By Ronnie Nathanielsz

FILIPINO boxing icon Manny Pacquiao is standing firm by his decision of demanding a 60-40 revenue split in his mega-buck showdown with International Boxing Organization light welterweight champion Ricky Hatton, planned in Las Vegas on May 2.

?If there is no change in the 50-50 sharing, the fight will not happen,? Pacquiao told reporter Dyan Castillejo of ABS-CBN.

Pacquiao, whose lawyer Franklin ?Jeng? Gacal had earlier been given a Friday deadline by Top Rank?s Bob Arum to make up their minds on the sharing, turned it around and put the pressure back in the promoter?s hands.

?I will give them time until February, and if they don?t come up with anything new, they better look for another opponent,? said Pacquiao.

But that?s exactly what Hatton?s father, Ray Hatton, told www.insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports the other day. He said if Pacquiao insists on a 60-40 sharing and not the previously agreed upon 50-50 with Arum, then the fight won?t happen.

The elder Hatton claimed there were three or four opponents lining up to fight Hatton, because the Manchester fighter would draw at least 80,000 fight fans and this would be a good payday.

Hatton?s lawyer Gareth Williams, meantime, has threatened legal action, claiming they had a verbal contract with Arum, who is authorized to negotiate on behalf of Pacquiao. There are provisions under the law which make a verbal contract binding subject to proof.

One of Pacquiao?s close friends Rex ?Wakee? Salud told Standard Today that Arum called him Thursday morning and explained the benefits that would accrue to Pacquiao from a 50-50 split. Arum also confirmed that Pacquiao would be entitled to a share of the pay-per-view TV rights in Britain, which he said would be huge.

Salud, who had postured earlier, stating that Pacquiao was the bigger draw and should get a 65-35 share of the revenues, turned around after the Arum call and said 50-50 was a good deal and he would try to convince the Pacman to accept.

But apparently, Pacquiao is firm on the 60-40 deal, or at the least something better than a 50-50 split.

 All this has clearly peeved Arum, whose name is on the line since he had effectively committed that the fight would take place in conversations with the Hatton people and after an agreement with Golden Boy Promotions chief executive Richard Schaefer.

Schaefer himself said he would pull the plug on the fight if Pacquiao takes any longer to agree and said the Filipino could go fight someone else and earn less money.