Manny Pacquiao’s four-year hiatus is over. The eight-division icon, freshly ranked No. 5 by the WBC, will challenge welterweight title-holder Mario Barrios on July 19 in Las Vegas, topping a PBC on Prime Video PPV that also features a unified 154-lb rematch between Sebastian Fundora and Tim Tszyu. TGB Promotions have the MGM Grand Garden Arena on standby, with nearby T-Mobile Arena blocked by Lady Gaga tour dates the same weekend.
Pacquiao hasn’t boxed since losing the WBA belt to Yordenis Ugas in August 2021, but WBC president Mauricio Sulaimán invoked the body’s rule allowing former champions to return directly into title fights. “That’s a tremendous fight,” Sulaimán said after clearing Pacquiao with the Nevada commission. Critics have howled at the fast-track, yet the Hall-of-Famer insists he can still compete at the sport’s elite edge.
Barrios earned the WBC strap after outpointing Ugas and was elevated to full champion when Terence Crawford moved to 154. The rangy Texan has dropped only to Gervonta Davis and Keith Thurman, and believes a win over Pacquiao would cement his legitimacy: “Fighting a legend adds a chapter nobody can erase.”
In the co-feature, Fundora and Tszyu revisit their bloody March 2024 classic that saw the 6ft 5in American upset Australia’s star on ten days’ notice. Fundora vacated the WBO title and shelved a mandatory against Xander Zayas to settle “unfinished business” in the desert heat of mid-July.
Fight card:
▪️Manny Pacquiao vs. Mario Barrios, 12 rounds, for Barrios’ WBC World welterweight title ▪️Sebastian Fundora vs. Tim Tszyu, 12 rounds, super welterweight
