Manny Pacquiao Media Workout Notes: Does Pacquiao Still Have It?

One thing Pacquiao hasn’t lost in all of these years is the softball-sized calf muscles that help generate the power he carries in his punches. That was the first thing that stood out, and Pacquiao was noticeably slimmer than what we saw in that RIZIN exhibition. Once he completed his stretches, Pacquiao put on the gloves and began working the small mitts on Buboy’s hands while Roach looked on.

The small mitts lead me to believe that they have been working on improving Pacquiao’s accuracy before developing the game plan for the fight. The pop in Pacquiao’s punches was indeed there. Unlike the Mike Tyson 8-second clips used to promote the Paul-Tyson fight, Pacquiao did a solid round of mitt work before taking his gloves off and answering questions from the media.

It wasn’t the Pacquiao that beat Keith Thurman in 2019, but he still had some of the things he will need to beat Barrios on July 19 in Las Vegas, NV, with two of those things being power and accuracy. Although Pacquiao may feel like he can still do the things he was able to do five years ago, his team has had to stop him from overexerting himself, as they recognize that the approach to getting ready for this fight has to be different from any other camp.

When asked about having to keep himself from doing too much, Pacquiao told FightsATW, “Yes. In fact, my team has been focused on making sure I don’t overtrain. Sometimes they say, ‘That’s enough, that’s enough. Leave some for tomorrow.’  Pacquiao also mentioned to other reporters that rest & recovery have been at the forefront of this training camp, given his age and what it will take to once again become a world champion.

Three Weeks To Go

There are only three weeks before we all find out if Pacquiao can once again make history, or will Father Time remind us all that he remains undefeated? Seeing Pacquiao on Wednesday, I get the feeling that we’re going to be in for more of a fight than people may think. It may not be the old Pacquiao, but even an older Pacquiao may prove to be too much for Barrios. We don’t have to wait long to find out.