far, they [Crawford and Vargas] are the candidates. It’s going to be an absolute blockbuster of a fight, either of the two. Everybody is excited to see Manny return. His last fight against Timothy Bradley was great.”

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Jessie Vargas wants Pacquiao

Jessie Vargas wants Pacquiao

He may have lost out on a big unification meeting with IBF champ Kell Brook, but reigning WBO welterweight champion Jessie Vargas believes he is on the verge of a much bigger fight: one with the soon to return Manny Pacquiao. As fans have read, superstar Pacquiao is, according to his promoter Bob Arum, set to return to action in November, in Las Vegas. Vargas, 27-1(10) and beaten only by Pacquiao common opponent Tim Bradley, told media members in Vegas yesterday how he feels he is very close to getting the Nov. 5 date with Pac-Man.

“I am the WBO welterweight champion and he wants to return to fight for this belt,” Vargas said as quoted by The National. “The fight is still under negotiation and I can say that soon we will announce it, although I do not want to advance because in boxing everything can change every minute. Manny has never faced someone like me. I’m at my best, I have several advantages. I’m taller and faster than him. I’m a really smart fighter too. I not only want to face him but I want to beat him. Juan Manuel Marquez did it and I want to beat him too, mainly because at his best he gave many headaches to Mexico fighters.”

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Crawford Vs. Pacquiao: can Pacquiao possibly win?

Crawford Vs. Pacquiao: can Pacquiao possibly win?

Terence Crawford may well have arrived as the new star of boxing. The unbeaten two-weight champion has been racking up hugely impressive and significant wins for months now, as he has proven time and again how he is deserving of being looked at as one of the best pound-for-pound boxers in the world. Crawford is arguably top-six, maybe top-five, and as he showed last night in totally dominating Viktor Postol – a tall, long-armed fighter who could have been a stylistic nightmare for him – his speed and reflexes are truly incredible.

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Arum says Pacquiao’s return will happen Nov. 5th – against either Crawford or Vargas; Garcia out

Arum says Pacquiao’s return will happen Nov. 5th - against either Crawford or Vargas; Garcia out

Pac-Man’s back. Manny Pacquiao, the superstar who “retired” in April, will fight in Las Vegas on November 5th, promoter Bob Arum said, as reported by The LA Times. The venue will likely be either The MGM Grand, Thomas and Mack or The Mandalay Bay – but who will the opponent be? According to Arum there are now two names in the frame: light-welterweight champion Terence Crawford and welterweight titlist Jessie Vargas.

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Manny Pacquiao looks set for comeback, will Floyd’s follow?

Manny Pacquiao looks set for comeback, will Floyd’s follow?

Though superstar Manny Pacquiao has not yet fully or officially endorsed his return to the ring, stating how his senatorial duties will always come first, his promoter Bob Arum is certain Pac-Man’s retirement, which came just three months ago, will end on either October 29 or November 5 in Las Vegas. It has been widely covered by many outlets how the 37-year-old great is expected back on one of these date and all that remains to be worked out (aside from just which Vegas venue will host the fight) is who will be the man in the opposite corner of the ring.

Arum spoke to The Mail and he said that one fighter, who was once a possibility, has now been well and truly crossed off the list: Adrien Broner. According to Arum, Broner has a problem understanding the economics of his sport, asking for as much as, or more than, Pacquiao will get paid. “He’s crazy,” Arum said. So who might it be in October or November?

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