Timothy Bradley Jr. shares his thoughts about fighting Manny Pacquiao and breaks down Saturday’s fight.
Manny Pacquiao is coming out of retirement at age 46, just a month after his induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Boxing’s only eight-division world champion will return to the ring at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday to face 30-year-old WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios (Amazon Prime Video PPV, PPV.com, 8 p.m. ET).
This will not be an easy fight for Pacquiao after a long layoff. Barrios won the WBC interim title in September 2023, made one successful defense in May 2024 and was elevated to full champion ahead of his fight against Abel Ramos on November’s Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson undercard. Barrios, a tall fighter for the division at 6-foot, was knocked down by Ramos in Round 6 of an entertaining fight. Despite the scare, Barrios eked out a 12-round split decision.
Yet, Barrios holds one of the most impressive résumés among today’s 147-pound champions. He owns a 2023 victory over Yordenis Ugas, who beat Pacquiao in August 2021, a loss that sent the Filipino legend into retirement. Barrios has also shared the ring with elite names such as Keith Thurman and Gervonta «Tank» Davis, both of whom handed him losses but provided him invaluable experience. Still, Barrios might be the weakest link among current welterweight champions, and that alone may explain Pacquiao’s motivation for his return. This return isn’t just about a paycheck; it’s about adding to his legacy.
In July 2019, Pacquiao became the oldest welterweight champion ever, at 40, by defeating Thurman in a performance that defied Father Time. Now he wants to surpass Bernard Hopkins, one of boxing’s all-time greats, as the oldest world champion in the sport’s history. Hopkins defeated Jean Pascal in 2011 at age 46 for the WBC light heavyweight title, then outdid himself at 48 by beating Tavoris Cloud for the IBF belt. The second-oldest champion was George Foreman, who reclaimed the heavyweight title at 45 by knocking out Michael Moorer in 1994.
But there’s a critical difference between what «Big George» did on his run, what Hopkins accomplished and what Pacquiao is attempting to do: Hopkins stayed active throughout his twilight years, and Foreman was active for 10 years during his return to the heavyweight crown. Pacquiao (62-8-39 KOs) has been out of the ring for over four years. There have been no tuneups, just a couple of exhibitions in 2022 and one in 2024. Jumping back into the fire with a hungry champion such as Barrios, who is naturally bigger, longer (with a 71-inch reach) and stronger, makes Pacquiao’s attempt alarming and historic.
I had the privilege of sharing the ring with Pacquiao on three occasions: 2012, 2014 and 2016. Each encounter brought a unique experience, driven by where he was in his career and where I was in mine. In 2012, Pacquiao was still at the height of his illustrious career. He hadn’t lost in seven years and had just come off a remarkable run, defeating some of the sport’s biggest names, icons such as Oscar De La Hoya, «Sugar» Shane Mosley, Miguel Cotto, Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales and Antonio Margarito. Stepping into the ring with him for the first time, I imagined I was fighting a titan. Beyond the magnitude of the event, I found myself face to face with a charismatic and humble man whose soft-spoken voice and respectful demeanor draped over him like an invisible veil, contrasting to what stood across the ring from me on fight night.
The ring announcements felt shorter than in any other championship fight I’d had. My legs trembled uncontrollably as I bounced up and down to wake them. When I stopped bouncing, my legs would feel numb, as if they had been removed. Standing across from Pacquiao before the first bell rang, I could feel the weight of his presence. His aura was heavy, almost weakening me.
Pacquiao is, without question, the most outstanding athlete I’ve ever shared the ring with.
