Ruslan Provodnikov, who is in the same camp as Manny Pacquiao, may fight the Filipino champion In October 2014.
The bout is most likely to happen if Juan Miguel Marquez rejects a proposed rematch with Pacquiao.
Freddie Roach, trainer of both Provodnikov and Pacquiao of Wild Card Boxing Club, said that the Russian requested to challenge Pacquiao if the Filipino would find it difficult to look for the proper opponent. According to Bob Arum of Top Rank Boxing, it is unlikely that Marquez would like to face Pacquiao again for the fifth time in November 2014. Marquez asked for a 50-50 split to make another fight happen.
Roach said in a Los Angeles Times report, "I still don't really have interest in that fight, but his manager came begging to me to make it happen, and I asked Ruslan, 'Do you really want to make that fight happen? You're going to lose me as a trainer, and have a slim chance of winning." Roach added, "Ruslan said, 'Well, we need big fights like that.' I said, 'If you want it, I'll give it to you.'"
Roach said in a report by Boxing News 24, "Yeah, Manny is my guy, we've been together for a long, long time. We always hoped the Mayweather [fight] would happen. I'm glad him [Pacquiao] and Cotto have grown out of each other's weight classes, so that's not going to happen. Ruslan doesn't want to do it, but he knows [what] he has to do [so] he can secure his family for the rest of his life."
Provodnikov previously won the WBO junior-welterweight title by defeating Mike Alvarado in October 2013. The Russian is well known for his power punches. He also faced the same man who beat and was subsequently beaten by Pacquiao - Timothy Bradley, in 2013. He lost the fight by a small margin and made an impression on the American boxer.
In the meantime, there are other fighters that Pacquiao may face instead of Marquez, such as Amir Khan and Danny Garcia. Provodnikov may also face the undefeated Chris Algieri.
Apparently, Provodnikov is planning to spread his popularity in the boxing scene by taking on a stellar fighter like Pacquiao. According to the Russian, winning is a big responsibility for him, especially now that he is a world champion and needs to defend the title.
In an ESPN report, Artie Pelullo, promoter of Provodnikov, was excited about the idea of Pacquiao and his fighter going against each other in Macau. He kidded with Roach, "We'll give him a ticket. Freddie, you got a ticket. Don't worry about it. See? You got a ringside seat for the fight, Freddie. No problem."
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