Floyd Mayweather has made a surprise claim regarding his planned rematch against Manny Pacquiao.
Mayweather and Pacquiao first met back in May 2015 after years of anticipation, and while it may have been a massive event commercially, the action failed to live up to the hype, as Mayweather claimed a unanimous decision win in an underwhelming battle.
Over a decade on, it was announced last month that they would collide for the second time in a professional contest at The Sphere in Las Vegas on September 19, with Mayweather set to end his retirement after hanging up his gloves back in 2017.
The American has now cast doubt over those plans, after he revealed to Vegas Sports Today that the bout with Pacquiao will be an exhibition, and that the venue is yet to be confirmed.
“The Sphere is one of the places that they talked about, so we don’t know if it’s 100% going to be there. It’s not actually a fight, it’s an exhibition. We’re going to do it again and hopefully entertain the people.
“I got an exhibition with Mike Tyson also, another exhibition in Greece. If I’m just sitting at home and working out everyday and spending time with my grandson and children, I said why not go out, have a little fun, entertain and have some exhibitions.”
Mayweather’s exhibition with Tyson was initially reported to take place in April, though an injury to ‘Iron Mike’ appears to have delayed proceedings.
A bout against Greek kickboxer Mike Zambidis in June was then set to be next for Mayweather, before the planned fight with Pacquiao, though the claim from the American that it won’t be a professional contest is certain to disappoint boxing fans.