Manny Pacquiao To Have Two More Fights Before Running For Presidency, Says Freddie Roach

Freddie Roach said Manny Pacquiao could have two more fights left before the boxing icon decides to hang his gloves up. Sharing a previous chat with his legendary fighter, the renowned trainer revealed that the end of the road is drawing closer for the Pacman, who he said is seriously considering a Philippine Presidential run in 2022.

“I’ve had discussions with Manny on having two more fights for his career and then maybe (stay) in the politician side of it,” Roach told BoxingScene.com.

“I said, 'I want to run your campaign,’” the 60-year-old added in jest. “Manny would like to fight a couple more times and then run for the presidency of his country. The first fighter to ever do that and it will be another part of his history and I think he will be really good at.”

Just like most household names in boxing, Pacquaio has also been coerced to modify plans for his active fighting career as the sport adjusts to the unprecedented conditions brought by the current pandemic.

Pacquiao, who is also a member of the Philippine Senate, has stayed mum amid talks about his next bout as he puts a premium on his government office job given the challenging times that his country is facing right now.

Based on the latest data, the Philippines now records the highest number of COVID-19 positive cases in Southeast Asia – a significant development that is likely to continue influencing his plans as an athlete.

At 41 years old, Pacquaio still boasts a world title, having held the WBA Super Welterweight Championship belt since defeating Keith Thurman in July 2019.

The eight-division world champion has been linked with another welterweight champ, Terence Crawford, but mixed signals from Top Rank’s Bob Arum suggest that the mega bout might not come into fruition.

Roach, on the other hand, appeared more interested in the prospect of Pacquiao facing Mikey Garcia – a four-time division champion who is actually not a stranger to being pitted against the Filipino icon.

“We talked about opponents and a couple of names come up here, a couple of names come up there. There are a lot of names coming up and so forth,” Roach said. “I kind of like Mikey Garcia. I think that’s a really, really good fight.”

But while plans remain blurry at this time for Pacquiao, Roach expects the boxing great to make the best decision as he approaches the tail-end of a storied career.