By Phil Lutton
Of all of the strange storylines that could unfold in Australian sport in 2017, try this on for size. Jeff Horn, a mild-mannered former schoolteacher from Brisbane, could fight modern great Manny Pacquiao in a Cauldron that last saw a decent punch in State of Origin.
It's best to devour boxing with a few grains of salt, but even with that factored into the conversation, there are serious talks going down that suggest a Horn-Pacquiao fight for Suncorp Stadium in April could in fact get over the line.
Drawcard: Manny Pacquiao could fill up Suncorp Stadium.Credit: AP
Horn, a 28-year-old former Olympian from Brisbane, has become an instant favourite of powerful promoter Bob Arum, who saw him fight and win in New Zealand on the undercard of Joseph Parker's heavyweight title breakthrough.
The Top Rank maestro has WBO welterweight champion Pacquiao (59-6-2 38KOs) as his crown jewel and now co-promotes with Duco, the company that plucked Horn out of relative obscurity and decided on him as the vehicle to try and revitalise boxing in Australia.
Big opportunity: Jeff Horn.Credit: Chris Hyde
Arum likes the narrative, as well. Horn (16-0-1 11KOs) may not have much of an international profile but he's a clean-cut, well spoken, educated slugger that both arms of his promotional wing feel can cultivate fans and hopefully, help fill out a heaving stadium.
There had been plans for Pacquiao, who splits his time between boxing and his political duties in the Philippines, to fight the number two IBF and WBO contender, American Terence Crawford.
Now, that appears to be off the table, unless a purse of $20 million appears. Horn, in that case, could end up in the midst of what could genuinely be billed as the biggest fight to take place in Australia (with apologies to Green-Mundine, which in that case wouldn't even be the biggest domestic fight of the first half of the year).
Arum told The Manila Times: "There'll be no Pacquiao-Crawford fight in the first six months of the year definitely. Only if the fight will be in the United States but we're not planning the next fight in the United States, so we're also not planning on Crawford now.
"Jeff Horn is a good possibility. I will be flying soon to the Philippines once I finalised every detail."
At 38, Pacquiao is nearing the end of his career. Arum seems to have plans to take him on a world tour, much like the old heavyweight champions, rather than simply chase PPV subscriptions in the more lucrative United States.
Even with Pacquiao a shadow of he dominant fighter that once cut a swathe through the division, it would be a massive step up for Horn, although Duco and his training team believe he is ready to dive in the deep end. He is tough in the ring and has improved with every fight as a professional.
Victory would be the making of Horn, which is perhaps part of the plan from Arum, who may see the likeable former PE instructor as a decent drawcard for future fights in the US.
Horn has already started training for the bout, which had been talked about as a possibility well down the track but now looks as if it could come after Easter right in his backyard, should a deal be reached.
But seeing is believing when it comes to boxing. Arum's public declarations have placed it on the table but at the same time, Horn would benefit greatly from some higher quality opponents before moving into Pacquiao's realm.