LOS ANGELES – Manny Pacquiao, in his first public comments since leaving Las Vegas with a draw in his welterweight world title fight, said he was convinced he had secured a victory on the scorecards even before the start of the 11th round Saturday night versus titeholder Mario Barrios.
“I thought I’d already won the fight,” Pacquiao told BoxingScene on Monday afternoon in an interview inside his Beverly Hills apartment. “The [final] scorecard, in my mind, was 8-4 or 7-5.
“For the 11th and 12th [rounds], I’m OK with them giving those to Barrios because, in my mind, I was thinking, ‘Even if they give him these two rounds, I did enough in the others [to win].’
“I was surprised by the decision. But I am in sports. The first thing you learn in sports is sportsmanship.”
After embracing Barrios in the ring and at the post-fight news conference, Pacquiao, 46, has spent the intervening hours moving beyond the disappointment of not yet joining Bernard Hopkins and George Foreman as the only men to win a world title after their 45th birthday.
Returning from a four-year absence and fighting one month past his International Boxing Hall of Fame induction, Pacquiao has been heartened by the public’s scorn toward the scoring of judges Max DeLuca (115-113 Barrios), Tim Cheatham and Steve Weisfeld (114-114 each), and the inspiration so many have drawn from his performance.
“I feel like it was robbery, but I also feel great pride, because at the age of 46, I know I can compete like this with just two months’ training,” Pacquiao said.
“I started late [to training] because of the [senate] election in the Philippines. I should’ve trained three, four months for this fight.
“In the two months I trained, there were no distractions and it was, ‘Focus, focus, focus,’ but it’s hard because I was pushing so hard because of the [limited] time. My body sometimes needed a day’s rest and I didn’t have the time to recover.
“That’s why I have peace with the idea that, ‘You know, for two months’ [training], that was good, showing the world I still can compete at 46,’ and it makes me wonder how much more I can compete with three or four months. I can still do it.”
Pacquiao, 62-8-3 (39 KOs), said he believes he could return to fight again by year’s end – he turns 47 in December – joking that he tried to go for a training run Monday, only to be told by his friends, “It’s just two days from the fight. Just relax.”
Pacquiao advisor Sean Gibbons told BoxingScene that he views WBA welterweight titleholder Rolando “Rolly” Romero as the favorite to meet Pacquiao next, because Romero offers a belt, along with better promotional skills than Barrios and intriguing knockout power.
Pacquiao said he wants to meet a champion.
“To fight again is not a question,” Pacquiao said. “As long as there is enough time to prepare … my main concern is the preparation, because I’m not interested in fighting B-class, low-class fighters just to fight for money. I want to fight with honor, in a competitive fight.
“I’m already in shape. With a few months’ more training, I can come back and be 100 percent for any style. I’m ready to go. Of course, I’ll pray to God for good health.”
It was in scripture where Pacquiao first found encouragement to make a post-retirement return to the sport he loved, 30 years after his pro debut and his eventual record run to titles in eight divisions.
“The Bible tells us that Moses, even at age [120], his strength never changed from the time he was young. So I realized, with discipline and belief in God, God will give you strength,” Pacquiao said. “That’s my base [thinking].
“Most of the public, when they get old – 40, 50 – your mind feels like it’s deteriorating and it feels like you’re losing your strength because you’re thinking about it. I don’t think like that. My mind is always positive. God is good all the time.”
He heard the voices expressing concern and criticism over a pursuit of the 30-year-old Barrios that some painted as Quixotic.
“Even in the Philippines, there’s some commentator who had many people angry with him for saying, ‘He should stop fighting, he’s only going to last four or five rounds, he’ll get tired,’” Pacquiao said. “He got bashed after the fight.”
The marketing appeal of Pacquiao’s comeback has been immediate.
Inside his apartment Monday, a group of individuals were proposing he endorse a new line of energy, recovery and creatine gummies based on his genuine post-40 heroics.
Pacquiao made six-mile runs up and down L.A.’s Griffith Park to the famed Hollywood sign as a steady part of his training routine.
“I knew the whole time I’d be fine,” he said of the title fight. “I sparred 12 rounds. I made sure of my stamina. I did eight rounds, 12 rounds, plus mitts; another 10 rounds, then hitting the heavy bag. I did 33 rounds many days.”
As Saturday’s bout moved past the fifth round and Pacquiao landed cracking punches on the younger Barrios while outmaneuvering the two-division belt holder, he said, “there was a joy and happiness. Through 12 rounds, I was fine, doing my footwork, keeping my stamina.”
Living clean and maintaining a fervent exercise regimen at his six-acre home in the Philippines eased his transition to title-fight preparation, Pacquiao said.
“Sometimes, people speak about discipline when, behind the corner, they’re not living it,” he said. “I’m disciplined.”
His home is equipped with a complete gym, a badminton court, a basketball court, a boxing ring, weights, a rubberized indoor running track and a volleyball court.
“I run, then play basketball and badminton for four hours each,” he said. “Badminton is good for my vision, footwork, hand-eye coordination.
“I also have a pickleball court, but it’s so slow … that’s a game for when you get old – like 60.”
After losing his senate seat in May, Pacquiao said he’s “going to focus on my boxing career,” and expressed determination to recapture a welterweight belt next, meaning he could have at least two more remaining bouts while continuing to support his countrymen in other ways.
“I told them what was inside my heart: I want to help them. I want a legacy I can leave behind. Legacy is the most important thing,” Pacquiao said. “We are not here forever in this world.”
Even if it felt that way Saturday night.
Lance Pugmire is BoxingScene’s senior U.S. writer and an assistant producer for ProBox TV. Pugmire has covered boxing since the early 2000s, first at the Los Angeles Times and then at The Athletic and USA Today. He won the Boxing Writers’ Association of America’s Nat Fleischer Award in 2022 for career excellence.
