Mayweather: At this time rematch is off, Manny Pacquiao a 'coward'
In an interview with Showtime's Jim Gray, Floyd Mayweather said he's changed his mind about a rematch with Manny Pacquiao and called him a "coward" and a "sore loser," according to Lance Pugmire of the Los Angeles Times.
Mayweather defeated Pacquiao by unanimous decision in their long-awaited May 2 fight in Las Vegas. He confirmed he sent a text to ESPN's Stephen A. Smith earlier this week that said he would be willing to give Pacquiao a rematch.
"Did I text Stephen A. Smith and say I will fight him again? Yeah, but I change my mind," said Mayweather. "At this particular time, no, because he's a sore loser and he's a coward ... If you lost, accept the loss and say, 'Mayweather, you were the better fighter.'"
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After the fight, Pacquiao revealed that he was dealing with a shoulder injury. He will likely be out of action for the next 9-12 months after he has surgery to repair a tear in his right rotator cuff, but Top Rank promoter Bob Arum had said Pacquiao would be up for a rematch with Mayweather next year.
"Excuses, excuses, excuses," said Mayweather. "I'm not going to buy into the bull---- ... and I don’t want the public to buy into the bull----. He lost. He knows he lost. I lost a lot of respect for him after all of this."
After his defeat, Pacquiao said during his post-fight interview that he thought he won the fight and "[Mayweather] didn't do nothing."
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Mayweather, 38, has never lost a fight in 48 tries as a professional. He said after Saturday's bout that he will fight once more in September and "then it's time for me to hang it up."
Gray's full interview with Mayweather will air at 9 p.m. ET on Showtime on Saturday.
- Molly Geary
