Manny Pacquiao, 33, is 54-3-2 in his career, winning his last 15 fights. (Robert Beck/SI)

LAS VEGAS — Manny Pacquiao has chosen his next opponent, and it’s not Floyd Mayweather. In an interview at his office Wednesday, Top Rank promoter Bob Arum said Pacquiao has chosen his next opponent — whom Arum would only divulge was one of the four previously reported candidates, Juan Manuel Marquez, Timothy Bradley, Miguel Cotto or Lamont Peterson — and plans to make his return to the ring on June 9 at a new outdoor facility off the Strip.

Arum reiterated that the problem with making a May fight with Mayweather was the timing. Mayweather has insisted that the fight take place May 5, tweeting Tuesday that “the date can’t change.” Arum says construction on a 38,000-seat temporary facility cannot be completed until later in the month. On Wednesday, Arum said he met with construction officials as well as officials from the Wynn and Sands Hotel. Arum also visited the construction site, a 40-acre plot jointly owned by the two hotels.

“To be safe, they said they needed until the end of May to get it done,” Arum said. “Economically, it’s a problem that Floyd created. The amount that would be lost by moving it up to May 5^th is enormous. The fight is not going to happen on May 5^th. We’ll do the fight in November. There is no real magic in doing it in May.”

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Just when you thought the life of Floyd Mayweather couldn’t get any wackier, there’s this: On Friday, just hours before Mayweather was set to report to county jail to begin a 90-day sentence that was part of a plea deal he made to avoid a felony assault trial, Las Vegas judge Melissa Saragosa agreed to delay Mayweather’s sentence until June 1, allowing Mayweather to fight as planned on May 5.

Putting aside the judge’s bizarre decision — which was seemingly made for the economic benefit of Las Vegas, which Mayweather’s attorney, Richard Wright, argued for — the next logical question is this: Will we finally get to see Mayweather fight Manny Pacquiao?

According to Bob Arum, no. Arum told multiple reporters Friday afternoon that Pacquiao’s next fight would be in June. Arum plans to travel to the Philippines next week to present Pacquiao with a list of four possible opponents: Juan Manuel Marquez, Timothy Bradley, Miguel Cotto and Lamont Peterson. The delay of Mayweather’s sentencing, Arum said, would not change that.

That, quite frankly, is ridiculous. Now, Arum fumed when Mayweather made an official announcement in November that he would be fighting May 5 and — albeit not directly — he wanted to fight Manny Pacquiao. We can debate Mayweather’s motives for suddenly developing a taste for a Pacquiao fight over the last month (a popular theory, one I believe, is that Mayweather saw Pacquiao struggle against Marquez, a man he destroyed in 2009, and decided now was the time to make the fight) but there is no debating that this is the first time Mayweather has shown a clear interest in making this mega fight. Arum’s problem, which he has voiced to me repeatedly, was that Mayweather was not so big that he should be dictating where and when a Pacquiao fight should take place.

Arum doesn’t like the people he has to make a deal with, either. He hates Mayweather’s adviser, Al Haymon. He is annoyed by what he believes is a lack of an understanding of the boxing business by Mayweather’s de facto promoter, Golden Boy. And, of course, he doesn’t like Mayweather, the man who left him just before signing to fight the richest fight in boxing history, against Oscar De La Hoya.

Still, Arum has to at least explore the possibility of a Mayweather fight. Whether it is Arum or Todd duBoef — the Top Rank President who has taken a more involved role in the company the last few years — someone needs to reach out to Haymon or Golden Boy CEO Richard Schaefer. If you believe former HBO Sports president Ross Greenburg (and I do), there was a deal to be had in 2010, when Arum, Haymon and Greenburg negotiated a deal that ultimately was rejected by Mayweather. At the very least a few phone calls need to be exchanged.

This is where incoming HBO Sports president Ken Hershman can play a role. Hershman is an accomplished dealmaker; just review all the moving parts it took to bring together to make the Super Six super middleweight tournament. He has a relationship with Haymon. He has a relationship with Arum. He has a relationship with Golden Boy. Hershman, like Greenburg, could act as a go-between, a filter, someone to cut through the rhetoric and get to the points that matter.

And there really are not many issues in dispute. Both sides, I’ve been told, have agreed to a 50-50 split. Both sides have agreed to unlimited, USADA monitored blood testing, though there are some questions about whether Mayweather would allow WADA to test Pacquiao when he is training in the Philippines. Arum may not like Mayweather dictating a May 5 in Las Vegas date but Pacquiao has fought eight of his last 10 fights in Las Vegas and on Cinco de Mayo weekend twice in the last three years. The date and venue should not be a significant issue.

Arum should not let his ego or personal feelings toward Mayweather and his team influence him on this. This is a golden opportunity to give boxing an unparalleled shot in the arm, to determine once and for all who the best pound for pound fighter is in the sport. Floyd made his move, Bob. You’re up.

– Chris Mannix

LOS ANGELES — When Michael Buffer boomed out Lamont Peterson’s name Saturday night, officially awarding Peterson a pair of junior welterweight titles and ending Amir Khan’s reign atop the 140-pound division, the first person I thought of was Tim Bradley. Bradley, of course, has had a very public back and forth with Khan over the last year, one that intensified when Bradley passed on a $1.8 million payday to fight Khan last summer. Still, I was interested in getting Bradley’s thoughts on his archrival losing to Peterson, whom Bradley destroyed over 12 rounds in an alphabet title fight in 2009.

“I thought the fight went exactly as I thought it would,” Bradley said. “Peterson can box but he likes to bang and brawl. He attacked the body the same way he did with me. He looked a little more confident though. He said he wasn’t mentally ready when he fought me. He said he was a little nervous. He looked more comfortable, like he was ready to be there.”

The ending was controversial, of course, because referee Joe Cooper deducted two points from Khan for pushing. The deductions proved to be the difference in the fight. While Khan protested the referee’s calls, Bradley says they were fair.

“Review the tape, see how many times Khan pushed and shoved Peterson,” Bradley said. “He was pushing him and trying to get space. The ref warned him. He took action. The ref did his job. A foul is a foul.”

Bradley said he had no sympathy for Khan getting a raw deal in Peterson’s hometown.

“It was in D.C., you allowed that to happen,” Bradley said. “You should look at your promoter and say, ‘You set me up.’ Khan goes to Vegas and he does five or six thousand fans. In D.C. there was about nine thousand. That’s more money for the promoter. They thought it was going to be safe but when you go into someone’s hometown, you take a risk. I know when I fight, I look at who is going to be the judge, the ref, everything. Khan has himself and his team to blame. What they did was arrogant and stupid. You are the No. 1 guy at 140 pounds and you allow that to happen? I’ve been saying Amir needs to focus on Lamont and not me and Floyd [Mayweather]. Now he lost his belts.”

Bradley says he has been taking some time off since his win over Joel Casamayor last month but plans to get back in the gym next month. He is waiting for word on a fight with Manny Pacquiao — he is believed to be one of Top Rank promoter Bob Arum’s top choices as a possible opponent should negotiations for a megafight with Mayweather fall apart — but he won’t wait forever. He says he is still open to fighting anyone, including Peterson, who does not owe Khan a mandatory rematch.

“That would be a good fight, a tough fight,” Khan said. “Peterson, now that he has those belts, it is going to be hard to take them from him. It’s definitely a challenge that I would love to face. He’s a guy who can make an exciting fight. It would be a tough fight, but I believe it is a winnable.”

– Chris Mannix, SI.com

Julio Cesar Chavez is still one or two fights away from his showdown with Sergio Martinez. (Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

HOUSTON – Three quick thoughts from Julio Cesar Chavez’s fifth round knockout win over Peter Manfredo Saturday night.

Chavez looked good. Chavez takes a lot of heat for a soft résumé and an inflated profile thanks to his famous father. But Chavez was impressive Saturday night. After a slow first round, Chavez turned it on, tagging Manfredo with clean, thudding combinations. In the fifth round Chavez rocked Manfredo with a straight right hand. When Manfredo stumbled back into the ropes, Chavez closed brilliantly, swarming Manfredo with a flurry of punches until the referee stepped in. Manfredo wasn’t happy with the stoppage but he had a chance to take a knee, recover and fight on. It was a tactical mistake by Manfredo and you can’t blame Chavez for taking advantage of it.

What’s next for Chavez? Everyone wants to see Chavez against Sergio Martinez. That’s not happening. Bob Arum told me he would like to see Chavez fight one or two more times before considering a Martinez fight. I don’t blame him. Martinez’s promoter, Lou DiBella, doesn’t blame him either. Chavez is still an unfinished product. DiBella would like to make Chavez-Andy Lee early next year. That’s a decent fight. The big money fight is Chavez-Saul Alvarez, an all-Mexican showdown that would do big business south of the border. Canelo’s promoter, Oscar De La Hoya, says he would make the fight at a catchweight of 156 pounds. Arum says he will do 158. If the two can get together, that fight would be a war.

Manfredo retires. After the fight, Manfredo, 30, announced his retirement. Manfredo has nothing to hang his head about. He carved out a solid career for himself. Best known as the runner-up on the first season of The Contender, Manfredo (37-7) fought for world titles against Chavez and Joe Calzaghe and made a name for himself in a business that chews journeymen fighters up and spits them out. He could have stuck around, fought in small shows and made a few bucks. But he walks away with a $100,000 payday and his faculties intact.

“He had two shots at a world title, he stood their toe to toe with everyone and he had a great career,” said Manfredo’s promoter, Lou DiBella. “He represented himself and Providence very well. His nose may look messed up but his brain isn’t. He has beautiful kids and a beautiful wife and he can have a great life.”

– Chris Mannix

NYSAC chairwoman Melvina Lathan (above) attended a Sept. 20 press conference announcing Cotto-Margarito II. (Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)

HOUSTON — The Dec. 3 show headlined by the rematch between Miguel Cotto and Antonio Margarito may end up at Madison Square Garden after all, this after the New York State Athletic Commission on Friday elected to table a vote on Margarito’s license and asked that Margarito submit to an exam by a doctor approved by the commission.

And if you think that not knowing whether or not to license the headliner of a multi-million dollar promotion just over two weeks before the fight is a little bizarre, well, you’re right. A little context:

After a three-hour meeting with the NYSAC on Wednesday, Bob Arum, who promotes both Cotto and Margarito, was prepared to take the Cotto-Margarito show out of New York. Despite flying in two top eye doctors who testified that Margarito — who had an artificial lens inserted in his right eye to correct a cataract problem that resulted from his brutal 2010 loss to Manny Pacquiao in November 2010 — was fit to fight, Arum knew he had lost. The commission appeared disinterested in his doctors and Arum left the room resigned to the fact they were going to vote against him.

On Thursday, SI.com confirmed that was indeed the case. Arum was prepared to lock down Cowboys Stadium as an alternate venue and talked about possibly putting 40,000 people in a scaled-down building. Margarito had submitted all the proper paperwork for a license in Texas, and was expected to get it. They were moving on.

Then all hell broke loose.

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Kelly Pavlik (right) is preparing to leave long-time trainer Jack Loew. (Getty)

LAS VEGAS – Last month, reports surfaced that former lineal middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik, whose career has stalled due to myriad issues the last two years, was prepared to leave long-time trainer Jack Loew and try and rekindle his failing career in Southern California under veteran trainer Robert Garcia.

While most applauded the decision, many were wary that Pavlik would not follow through. Pavlik has long resisted the push for him to his hometown of Youngstown, Ohio in the past and in interviews as recently as last month has said he would not leave Loew, who has trained Pavlik since he was nine years old.

Have things changed? Maybe. In a recent interview with Ring magazine, Pavlik said he was planning to sit down and talk to Loew, though he did not go as far as to say he was ready to change trainers. On Wednesday, Pavlik’s manager, Cameron Dunkin, said Pavlik would be changing trainers and that Dunkin, Pavlik and members of his family planned to visit the Oxnard, California area — where Garcia’s gym is located — in the next week or two to look for houses.

Pavlik’s promoter, Bob Arum, remains skeptical.

“The kid can’t get himself to do it,” Arum said. “The more I force him, the more Cameron forces him, the less likely he is to do it. I’m waiting for him to call us and say I’m ready to do it, I’m getting on a plane and getting out there.”

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