Boxing fans accuse Pacquiao of concealing injury

May 6, 2015 2:46 PM

May 6 (Reuters) - Boxer Manny Pacquiao has been sued in several U.S. courts by people who said they paid to watch him fight Floyd Mayweather Jr. in the "Fight of Century" but felt defrauded by Pacquiao's failure to disclose a pre-bout shoulder injury.

At least five lawsuits were filed against Pacquiao on Tuesday in federal courts in California, Illinois, Nevada and Texas. The lawsuits seek compensation under laws meant to protect consumers and ask for status as class actions on behalf of ticket buyers, pay-per-view television viewers and people who gambled on the fight.

"The lawsuits are factually wrong and legally wrong, and we expect they will be dismissed in due course," Daniel Petrocelli, an attorney for Pacquiao and Top Rank Inc, a promotions company that represents Pacquiao and was also sued, said in a statement on Wednesday.

One of the lawsuits also named as defendants Mayweather, Mayweather's promotions company, and several businesses involved in broadcasting and promoting the fight: Time Warner unit Home Box Office Inc, CBS Corp unit Showtime Networks Inc , AT&T Inc, Comcast Corp and DirecTV .

Spokespeople for Mayweather and the companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Wednesday.

Pacquiao, a native of the Philippines, lost on a unanimous decision to Mayweather, an American, in a heavily hyped welterweight showdown in Las Vegas on Saturday that was expected to be the top grossing prize fight of all time.

Barely one hour after the contest ended, Pacquiao's promoter, Bob Arum, said the 36-year-old southpaw had been hampered by an 'old' injury to his right shoulder.

Neither Pacquiao nor his team appeared to have informed the Nevada Athletic Commission about the shoulder issue until a couple of hours before the start of the fight when they asked for an anti-inflammatory injection.

When Pacquiao's team filled out its pre-fight medical questionnaire on Friday, a query about any shoulder injury was marked "No" before the form was signed by Pacquiao and his adviser.

According to media reports, Pacquiao was due to undergo surgery this week for a torn rotator cuff. (Reporting by David Ingram in New York; Editing by Toni Reinhold)