Philippine boxing legend, Manny Pacquiao, has said his planned September fight with Floyd Mayweather will not be an exhibition, days after his fellow hall of famer said their bout would be strictly entertainment.
Last month, Netflix announced a long-awaited rematch of the highest-grossing clash in boxing history, with Pacquiao and Mayweather set to face each other at the Sphere in Las Vegas on September 19.
But earlier this week, Mayweather stunned the boxing world by suggesting the rivals, whose 2015 bout drove 4.6 million pay-per-view buys, would only be entering the squared circle for show this time around.
“It’s an exhibition, so we’re both winners,” Mayweather said in an interview with Vegas Sports Today. “We just want to go out there and entertain the people and put on a good show.”
Now, Pacquiao has pushed back his claims, insisting their planned bout is not an exhibition.
“I want to be very clear that the contract we signed is for a professional boxing match. This is not an exhibition; it is a real fight,” he said in a statement sent to AFP.
“I wish to clear up any misinformation regarding my upcoming bout against Floyd Mayweather. From the beginning, my intention has been to give the fans what they truly want to see. A high-level, competitive sanctioned fight,” he said.
He added that Netflix’s February announcement of the rematch had “reflected the exact terms of our agreement” and that his team expected the “original terms of the agreement to be honoured”.
On Wednesday, Jas Mathur, CEO of Manny Pacquiao Promotions, blasted Mayweather’s comments in an interview with ESPN, insisting the fight would take place.
“Floyd Mayweather is officially in breach of his contract,” he told the US-based sports outlet.
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