EDDIE HEARN IS in talks to sign the legendary Manny Pacquiao after the 39-year-old left long-term promoter Bob Arum.

Pacquiao announced in July that he would become a free agent and Matchroom promoter Hearn, who steers the career of Ireland’s Katie Taylor, has moved to negotiate with the Filipino.

And while Hearn has not committed to a deal, with the money involved and the suitability of the fights for the DAZN platform in the United States a concern, he acknowledges the temptation.

“I think Manny Pacquiao is a huge name,” he told Sporting News. “He’s undoubtedly towards the end of his career, but still a huge name. We’re talking with him.

“He wants an awful lot of money as you would expect Manny Pacquiao to want and the right fights have to be there. I think one of his main interests is to fight outside of the U.S. That doesn’t fit as well for us, away from DAZN.

But there are fights – Amir Khan, Jessie Vargas, Kell Brook – that we could certainly put on. We’re talking with Manny Pacquiao. Whether it goes anywhere, we’ll see. But we’re certainly interested to continue those talks.

Pacquiao has a 60-7-2 record, but his last bout – a seventh-round knockout win over Lucas Matthysse in July –  was his first in over a year, and his first stoppage win since 2009.

- Omni

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