Top Rank Planning World Media Tour for Pacquiao vs Marquez III

Salvador Rodriguez reports that Top Rank's Bob Arum is putting together a massive media tour for the November 12 fight between Manny Pacquiao and Juan Manuel Marquez which will send the two fighters not just around the United States, but around the world.

The tour will start in August and end in September, with the fighters hitting New York, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Abu Dhabi, Singapore, and London. The tour will start in Manila and end in Mexico City.

No matter what you think of this fight, it's clear that Top Rank is again going to go all-out promoting Manny Pacquiao, and with this idea, are again expanding their ideas on how to get Manny's name out in ways that other boxers can only dream to see from their promoters.

It's also expected we'll find out soon whether Showtime or HBO pay-per-view will back this fight. Showtime has first negotiating rights, but Arum is going to field an offer from HBO, too, and both networks should be expected to make serious, big-time offers, both in terms of money and overall media possibilities. HBO and Time Warner are planning a very aggressive multi-media push for Floyd Mayweather Jr's September 17 return against Victor Ortiz, and something like that could be their way to counter Showtime's affiliation with CBS.