Pacquiao-Mayweather rematch postponed

CEBU, Philippines —  It took five years to make the first fight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather in 2016.

The much ballyhooed “Fight of the Century” in Las Vegas a decade ago did not live up to the hype but went on to set a record as the richest and highest-grossing boxing match in history.

Earlier this year, talks of a MayPac 2 surfaced, with Pacquiao eventually announcing a return bout with Mayweather on September 19 at The Sphere in Las Vegas.

But this was immediately shrouded in controversy when fans learned that the legendary rock band Eagles are already booked for a live concert on that same date and venue.

The event promoter quickly changed the schedule to September 25, this time at the T-Mobile Arena.

What seems to be a done deal is actually far from being realized.

Pacquiao himself confirmed to Lance Pugmire of BoxingScene on Friday, June 26 that the long-awaited rematch has been postponed indefinitely after legal issues involving the undefeated American boxer.

In fact, Mayweather’s planned exhibition against Greek kickboxing star Mike Zambidis in Athens, Greece on Saturday (Sunday, June 28 Philippine time) has been called off after CSI Sports, which is suing Mayweather in connection with planned bouts against Mike Tyson and Manny Pacquiao, had sought an injunction in the Southern District Court of New York to prevent the Zambidis exhibition.

In a report by ESPN, lawyer Melissa Glass, who represents Mayweather, said in a letter to the court that the Mayweather-Zambidis showdown will no longer proceed because uncertainty over its status “effectively stopped any promotion or distribution plans for the event and halted ticket sales.”

CSI sued Mayweather last week seeking to recover at least $4.65 million the company says it paid the fighter for exclusive rights to promote the planned bouts against Tyson and Pacquiao.

Given Mayweather’s legal troubles, a rematch with Pacquiao is not going to happen anytime soon.