Manny Pacquiao has confirmed that he will storm back into the ring on 19 January 2019 where he will attempt to defend his WBA world welterweight title against Adrien Broner in Las Vegas.
The fight will remarkably be his Pacquiao’s 70th professional bout, however the Philippines superstar is already looking past his next opponent and on to a rematch with Floyd Mayweather, something which Broner did not take too kindly to during the New York press conference.
“He ain’t fighting Floyd, he’s fighting me!," said the clearly irritated American.
"I’m gonna beat your ass, you worry about Floyd, he’s already beat you brother.
“F*** the money, I know when I win this fight, there is more money to come. Excuse my language but this ain’t Nickelodeon, this is pay-per-view.”
Five years ago Broner declared himself the heir to Mayweather ahead of his fight with Marcos Maidana, which he would end up losing, and in turn suffer his first defeat in 29 bouts.
The American has since gone on to lose to the like of Shawn Porter and Mikey Garcia, while his most recent duel with Jessie Vargas ended in a draw. Meaning his record now stands at 33 wins, 3 defeats, and a draw.
It’s unknown whether Mayweather will return to boxing, but should the potential for a mega-money rematch with Pacquiao arise, then he will no doubt be tempted to jump back into the ring next year. In the meantime the 50-0 king goes head-to-head against Japanese kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa on New Year's Eve in a three-round exhibition in Japan - there will reportedly be no kicking allowed.
