Reuters
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Manny Pacquiao will be coming out of retirement to face Mario Barrios for the WBC Welterweight Championship in Las Vegas on July 19, the 46-year-old Filipino boxer said Wednesday.
Pacquiao is the only boxer to win a world championship in eight record heavy divisions, but he was also the oldest welterweight world champion in history at the age of 40 in 2019.
Pacquiao, a Philippine Senator from 2016 to 2022, retired from boxing in 2021 and ran for president in 2022.
“I’m back. On July 19th, I’ll be back in the ring and play WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Let’s make history,” Pacquiao wrote on Instagram.
Southpaw, who won 62 wins, eight losses and two draws in his 72 career careers, has also been selected for the International Boxing Hall of Fame as part of the 2025 class.
Barrios, a Mexican-American boxer, has won 29 wins in 32 games, earning 18 on knockouts and losing twice.