Manny Pacquiao could jump even higher up the list of the oldest boxing world champions ever with his upcoming return to the ring.
“PacMan” battles Mario Barrios on July 19 at the MGM Grand Arena in Pacquiao’s first fight for four years.
If he wins the bout, he will become the WBC Welterweight Champion, making Manny Pacquiao the first International Boxing Hall of Fame inductee to return to win the gold.
However, a win wouldn’t even make the 46-year-old Pacquiao the oldest world champion of all time.
- READ MORE – Manny Pacquiao earned a world title shot thanks to a strange WBC rule after a four-year hiatus from boxing
10. Oleg Maskaev
Kazakhstani-born former boxer Oleg Maskaev had just turned 39 when he lost the WBC Heavyweight championship in 2006.
He knocked out Hasim Rahman in the 12th round of their clash in Las Vegas to become world champion for the first time.
He held the title for two years, eventually losing it to Samuel Peter in March 2008, just days after his 39th birthday.
9. Wladimir Klitschko
The young Klitschko brother was 39 years old when he lost his various world titles to Tyson Fury during their iconic 2015 clash.
He had the chance to become a champion again two years later, but a 41-year-old Wladimir Klitschko suffered a defeat to Anthony Joshua before retiring from boxing.
8. Nonito Donaire
One of the most recent names on this list is Nonito Donaire, who held the WBC Bantamweight title as recently as 2022.
Donaire lost the belt to “The Monster” Naoya Inoue, becoming the latest man to fall to the Japanese knockout artist.
He was 39 years old when he lost the title, and since he hasn’t tasted title gold since then, he remains eighth on this list.
7. Manny Pacquiao
As he approaches a comeback at the age of 46, Manny Pacquiao wants to jump up the list of the oldest boxers ever when he takes on Mario Barrios.
However, he already enjoys a spot on the list, following Pacquiao’s reign as the WBA Welterweight champion.
That reign ended after a disappointing loss to Yordenis Ugas in 2021, but the eight-weight champion could become the first world champion Hall of Famer by beating Barrios on July 18.
Pacquiao will hope to mimic Sugar Ray Leonard, who came out of retirement in 1987 to become a world champion once again.
6. Sam Soliman
At 40 years old, Sam Soliman won the IBF Middleweight title in a reign that didn’t last until the end of the year.
He defeated Felix Sturm over 12 rounds to win the IBF Middleweight belt in 2014, although his reign would be a quick one.
On Soliman’s first title defense, he dropped the title to Jermain Taylor, just a few weeks shy of his 41st birthday.
5. Guillermo Jones
Guillermo Jones’ four-year reign as the WBO Cruiserweight champion lasted until he was 41 years old.
Jones won the title from Firat Arslan in a bout in Germany in 2008, defending successfully twice over the next few years.
Sadly, the fighter was stripped of the belt after failing a drug test, ending his historic reign with a whimper.
4. Erislandy Lara
The current WBA Middleweight champion is Erislandy Lara, who is closing in on third place on the list of the oldest world champions ever.
The Cuban-American is 42 years old and has held titles in multiple weight classes in a career that has spanned 16 years.
As a technically skilled fighter, he has been lauded throughout his career and looks to still have many years ahead of him at the top of the game.
3. Vitali Klitschko
There must be something in the water in Ukraine, as both Klitschko brothers have proved their incredible longevity by winning world titles late into their boxing careers.
The elder Vitali Klitschko remained as WBC Heavyweight champion until his retirement in 2013, leaving the sport at 42 years old with a win over Manuel Charr.
Klitschko’s only title losses of his career came against Lennox Lewis and Chris Byrd, which happened much earlier in the Ukrainian’s career.
2. George Foreman
As somebody who went toe-to-toe with Muhammad Ali in the “Rumble in the Jungle” in 1974, nobody expected to see George Foreman winning world titles two decades later.
Yet that is exactly what the 46-year-old boxing legend did. By beating Michael Moorer in their 1994 clash, he won the WBA and IBF World Heavyweight titles.
Foreman held the WBA title until being stripped of the title for refusing to fight Tony Tucker.
1. Bernard Hopkins
The oldest world champion in boxing history is the legendary Bernard Hopkins, who was 49 years old when he held the world title for the final time.
He won the IBF Light Heavyweight title from Tavoris Cloud at the age of 48 in 2013, making him the oldest fighter in history to win a world title.
However, he kept that until a loss to Sergey Kovalev a year later, while also adding the WBA title to his impressive trophy cabinet in the meantime.
He held the WBA and IBF Light Heavyweight titles until November 2014, dropping them at the age of 49 years and 297 days, a full three years older than his nearest competitor for the oldest champion ever.