FRISCO, Texas – Now that he has won a welterweight fight convincingly, Mikey Garcia has his sights set on a high-profile opponent he has always wanted to face.
Garcia emphasized throughout a post-fight press conference Saturday night that he wants a showdown with Manny Pacquiao next. A Pacquiao-Garcia fight has been discussed for quite some time, but it seems more makeable now that Garcia has beaten Jessie Vargas in the former four-division champion’s second appearance at the welterweight limit.
Pacquiao expressed interest in facing Garcia last year, but the one-sided nature of Garcia’s 12-round, unanimous-decision defeat to Errol Spence Jr. last March 16 would’ve made Pacquiao-Garcia a tougher sell without Garcia winning a bout in between losing to Spence and opposing Pacquiao. There’s seemingly some discrepancy regarding Pacquiao’s contractual status with Al Haymon’s Premier Boxing Champions, but promoter Eddie Hearn intends to pursue the possibility of bringing a Pacquiao-Garcia fight to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, sometime in the summer.
“I would love to get in the ring with Manny,” Garcia said following his victory over Vargas at Ford Center at The Star. “You know, it’s a fight that’s been mentioned and talked about for several years. And now that I have a win in the welterweight division, people can actually consider me a viable contender. And it’s been talked about for several years, so with this victory, it’s more accessible. And I would love to fight Manny Pacquiao. He’s a living legend. I would love to share that ring with him.”
The 41-year-old Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) hasn’t fought since edging then-unbeaten Keith Thurman by split decision July 20 in Las Vegas. Pacquaio captured the WBA “super” welterweight title by beating Thurman (29-1, 22 KOs, 1 NC) at MGM Grand Garden Arena.
The 32-year-old Garcia (40-1, 30 KOs) overcame a slow start to knock down Las Vegas’ Vargas with a right hand late in the fifth round. The Oxnard, California, native also hurt him at other times later in their 12-rounder and beat Vargas by unanimous decision (116-111, 116-111, 114-113).
Even at his advanced age, Pacquiao would be a step up in competition from Vargas, whom Pacquiao dropped and out-pointed to win the WBO welterweight title in November 2016.
“He’s a living legend,” Garcia reiterated. “It would be tremendous. It would be a great name to [add to] my legacy, you know, getting in the ring with an all-time great. It’s not that often that you possibly have an opportunity to fight an all-time great. And also, for me to get in that ring with Manny, it would be just amazing. I think I can definitely show everybody that, you know, even though he looked great [against Thurman], I can take him out and show that I’m just as great. And I need that opportunity. I need to get in the ring [with Pacquiao].”
Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.