Former pound for pound champion Manny Pacquiao is all ready to go for his upcoming welterweight clash against ex-light weight kingpin Brandon Rios on November 24 at Venetian Macau in China.
Top-rank Promoter Bob Arum announced the itinerary for the six-city promotional tour is set with Pacquiao and Rios going face-to-face for the first time in the beautiful coastal metropolis of Guangzhou.
The tour will also have stops in major Chinese cities of Shanghai and Beijing. Press conference will be held at UNESCO world heritage landmarks such as the Forbidden City and the Great Wall of China.
Arum added that Top-Rank and Chinese Sands are negotiating with their Chinese contacts to make the promotional tour successful.
After the three-city Chinese tour, the Pacquiao-Rios carousel will head south of Asia, in the bustling city of Singapore in October. Arum said if the promotions receive positive results, he may contemplate to bring Pacquiao in the Lion City as part of his plan to expand his business in Asia.
Top-Rank will also host press conferences in New York and Los Angles to further boost the appeal of the fight in the United States. The Pacquiao-Rios welterweight showdown will be available to American audience via pay-per-view.
Ticket prices of the fight are valued at a similar rate in Las Vegas with the most expensive seats sold at $1,200 and the cheapest seats at $100. Arum said he expect all 15,000 seats at the Venetian Macao will be filled at fight night.
Pacquiao is looking for his first victory after suffering back-to-back setbacks at the hands of Tim Bradley (via 12-round split decision) and Juan Manuel Marquez (via sixth round knockout). Rios, on the other hand, is also coming from a loss against Mike Alvarado last March.