After Manny Pacquiao announced his return to the ring at the age of 46, fight offers for the Filipino have already started to arrive.
Pacquiao announced that he will fight Mario Barrios for the world welterweight title on July 19 in Las Vegas, and regardless of the result, he already has a proposal for a second fight.
After his defeat to Yordenis Ugas in 2021, Pac-Man announced his retirement from professional boxing, despite becoming the oldest welterweight champion in history in 2019 when he defeated Keith Thurman.
But Pacquiao cannot be at peace, and will return to the world of boxing once again and everyone wants to take advantage of the name of a legend like the Filipino and no, it is not Jake Paul.
Who is the boxer who challenged Manny Pacquiao?
After defeating Ryan Garcia in Times Square, Rolando Romero made a proposal to fight against the veteran former world champion Pacquiao.
During the presentation of the card for the fight between Jermall Charlo and Caleb Plant, held at the Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas, Rolly Romero made his presence felt by causing a stir in an interview with FightHub TV.
After his emphatic May 2 victory over Ryan Garcia, Romero was asked who he was interested in, and without hesitation said: “It doesn’t matter if he beats Barrios or not. I want a Rolly-Pacquiao fight”.
The former WBA interim lightweight champion did not hesitate to praise the Filipino boxing legend: “How many losses does Pacquiao have? Oh, that’s another thing, buddy. Pacquiao is another one who doesn’t give a damn about losses. And everybody keeps watching him,” he said.
Romero, who boasts a 17-2 professional record, criticized young boxers’ obsession with keeping an unbeaten record, arguing that it is of little value without facing real challenges.
“All that undefeated shit doesn’t mean anything if you don’t fight anybody. Nobody gives a fuck about you,” added Romero, who made it clear that he is not particularly interested in facing IBF champion Jaron “Boots” Ennis.
It seems that Romero gives more weight to fights that generate excitement and attract the attention of the general boxing public.
“I don’t even talk about money. To hell with money! What is the most important fight for the boxing world? That’s what people are interested in.”
Pacquiao has a record of 62-8 and remains a marquee name, so Romero wants to share that fame, convinced that it is the kind of matchup that excites fans far beyond boxing purists.
Romero is not the only one who wants to climb into the ring against Pac Man
Not only Romero is looking to fight Pacquiao, a four-division world champion also praised the Filipino icon and shared a message of support.
When Terence Crawford was asked at ringside, after Canelo Alvarez’s victory over William Scull, about Pacquiao’s return, he did not make any daring predictions, but he did show respect. Initially neutral, Crawford said: “I don’t know, we’ll see”. But when pressed on whether Pac-Man might be too old to compete at this level, the Omaha southpaw acknowledged the legend’s legacy.
“I can’t say if he’s too old or not, you know? If he comes in and wins, everyone will say otherwise. So I don’t put limits on an all-time great like Manny Pacquiao,” Crawford admitted.
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