Manny Pacquiao officially announced Wednesday that he’s coming out of retirement at the age of 46.
The boxer’s return, previously reported two weeks ago, will occur July 19 in Las Vegas when he faces Mario Barrios for the WBC welterweight championship.
“On July 19, I return to the ring to face WBC Welterweight Champion Mario Barrios at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas,” he added. “Let’s make history!”
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The Pacquiao-Barrios fight will reportedly be streamed via PBC on Prime Video pay-per-view.
The bout versus Barrios will be the first for Pacquiao since he lost to Yordenis Ugás by unanimous decision in a match for the WBA “super” welterweight title that had been stripped from him due to inactivity. Pacquiao won that title in 2019 by defeating Keith Thurman in a split decision. His last win without going to a decision was a 7th-round TKO over Lucas Matthysse in 2018.
During his previous 26 years in boxing, Pacquiao became the only boxer to win 12 world titles in eight different weight classes, including flyweight, featherweight, lightweight and welterweight.
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When Pacquiao defeated Thurman, he became the oldest fighter to win the WBA “super” world championship at age 40. He is a four-time welterweight champion.
Barrios is 29-3 in his career with 18 wins by knockout. His last match was Nov. 15, 2024, versus Abel Ramos on the undercard of Jake Paul’s fight with Mike Tyson. He won the interim WBC welterweight title by defeating Ugas in September 2023 and was elevated to full champion in June 2024.
Last week, the WBC put Pacquiao at No. 5 in its welterweight rankings, a controversial decision considering the fighter’s four-year absence from the ring. However, WBC rules allow a former champion to request a title fight after returning from retirement.
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“Pacquiao has been licensed by Nevada and passed all medicals and as legendary WBC champion has been approved to fight by our organization,” WBC president Mauricio Sulaimán said on X in justifying the decision.
As previously planned, Pacquiao officially announced his return to boxing after the election results for a Senate election in the Philippines were tallied last week. Pacquiao lost his bid for a second run as a senator, an office he held from 2016-22, finishing in 18th place.
Overall, Pacquiao’s record is 62-8-2 (39 KOs). He will be inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame on June 8.
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