5 Jan 2010

Pacquiao and Mayweather to try mediation

11:49 am on 5 January 2010

Boxers Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Junior are set to go into mediation to save their highly-anticipated March 13 fight.

Representatives of the two boxers will meet with a mediator tomorrow in an effort to reach an agreement on blood testing issues which has put the fight in jepordy.

Mayweather has insisted the boxers undergo blood tests which could detect substances not found by urine tests in order to ensure a fair fight.

But Pacquiao has been angered by the request, with blood tests not usually used in boxing.

Pacquiao filed a lawsuit in Las Vegas last week, alleging Mayweather and others have defamed him by falsely saying he had used performance-enhancing drugs.

If the fight goes ahead, Pacquiao and Mayweather could each earn up to 40 million dollars, with each having been considered boxing's best pound-for-pound fighter.