Manny Pacquiao believes Floyd Mayweather Jr. doesn't actually want to fight him, telling Yahoo Sports' Kevin Iole in an exclusive interview..
.., "He talks, he says all this, but you know what: He doesn't want the fight. I want the fight. I'm the one who has wanted this fight all along." Pacquiao's assertion comes after a January that saw Mayweather repeatedly issue Twitter challenges and taunts to "The Pac-man."
Mayweather's camp was angling for an early May bout, prior to Mayweather serving out a 90-day jail sentence for battery. Pacquiao's side, led by his promoter Bob Arum, wanted a late May/early June bout, in order to construct an outdoor stadium that would bring in extra revenue.
Ultimately, finances scuttled what is possibly the most anticipated fight in recent years.
"Money" Mayweather later called Pacquiao and offered the Sarangani congressman a flat $40 million fee to make the fight happen, saying that it was "far more than he's [Pacquiao] ever made."
For Team Pacquiao, the offer seemed like an insult. Pacquiao himself described it to Iole as a "bluff" and a "PR move," something Mayweather could hold up to the world if he turned it down, which was exactly what happened.
"He offered me $40 million, and no pay-per-view [money]," Pacquiao laughingly told Iole. "No pay-per-view. Can you believe that? Would you do that? Come on. What would he say if I offered him $50 million - not $40 million, $50 million - and said 'No pay-per-view. Take this money and be happy, but no pay-per-view.' He wouldn't do it either."
In response to Mayweather's offer, Pacquiao offered a 50-50 split of the purse. Then when that didn't work, Pacquiao, through his adviser Michael Koncz, offered him a guaranteed $50 million, with the fight revenue being split 55-45, with the winner taking the larger share.
Mayweather didn't bite.
Leonard Ellerbe, Mayweather's manager, however denies that such an offer was made, and characterized Mayweather's statement, that the $40 million was an inordinate purse for Pacquiao, as accurate, telling Iole, "[Pacquiao] is a guy who doesn't know what he makes fight to fight. He has no idea of where the revenue comes from. There's no way he's going to come up with something like that [offer] off the top of his dome."
In the wake of the two sides failing to strike accord, both have gone their separate ways, forging deals with other fighters.
On February 1, Mayweather's side announced that he would be moving up in weight, to combat WBA Super Welterweight Miguel Cotto on May 5 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao's camp moved on to select Timothy Bradley, with the latter moving up to 147-pounds to make welterweight.
No comments:
Post a Comment