According to the former pound-for-pound king, Floyd Mayweather will end his retirement to face Manny Pacquiao again in 2018.
The 41-year-old and Pacquiao, 39, were posted meeting up on Mayweather’s Instagram account. The post also contained a fight message to confirm the news.
Mayweather and Pacquiao are said to be in Japan currently.
“I’m coming back to fight Manny Pacquiao this year, Another nine-figure payday on the way!” declared Mayweather.
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Mayweather first fought Pacquiao in 2015 in the most lucrative Pay-Per-View event of all time. The fight generated over 4 million buys and even fended off a challenge from Mayweather’s battle with UFC star Conor McGregor in 2017.
At the time, Pacquiao said he was nursing a shoulder injury, which led to a drab affair to disappoint all.
Several rumors of a rematch since have been greeted with groans by the majority of fans.
The pair could both be in their forties should a fight be agreed for late December. It’s also thought ‘MayPac 2’ would struggle to secure half the original buys.
This is despite a resurgence from Pacquiao, who knocked out Lucas Matthysse to claim the WBA title over the summer.
PACQUIAO
Pacquiao is now free from promotional ties, as Mayweather has been for years. This means the stars could pocket a tidy sum to trade blows again.
It could be bad news for Amir Khan once again as the Briton was hoping to meet Pacquiao this year.
Khan missed out three times when attempting to fight Mayweather and Pacquiao, with Marcos Maidana (twice) and Jeff Horn beating him to both.
A fight with Kell Brook may then become the only alternative for Khan.
There’s also the strong possibility Mayweather is just teasing regarding the Pacquiao return. Although when it comes to money, the veteran doesn’t seem to do things lightly.
Taking the shine off former foe Canelo’s second fight with Gennady Golovkin could also be in Mayweather’s thoughts.
Las Vegas would be the obvious choice, meaning a potential clash with a WBC heavyweight title bout featuring Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury, which is still yet confirmed.
