After his highly-anticipated super fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr. last May 2 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao revealed a shoulder injury which required surgery and would leave him sidelined for up to a year.
With Pacquiao scheduled to figure in his final professional boxing match in April early next year, three fighters are in the running to get the call -- Timothy Bradley, Amir Khan and junior welterweight champ Terence Crawford.
Mayweather, for the most part, has been hot and cold on his desire for a rematch.
Mayweather once sent a tweet to ESPN's Stephen A. Smith saying, "I will fight him [Manny Pacquiao] in a year after his surgery," the tweet read.
After his conquest of Andre Berto last September, which left much to be desired, Mayweather told the media that he had no interest in trying to surpass legendary heavyweight Rocky Marciano's record 49-0, a record which Mayweather tied with the Berto victory, saying, "I'm not trying to outdo anybody."
Moreover, Mayweather says his heart is no longer invested in the sport and he doesn't follow it anymore, doesn't watch it anymore and basically does not care.
But for a man nicknamed "Money", one thing certainly speaks louder than words.
Their May 2 fight went down as the richest in boxing history, and shattered all sorts of records.
With a guaranteed purse of approximately $180-million earned from the fight, plus worldwide pay-per-view upside, Mayweather raked in a career-high payday for a night's work. It would be no surprise that Mayweather would be interested in a rematch, should the opportunity present itself.
The question is, does the public want a rematch?
Many fans feel that, regardless of Pacquiao's bum shoulder, he would not fare much better in a rematch against the undefeated defensive wizard. However, there is a sizable contingent that feel that should Pacquiao be at 100%, he would be able to increase his punch output in a second go-around.
Pacquiao himself feels the shoulder injury affected his performance.
Judging by performance alone, Pacquiao enjoyed his best moments against Mayweather in the fourth and sixth rounds of their welterweight clash wherein he showed flashes of brilliance by scorching Mayweather with solid combinations. He staggered Mayweather on multiple occasions with vicious straight left hands and hooks to the body.
Had Pacquiao been able to sustain that kind of activity throughout the entire fight, the cards would certainly have been read differently. Perhaps the injury did hamper Pacquiao's ability to use his right hand effectively. Even HBO broadcast analyst Max Kellerman, who was grilled for his controversial post-fight interview with Pacquiao, feels that the Filipino star just "couldn't get any mustard on the right hand."
For a potential rematch to take place however, Pacquiao would have to finish his last bout next April, presumably with a victory and an emphatic one at that. And both Mayweather and Pacquiao need to be willing to come out of their semi-retirements to lace it up one more time.
A potential rematch could take place late 2016.
Between now and then however is definitely a long time and anything can happen. By that time Mayweather will be 39 years old and Pacquiao will be 37. Yet as long as the two fighters want the fight, there is little any issue can do to stop it from happening.
No matter how many people claim they don't care about the fight, it won't hardly be a surprise if they buy a rematch. I don't think anyone can resist the urge to see Pacquiao try and beat Mayweather again, not after people saw what he could do with a good shoulder in a few brief moments.
It's also hard to imagine any of them turning down another blockbuster payday.
No matter how unlikely it would be, for now at the very least, there's still hope for a rematch.