Pacquiao-Mayweather Rematch in 2016? 'The Money' Wants to Fight Pacman Again!
American undefeated boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr., who beat Manny Pacquiao on Saturday, expressed intention to go against Pacman again in a rematch after the latter's recovery from his shoulder injury.
According to ABC, Mayweather has one last fight in his contract with Showtime and he plans to have it in September though his opponent is still unknown. But the same report revealed Mayweather's plan to fight Pacquiao "in a year after his surgery."
The undefeated boxer cemented a unanimous victory against Pacquiao in a match dubbed as the "Fight of the Century" though most of the viewers said it did not even came close to that.
It did not live up to the hype as both fighters went inside the ring and failed to deliver what the fans wanted from both of them-- a boxing fight worthy to be called a megafight. It seemed Pacquaio did not bring his punching prowess while Mayweather, on the other hand, employed his defensive strategy when Pacquiao tried to land combinations at him.
After the fight, Pacquiao blamed his loss to a shoulder injury which he claimed bothered him after the third round of the bout.
The ABC report said the torn rotator cuff injury was confirmed by an MRI scan conducted in Los Angeles. It was noted that nobody from Pacquiao's camp informed the Nevada Athletic Commission (NAC) about the shoulder concern until a few hours before the fight, when they asked if the boxer could receive anti-inflammatory injection. The request was denied.
On the other hand, Pacquiao and his promoter Top Rank claimed that the United States Anti-Doping Agency (Usada) has knowledge of Pacquiao's injury since the agency was informed during training camp and on fight night.
"This was disappointing since Team Pacquiao had disclosed the injury and treatment to Usada, who approved the treatments and Manny had listed the medication on his pre-fight medical form," Pacquiao's camp added in a statement.
The NAC said the Filipino boxer's camp was not "obligated" to tell the injury but executive director Bob Bennett said that Pacquiao failed to indicate his injury in the NAC's pre-fight questionnaire.
"Two hours before the fight, they wanted a shot that's a painkiller, in essence. That put us in a very precarious position," Bennett added in the BBC report.
Because of his shoulder injury, Pacquiao was slapped with a lawsuit in Nevada for allegedly lying about his situation prior to the fight. Two fans in the state claimed that Pacquiao "defrauded ticket buyers, television viewers and gamblers."
If the case will turn against Pacquiao's favor, he will face penalties for perjury with a jail sentence of one to four years and a $5,000 fine.