Report: Mediator hired for fight talks

LONDON, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- Retired federal judge Daniel Weinstein is the mediator who will try to save plans for a Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather title fight, the BBC said.

Negotiations for the bout reached an impasse in December when Pacquiao refused to undergo Olympic-style blood testing.

Pacquiao later filed a defamation lawsuit against Mayweather and several members of Golden Boy Promotions because of an alleged claim that he had taken performance-enhancing drugs.

"I don't even know what they look like," Pacquiao said on his Web site late last month. "My other concern is how close to the actual fight itself can they take the blood. It is my opinion taking blood from a person can weaken you. I do not want to be in a weakened state when I enter the ring against any fighter."

The BBC said Tuesday that both men agreed to take unlimited urine tests, but Pacquiao would submit to blood testing only on specific dates.