Floyd Mayweather Jr. apparently wants to fight Manny Pacquiao on May 2.
“We are ready. Let’s make it happen. May 2. Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao. Let’s do it,” Mayweather said in an interview with Showtime during a boxing card in San Antonio on Friday night.
Boxing fans have been calling for a Mayweather-Pacquiao match for several years, and Pacquiao and his promoter, Bob Arum, reportedly have renewed efforts in recent weeks to get the fight on a card.
The sides tried to negotiate a deal in early 2010, but it fell apart because they could not agree on a drug-testing protocol.
“I would love to fight Manny Pacquiao,” Mayweather said Friday. “We tried to make the fight happen years ago; we had problems with random blood and urine testing. I just want to be on an even playing field.”
Pacquiao (57-5-2, 38 KOs) agreed to be tested in August 2013.
Mayweather (47-0, 26 KOs) insisted that he has wanted the fight for years and said Pacquiao’s two losses and declining pay-per-view numbers have made Pacquiao desperate for a big draw.
If they pull it off, it is expected to be the richest fight in history, with a projected gross of about $250 million.
Arum reportedly has been talking with CBS president Leslie Moonves about a deal to produce a rare joint pay-per-view on Showtime and HBO, who both aired the 2002 heavyweight championship fight between Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson.
“I wanted that fight a long time ago,” Mayweather said. “I’m just waiting on them.”
