FLOYD MAYWEATHER has reignited his rivalry with Manny Pacquiao by claiming his old foe has to continue fighting for financial reasons.
Money – who topped the Forbes rich list of the decade with a £706MILLION fortune – officially walked away from the ring in 2017.
The 43-year-old beat UFC star Conor McGregor in a lucrative crossover bout which is said to have earned the American £300m.
Mayweather returned just a year later in an exhibition fight against Tenshin Nasukawa and earned £7m for the two-minute spectacle.
In November he announced he is “coming out of retirement in 2020” and would be working with UFC boss Dana White on a “spectacular event”.
Mayweather’s U-turn has led to accusations that he needs to make yet another comeback because he’s blown his extraordinary wealth.
But the former five division world champion took another dig at Pacquiao by claiming that he fights if he wants to.
Mayweather taunted the Filipino, who last fought in July 2019, that he has to keep stepping in the ring to earn money.
As reported by Boxing Scene, he told rapper Fat Joe: “My faculties and everything that I got come first.
“We just talked about, your health is your wealth. And that’s why I got this towel on, I was working out today.
“Now, Pacquiao fights because he has to. Once again, I fight if I want to. So there’s a difference.”
Pacquiao, whose overall net worth is estimated to be £148m, rolled back the years to hand Keith Thurman his first ever pro defeat to become a world champion once again.
But his most lucrative pay-day came in his 2015 defeat to Mayweather, as the fight became the richest of all time.
Despite selling a record 4.6m PPVs and recording the highest gate in history, fans felt the fight took place with both boxers past their best.
Yet Mayweather argued that critics are just trying to play down one of his biggest career wins.
He added: “You keep saying in our prime. I’m older than Pacquiao by two years. We keep saying ‘in your prime.’
“When I beat Pacquiao, they said he wasn’t in his prime and I’m older than [him]. And then when I fought Oscar De La Hoya, they said he’s old and we’re both in our 30’s [for that fight].
“No matter what happens it’s never good enough for anyone. As long as I’m happy that’s what’s important.”
