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Ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr has made the fighter introductions. The final instructions have been given by referee Thomas Taylor, the seconds are out and we’ll pick it up with round-by-round coverage from here!
And here comes Pacquiao. The happy warrior emerges from the tunnel to Hall of Fame by The Script and will.i.am. Rowdy cheers of “Man-ny! Man-ny!” for the Filipino legend, who is wearing a black robe with thin gold trim. He’s into the ring and on both knees praying in his corner as Survivor’s Eye of the Tiger blasts over the MGM Grand Garden Arena sound system.
Mario Barrios is making his ring entrance. He’s dressed in full Aztec warrior garb accompanied by That Mexican OT performing Barrio. The champion typically enters the ring second, but that honor was conceded to Pacquiao on the occasion of his comeback fight. Barrios climbs through the ropes after saluting the crowd with a single fist raised aloft.
Manny Pacquiao has insisted his return to boxing is driven by passion and not nostalgia, as the 46-year-old prepares to challenge Mario Barrios for the WBC welterweight title only a few minutes from now in Las Vegas.
“It’s been a while that I’ve been out of the ring, but I’m still active and exercising all the time,” said Pacquiao, who hasn’t fought professionally since a 2021 loss to Yordenis Ugás. “I want to give the fans what they want. That’s my goal every time I step into the ring.”
The eight-division champion and newly minted Hall of Famer said he’s approached training camp with the same discipline he had two decades ago.
“Just like when I was 26. The passion is still there,” he said at Wednesday’s final press conference. “Saturday night, it’s going to be a great fight. I’m OK being the underdog. I’ve been the underdog many times. I’m always bringing surprises.”
Pacquiao praised his opponent but made it clear he’s coming to win.
“I respect Barrios – he’s a champion and he works hard. But I’m excited to take the belt,” he said. “We’re going to show the world that boxing is still alive and kicking. Manny Pacquiao is still here.”
Barrios, 30, is defending his title for the second time and enters as the betting favorite. But he dismissed the notion that Pacquiao’s age diminishes the challenge.
“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.”
Barrios, who drew with Abel Ramos last November, said Saturday’s bout is “historic”, but he’s ready to end it on his terms.
“It’s all smiles right now, but I know that come fight night that smile won’t be on his face anymore, and neither will mine,” he said. “I’m not looking for the knockout, but I’m going in there with bad intentions and power in both hands.”
“I’m ready for war. I’ve poured everything into this sport since I was a kid. Now it’s my job to show why I’m going to continue to be the champion.”
Promoter Tom Brown hailed the bout as “another historic night” for the MGM Grand: “Manny first fought here in 2001. This is his 16th fight at the arena. It’s a full-circle moment.”
Fundora retains WBC 154lb title by RTD 7!
The fight is over! Tszyu doesn’t answer the bell for the eighth round. Just when it was looking like the Sydneysider was having his best moments of the bout, Tszyu tells referee Harvey Dock that he doesn’t want to continue. Fundora springs from his stool in celebration, arms raised skyward.
Fundora was in complete control of this one after the opening few rounds. Tszyu was dropped in the first and cut in the second and appeared to be on his way out, but he’s picked up steam in the middle rounds and has bloodied Fundora’s nose with a thudding right hook.
Sebastian Fundora has scored a first-round knockdown of Tim Tszyu. Tszyu tried to get inside with a left hook but Fundora tagged him with a perfectly timed straight left directly on the jaw. He beats the count and makes it out of the round but it’s an ominous start for the 30-year-old Sydneysider.
Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz has won a 10-round unanimous decision over late replacement Omar Salcido in a junior welterweight contest. Two of the ringside judges handed down scores of 99-89 while the third had it a 100-88 shutout. Cruz nearly closed the show in the final round, battering his opponent until he was dinged with a long-overdue point deduction for holding, then scoring a knockdown before Salcido was saved by the bell.
The 27-year-old Cruz controlled the action throughout but struggled at times to draw out his opponent, who reverted to clinching and retreating early on. It marked Salcido’s second straight loss following a wide decision defeat to Andy Cruz in January, and Cruz’s second consecutive victory since losing the WBA title to Jose Valenzuela last August.
Just one undercard bout to go before the main event and it’s a juicy one: Sebastian Fundora and Tim Tszyu in a 12-rounder for Fundora’s WBC junior middleweight title.
Preamble
Las Vegas has never shied away from a nostalgia act and tonight is no exception. At 46 years old, Manny Pacquiao, one of boxing’s most decorated and beloved champions, steps back into a professional ring for the first time in nearly four years, chasing one more title for a résumé overflowing with them.
He faces Mario Barrios, the 30-year-old WBC welterweight champion with youth, size and momentum on his side. It’s a steep climb for the Filipino legend, who is giving up six inches in height, four inches in reach and more than a decade and a half in age. But this is the same Pacquiao who’s made a career of overcoming odds. Eight divisions. Twelve major world titles. One Hall of Fame induction, just last month in Canastota, New York.
Can Pacquiao, who last tasted victory in 2019, still compete at the highest level? Or will Barrios, soft-spoken but confident, send the fighting senator into retirement once and for all?
The build-up has been respectful, almost reverent. Barrios, who held onto his title with a narrow split draw against Abel Ramos last fall, knows what he’s up against: a southpaw whose rhythm was hard to replicate, whose footwork flummoxed, whose heart never really left the fight game. “Manny is one of a kind,” he said. “But I’m the champion now.”
Pacquiao, meanwhile, insists he’s ready. “The passion is still there,” he said this week. “Even with the layoff, the fire to compete and be a champion again is still burning.” He’s been training with the intensity of his younger years, sparring and running with the same monastic discipline that turned him into a global icon. The last time he fought at the MGM Grand, he outpointed the then-undefeated Keith Thurman in a modest upset. He’s hoping history repeats.
Also on tonight’s bill: a fiery rematch between Sebastian Fundora and Tim Tszyu in the super welterweight co-main. Their March meeting was one of the most gruesome and punishing contests of the year and the rematch promises no less.
So here we are. Pacquiao, back under the lights. Back in Vegas. Back for a belt. Time may be undefeated, but Pacman hasn’t given up the fight. Stay with us for live round-by-round coverage, results and reaction as the night unfolds.
Bryan will be here shortly. In the meantime here’s Donald McRae’s report from the heavyweight happenings at Wembley a few hours ago.
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