Filipino slugger Manny Pacquiao believed his much awaited showdown with pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather jr. will finally happen next year, a close confidante of the 8-division champion revealed on Thursday.

Manny Pinol, a former government official who has close ties with the former pound-for-pound king, said he was told by Pacquiao that the mega-buck fight with Mayweather will likely take place in May next year.

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  "It could happen next year,” Piñol told the Manila Times about Pacman’s answer to question when will he face the reigning WBC welterweight and super welterweight champion.

Despite a heated exchange by Pacquiao and Mayweather on Twitter recently, the chances these two boxing gladiators meet inside the squared circle has grown significantly over the past months with cable giants Showtime and HBO Boxing willing to settle their score in order to stage the fight boxing fans have been craving for all this time.

Mayweather is coming off a unanimous decision win over Marcos Maidana last September 14, while Pacquiao is scheduled to take WBO jr. welterweight champ Chris Algieri on November 24 in Macau, China.

Veteran boxing analyst Teddy Atlas advised Pac-man to concentrate first on his upcoming clash with Algieri, or else a big upset that would shake the boxing world could happen this year.

"It could be a tougher fight [for Pacquiao]. I mean, you don't know what Pacquiao's gonna be when he gets into the ring. He's got a lot of problems, a lot of distractions, a lot of things around, he's made a lot of money, had a lot of miles on the odometer,” said Atlas in an interview with Fight Hype.

“He surprised everybody. He's an undefeated guy, he doesn't know how to lose, and he's got nothing to lose, he's got legs, he's got youth. Who knows? He might pick Pacquiao on an off night and you never know.”

TagsManny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather, Boxing News 2014, Boxing News, Super Welterweight