Jean Pascal: Wanted Man

Following his upset victory over Chad Dawson to win the Ring Magazine light heavyweight championship on Saturday, suddenly everyone is looking for a piece of the new king.

Take Carl Froch, who told livefight.com that he'd be willing to fight Pascal in Montreal. Those two had a great fight in December 2008 at super middleweight, with Froch out-pointing Pascal in Nottingham.

"A fight with Pascal would have all the ingredients and the Bell Centre looked very good indeed. So long as Marlon Wright didn't referee it then that would be an option. Or we could do it here in the UK as he has won over a lot of fans this side of the pond too. British boxing fans voted our last meeting the fight of the year, so you just know it would sell like hot cakes here too. I'd be up for it in New York or Vegas even - anywhere outside of Germany would be great."

Froch is set to fight Arthur Abraham on October 2 in stage three of the Super Six World Boxing Classic. A win for Froch would put him through to the semifinals of the tournament, making a fight with Pascal impossible to make any time soon, unless Froch wanted to drop out, which I'd find highly unlikely at that point of the tournament, given that there will be good guaranteed money. But a loss to Abraham might knock Froch out of the running (it also might not). If it did, a fight with Pascal would be an excellent way to make money right away. The two have repeatedly expressed great admiration and respect for one another since their fight.

Then there's Tavoris Cloud, who beat Glen Johnson the week before Pascal-Dawson, is also up for a trip to Montreal, as he told BoxingScene.com's Rick Reeno:

"If Pascal wants to do another unification, I'm ready to fight him. We can do it in Montreal. We can do it in the United States. It don't matter. They say he's number one. I'm number two. Let's get it on. I'm ready to fight Pascal in Montreal. He has a similar style to mine. We have a similar body build. I think I'm more of an inside fighter than he is. I think it would make for a great fight."

This was to be expected, of course. Pascal is now the big dog at 175, and he has a building that can draw money. Cloud is a good fighter, but he's got no drawing power yet, as the Florida native spent most of his career fighting in Illinois on small cards, and has never built up a fanbase. Now with Don King, who knows money if he knows anything, Cloud is at least showing a willingness to travel, and the understanding that a fight in Montreal would be the biggest money he could get right now. There are those who would like to see Cloud face Dawson next, including HBO's Larry Merchant, but the sad fact is Cloud-Dawson will not sell tickets anywhere, and I'm guessing there's a good chance Cloud isn't rushing to give Dawson a fight since Dawson dropped a title belt in the past rather than face Cloud.

But along with being the king and the money man at 175 thanks to Montreal being a great fight city, Pascal is not an invincible or invulnerable fighter. I'm betting everyone sees ways they could beat Pascal. It's easier said and drawn up than it is done, but as good as Pascal is, he definitely has flaws. Combining that, the money, and the chance to be the man at light heavyweight, you come up with a great scenario that everyone's going to want to jump on.

Pascal himself is, as you'd likely expect, ready to do whatever he needs to. BoxingScene.com reports that Pascal will not "chase" a fight with fellow Montreal-based star Lucian Bute, which would be an absolutely massive fight in Montreal. Bute was in attendance on Saturday.

As for the likely rematch against Dawson, the clause was not an immediate rematch clause, so interim fights can be taken by both fighters. Dawson may not want to risk anything, but Pascal could in all honesty fight a second-tier contender and make good money in Montreal before facing Dawson again.