Manny Pacquiao will challenge for his 13th world title against Mario Barrios on Saturday night.
Manny Pacquiao hopes to roll back the years in his world title contest with Mario Barrios to get his first win in six years.
Pacquiao has fought once since his win over Keith Thurman, losing in 2021 to Yordenis Ugas by unanimous decision.
Though fans criticized Pacquiao’s training footage and fear for his health going into the fight, one of his sparring partners had an entirely different story to tell.
Manny Pacquiao’s power surprised sparring partner he shared 30 rounds with
Ahead of his fight with Barrios, who drew with Abel Ramos, Pacquiao brought Saul Bustos into his camp to emulate Barrios’ size and height.
15-2-1 Bustos spoke to Sean Zittel about what it was like to spar Pacquiao, and said the pair shared 30+ rounds with one another.
Bustos said of the Filipino legend, “Pacquiao’s still fast. Pacquiao, surprisingly – I don’t know why I’m so surprised, I keep telling this to everyone – he carries a punch. He really does carry a punch. When he wants to hit you hard, he cracks.”
Bustos went on to predict the fight, stating he believes Pacquiao, who KO’d 3K-Battery years ago, would win either by unanimous decision or by 10th-round knockout.
Pacquiao, who could rematch Floyd Mayweather next, has not scored a knockout in seven years, with his last coming against Lucas Matthysse. This is the only knockout win Pacquiao has produced in 16 years, with the last before that being against Miguel Cotto in 2009.
Manny Pacquiao could solidify his membership of elite two-man club with a win over Barrios
In 2019, with his win over Thurman, Pacquiao became the second member of a two-man group.
Pacquiao joined George Foreman as the only other fighter to win two world titles 20 or more years apart.
With a win over Barrios, Pacquiao would extend this legacy to have won two world titles almost 27 years apart.
He won his first world title in December, 1998.