By: Sean Crose
Everyone loves a comeback story – so long as the comeback is successful. Sadly in the sport of boxing notable comebacks generally don’t end well (unless your name is George Foreman or Ray Leonard). Manny Pacquiao intends to beat the odds, however, when he faces Mario Barrios tomorrow night in Las Vegas for Barrio’s WBC welterweight title. Barrios is the obvious favorite walking into this one – and why wouldn’t he be? For starters the 29-2-1 defending champion is over 15 years younger than Pacquiao. That’s 15 – as in a decade and a half. Barrios also has a 4-plus inch height advantage.
This is Manny Pacquiao we’re discussing here, however. Manny Pacquiao. The eight division world champion who buzzsawed through opponents with a ferocity that Roberto Duran and Arron Pryor might find intimidating. There’s also the fact that – for what it’s worth – Pacquiao has looked sharp in training camp. Watching him run up Griffith Park or grinding at Freddie Roach’s Wild Card Gym brings back feelings of the Pacquiao of old. This isn’t the Pacquiao of old, however. This is the Pacquiao of 2025. In order to view Saturday’s fight realistically, one needs to recall Pacquiao’s last fight when Yordenis Ugas, another (somewhat) younger, taller man held the legendary PacMan at bay for 12 rounds. What’s to say Pacquiao will look any better four years later?
The truth is that great fighters rise to the occasion and Pacquiao has been among the greatest of a generation. Still, it’s a pretty tall order to expect the man to pull off the win in this weekend’s pay per view event. Those expecting the Manny of the 2000s or even 2010s might be better off watching some of his greatest wins on YouTube. That fighter is gone forever, no matter how good Pacquiao looks in the gym or while doing roadwork. The Hall of Famer will have his moments Saturday – there may even be some flashes of the old days, when Pacquiao’s blinding fast combinations and movements simply overwhelmed his opponents on a regular basis. Yet can anyone expect Pacquiao to go at that pace consistently as he heads towards 50 years of age?
The bottom line is that this Pacquiao won’t have the speed and impressive endurance he once did. If he does indeed shock the world on Saturday, however, there won’t be a happier fan to be found than yours truly. Again, everyone loves a comeback story – so long as the comeback is successful.
Barrios by unanimous decision.