Pacquiao dismisses timing concerns over Mayweather rematch

Eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao brushed aside comments that his rematch with Floyd Mayweather Jr. has come too late.

The highly anticipated sequel is set for September 19, 2026 on Netflix, more than a decade after their first encounter.

Asked about some comments that the rematch is overdue, the Filipino boxing icon quickly dismissed the notion.

“Hindi naman,” he told members of the media on Wednesday. “Hindi naman kami nagpabaya sa kondisyon namin." (I don’t think so. We didn’t neglect our conditioning).

Mayweather scored a unanimous decision victory over Pacquiao when they first met in May 2015.

Since then, both fighters have retired from professional boxing, though each has remained active through exhibition bouts.

Pacquiao briefly came out of retirement last July to challenge Mario Barrios for the WBC welterweight championship. The fight ended in a majority draw, with judges turning in scores of 115-113, 114-114, and 114-114.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News