Horn to ride Origin fever in quest for Pacquiao bout

Promoters of Jeff Horn are considering piggybacking on the State of Origin series to get the Manny Pacquaio back on again.

Australian boxer Jeff Horn. Picture: Zak Simmonds

Promoters of Brisbane boxer Jeff Horn are considering piggybacking on the State of Origin series as they wait for word from the Manny Pacquiao camp over the latest developments on the proposed super fight between the pair.

Horn and Pacquiao were originally scheduled to fight in Brisbane on April 23 but that date has now been postponed amid mixed messages from the Filipino and some of his advisers.

Pacquiao has suggested on social media his next fight would be against England’s Amir Khan in the UAE, but doubts remain over its veracity given his promoter Bob Arum has publicly stated there is no money on the table.

That means the fight against Horn remains very much alive, leaving his promoters Duco Events to tentatively schedule the fight for Suncorp Stadium in July, potentially the weekend after the third State of Origin game. That final game is on July 12.

It is understood Duco Events is intrigued by the prospect of using interstate rivalry to stir interest in the fight, which could result in Pacquiao playing the villain in a NSW jersey. Horn, a Queenslander, would be a Maroon.

Whether those tentative plans become a reality is likely to be determined later this week when Arum meets Pacquiao’s personal adviser Michael Konz. Arum told website boxingscene.com this week that the Filipino’s proposed fight against Khan was not yet official and suggested he still wanted the fight against Horn to go ahead.

Duco Events executive Dean Lonergan said the company was optimistic it would get the green light to plan a fight against Pac­quiao, with the Queensland government already committed to backing the bout.

“Tomorrow night Bob Arum will be meeting with Michael Konz and trying to work out if there is any validity to the claims by both Pacquiao and Khan that they have a deal,” Lonergan said.

“What Manny and Amir Khan have forgotten is they can agree all the deals they want, but they have to find someone to put the money forward.

“At the moment I am pretty sure Bob Arum doesn’t want to have that fight in America because it would mean putting up millions of dollars in guarantees. I am ­pretty sure Amir Khan doesn’t have a promoter in England.

“The only deal that is real and on the table is in Australia for Manny to fight Jeff.”

Horn has been patiently biding his time to wait for confirmation of the fight since his last win over Ali Funeka in Auckland late last year. That bout appeared to secure him a fight with Pacquiao, but mystery continues to surround the bout despite Arum pushing hard for it to take place.

The situation is clouded by the apparent promise of $38 million for Pacquiao and Khan to fight in the UAE, although question marks have been raised over the validity of that bout given the region has broken promises for big fights in the past.