Floyd Mayweather Jr. will return from retirement for one more professional fight with former rival Manny Pacquiao at the Sphere in Las Vegas this September.
Eleven years on from the pair’s first encounter, ‘Money’ and ‘Pac-Man’ – two of the most decorated fighters of all time – will roll it back once again.
Considered the greatest pound-for-pound boxers of their generation, the duo’s original clash saw Mayweather Jr. score a wide unanimous decision.
Now, across town from the MGM Grand Garden Arena where they originally fought, the American will meet the Filipino at Sin City’s newest venue.
Mayweather Jr., 48, last fought professionally in August 2017, when he stopped MMA convert Conor McGregor in a lopsided tenth-round TKO triumph.
Pacquiao however was active as recently as last summer, when he was held to a close draw by then-WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios.
At the peak of their powers, both men drew vast crowds to see them conquer multiple divisions, turning Las Vegas into their own glittering fortresses.
This latest encounter comes with both men comfortably into middle age however, and will raise plenty of questions over the stakes for each involved.
Death, taxes and the insatiable desire to win big in Las Vegas loom large in life – and now, two of the city’s most storied sons will return to the Strip.
Never mind that both men are pushing on, long past the peak of their powers. Few names in American boxing have ever matched up to these two.
In a sport so often chasing the next big thing, here is an old-school matchup built on adrenalised nostalgia – a proper Sin City throwback to savour.
Love it or loathe it, Mayweather Jr.-Pacquiao II jumps straight to the summit for the year’s biggest fights. Come September, all bets will be off here.
This article originally appeared on DAZN and was reproduced with permission