Aussie fighter settles for peanuts.
Jeff Horn’s paycheck in his bid to unseat world welterweight king Manny Pacquiao on July 2 in Brisbane is 20 times lower than what the Filipino star is guaranteed.
But that doesn’t discourage the 29-year-old challenger from putting his best foot forward when he faces Pacquiao before an expected huge crowd at Suncorp Stadium.
“He’s arriving on Saturday and my message to him is relax and enjoy your stay in Brisbane because on July 2 I’m taking your world title,’’ Horn told his hometown paper, Courier Mail, which reported that Pacquiao is earning AUD10 million (roughly R38 million)
“But I have to first say thank you to him for giving me the chance. I never thought I would ever get the opportunity to fight for his world title and certainly not before a packed crowd at Suncorp,” said Horn, the massive underdog.
Horn admits he is overwhelmed by the magnitude of the event but insists he won’t freeze when the bell sounds.
“He’s one of the greatest boxers in history and people in Australia have supported the fight because of his name and the chance to see an Aussie against him. But I believe this is the start of a new era in boxing and a changing of the guard,” he added.
Still, the Horn purse doesn’t go near what Pacquiao had pocketed during his heyday.
Against Floyd Mayweather more than two years ago, the 38-year-old fighting senator got a staggering $160 million and even when he fought the likes of Juan Manuel Marquez, Shane Mosley, Antonio Margarito and Miguel Cotto, his purse alone reached more than $20-million.
Since the pay-per-view business is not doing well lately in the US even if the cable channels hold what fight fans see as mouthwatering matchups, the money being generated by the boxers is starting to drop.
But a smashing showing against Horn in less than two weeks is what Pacquiao badly needs to resurrect interest for him and Mayweather to do it one more time.
Mayweather, is also booked for a fight in August, and it wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to know the result.
And assuming Pacquiao gets by Horn and Mayweather doesn’t step on a banana peel against Conor McGregor, a rematch could take place down the road.