Manny Pacquiao is putting in the hard work ahead of his exhibition fight with Muay Thai fighter Buakaw Banchamek on April 20.
Pacman’s last professional fight was a unanimous decision loss against Yordenis Ugas in 2021. Since then, Pacquiao has had one exhibition fight, beating DK Yoo via a unanimous decision. The fight was done to generate money for the homeless in the Philippines and for the Ukrainian people.
The exhibition with Banchamek involves six rounds that are three minutes each. These will include two-minute breaks in between the rounds. Pacman will aim for a good performance, given his desire to fight in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. There is also a chance of a Floyd Mayweather rematch following Pacman’s announcement at a RIZN event in Japan.
Rizin CEO Nobuyuki Sakakibara: “Fight against Floyd Mayweather next year?”
Manny: “Yeah, thank you so much for inviting me here again. I’m sorry for the last time that we promised that we’re going to fight this year. Next year I’m going to see you in Japan, again big fight against- Floyd Mayweather. Floyd Mayweather, yeah. I thought that you didn’t want me to say that. But I am excited about that. Thank you for always supporting Rizin and Sakakibara.”
With that being said, the following footage shows Pacquaio working on his footwork.
Pacquiao Begins Training
Sean Gibbons, Pacquiao’s manager of his promotional company, recently confirmed his fighter was out of retirement as he targeted a professional comeback. Conor McGregor, Ryan Garcia and Gervonta Davis are some of the names mentioned, showing Pacman is ready to make the biggest fights.
“Technically, he’s out of retirement and would love to fight Gervonta Davis or Ryan Garcia. He’s got about a year left. He 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 [think he’ll fight professionally again]. One of the fights that people have talked about for a long time was Manny Pacquiao vs. Conor McGregor.
“That’s something that will be sensational in Saudi Arabia. Let’s go. It will be a good place to do it. It’s really simple. His Excellency Turki Alalshikh, [chairman of Saudi’s General Entertainment Authority], 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,” Gibbons said
Despite this, it depends on how Pacman looks in his upcoming fight. He is 45 years old, which is why there will be a natural drop-off. There is also a risk that Pacquiao ends up doing more damage if he suffers extensive blows in the ring. But one thing the Filipino has shown is his willingness to fight anyone.
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