“If Don had Mayweather and I have Pacquiao, I didn’t say the fight would be made in a day. I said the fight would be made within one hour,” assured Arum, who, only last week had dinner with King and boxing writers at Morton’s Steakhouse in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Efforts to stage that fight have failed twice owing to issues regarding random drug testing and prize money as Arum said he could not stand dealing with the Oscar De La Hoya-owned Golden Boy Promotions (GBP).

“Don and I would have cut to the essentials. We would have worked out the few details and we make the fight. Mayweather would do well to go with Don. It would be one of the greatest promotions ever,” said the Top Rank chief, who has joined hands many times with King in the past to co-promote many of the world’s most memorable matchups.

King and Arum are presenting a fight on March 12 featuring Miguel Cotto of Puerto Rico and Ricardo Mayorga of Nicaragua and Arum insists there will be more to come.

“Don and I bring different types of energy to a fight and I think it works. I think the public is intrigued and gets to know about the event. It benefits the fighters and it benefits the public and it benefits the sport of boxing. So by all means we are going to do other events together.”

Last year, King had met a few times with Mayweather and ringsiders are of the belief that it was a good sign towards a deal being made sometime this year.

Mayweather has started to disassociate himself with GBP and this could certainly pave the way for the $100-million fight to finally happen.

But King said if Mayorga beats Cotto, he will bat for his man to face Pacquiao in another joint project with Arum assuming of course King doesn’t have a promotional deal in place with Mayweather.

“I’m already planning on Cotto getting knocked out then Mayorga gets a shot at Pacquiao. And after he knocks out Pacquiao then we go after whoever Bob has developed next.”

But all the talk will go to waste if Shane Mosley upsets Pacquiao on May 7.

Nick Giongco, Manila Bulletin