Manny Pacquiao returns after four years away from the ring. The 46-year-old former champion will fight Mario Barrios for the WBC welterweight world championship on July 19 in Las Vegas.
Ring hero Manny Pacquiao (62-8-2, 39 knockouts) is back. The 46-year-old, who ended his career in September 2021 after losing to Yorxdenis Ugas, returns to the ring on July 19. And when the “Pac-Man” makes his comeback after a four-year break, he will be boxing for a world championship again. This time against Mario Barrios (29-2-1, 18 knockouts), the reigning WBC welterweight champion. The world championship duel will take place at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas (USA) and will be broadcast by Amazon Prime Video on pay-per-view.
“Body is in its twenties”
“We’ve seen the old Manny Pacquiao – training, sparring, preparing,” enthused Pacquiao’s longtime adviser Sean Gibbons as the Hall-of-Famer marked the halfway point of his training camp with a media day at the Wild Card Boxing Gym in Los Angeles. Gibbons continued, “I often compare Tom Brady to Manny – how they’ve aged, how they take care of themselves. The number may be 46, but the body is in its twenties.”
Pacquiao himself, a former world champion in eight weight classes, has already achieved so many epic victories after preparing in the gym of trainer legend Freddie Roach. Some say that if the “Pac-Man” wins his comeback fight against Barrios and is crowned WBC champion again, it could be debated whether he can be called the greatest boxer of all time.
The best of all time?
“That’s not for me to decide, that’s for the fans to decide. I don’t want to put myself on a pedestal,” Pacquiao told BoxingScene at the media day. But he is satisfied with the work he has done in the first 30 days since his return to California.
The Filipino folk hero, who has long since ended his foray into politics, wanted to prove this in front of the cameras along the ring. Pacquiao punched the pads of his training partner, demonstrated his characteristic hand and foot speed and smiled almost the entire time.
Special permit for World Championship fight
However, it is unusual for a returnee to get a world championship fight straight away. The World Boxing Council (WBC ) made this possible for its long-time champion with a “special permit”. Exceptional athletes who are medically fit and have a corresponding license plus clearance from the WBC board are allowed to fight for titles directly. And that is of course the case with Pac-Man.
Text: Frank Schwantes
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