Mario Barrios has offered his take on whether Manny Pacquiao, who he faced in July, can still compete at the highest level of his division.
The pair squared off for Barrios’ WBC world welterweight title at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, where many felt that Pacquiao had done enough to emerge victorious.
Prior to their controversial draw, ‘Pac Man’ had not fought professionally since his unanimous decision defeat to Yordenis Ugas in 2021.
But still, the Filipino somehow managed to find the remnants of his old style against Barrios. At the age of 47, though, it is difficult to gauge whether Pacquiao is still capable of competing for world titles.
Should he remain at 147lbs, then the eight-division world champion could be targeting either Devin Haney, Lewis Crocker, Rolando Romero or the winner of Barrios vs Ryan Garcia, which takes place on February 21.
Many consider the top dog at welterweight to be WBO titlist Haney, whose points victory over Brian Norman Jr in November saw him become a three-division world champion.
As for Romero and Crocker, who respectively hold the WBA and IBF titles, there is perhaps more of a debate as to whether Pacquiao could produce a moment of magic against either one of them.
Speaking with Ring Magazine, Barrios insisted that, while Pacquiao could compete at this level for a short while longer, there is equally a possibility that he may soon fall victim to Father Time.
“I think he could [be competitive with the likes of Haney, Garcia and Romero], but Father Time has its effect on everybody and I don’t know when [Pacquiao’s] finally going to decide [to retire].
“But I think he can still make some noise.”
Whether that noise happens to be against any of the world champions at 147lbs, it remains to be seen.
