Top Rank promoter Bob Arum says that the much-discussed recent negotiations between representatives for Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather have been fruitful. Not only that, but that everyone is signed off on the fight -- except for one man.
"We're all done. We've signed everything, we've agreed on all the terms," Arum said. "As far as we know, we've been told in the highest clarity that Mayweather's people have agreed. The networks have agreed.
"But like they say, you can't do a play about Hamlet without Hamlet. And Hamlet, meaning Mayweather, has not yet signed on."
Recently, Pacquiao said he expected an announcement for the fight by the end of January, which would have given everyone three months to promote the bout. We're closing in on that sorta-deadline, but there is a full week left, too.
Others have said that while there has been progress on the fight, there is still a ways to go, and most accounts seem to indicate that that means Floyd Mayweather specifically. There's really no one disputing that Manny Pacquiao is ready to go for the fight, that he's agreed to terms. Whether or not Mayweather agrees to those same terms remains up in the air.