A bizarre encounter between pound-for-pound legend Manny Pacquiao and WBC world welterweight champion Mario Barrios is seemingly close to being officially announced.
The pair were in talks to stage their clash earlier last year, before ‘Pac-Man’ looked every bit of his age in a largely discomforting exhibition.
His unremarkable performance arrived against Rukiya Anpo, a Japanese kickboxer, last July, when the 46-year-old absorbed shots he otherwise would have never been caught with.
Such is the case, of course, whenever an iconic fighter attempts to have one last roll of the dice, often with little regard for their own physical capabilities.
But still, it would appear that the Filipino is nonetheless determined to test himself against Barrios, 29-2-1 (18 KOs), a highly-skilled technician when compared to his last opponent.
When not mentioned in the same breath as a kickboxer, however, it could be said that, despite being a world champion, the 29-year-old is far from extraordinary.
After getting elevated from interim to full WBC champion, the American went toe-to-toe with Abel Ramos in an all-action war last November.
In the end, Barrios retained his green and gold strap with a draw while, at the same time, doing little to prove his credentials at the elite level.
Pacquiao, 62-8-2 (39 KOs), meanwhile, has not fought since his exhibition matchup, with the eight-division king remaining even further removed from a world beater.
In any case, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman has confirmed Barrios’ belt to be on the line for their planned showdown this summer, suggesting that an official announcement from Premier Boxing Champions should be imminent.
“At this time, Mario Barrios is going to fight Manny Pacquiao in July,” Sulaiman told Boxing King Media.
“That’s a tremendous fight. Manny Pacquiao’s first [world] title was at flyweight – with the WBC – and [now] he wants to retire as the WBC champion, so he’s fighting in the welterweight division.”
