Manny Pacquiao says he has “two or three fights” left in him as he looks to claim the WBC welterweight world title with victory over Mario Barrios.
Pacquiao will fight Barrios on July 19 at the MGM Grand Las Vegas after the WBC controversially granted him a straight shot at Barrios’ world title in this comeback fight.
The 46-year-old returns from a four-year lay-off and attempts to break his own record by becoming the oldest welterweight champion in boxing history.
The former senator and presidential candidate in his native Philippines hasn’t won since he boxed Keith Thurman in 2019, his last fight a sound loss to Yordenis Ugas back in 2021.
He ran to reclaim a seat in the Senate this year, but finished 18th in the midterm elections, quickly confirming he would be making a return to the ring thereafter.
Now, Pacquiao is “all in” on his chance to hold a world title once again and believes he has the “strength” to keep boxing for years to come.
“This fight is very important to me because it’s history. I believe I’d be the first Hall of Famer to win another world title, and I’d also break my own record as the oldest welterweight world champion,” Pacquiao said.
“When I retired in 2021, it wasn’t a good feeling because I had it in my heart and my mind that I can still fight. I’ve always known that I could still work hard and dedicate myself and focus on training. I’ve rested and now I’m back.
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“I feel fast and I feel like the strength is still there. I can still do what I’ve done before in training. If anything, my team right now is trying to slow me down and making sure I get enough rest. I still want to push myself every day, but I know that I have to listen to my team.
“I think I have two or three more fights left. I feel like I could do this for another couple of years. But I’m just taking it one at a time.
“I had a lot of distractions and problems before the Yordenis Ugas fight. But right now I’m 100 per cent and there are no distractions. I’m just training and completely focused on the fight.”
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Intriguingly, Conor Benn is eligible to challenge the winner of the Pacquiao-Barrios.
Benn lost to Chris Eubank Jr at middleweight and is expected to rematch his rival later this year.
But that won’t rule him out of challenging for the WBC belt at 147lbs, despite not boxing in the division for several years and losing his most recent fight.
“He is ranked by the WBC, Eubank also is ranked by the WBC, different weight categories. It is up to him [Benn]. Right now if he’s doing a rematch, then he’s not going to challenge for the WBC for some time but he’s eligible,” WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman told Sky Sports.
