World champion calls for Manny Pacquiao showdown after comeback draw
Pacquiao made his comeback at the age of 46 after a four-year absence on Saturday night as he battled to a majority draw with Mario Barrios in their WBC world title clash.
Pacquiao's advisor Sean Gibbons claimed his man should have been declared the winner but played down the chances of a rematch after accusing Barrios of going into his shell during the fight.
He mentioned Romero as a potential next foe for Pacquiao in the wake of his upset win over Ryan Garcia in May, and the newly crowned WBA titlist is fully on board.
'A Hall of Famer on my resume, who wouldn't want that? That's the easiest way to get into the Hall of Fame, right?' Romero told Boxing Scene when asked about facing Pacquiao.
'We can do it. Everything has to make sense. It's going to be a fan favourite. That makes sense right there.'
Pacquiao would not bring a belt to the table if he fought Romero after falling agonisingly short in his bid to regain welterweight gold.
But Romero feels he should have got his hand raised and wants to test himself against an all-time great, while insisting that money would not be his main motivation for taking the fight.
'It was a close fight, regardless – not to take anything away from Mario Barrios,' Romero added. 'But I personally saw Pacquiao winning.
'A lot of people had Pacquiao winning. Barrios only clearly won the last three rounds. I feel like Pacquiao was winning the others, stealing some of them with these bursting moments to close rounds.
'It's not about money. Everyone's chasing all that. … I'm not a person who boxes for money, and I think I've proven that enough times.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Reuters
5 minutes ago
- Reuters
Xavi application for India coaching job was a hoax, AIFF says
July 26 (Reuters) - The All India Football Federation (AIFF) confirmed on Saturday that a job application attributed to former Barcelona manager and Spain midfielder Xavi Hernandez for the India head coaching role was a hoax. The AIFF's national team director told The Times of India, opens new tab on Thursday that Xavi's name was on the list of applicants. The report also quoted an AIFF technical committee member saying the his candidacy was deemed too expensive to pursue. "The AIFF received an email furnishing the applications from Spanish coaches Pep Guardiola and Xavi Hernandez. The authenticity of their applications could not be confirmed, and it has since emerged that the email applications were not genuine," the AIFF said in a statement. It had not been previously reported that the AIFF had also received an application purporting to be from Manchester City manager Guardiola. The AIFF Technical Committee said it had reviewed 170 applications for the Indian men's head coach role, narrowing the list to 10 before short-listing three candidates. The AIFF sacked former India manger Igor Stimac in June last year before appointing Spaniard Manolo Marquez, who left the job this month and returned to his role as coach of Indian Super League team FC Goa.
The Sun
5 minutes ago
- The Sun
‘There's big decisions to be made' – Eddie Howe breaks his silence on Alexander Isak telling Newcastle he wants to leave
EDDIE HOWE admits Newcastle need to 'make a decision' on the future of Alexander Isak. But the Toon boss has insisted that any negotiation for their £150m-rated star striker must be in the best interests of the club. 5 5 5 Isak, 25, is understood to have told the Newcastle hierarchy that he wants to leave this summer and will not sign an extension on his current deal that expires in 2028. Having not travelled on the club's Asia pre-season tour with a reported thigh strain, Liverpool are said to be preparing a world-record bid to lure Isak to Anfield. Sunsport understands that Saudi side Al-Hilal have offered him a £32million-a-year deal — but his heart is set on Liverpool. Quizzed on Isak's future hours after landing in Singapore, Howe said: 'There's always big decisions to make when you're at Newcastle. That goes with the territory. 'I wouldn't put a timescale on it. With these situations, it has to be right for the football club. 'Obviously, everything is taken into context below that, but the club will make the right decision with all the information that it has. 'Ultimately, to try and move the club forward in whatever way that is. Then it's up to us to make good decisions the other way and try and improve the squad as best we can. 'That's what we're trying to do, regardless of Alex's situation. Of course, we want stability and we want the group to have a really good feeling. 'We are in a very strong position financially. We are determined to be successful. 'We are ambitious. We've got a great season ahead of us. We need to add to the squad and continue to improve. 'And if the journey can continue to an upward trajectory, I think that's what we all want. So that's what we're battling to try and achieve.' Liverpool have recently signed Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike for £79m, but are still open to breaking the bank for Isak – who has also been monitored by Arsenal. Isak pulled out of Newcastle's 4-0 friendly defeat to Celtic last weekend through injury, which coincided with rumours of his departure ramping up. Howe continued: 'I have to say, the feeling during pre-season has been as good as any other. "I don't think we're distracted. We're here, we're focused and we're working hard. 'Of course there are things going on behind the scenes. [Isak] will be aware, he's in the news every day and I'm sure that's not easy for anyone in that situation. 5 5 'I'm not actually having daily contact with anyone connected with the board, we're out here, it's been a whirlwind here in the sense of training and the intensity of what we're doing. 'So, that's for other people to deal with back home. I've got 30 players here that I need to look out for and to prepare the team as best we can. 'We do share a really good relationship with him. He's been magnificent for us since he's joined. He's very popular in the dressing room. 'We'd love him to continue his journey at Newcastle. Hopefully he'll be back playing the black and white shirt, that's what we all want to see.' On whether Isak is close to signing a new deal at St James' Park, Howe added: 'As far as I am aware, I don't think there are any contract talks taking place at the moment. 'That would be for a later date potentially. With the situation as it is, there's still so much that could happen. 'I said against Celtic after the game, I certainly hope he stays. I said I was confident that he'd stay. 'But it's football, and who knows what the future may bring.'
Telegraph
35 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Liverpool v AC Milan: Team lineups and updates from Hong Kong
12:10PM Today's line-ups Liverpool Here's how the Reds line-up in Hong Kong 👊🔴 Watch the game LIVE on All Red Video ⤵️ #LFCPreSeason — Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 26, 2025 AC Milan Team news from Hong Kong 📋 — AC Milan (@acmilan) July 26, 2025 12:08PM Liverpool's busy summer... to be continued? Having built up a reputation for modest spending and measured dealing - relative to other clubs in the top six, that is - it's surprising to see that on top of the signings mentioned below, Liverpool are reportedly ready to spend another £120m on Newcastle striker Alexander Isak. The asking price is £150m, but even if Liverpool do barter down, they'll break Chelsea's record for spending in a summer transfer window. Should that happen, Arne Slot will have to hope his charges fare better. In Todd Boehly's first window, Chelsea signed 13 players for a total of £405m with mixed fortunes. Success stories like Moises Caicedo (£115m), Cole Palmer (£40m), and PSR successes like Djordje Petrovic (£14m, sold for £25m) have been heavily mitigated by disasters like Christopher Nkunku (£53m), and the injury-hampered Romeo Lavia (£58m). Chelsea's PSR navigation has been viewed with contention, so how have Liverpool handled it? You can read in full here. 11:58AM Liverpool's busy summer Liverpool's current summer spend totals a whopping £270m, £300m if you include the fee they paid Valencia for goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili last August - a deal that saw the Georgian immediately loaned back for the season. Should the requisite add-on clauses be triggered, their signing of Florian Wirtz for an initial £100m will become a British-record at £116m. Here are the other signings this summer: Hugo Ekitike - £69m from Eintracht Frankfurt Freddie Woodman - free from Preston North End Milos Kerkez - £40m from Bournemouth Jeremie Frimpong - £35m from Bayer Leverkusen Armin Pecsi - £1.5m from Puskas Akademia 11:48AM New blood in classic fixture Liverpool and AC Milan play their second fixtures of pre-season at the Kai Tak Stadium in Hong Kong this afternoon, as the Premier League champions take another look at a number of new signings as their prolific summer transfer window rolls on. Whilst in attendance, their newest signing, Hugo Ekitike - signed from Eintracht Frankfurt for an initial £69m - is not named in the match-day squad, but there will be a chance for further inspection on Florian Wirtz from the start. Elsewhere new signings Freddie Woodman, Giogri Mamardashvili, Milos Kerkez, and Jeremie Frimpong all feature from the bench, whilst youngsters Rio Ngumoha, Tyler Morton, and Luca Stephenson all start. Meanwhile, Joe Gomez won't feature, instead flying home today to get treatment on an Achilles issue having trained out in Asia earlier this week. Liverpool TV's pre-match coverage have reported that the squad are looking forward to their first 'proper' fixture of pre-season, and whilst today's opponents languished in eighth in the Serie A last season, it's certainly an esteemed fixture. Since the infamous Champions League final in 2005, they've played four times, with Milan avenging that defeat in the 2007 final before three Liverpool wins; twice in 2021 and a 3-1 win in September of last year. Milan's lineup is TBA, but we can expect to see some summer signings of equal stature to Liverpool's, with none other than Luka Modric joining, alongside midfielder Samuele Ricci. They lost in real time, but won on a gratuitous penalty shootout vs Arsenal just three days ago, and have big motivation to prove themselves today after an underwhleming season last year. Kick off is 12.30pm, stay tuned!
