Manny Pacquia returns from retirement Saturday evening to face Mario Barrios, WBC Welters weight champion. Whether Pacquiao’s decision to return to the ring is poorly informed or a moment that increases his legend is still to be seen.
At 46, Pacquiao is older than George Foreman when Foreman beat Michael Moower to win IBF and WBA heavyweight titles in 1994. Pacquiao did not fight in four years either.
Pacquiao is the only world champion in eight boxing divisions, winning its first title, The WBC Flyweight Belt, at 19. He continued to climb by weight and find more and more success when he became one of the largest boxing stars alongside the Floyd Mayweather Jr. rival.
Pacquiao and Mayweather would end up finding their way in the ring, ending years of “Will, wouldn’t” they do “and producing a fight less than throbbing a few years after his date. Pacquiao had already lost a narrow fractionation decision against Timothy Bradley and had been extremely eliminated during his fourth fight with Juan Manuel Marquez.
“I appreciated the training camp as I did in the past. Just like when I was 26,” Pacquiao said at the last press conference. “The discipline is always the same. Even with my layoff, my passion is still there.
“I’m here because I like to go aside. I want to give fans what they want. This is my goal every time I enter the ring.”
Why Manny Pacquiao thinks that, even at 46, an upheaval could brew up against Mario Barrios on Saturday
Brian Campbell
Despite the loss of Mayweather, Pacquiao was going to have two other championship reigns at Welterweight, the last of which came with his victory against Keith Thurman in 2019 when Pacquiao was 40 years old, more than 20 years after winning his first world title.
“I am again here for another big fight. I am so grateful to fans for all their support,” said Pacquiao. “Without fans, boxing is dead. I really appreciate their support. I will be the oppressed. I have been the oppressed several times. I always bring surprises.”
Now, Pacquiao seeks to come back from a retirement, and a six -year -old section who saw him fight professional once, to face a young hungry champion in Barrios.
“We are back to boxing. We are going to show the world that boxing is still alive and kicks. Manny Pacquiao is still there. I’m back,” said Pacquiao. “It is incredible to fight here in this arena. It is a blessing to be still here giving good fights for fans. I am excited for fans.
“I respect Barrios, he is a champion and he works so hard. It’s for fans.”
Barrios is no stranger to the spotlight. In 2021, he fought Gervonta “tank” Davis, giving a beautiful account of himself in a slugfest before Davis marked a stop in the 11th round. Barrios followed this defeat with a loss of decision against Keith Thurman in another title fight.
Barrios has not lost since his decision in Thurman, winning the temporary Welter WBA weight with a victory over Yordenis Ugas along the way. This title was finally passed to a complete championship after Terence Crawford gained weight after being undisputed at 147 pounds.
In November, Barrios made the first defense of his world title, going to a draw with Abel Ramos.
“It was a long camp and we are ready to enter there on Saturday,” said Barrios. “It’s historic. Hats off in Pacquiao for daring to be great. But it’s my time now and I’m going to show that it came on Saturday.
“I will not go there in search of KO, but I go there with bad intentions and the power in both hands. I will not hesitate to press the relaxation.”
The Undercard presents another fight for the title when WBC and WBO Junior Middleweight Champion Sebastian Fundora face Tim Tszyu for the second time. Fundora won the title with his first victory against Tszyu, a 2024 sharing decision which was a competitor for the fight of the year who became a bloody war thanks to a wandering elbow. Now, fresh out of Tko’s victory against Chordale Booker in March, Funodra seeks to repeat the feat once again.
In addition, the former title holder Isaac Cruz is back in action at Junior Welterweight. Cruz had to face Angel Fierro, but Prierro was forced to withdraw from Friday’s fight due to a bad drop in weight. In its place, Omar Salcido. And the opening of the PPV is a featherweight force test between the former junior featherweight champion Brandon Figueroa and Joet Gonzalez.
Let’s take a closer look at the rest of the card with the last ratings before making a prediction and an expert choice on the main event below.
Combat card Barrios vs pacquiao, dimensions
Rating via tractors
- Mario Barrios (C) -275 against Manny Pacquiao +210, Welter WBC weight title
- Tim Tszyu -155 against Sebastian Fundora (C) +125, Middle Junior WBC weight title
- Isaac Cruz -550 against Omar Salcido +380, Welter Junior weight
- Brandon Figueroa -260 against Joet Gonzalez +200, featherweight
- David Picasso -2000 against Kyonosuke Kameda +950, Junior featherweight
- Mark Magayo -800 against Jorge Eyes +500, light weight
- Gary Allen Russell Jr. -1600 against Hugo Castaneda +800, light junior weight
Prediction
Pacquiao seems to be fantastic physical fit before the fight, and he spoke several times, promising to show “The Old Pacquiao” on Saturday evening. This is where the question resides at the center of this fight: we will really see the old pacquiao or just A Old Pacquiao.
Against Uga, Pacquiao has not shown a large part of what made him a special fighter in the past, and he left the ring beating and resembling a fighter ready to pass fights. It is difficult to see how four years out of the ring and four more years of life have transformed Pacquiao into someone who will present himself in the ring resembling a younger version of himself.
Barrios will also have great physical advantages in the fight, especially four inches of reach and more than six inches high. Pacquiao will have to navigate these drawbacks in order to penetrate and advance any offense. It is unlikely that it is an easy task because the barrios are very active with his punches, which should let him punish Pacquiao before Pacquiao can get close enough to let his hands pass.
At one point, it seems that there is a good chance that Barrios hurts Pacquiao enough for the fight to be stopped, whether Pacquiao unable to get up from the canvas or the referee or the local area to save Pacquaio from an additional punishment. Pick: Mario Barrios via TKO8
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