Conor McGregor extended his rivalry with Manny Pacquiao by mocking his Floyd Mayweather fight announcement.
Pacquiao surprised fight fans last weekend by claiming he will rematch longtime rival Mayweather almost a decade on from their 'Fight of the Century'. The fight hasn't been confirmed by Mayweather as Pacquiao made the shock announcement whilst appearing at RIZIN's New Year's Eve event.
“I will see you here in Japan again, for a big fight," the former eight-division world champion said before turning around and seemingly asking for permission to announce his opponent "Floyd Mayweather, I thought you wouldn’t want me to say that. I am excited for that. Thank you for always supporting RIZIN promotions.”
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McGregor laughed at Pacquiao by reposting the clip on his Instagram story and writing: “A lesson in how not to make an announcement." The Irishman made a big reveal of his own on New Year's Day as he announced his comeback fight against Michael Chandler for June 29th, but the UFC is yet to confirm the fight date and weight.
Deontay Wilder offers advice to Manny Pacquiao's son ahead of latest fightMcGregor hasn't fought in over two and a half years and his fight with Chandler was pushed back several times. The former two-weight world champion, who made his boxing debut against Mayweather in 2017, suggested that he could have made his return to the ring against Pacquiao if the UFC didn't find him a fight.
“Get me back in there,” he told talkSPORT. "The Mac has lots to offer and loads to deliver. They are talking Manny here in Saudi. The lads in the UFC aren’t really talking any. So, the lads here are talking Manny, the UFC aren’t talking any. Give me something. I’m supposed to be back in April. It was supposed to be December!
"Tell Manny to grow a set of balls and fight me at a higher weight class. Why not? It’s his sport. If he wants me to come down to a smaller weight, I should be able to use more of my weapons. I should be able to kick. I should be able to grapple. Shouldn’t that be fair? Say it to him. Is he a man or a mouse? Is Manny a man or a mouse?”