Almost immediately after the iconic 2015 fight, boxing fans began to speculate about a possible rematch between undefeated five-division world champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. and former eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao. Rumors began to make the rounds again on Tuesday after the two boxing icons were spotted at the L.A. Clippers game at the Staples Center.
As fans of the sport will remember, Mayweather and Pacquiao had a similar run-in at a Miami Heat game in January 2015, just months before their fight in May, which explains why the rumors have taken off following the L.A. Clippers game, as TMZ is reporting. Pacquiao, 40, attended the game as a V.I.P. guest during “Filipino Heritage Night” while Mayweather, 41, chartered his private jet from Vegas to Los Angeles specifically for the Clippers game, the report conveyed.
Footage of the encounter shows that Pacquiao, wearing a suit and throwing T-shirts to the crowd, approached Mayweather, who was sitting casually by the sideline, to shake hands with him. As For The Win! pointed out, Mayweather looked rather uncomfortable throughout the whole thing. After Pacquiao backed away, Mayweather is seen smiling and lowering his gaze, as if trying to hide from the swarm of cameras, suggesting Pacquiao is the one who wanted this moment to happen.
Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather meet again ?
(via @LAClippers ) pic.twitter.com/9o2GHy33WI
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) January 9, 2019
Since suffering a massive defeat in 2015, WBA welterweight champion Pacquiao has been campaigning for a rematch against Mayweather. Pacquiao, who was elected as senator in the Philippines 2016, decided to resume his boxing career with the hope that he could face Mayweather again in the ring.
While no official plans have been announced for a rematch, TMZ has pointed out that Pacquiao and Mayweather exchanged contact information at that Miami Heat game, which kicked off the official negotiations for the May 2, 2015, fight, which Mayweather won by unanimous decision.
In addition to being a guest at the game, Pacquiao is in Los Angeles to promote his upcoming fight against Adrien Broner on January 19 in Las Vegas, which will mark the first big boxing event of 2019.
As the Inquisitr recently noted, Mayweather remains an active boxer but has decided to face the likes of Conor McGregor, and most recently, Tenshin Nasukawa, who was clearly not a match. In their fight at Rizin 14 , Mayweather, Jr. knocked down Nasukawa three times before his corner decided to throw the towel. Mayweather has earned plenty of criticism for his decision to fight the young Japanese kickboxer, but legendary boxing coach Freddie Roach strongly believes that “Money” is planning for something bigger after his recent match.