A comeback for Manny Pacquiao has been rumored for a little bit of time. At the end of last year, Pacquiao revealed that a rematch with Floyd Mayweather Jr. was coming in 2024.
That never materialized, but rumors of Pacquiao eyeing several big names continued to spread. Now, it appears the 45-year-old Pacquiao has landed a big fish.
Manny Pacquiao coming out of retirement at 45 years old
According to Mike Coppinger of ESPN, Pacquiao is deep in talks with Conor Benn to fight at welterweight.
Pacquiao hasn’t fought professionally since August 21, 2021. His last fight came when he was nearing 43 years old, and it was after a two-year layoff. He ended up losing to Yordenis Ugas, losing his WBA belt in the process.
Benn, on the other hand, is just 27 years old. He was the WBA European welterweight champion from 2018 to 2022, until a suspension stripped him of the title.
He has fought twice since the suspension was lifted, beating Rodolfo Orozco and Peter Dobson in September of 2023 and February of 2024, respectively.