Pacquiao says he is in talks to fight McGregor

MANILA: Philippine boxing hero Manny Pacquiao said on Friday he has opened talks to fight mixed martial arts star Conor McGregor in April when he takes a break from his legislative duties.

“If we can negotiate it, I have no problem. It is OK with both of us,” Pacquiao said when asked about reports he was seeking a match with McGregor who lost a megabucks boxing match in August against the unbeaten Floyd Mayweather.

Asked if he had already approached McGregor’s handlers for such a fight, Pacquiao told AFP, “initially, but we have not yet had any follow-up conversations.”

But Pacquiao said he heard that McGregor was willing to fight him after the Irish mixed martial artist’s foray into boxing.

Last month, Pacquiao appeared to be teasing a match with McGregor, posting a message to him on Twitter and Instagram, saying: “Happy Thanksgiving! Stay fit my friend. #realboxingmatch #2018 @thenotoriousmma,” referring to McGregor’s social media handle.

Pacquiao, who turns 39 later this month, lost his World Boxing Organization welterweight title to Australian former teacher Jeff Horn in July, having come out of retirement in 2016 to take the belt from American Jessie Vargas.

McGregor has not fought in mixed martial arts or boxing since losing to Mayweather by a 10th-round technical knockout in their much-hyped bout in Las Vegas in August.

Like McGregor, Pacquiao, who has won eight world championships in different weight divisions, also lost to Mayweather in a disappointing “fight of the century” in Las Vegas in 2015.

Pacquiao, who is treated like a national hero in his home country, parlayed his boxing fame into a political career, getting elected to the influential Philippine Senate in 2016.

He stressed that McGregor is just one of many possible opponents when he returns to the ring for the first time since his defeat to Horn.

“It depends who they can finalise as my opponent by April,” Pacquiao said, stressing that the match had to be held during the lengthy Senate recess.

The boxer-turned-senator said he could also have a rematch with Horn or a fight with 29-year-old American Keith Thurman who holds the WBA Super welterweight title and the WBC welterweight title.

Pacquiao said his next fight could be held in Malaysia, Dubai or Macau. - AFP

BAM players to face two assessment windows next year — Norza

KUALA LUMPUR: Players under Badminton Association of Malaysia (BAM) will have to go through two assessment windows, in February and August to determine their position with the governing body.

BAM president Datuk Seri Mohamad Norza Zakaria hoped players would give full attention to their performance to keep their places in the association.

“I have raised the matter at the monthly assembly this morning and we want them to improve in 2018 as we have several important tournaments such as the Thomas Cup qualifying, Commonwealth Games and Asian Games,” he said.

The move was in part due to the inconsistent performance of Malaysian players at international meets compared to players of non-badminton powerhouses.

Mohamad Norza saw a worrying trend in the growing prominence of players from India, Taiwan and Japan.

“We are highly dependent on a few players. Currently only Datuk Lee Chong Wei is considered a safe bet as non-traditional badminton countries are making headways,” he told reporters after chairing a BAM council meeting at Academy Badminton Malaysia in Bukit Kiara yesterday.

Based on his assessment, Mohamad Norza said in the men’s singles, India has three players ranked 20th and above (K. Srikanth, H.S Prannoy and B.Sai Praneeth) compared to Malaysia who only have Datuk Lee Chong Wei.

In the men’s doubles, Indonesia has five pairs, followed by Taiwan with three pairs while Malaysia is depending only on Goh V Shem-Tan Wee Kiong who are ranked 18th in the world. - Bernama