REPORTS yesterday appearing to confirm Wladimir Klitschko’s return to the ring on May 25 were no more than an April Fool’s Day joke, but that hasn’t stopped David Price offering his services as a Klitschko opponent should a joke one day become a reality.
The likeable Liverpudlian is the talk of the boxing world at the moment, having been bitten on the torso by Kash Ali on Saturday (March 30), and is eager to capitalise on the disqualification win, and a boost in profile, with a big fight this summer.
When asked by H&J on talkSPORT about a potential Klitschko fight, Price said: “I’d love that. That’d be great, wouldn’t it?
“Look, I’m world famous now, aren’t I? Because of the bite!
“You know, he’s probably looking for a bit of an easy one to come back Wladimir, so I’d definitely love the opportunity for that.
“It’s exciting. It’s great for the division, because in his fight with Anthony Joshua two years ago, he still looked really good, I thought.
“He’s going to come back and have something to say in the top end of the division, for sure.”
It remains to be seen whether Klitschko does indeed return to the ring, but one thing is now certain: David Price, whether in victory or defeat, is these days an unmissable television attraction, and it’s rare you’ll ever hear someone describe one of his fights as uneventful. In this day and age, that alone is a valuable bargaining chip for any heavyweight to possess.
The race to become Manny Pacquiao’s next opponent is heating up and the shortlist shrinking.
According to matchmaker Sean Gibbons, Pacquiao’s representative in the US, the pool of potential opponents for the the Filipino legend on July 13 is down to two: Keith Thurman, the WBA welterweight champion, or Danny Garcia, the former WBC welterweight champion.
Thirty-year-old Thurman, 29-0 (22), scraped past Josesito Lopez on a 12-round majority decision in January but has no other fight currently lined up. Garcia, meanwhile, a 31-year-old with a 34-2 (20) pro record, will be in action on April 20 against Adrian Granados in Carson, California.
WBA regular champion Pacquiao, 61-7-2 (39), was last seen dominating Adrien Broner for 12 rounds on January 19 in Las Vegas. After that, all the talk was of him facing Floyd Mayweather in a pointless rematch of their 2015 stinker, but that, mercifully, has ground to a halt in recent weeks.
Now it seems Pacquiao is instead going to find himself involved in a proper fight – against either a former world champion in Garcia, or Thurman, the unbeaten American who possesses the full version of the WBA belt Pacquiao currently holds. Either option is preferable to seeing MayMac all over again, that’s for sure.
