Pacquiao is back, but how back is he? Saturday’s fight against Barrios will reveal all

by | Jul 17, 2025 | Sports

LAS VEGAS — Manny Pacquiao insisted he was back, and from a purely technical standpoint, he was correct.Back in the ring. Back as a headliner.But back to what he was when Pacquiao was one of the planet’s most dominant fighters, building a massive fanbase and a gold-standard resume that put him in the International Boxing Hall of Fame last month? That is the real question.He will get a chance to answer it Saturday night when the 46-year-old from the Philippines will try to take the WBC welterweight belt from Mario Barrios. It will be Pacquiao’s first fight since losing by unanimous decision to Yordenis Ugás nearly four years ago. His last victory occurred in 2019, a split decision over Keith Thurman.“Saturday night, it’s going to be a great fight,” Pacquiao said. “It’s been a while that I’ve been out of the ring, but I’m still active and exercising all the time. I’m going to prove to everyone that I’m in great condition.“I’ve been enjoying training camp like I did in the past, just like when I was 26 years old. The discipline is still the same. Even with my layoff, my passion is still there.”Barrios, a 30-year-old from San Antonio, is a -275 favorite at BetMGM Sportsbook to spoil Pacquiao’s return. But he needs to bounce back from a split-decision draw on Nov. 15 against Abel Ramos that dropped his record to 29-2-1, 18 wins by knockout.“Manny is one of a kind,” Barrios said. “He’s not an easy style to copy in training camp. We’ve gotten a lot of different southpaw looks, so I’m feeling extremely comfortable.“It feels amazing to be in this position. I poured everything into this sport since I was (a) kid, and now I get to walk the (Las Vegas) Strip with my family and see my name all over. It’s someth …

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