Australia is very interested in hosting Manny Pacquiao vs. Jeff Horn 2, but they want confirmation that the fight is happening before committing to it financially.
The man who holds the purse strings for a potential Pacquiao vs. Horn rematch, Lord Mayor Graham Quirk of Brisbane, told News Corp Australia that he will not market the event or give the fight any financial support until he knows for a fact that the fight will happen.
“The Battle of Brisbane only happened with the strong financial support of Brisbane City Council. I’m not going to shadow box the fight promoters — I want some straight answers to the question of is Manny in the boxing ring in Brisbane in November or is he in retirement. We don’t know at this time and I’m withdrawing any financial support until Manny fronts up and tells us his intentions,” Quirk said.
For all intents and purposes, a Pacquiao vs. Horn rematch will most likely happen. Both sides expressed genuine interest and Top Rank's Bob Arum has been very active in negotiating the fight. Pacquiao has also stated that he is not retired and still wishes to fight, despite a full-time job being a senator in the Philippines.
Horn defeated Pacquiao in Brisbane, Australia in a major upset to capture the WBO welterweight championship back in July. That fight was one of the highest-viewed boxing fights of the year, which already has had several boxing fights have millions of viewers on television and pay-per-view.
