Keith Thurman Talks Split-Decision Loss to Manny Pacquiao, Requests Rematch

Keith Thurman has called on Manny Pacquiao to agree to a rematch after losing his undefeated record to the 40-year-old on July 20 by split decision.

Per TMZ Sports, he also said he believes the judges got the decision wrong and that the fight should have been a draw: "I'm ready for the rematch! ... I still think the fight was nothing more than a draw. I don't really think that he won the fight. ... Where's the contract, Pac?! Sign the contract! Rematch!"

Here is video from the short interview:

Thurman lost his WBA super welterweight title to Pac-Man after two of the three judges awarded the Filipino slugger the decision by 115-112 scores. The remaining judge gave the nod to the 30-year-old American, 114-113.

It was Pacquiao's third straight win since his loss to Jeff Horn in 2017 and arguably his best performance since his victory over Timothy Bradley Jr. in 2016.

The strong showing immediately led to talk of a possible rematch with longtime rival Floyd Mayweather Jr., and the two added fuel to those reports by sparring on social media:

Pacquiao's trainer, Freddie Roach, also got involved (starts at roughly the 2:45 mark):

The possibility of a lucrative rematch with Money or other top bouts in the welterweight division make an immediate rematch with Thurman unlikely.

Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford have both emerged as pound-for-poundsuperstars in recent years, while British fighter Amir Khan has been talking about a potential fight with the Filipino veteran:

Thurman has a solid resume, with wins over Danny Garcia and Shawn Porter. Inactivity has been his biggest issue in recent years―he fought just once between 2016 and 2019―but with one or two good wins, he could get back into title contention in a hurry.