Jack Ma, China's richest man, says he's ready to take on The Money Team. In a video posted on Twitter, Philippines boxing legend Manny Pacquiao and Alibaba founder Jack Ma challenged Floyd Mayweather to a fight.
"Floyd Mayweather, if you want a real fight, fight me. If you want an exhibition, my guy, my friend, Jack Ma will take care of you, " Pacquiao says. He then calls them "The Real Manny Team," an apparent play on a lifestyle brand founded by Mayweather, The Money Team.
"I am ready. Any time, any place, Manny's team is read," Ma said.
Ma retired from the Chinese e-commerce giant last month, saying he wanted to pursue his other passions, like education. He is also a renowned martial arts fan, and even starring in a short movie produced by Jet Li, in which he played a Taichi master.
Yet while Ma is clearly in shape, a Mayweather fight is a different matter entirely.
Manny Pacquiao is the only eight-division world champion in the history of boxing, having won twelve major world titles, as well as being the first boxer to win the lineal championship in five different weight classes. He is also the first boxer in history to win major world titles in four of the eight "glamour divisions" of boxing: flyweight, featherweight, lightweight and welterweight.
He earned $9 million for just over two minutes of action during a fight in Japan last year. In that bout, the "Fight of the Century," Mayweather claimed a unanimous points victory against Pacquiao, who by then was 37 years old and past his prime. Fight fans, pundits and TV networks had for years demanded a bout between the two while they were at their peak, but the two sides could not agree to a deal.
Mayweather Promotions' Leonard Ellerbe told reporters Mayweather "had no interest" in fighting Pacquiao after the event in Japan last year. But that didn't stop Pacquiao from challenging the 42-year-old to another fight in January.
