Manny Pacquiao joins the rush of retirees returning for boxing's money era. But at what cost?
Manny Pacquiao last won a professional boxing match on July 20, 2019.
Fast-forward 2,124 days since that contested split decision win over Keith Thurman, and the now-46-year-old legend has been abruptly ranked fifth in the WBC’s welterweight rankings.
This decision, led by WBC president Mauricio Sulaimán, is a precursor to what will surely follow — a world title tilt for the Filipino against the sanctioning body's current 147-pound king, Mario Barrios (29-2-1, 18 KOs). A man 17 years his junior, born after “PacMan” turned over into the paid ranks.
It has caused a cocktail of anger, confusion and disappointment within boxing’s constantly challenged community. Despite an unquestionable career of success across eight weight classes, Pacquiao hasn’t entered a boxing ring as a professional since a faded 2021 loss to Yordenis Ugas and has filled his spare time — in between a political career attempting to return to the The Senate of the Philippines — walking the well-trodden path of exhibition bouts.
Nostalgia is a powerful drug — and like a number of fighters before him, it’s one that Pacquiao (62-8-2, 39 KOs) has seemingly found impossible not to indulge in. With the amount of money sloshing around the sport at this present moment — primarily due to Turki Alalshikh and the Saudi Public Investment Fund’s arrival into boxing’s already murky waters — it will become harder and harder for those who have previously walked away not to turn back for one last roll of the dice.
That’s not to generalize the motive of all returning veterans. Pacquiao’s finances may not be a concern, and his return to the sport is likely to be influenced by that longing for past glory.
It’s a romantic, intoxicating feeling. But it is once that is laced with denial. The Pacquiao of today is far removed from the one who wore down Marco Antonio Barrera, blitzed Ricky Hatton and embarrassed Oscar De La Hoya into retirement, all in the 2000s, but you’d be brave to confront the 72-fight veteran with this sobering truth.
Pacquiao’s return isn’t unique. Boxing as a sport lacks a fundamental system of aftercare that fighters can lean on in order to resist the comeback. They are tossed onto the scrapheap, and whether it’s for financial, personal or psychological reasons, yearn to return to the sport that once defined them.
Dr. Luke Barnes, sports psychologist and lecturer at Leeds Trinity University in the UK, posits "athletic identity" as an important factor in boxers struggling to stay happily retired.
“Throughout their whole career, these athletes have been perceived by themselves and labeled by others as ‘fighters’ — the language of that label is very important,” he said. “That is the role that has been prescribed to them in society, and they have lived that role for a majority of their lives.
“It becomes their identity — with self-esteem and motivation wrapped into the whole package. When that is taken away it can be a challenge for athletes to redefine themselves as something different. Some sports — including the Professional Football Association in English soccer, who provide support through a variety of educational, financial and well-being services — can positively encourage a new direction. But boxing less so.”
American heavyweight Oliver McCall has clearly struggled to find a new identity. The 60-year-old, famed for knocking out Lennox Lewis in 1994 for the WBC world heavyweight title, has competed in two professional contests since last November and is due to enter the ring for a 78th time in early June. Mike Tyson’s pro career, like McCall’s, now spans more than 39 years following his loss to Jake Paul last November, and Ruslan Provodnikov (41) and Jose Luis Castillo (51) are due to resume their damaging careers this June after nine- and 11-year retirements, respectively.
Despite all of these fighters being known for their in-ring durability, they are all accidents waiting to happen. They, like others, now fight out of defiance — crowds look on through their fingers in pity, rather than in awe. And Pacquiao is likely to face the same truth when he returns to the art he could once master.
Boxing is a sport where the protagonists need saving from themselves, rather than being preyed on. Sulaimán and the WBC’s decision to springboard Pacquiao into the top five of their welterweight rankings simply places the dice back into the hands of “PacMan,” encouraging him to needlessly roll and gamble with his health.
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