It has been more than three years since Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. finally squared off in a match that seemed like it would never actually take place, and Pacquiao is ready to do it all over again.
Pacquiao picked up his 60th career win and captured the WBA welterweight title when he defeated Lucas Matthysse by TKO on Sunday, and he said he is very open to defending the belt against Mayweather.
“Mayweather? If he decides to go back to boxing then that is the time we are going to call the shots,” Pacquiao told reporters when asked about a possible rematch, according to ESPN 5. “I have the belt, so it’s up to him. If he wants to come back in boxing let’s do a second one.”
Pacquiao is 39, but he insists the way he trained for the Matthysse is sustainable. He looked like his old self in the fight and threw threw punches in flurries, so it makes sense that he is willing to keep going. If Mayweather — who is 41 and has not fought since his mega-bout against Conor McGregor last summer — isn’t up for it, there has been talk of Pacquiao possibly fighting Amir Khan.
“Yes that’s a potential opponent; Amir Khan,” he said. “There’s a lot of potential opponents there, like Lomachenko, there are so many fighters that have potential to be my opponent next.”
While there were some questions about how much effort Matthysse was putting forth, there’s no denying Pacquiao is still in great shape. Mayweather has seemingly kept in top physical condition as well, but a rematch between the two seems highly unlikely.
