Manny Pacquiao isn’t done in boxing just yet, as last weekend proved. He’s got his eyes firmly set on his next challenge already and at 39 years young, still appears to have plenty left to mix at the top-level of the sport.
His seventh round TKO win over Lucas Matthysse in Malaysia yesterday saw Pacquiao capture the WBA ‘regular’ welterweight world title.
Some pointed to last weekend being the perfect time for Pacquiao to bow out but if he’s still performing well, why not fight on?
Ultimately it’s always the boxer’s decision at the end of the day. No one else.
Speaking in the post-fight press conference after the fight Pacquiao named three possible opponents for his next bout:
“Yes, he (Amir Khan) is a potential opponent.”
He added:
“There’s a lot of potential opponents. Like Crawford and Lomachenko. There are so many fighters that are potential opponents.”
Pacquiao also hinted after the fight at the weekend that he would be open to taking on American boxing great Floyd Mayweather in a rematch.
Should Mayweather ever return to the sport which is unlikely.
Mayweather won a comfortable points decision in 2015 when the pair last fought in what was the biggest boxing match financially in boxing history.
Previous Pacquiao conqueror Jeff Horn also called out ‘Pacman’ following his win this weekend but Horn, now without a world title since that win last year over Pacquiao, seems an unlikely option.
Amir Khan has recently intimated he is very interested in the Pacquiao fight and is the one he wants at the end of the year.
This seems the front-runner at the moment.
Niall Doran is the Founder and Managing Editor of Boxing News and Views. You can follow him on Twitter @NiallerDoran and on Instagram @niallerdoran
