“Pacquiao deserves to choose his opponents to have a decent exit (from boxing),” Beristain told Salvador Rodriguez of ESPN Deportes after the Filipino captured the World Boxing Association welterweight titleholder with a knockout win over Lucas Matthysse of Argentina in Malaysia recently.
Beristain insists that plans to pit Pacquiao against either Crawford or Lomachenko should not be pursued.
“Dangerous fights (for Pacquiao). I don’t like those fights…He doesn’t stand a chance against Crawford and will have little chance against Lomachenko,” added Beristain.
Beristain also took the opportunity to lash out at Top Rank head Bob Arum, who has promotional rights over Crawford and Lomachenko.
Instead of having Pacquiao fight them, Beristain said that it would be better for Arum to have them (Crawford and Lomachenko) fight each other.
“I’ve always hated that a promoter who uses a former star to become a stepping stone,” said Beristain.
Pacquiao, whose seventh-round stoppage of Matthyse was his first kayo win in almost a decade, wants to fight again in late-November or early-December.
Courtesy of Nick Giongco, Manila Bulletin. Follow Nick on Twitter @NickSpeaks
