World Boxing News understands Manny Pacquiao is mulling over May 15th and May 29th for what could be his final ever fight in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao, 42, has been out of action since impressively defeating Keith Thurman at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.
WBN believes the eight-weight ruler and his team now favor a return to that venue.
Regarding a solid pin in the calendar, Canelo Alvarez is fighting on May 8th. Top Rank has also booked an undisputed super-lightweight unification for May 22nd.
Both of those events could end up on the world-famous strip. Even if they don’t, Pacquiao has May 15th or May 29th due to those other clashes’ high-profile nature.
Following a successful Pay Per View with Thurman selling over half a million purchases, Pacquiao is eyeing another big-money event on the paid platform.
Canelo’s encounter with Billy Joe Saunders takes place on DAZN. In contrast, Jose Ramirez vs. Josh Taylor (the Arum booking) will air on regular ESPN.
Therefore, this leaves Pacquiao with a free run at any date in May. The 15th is possibly favored more than the 29th.
In terms of an opponent, Pacquiao has now confirmed WBN’s previous story that Mikey Garcia would be first before the ‘Pacman’ hopes to face Terence Crawford later in 2021.
“We’re leaning towards Mikey Garcia, but we’re also talking to Crawford,” Pacquiao told ABS-CBN. “It depends on who I get to face. What’s important is I’m ready.
“We never really got complacent. We’ve always continuously worked out. We keep on playing basketball aside from boxing.
“Right after my fight the last time with [Keith] Thurman, I didn’t work out boxing, but I kept playing basketball.”
MANNY PACQUIAO HELP
On his intentions to keep helping his fellow countryman after overseeing several measures during the pandemic, Pacquiao added: “We will keep on giving.
“We will continue to help as much as we can, even if it’s just in small ways. I would love to be able to help everyone out, but our resources are limited.
“So we’ll do the best that we can, no problem. The only thing that I can assure the people of is that as long as I can help, I will help, to the best of my abilities.”
Whoever the Filipino Senator battles next, though, it’s likely to be Manny Pacquiao’s final fight on the hallowed ground of Nevada.
Phil Jay is the Editor of WBN. Follow WBN us on Twitter @WorldBoxingNews.
