Pacquiao badly wants a rematch with Mayweather.

Photo by: Naoki Fukuda

Nov

It’s not clear how many fans would welcome a rematch between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Manny Pacquiao.

But one soul who’s totally on board with a second fight is Pacquiao, who wants badly to avenge his loss last year if Mayweather decides to come out of retirement. “Not only for myself, but the fans of boxing (who) want the rematch, then why not?” Pacquiao told a small group of reporters in his hotel suite on Sunday, according to the LA Times. “We can easily talk about that. It is not a problem. Because we now have direct contact to them it would be easier to talk about when there will be a rematch.”

Mayweather was in attendance at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on Saturday for Pacquiao’s welterweight title win over Jessie Vargas. The two even acknowledged the other during the evening, a show of respect between rivals. (Mayweather’s tickets were apparently arranged by Pacquiao.) Who knows if Mayweather (49-0, 26 knockouts) wants the rematch? He hasn’t said so, though his presence at Saturday’s fight seemed to offer the chance. But if he does, Pacquiao (59-6-2, 38 KOs) would be more than open to it — despite the widespread antipathy the first fight engendered among fans.

Pacquiao acknowledged after the fight he hurt his shoulder during the bout and wasn’t at full strength, upsetting those who felt cheated out of a competitive match. Still, the bout broke every box office record in the sport. “There’s no talk of a rematch, but if there is, we can easily talk,” commented Pacquiao. “It’s not a problem between us.” He added, “If the rematch happens, I want to make sure the fans love it. I will give it all I could just to get back the trust of the fans.”

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