Superstardom awaits in the United States for Jeff Horn regardless of the result in Sunday's 'Battle of Brisbane', according to boxing's top promoter Bob Arum.
A television audience in the tens of millions is expected for Horn's clash against Manny Pacquiao at Suncorp Stadium, which be broadcast live in the US on ESPN - not as a pay-per-view fight.
It is the first time a fight involving Pacquiao has been carried on basic cable.
The deal, cut by Arum's Top Rank company, opens up a world of possibilities for 29-year-old former schoolteacher Horn, who remains relatively unknown outside Australian boxing circles but is intent on making a name for himself.
While the bout will take place on Sunday afternoon (AEST), time differences mean it will be beamed back to America in primetime on Saturday night as the country prepares to celebrate the Independence Day long weekend.
"If Jeff Horn, win or lose, performs as well as I think he will, he will end up to be a major star in the United States just because so many eyeballs have seen him," Arum said on Monday as he watched Horn train.
"And I really believe that Jeff Horn will give an outstanding account of himself.
"This is a great, great, great opportunity.
"The fight will be shown free to the American public on ESPN, the largest sports network in the world.
"ESPN is going all out to promote the event.
"We're looking forward to an audience as large as 10 million in the United States and maybe larger.... it will dwarf anything Manny Pacquiao has done in the United States in the 15 or 16 years that he's been fighting."
Asked who he thought would win, Arum said: "That's a question you don't ask a promoter."
"Manny has been one of our greatest fighters of the era. But remember, he's getting older. Athletes get older.
"The question is, how old has Manny become?"
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