Manny Pacquiao, sign the contract: Keith Thurman wants rematch – ‘I might go to the Philippines to talk’
- American thinks he deserves a second crack at the Filipino icon after his split-decision loss – ‘it was nothing more than a draw’
- ‘One Time’ thinks the judges got it wrong and says he’s even willing to go to the Philippines to prove he’s the better fighter
Nearly three weeks after being schooled by Manny Pacquiao in their thrilling welterweight showdown in Las Vegas, Keith Thurman can’t accept the fact he lost to a better man. He thinks he earned a rematch. And he wouldn’t mind going toe-to-toe with “Pacman” in the Philippines if it means getting a second chance to make things right, believing their fight was “nothing more than a draw”.
The 40-year-old Pacquiao surprised pundits with a split-decision victory against “One Time” last month, but the Florida native feels he was hard done by the judges and wants revenge against the eight-times division champion after their bout at MGM Grand turned out to be a candidate for fight of the year.
“We been good. We ready for the rematch. I want a rematch,” the 30-year-old Thurman told TMZ Sports. “He just got off to a good start and I was behind, he was a little calmer than I expected Manny Pacquiao to be. At his age he’s calming down, he’s not taking chances like a younger fighter. He’s smarter, he’s been through it all.
“I got a lot of respect for him. I still think the fight was nothing more than a draw, I don’t think he won the fight. It was helluva close. Sometimes it’s a coin toss, might be 50-50 but you gotta pick heads or tails. I’m salty, no tears. I’m not gonna cry. Why I’m gonna shed tears? I got paid.”
In many fans’ eyes, Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) was the clear winner of their clash after dominating the first eight rounds and starting off the fight with a bang by scoring a first-round knockdown.