Manny Pacquiao is refusing to rule out a rematch with old foe Floyd Mayweather Jr after he made a winning return to the ring Eight-division world champion Pacquiao had announced his retirement after beating Timothy Bradley in April.

But the 37-year-old decided to return to the ring and earned a unanimous decision over champion Jessie Vargas to claim the WBO welterweight title in Las Vegas.

The Filipino fighter scored a 114-113, 118-109 and 118-109 on the judges’ scorecards. Both fighters were content to trade blows in an attempt to score a knockout win but it was Pacquiao’s speed that allowed him to dominate the closing stages of the bout.

“I feel I could have done more but every round I tried to knock him out,” Pacquiao said afterwards. Mayweather Jr enjoyed a ringside seat for the clash, with Pacquiao confirming afterwards he had invited the American to be there.

“Not bad,” was the Mayweather verdict afterwards as he gave Pacquiao a thumbs up on his efforts. Mayweather beat Pacquiao to become the undisputed welterweight champion in May 2015 in a long-awaited clash that was billed as “the fight of the century”.

Pacquiao confirmed that Mayweather, 39, was there on his invite and he was not willing to refute the possibility of another clash between the pair in the future. “I invited him to be here tonight,” Pacquiao said.

When asked if the two could meet again, he replied: “We’ll see.” Mayweather hasn’t been in the ring since he equalled Rocky Marciano’s unbeaten 49-0 career record by beating Andre Berto in September 2015.