In a conference call right after Mayweather announced the fight on Friday, there was no mention of a rematch clause provision and Pacquiao admitted in an interview on ABS-CBN News that there is indeed no rematch clause in the final copy of the contract.
”Walang rematch clause,” he said. “[Ang] Importante, ito munang fight na ito.” (There is no rematch clause. What is important is this fight first).
In the early part of negotiations for the super fight, Pacquiao’s trainer Freddie Roach was quoted to have said: “‘My understanding is that Floyd is insisting on the re-match if Manny beats him, which I believe he will. That’s okay with us,’ Roach said.
Pacquiao’s promoter Bob Atum seems confident that Pacquiao will win the first fight though he did not say that he looks forward to a possible rematch.
“I tell you, there’s going to be one winner from this fight, and it’s gonna be the congressman from Sarangani, Manny Pacquiao,” Arum told GMA News.
The reason why the widely discussed rematch clause was not provided in the final copy of the contract as confirmed by Pacquiao is probably due to the notion that a rematch could be worked out later depending on the result of the fight.
If Pacquiao wins, there is no denying that an almost automatic rematch will take place. A convincing win by Mayweather will most likely end the long-running Mayweather-Pacquiao saga.
Still, a rematch can happen if Mayweather’s victory isn’t convincing enough or if the fight ends in controversy similar to thefirstPacquiao-Bradley fight in 2012
But regardless of the outcome of the fight, there will always be a possibility of a rematch or even a trilogy. It all depends on the whims and caprices of the fighters.
In most instances rematches happened for a variety of reasons. One of them is the huge life-changing financial reward that each fighter will get.
A controversial fight ending or a highly competitive and entertaining fight will most likely trigger a rematch that could lead to a trilogy or even a fourth or fifth fight.
