With the 2015 winding down, so is the rehabilitation of Manny Pacquiao who underwent surgery for his shoulder after his bout with Floyd Mayweather Jr. last May 2.
Although the issue of fighting with an injured shoulder is still in the air, the May 2 fight is further shrouded with controversy following claims that Mayweather had allegedly taken in banned IV before the match even took place.
And while Pacquiao has batted for Mayweather to be punished and be given a rematch, the reality of it all is that Pacquiao's camp has already made plans prior.
Pacquiao is likely to be given the green light to spring back into training as he prepares for a boxing comeback in 2016. The target date is most likely somewhere by the first quarter (February or March) and the names that are being mentioned as potential opponents include those of Britons Amir Khan and International Boxing Federation (IBF) champ Kell Brook, as well as Danny Garcia.
Of the three, Khan has already been mentioned before as the two former sparring partners already had preliminary talks in early 2015. And while Khan is upbeat that he will likely face Pacquiao in 2016, there is one person from the Pacquiao's camp who isn't exactly fond of the idea — adviser Michael Koncz.
According to Koncz, Khan lacks the punch and that the southpaw grabs and holds a lot.
Of course, Koncz is just one voice from the Pacquiao camp but the belief is that if Pacquiao is to choose from among the big names, Khan is certainly one of them.
Brook could be another opponent, someone who is still undefeated. A fight with Pacquiao could benefit Brook more considering that this is one thing that Khan mentioned before — Brook not fighting big name fighters.
Danny Garcia is another name in the mix but it seems that both camps have hit an impasse. According to Koncz, there is a problem on the management side of Garcia. He is now being handled by Al Haymon.
