Manny Pacquiao may be meeting up with fellow superstar Floyd Mayweather in the Philippines, but don’t expect a deal to be made between the two for a Super Fight II. The two could well square off against one another, reports say, but on the basketball court, not in the ring.
But while Mayweather appears to be content in retirement (coming back every once in a while for an extremely easy yet lucrative exhibition bout) Pac Man still has the urge to fight for real. And the word Is, according to a news piece from inquirer.net, who reported what Manny’s official matchmaker Sean Gibbons has stated, it is down to two names as far as who 40 year old Pacquiao will fight next: Keith Thurman or Danny Garcia.
Pacquiao aims to fight again some time over the summer, to follow up his commanding and, you could argue, reaffirming win over bad boy Adrien Broner, who Pac Man widely outscored not too long ago. So who should it be in the opposite corner; who would you prefer to see the former multi-weight king and current “regular” WBA welterweight champ face – “One Time” or “Swift?”
Both are, as we know, good fighters, if possibly (maybe even certainly) not as good as they once were. Garcia must get past a determined Adrian Granados in his next fight (lose that one or look bad and it could be curtains as far as the Pacquiao payday goes); while Thurman looked less than great in his return from injury bout with the tough Josesito Lopez. In truth, Pacquiao, despite his advanced years and long career, could beat either man – and we might not have said or thought that a year or so ago.
Thurman, who holds a win over Garcia, really wants the Pacquiao fight, while Garcia is focused solely on the upcoming Granados fight, which is of course how it should be. The result of that fight, and how Garcia looks in it, could well prove decisive as far as who Pac Man rumbles with in his next fight, but both options are good.
Manny shows no real signs of slowing down any more than he is showing any signs of looking to pick easy opposition. A Win over Thurman or Garcia would add to Pacquiao’s already super-impressive resume and legacy, while such a result would no doubt inspire Manny to fight on. Just when will the career of this incredible all time great reach its end – and how?
Some of Pac Man’s career highlights:
KO 3 Erik Morales
KO 10 Erik Morales
KO 11 Marco Antonio Barrera
KO 2 Ricky Hatton
KO 12 Miguel Cotto
W12 Juan Manuel Marquez
And some other guys Manny has beaten: Oscar De La Hoya, Tim Bradley, Antonio Margarito, Joshua Clottey, David Diaz, Adrien Broner.