Boxing-Pacquiao says Mayweather rematch is a fight, not an exhibition


FILE PHOTO: Jul 19, 2025; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Manny Pacquiao smiles before his fight against Mario Barrios at MGM Grand Garden Arena. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images/ File Photo

April 3 (Reuters) - Manny Pacquiao ⁠said he has signed a contract for a fight ⁠with Floyd Mayweather and that he would not ‌get back into the ring with the American if it was an exhibition bout.

Mayweather, 49, and Pacquiao, 47 announced last month that they would meet ​at the Sphere in Las Vegas in ⁠September, with the bout ⁠streaming globally on Netflix.

However, Mayweather told Vegas Sports Today last week ⁠that ‌it would be an exhibition bout, not a real fight, and that a venue had yet to ⁠be decided.

"If that's what he is feeling but ​he signed for ‌a real match. The contract that we signed is ⁠for a ​real fight," Pacquiao told local media on Thursday. "He has to remember that."

Mayweather, who holds a perfect 50-0 record with 27 knockouts, defeated ⁠Pacquiao in a 2015 encounter dubbed ​the "Fight of the Century".

Jas Mathur, CEO of Manny Pacquiao Promotions and a producer for the event, said the agreement was for a ⁠fight.

"No one in these last three months has brought up anything related to the venue or related to the fight not being a professional fight,"Mathur told ESPN.

"His team has had ​all the contracts. He signed all the ⁠contracts."

Reuters has requested comment from Mayweather's camp.

The 2015 bout between ​the boxers generated a record 4.6 ‌million pay-per-view buys and a $72 million ​live gate at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

(Reporting by Karan Prashant Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford)

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