.png)
Boxing legend Manny Pacquiao has come out of retirement and is eyeing a showdown with former UFC champion Conor McGregor. Pacquiao retired from professional boxing after a unanimous decision loss to Yordenis Ugas in 2021, but he quickly hinted at a comeback. Many believed he retired to focus on his run for President of the Philippines, but he suffered a significant defeat in the 2022 general election.
Following his political setback, Pacquiao shifted his focus to organizing several exhibition boxing matches, similar to his rival Floyd Mayweather. In late 2022, he defeated Korean influencer DK Yoo by unanimous decision. He is also scheduled to face Buakaw and Mayweather in further exhibition matches this year.
However, Pacquiao's return is not limited to exhibition matches. His representative, Sean Gibbons, confirmed that the eight-division champion is interested in professionally sanctioned fights, including a potential bout with Conor McGregor. Gibbons also mentioned other potential opponents like Ryan Garcia and Gervonta Davis, but the prospect of Pacquiao vs. McGregor seems to excite him the most. He even suggested Saudi Arabia as a potential location for the fight.
"Technically he's out of retirement," Gibbons said in a recent interview. "He would love to fight Gervonta Davis, Ryan Garcia. He's got about a year left. He just wants to fight. Manny feels that he's in tremendous shape.
He's training for this exhibition, but hopefully that will lead to something bigger and better. I do see a pro return for Pacquiao. One of the fights that people talked about for a long time was Manny Pacquiao versus Conor McGregor."
Gibbons continued,
"That's something that will be sensational in Saudi Arabia, let's go. It will be a good place to do it. His Excellency Turki Alalshikh, the chairman of the General Entertainment Authority of Saudi Arabia, loves big events, and he's putting on the best events. It's a very intriguing and fun fight bringing two of the biggest names together in combat sports."
This is not the first time the potential matchup between Pacquiao and McGregor has been discussed. In 2020, McGregor announced plans to fight Pacquiao in the Middle East, but the fight did not materialize. Now, with Pacquiao's return, there appears to be renewed interest in the bout.
The mention of Saudi Arabia by Gibbons is intriguing, as Saudi advisor Turki Alalshikh revealed in a recent interview that he lobbied the UFC to have McGregor fight in Saudi Arabia. With Pacquiao's return, there is speculation that this bout could possibly be a boxing match.