Floyd Mayweather Jr. says he's open to a Manny Pacquiao fight, but won't chase him -- Washington Post

By Gene Wang, The Washington Post

LAS VEGAS -- During the time leading up to his fight against Shane Mosley, undefeated six-time world champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. regularly declined to talk about the possibility of a match against Manny Pacquiao.

After his lopsided victory over Mosley at the MGM Grand on Saturday night, Mayweather couldn't escape it.

The first question for Mayweather at his postfight news conference was when that much-anticipated bout would take place.

"If Manny Pacquiao wants to fight, it is not hard to find me," Mayweather said roughly an hour after punishing Mosley for the final 10 rounds of their 12-round main event and winning by unanimous decision.

Mayweather was fighting Mosley because discussions with Pacquiao's camp broke down in January amid drug testing issues. Mayweather's camp had requested Pacquiao take blood and urine tests, but the two sides couldn't agree on how close to the fight to administer them.

Pacquiao instead fought Joshua Clottey, whom he dispatched with ease on March 14 at Cowboys Stadium.

Now with Mayweather and Pacquiao having soundly beaten their most recent opponents, a match between the two best pound-for-pound fighters in the world seems imminent.

"As far as I'm concerned, Mayweather is the one to dictate," said Oscar De La Hoya, whose Golden Boy Promotions took a lead role in promoting Mayweather-Mosley. "Mayweather is the one who says when, where, who. Mayweather is the king of the world now."

Whether Mayweather-Pacquiao happens probably will depend again on if Pacquiao accepts the stringent drug testing procedures in place for Mayweather-Mosley. Both of those fighters agreed to World Anti-Doping Agency-sanctioned blood and urine tests leading up to and following the fight.

Mayweather, in fact, was a late arrival to his celebratory news conference because he said he had to give a urine sample and have blood drawn. Soon after his entrance, Mayweather praised Mosley for agreeing to rigorous drug testing in light of Mosley's admission to using performance enhancing drugs, albeit unknowingly, before his fight against De La Hoya in 2003.

"I've been an elite fighter since the '90s," Mayweather said. "Like I always say, I'm closer to 40 than I am 21, so if the fight happens, it happens. I'm not chasing no fighters."

Source: washingtonpost.com