Pacquiao says he has started training for next fight

MANILA, Philippines – Without giving specifics of his next fight, Manny Pacquiao on Wednesday announced he has begun training, eager to resume his career that has so far been halted by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Pacquiao tweeted that he has opened training camp in a bid to keep his Hall of Fame-worthy career going, even as the date of his next bout and the identity of his opponent have yet to be revealed.

Training camp has begun. I’m ready to get back in the ring and to further add to my legacy in the sport of boxing. Big news coming soon. @ParadigmSports @AudieAttar

— Manny Pacquiao (@MannyPacquiao) February 9, 2021

Those details, including the venue of the bout and whether it will be open to a live audience, will be the subject of speculation and high anticipation among boxing observers and fans in the coming days.

“Big news coming soon,” Pacquiao added in his latest social media post.

Interestingly, Pacquiao tagged Paradigm Sports and its head Audie Attar in his tweet, suggesting that the sports management firm — notable for having UFC star Conor McGregor in its roster of clients — will be heavily involved in his ring return.

The Filipino icon allied himself with Paradigm Sports with the initial goal of arranging a showdown with McGregor. But the Irish MMA superstar saw his stock dip after losing to Dustin Poirier via second round TKO at UFC 257 last January.

That huge setback by McGregor has resulted in the emergence of other possible opponents for Pacquiao, with rising star Ryan Garcia reportedly a frontrunner. The young gun had called Pacquiao out and, in the days following McGregor’s UFC loss, claimed his camp had been in talks with the fighting senator for a showdown.

But there has been no final word from Pacquiao’s camp so far.

Pacquiao hasn’t fought since defeating Keith Thurman in July 2019 to annex the WBA “super” welterweight championship. The same title, however, no longer belongs to the boxing legend after the WBA recently stripped him of it due to inactivity.

Pacquiao hardly cares about the trinket — his stellar resume and star power speak for themselves — and instead is just raring to get back to the ring.