‘Rested' Manny Pacquiao relishing boxing comeback at 46

Straits Times

2 days ago

Manny Pacquiao speaks prior to his WBC welterweight fight versus Mario Barrios at The NOVO at L.A. PHOTO: AFP
LOS ANGELES – Manny Pacquiao on June 3 shrugged off concerns about his decision to return to boxing at the age of 46, as he prepares for his world welterweight title comeback against Mario Barrios in July.
The charismatic Filipino boxing icon stunned the sports world in May after announcing he would take on World Boxing Council (WBC) champion Barrios on July 19 in Las Vegas, four years after his last fight ended in a disappointing defeat.
Pacquiao, who won 12 world titles in eight different weight classes during a glittering professional career that began in 1995, told reporters that the glamour of championship boxing had prompted his return.
'I'm returning because I miss my boxing,' he said at a press conference in Los Angeles. 'Especially these situations – being interviewed, press conference, training camp, everything like that.
'I missed that. But it has been good for me – I've rested my body for four years. And now I come back.'
Pacquiao also said that he had been left devastated following his decision to retire in the wake of his loss to Yordenis Ugas in 2021.
'I always thought, even when I hung up my gloves, 'I can still fight, I can still feel my body, I can still work hard',' he added.
'That moment when I announced hanging up my gloves four years ago – I was so sad. I was crying, I cannot stop the tears coming out my eyes.'
Some in boxing have expressed concerns about whether Pacquiao's comeback against Barrios, who is 16 years his junior, represents a risk to the Filipino's safety.
Addressing those concerns, he noted that his family and loved ones were firmly behind his comeback.
'The people who really concern me, is my family,' he said. 'My family saw how I move, saw how I train, saw my body condition. They support me because they can see the old Pacquiao style.'
Pacquiao is able to challenge immediately for a title due to a WBC rule that allows former champions to request a title fight when coming out of retirement.
WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman said that Pacquiao had been cleared to return to the ring by the Nevada Athletic Commission after undergoing medical exams, describing the fighter's comeback as 'low risk'.
Barrios said he would set aside the Filipino's status as one of the most beloved fighters of his era.
'There's nothing but good things to say about him outside the ring,' he said. 'He's a hard guy to dislike. But at the end of the day, you know it's kill or be killed.
'So I just have to go in there and make sure that my hand is raised at the end of the fight.'
In other boxing news, World Boxing has apologised after Imane Khelif was named in its announcement on mandatory sex testing for all boxers in its competitions, saying the Paris Olympics gold medallist's privacy should have been protected.
The global body, which will oversee boxing competitions in the 2028 Olympics, made the announcement last week, less than a year after Khelif won gold in Paris amid a gender-eligibility row.
The announcement specifically said the body had sent a letter to the Algerian Boxing Federation saying Khelif 'may not participate in the female category' of any World Boxing event until she undergoes the test.
However, a source said World Boxing president Boris van der Vorst had personally written to Algerian Boxing Federation president Abdelkader Abbas to apologise for including Khelif's name. AFP, REUTERS
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