Interview: Manny Pacquiao’s advisor reveals weight limit, rounds and trilogy odds

Manny Pacquiao’s advisor spoke to Betway and revealed the following:

• Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather were in negotiations for four months.
• In a professional fight the fight will last 10 or 12 rounds.
• The weight limit is at or around the welterweight limit (147 lbs).
• It’s a one-fight deal, but if the fight pays off, it will create a trilogy.

Interviewer: How did this fight come about and ultimately come about?

Sean Gibbons: It’s really surreal to think that after all these years and all the attempts to fight the fight, here we are and we have to give Netflix all the credit for stepping up and being a great partner to help organize this fight.

The timing of Floyd apparently having some trouble outside the ring forcing him to jump into the ring helps it a bit and Manny coming back and fighting Barrios like he did, it’s the perfect storm. Everything aligned to make this moment come together in 2026.

Interviewer: How long had you been talking to Floyd about making the rematch?

Sean Gibbons: You know, they really started about four or five months ago. It’s something that has actually been talked about over the years, the last five years, but seriously, with Floyd actually saying, I really want to do something, I would say the last four months was the timeline of this coming together.

Interviewer: What’s the weight limit for this fight, Sean?

Sean Gibbons: The beauty of it is all I can say right now, and this is what everyone wants to hear: the 0 has to go. Manny comes to take Floyd’s 0, this is not an exhibition. This is a real fight.

They will be here to beat each other to death, just like in the first battle. They are very competitive, so everything they do: when they play basketball, darts, they want to win. And that’s the idea.

The public does not want to see an exhibition. No one is here to see Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather move and touch each other. They want to see someone go all in, go for the win, and put Floyd’s 50-0 record on the line. As for the weight and rounds, it’s still being talked about, but I think it will be somewhere in the welterweight division, and it will be 10 or 12 rounds.

Interviewer: Will Manny Pacquiao still fight his exhibition in April?

Again, I can’t positively confirm either, but hopefully I can to keep both guys on their toes.

Interviewer: And is it a one-fight deal, Sean, or is it a two-fight deal?

Sean Gibbons: No, I believe there are things in there, if it’s a good fight, that they have the right to do it again or something. It’s really a one-fight deal.

Interviewer: Could there be a trilogy if Manny wins?

Sean Gibbons: Yeah, all those things are there, but they’re not really written in stone. If the fight is huge, sure, right? Everyone will say, damn, let’s do this again. It’s best to leave it at one thing and be done with it, and if it’s great, let’s do it again.

Interviewer: What is your prediction?

Sean Gibbons: Well, the greatness of both guys, Floyd is the guy who has never been out of shape in the last ten years. He has done exhibitions; he gets a Mike Tyson exhibition. He can do one more. So he will be sharp [the time the fight happens]. If he wasn’t fighting or doing these exhibitions, I would definitely lean on Manny a lot, but he’s going to sharpen the old knife a little bit by being in the ring for the next seven, eight months.

He’s just such a generational talent. He’s just a great guy. Of course, as you said, Manny has been more active. He recently had the only fight with Barrios. It’s still a very competitive fight, but of course I’m leaning towards Manny because I’ve seen Manny recently. I’ve seen what he did.

With Floyd, we’re not sure what he’ll have left, but I think his style isn’t conducive to fighting later in life because he was a reaction guy. Manny was always an in-your-face, go-for-broken type of fighter. The defense was secondary in a sense.

Floyd was like Roy Jones Jr., they had really good instincts. So I think Floyd, who is a bit flatter and doesn’t have the same reflexes and speed, I’m definitely leaning on Manny here.

Roberto Villa is the CEO, founder, executive writer and senior editor of FightBook MMA. Has a passion for martial arts and is also a podcast host for Sitting Ringside. He is also a former MMA fighter and kickboxer. He is also the chief photographer of the 4CornersMafia Car Club.