Bradley: What it's like boxing Pacquiao, and how he can beat Barrios

Manny Pacquiao is coming retired of status astatine property 46, conscionable a period aft his induction into the International Boxing Hall of Fame. Boxing's lone eight-division satellite champion volition instrumentality to the ringing astatine the MGM Grand Garden Arena successful Las Vegas connected Saturday to look 30-year-old WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios (Amazon Prime Video PPV, PPV.com, 8 p.m. ET).

This volition not beryllium an casual combat for Pacquiao aft a agelong layoff. Barrios won the WBC interim rubric successful September 2023, made 1 palmy defence successful May 2024 and was elevated to afloat champion up of his combat against Abel Ramos connected November's Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson undercard. Barrios, a gangly combatant for the part astatine 6-foot, was knocked down by Ramos successful Round 6 of an entertaining fight. Despite the scare, Barrios eked retired a 12-round divided decision.

Yet, Barrios holds 1 of the astir awesome résumés among today's 147-pound champions. He owns a 2023 triumph implicit Yordenis Ugas, who bushed Pacquiao successful August 2021, a nonaccomplishment that sent the Filipino fable into retirement. Barrios has besides shared the ringing with elite names specified arsenic Keith Thurman and Gervonta "Tank" Davis, some of whom handed him losses but provided him invaluable experience. Still, Barrios mightiness beryllium the weakest nexus among existent welterweight champions, and that unsocial whitethorn explicate Pacquiao's information for his return. This instrumentality isn't conscionable astir a paycheck; it's astir adding to his legacy.

In July 2019, Pacquiao became the oldest welterweight champion ever, astatine 40, by defeating Thurman successful a show that defied Father Time. Now helium wants to surpass Bernard Hopkins, 1 of boxing's all-time greats, arsenic the oldest satellite champion successful the sport's history. Hopkins defeated Jean Pascal successful 2011 astatine property 46 for the WBC airy heavyweight title, past outdid himself astatine 48 by beating Tavoris Cloud for the IBF belt. The second-oldest champion was George Foreman, who reclaimed the heavyweight rubric astatine 45 by knocking retired Michael Moorer successful 1994.

But there's a captious quality betwixt what "Big George" did connected his run, what Hopkins accomplished and what Pacquiao is attempting to do: Hopkins stayed progressive passim his twilight years, and Foreman was progressive for 10 years during his instrumentality to the heavyweight crown. Pacquiao (62-8-39 KOs) has been retired of the ringing for implicit 4 years. There person been nary tuneups, conscionable a mates of exhibitions successful 2022 and 1 successful 2024. Jumping backmost into the occurrence with a bare champion specified arsenic Barrios, who is people bigger, longer (with a 71-inch reach) and stronger, makes Pacquiao's effort alarming and historic.

What it feels similar to look Pacquiao

I had the privilege of sharing the ringing with Pacquiao connected 3 occasions: 2012, 2014 and 2016. Each brushwood brought a unsocial experience, driven by wherever helium was successful his vocation and wherever I was successful mine. In 2012, Pacquiao was inactive astatine the tallness of his illustrious career. He hadn't mislaid successful 7 years and had conscionable travel disconnected a singular run, defeating immoderate of the sport's biggest names, icons specified arsenic Oscar De La Hoya, "Sugar" Shane Mosley, Miguel Cotto, Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales and Antonio Margarito. Stepping into the ringing with him for the archetypal time, I imagined I was warring a titan. Beyond the magnitude of the event, I recovered myself look to look with a charismatic and humble antheral whose soft-spoken dependable and respectful demeanor draped implicit him similar an invisible veil, contrasting to what stood crossed the ringing from maine connected combat night.

The ringing announcements felt shorter than successful immoderate different title combat I'd had. My legs trembled uncontrollably arsenic I bounced up and down to aftermath them. When I stopped bouncing, my legs would consciousness numb, arsenic if they had been removed. Standing crossed from Pacquiao earlier the archetypal doorbell rang, I could consciousness the value of his presence. His aura was heavy, astir weakening me.

Pacquiao is, without question, the astir outstanding jock I've ever shared the ringing with. Every question helium made was sharp, deliberate and unnervingly precise. His footwork and assemblage feints kept maine guessing and connected edge, perpetually tense, ne'er knowing erstwhile his unorthodox combinations would deploy. His manus velocity was deceptive and his consciousness of region and his quality to alteration gait and bushed made it each the much challenging.

What looked manageable successful movie studies felt overwhelming successful existent life. His archetypal measurement into midrange came similar lightning successful an instant, and the infinitesimal helium fto his hands go, everything instantly became chaotic. I learned rapidly that the assemblage is his lifeline of energy. The much helium gave it thing to cheer about, the much ferocious helium would become.

Pacquiao was acold harder to deed than I had expected. His punching powerfulness was stunning; each connected changeable sent a jolt done my head, and adjacent the ones that missed sliced the aerial similar bullets, whistling past my ears. When I did onshore thing clean, helium would clap his gloves unneurotic successful defiance arsenic if to say, "That each you got?" His stamina was unreal; his motor ne'er stopped running. But what genuinely acceptable him apart, though, was his tenacity and elite ringing IQ. Try repeating a punch signifier twice, and you would find yourself eating a blazing accelerated antagonistic from an unpredictable angle, his footwork successful cleanable sync with his hands, successful short, explosive, choppy steps.

What made Pacquiao particularly unsafe was his quality to consciousness erstwhile his hostile was fading. He could consciousness it, and that's erstwhile helium would crook up the heat. His spot was highly antithetic for his size, astatine astir 5-foot-6.

Let's marque this clear: Pacquiao's B, C and D games are amended than astir fighters' A game. Special fighters similar him aren't manufactured. They're born. But 46 years of property is inactive 46.

How the combat could play out: Pacquiao's athleticism vs. Barrios' near hook

Expect Pacquiao to crook this combat into a conflict from the opening bell. He'll look to propulsion the gait and adjacent region by disrupting Barrios' bushed with feints, caput movement, throwing combinations and utilizing his crisp footwork. In grooming videos, Pacquiao inactive flashes glimpses of his legendary manus velocity and footwork. He'll effort to usage that to detonate guardant with speedy flurries and space changes earlier Barrios tin recognize erstwhile to counter.

Pacquiao, the shorter man, knows helium can't enactment astatine agelong range. That's Barrios' comfortableness zone, wherever helium tin usage his agelong jab, consecutive rights, looping shots and hooks with afloat power. To nullify that, Pacquiao indispensable adjacent the spread and onslaught Barrios' agelong torso. Those assemblage shots are indispensable to dilatory down Barrios' legs, drain his stamina and trim his snap, timing and volition passim the fight.

Being a southpaw gives Pacquiao a tactical edge. Barrios hasn't faced galore lefties successful his career, and the past clip helium did, against Davis successful 2021, helium was peppered by near hands to the assemblage and caput and was yet stopped. I'm definite Pacquiao volition effort to mimic immoderate of that success, utilizing feints to disguise his signature punch, the consecutive near hand, which helium disguises with caput question and a measurement with his pb ft to the right, slipping extracurricular and distant from the peripheral imaginativeness of his hostile and firing consecutive down the mediate with a sneaky near cross.

But this combat volition not travel without risks for Pacquiao. Once powered by his unthinkable athleticism, Pacquiao present volition beryllium near susceptible by his explosive lunges and reaching. The older you get, the timing and equilibrium don't ever enactment up perfectly. And Barrios' counterpunching and crippled program subject volition capitalize connected those mistakes. He's not the benignant of combatant who overreacts similar Pacquiao; helium likes to wait, clip his hostile and punch with intent astatine the cleanable distance, taking attraction of discourtesy and defence simultaneously.

Barrios volition apt enactment composed early, contented to fto Pacquiao initiate the gait and expend energy. He'll commencement moving down a dependable jab, utilizing it to bust up Pacquiao's look and disrupt his rhythm. He'll capsicum Pacquiao from the outside, and erstwhile Manny steps successful with combinations, Barrios volition look to clip him with counters, peculiarly the consecutive close hand, a punch that has troubled the southpaw Pacquiao passim his career.

Barrios' near hook could beryllium a sneaky crippled changer, particularly to the body. Remember, Pacquiao has struggled with calf cramps passim his career, and if Barrios invests successful assemblage enactment early, it could instrumentality the strength, steam and drawback retired of Pacquiao's legs, eliminating his dynamic footwork and movement. As the combat gets deeper into the aboriginal rounds, Pacquiao's gait and unit mightiness statesman to slow. His aboriginal vigor apt volition fade, and Barrios volition person opportunities to instrumentality implicit the action, remaining down the jab and continuing to power distance. Once helium believes Pacquiao is fading, helium should onslaught him with counters that mightiness wounded Pacquiao. Barrios is precise disciplined successful the ring. He fights smart, ne'er letting the infinitesimal overwhelm him, and he'll marque tiny adjustments during the chaos Pacquiao loves to bring. He'll amusement maturity by sticking to the crippled plan: negociate region and punish Pacquiao for his mistakes.

Pacquiao successful decline? Let's look astatine the numbers

As fighters property and slice from their carnal prime, there's often a noticeable decline, not conscionable successful enactment levels but besides successful accuracy, reflexes and recovery. Older fighters mightiness go much technical, taking less risks and relying connected acquisition alternatively than measurement oregon speed. But with that calculated caution comes reduced output and little carnal quality to accommodate nether higher resistance.

In his combat against Ugas, Pacquiao didn't conscionable look a measurement behind, but helium looked similar helium had aged overnight. Ugas' composed counterpunching and crisp accuracy exposed the deterioration and teardrop of a long, restless career. Pacquiao's legendary footwork and timing, erstwhile razor-sharp, seemed obsolete. Ugas' reach, power, counterpunching and dependable feet proved excessively overmuch for the icon.

Ugas outlanded Pacquiao successful full punches (151-130), jabs (50-42) and powerfulness punches (101-88). Ugas besides connected connected 59% of his powerfulness punches. For the archetypal time, it became undeniable that Pacquiao had yet deed the partition that each large fighters yet hit. Four years later, imagining immoderate signifier of Pacquiao resurgence isn't easy. Time hasn't paused. Barrios is not lone 16 years younger but besides sharper and fresher. And he's undoubtedly experienced.

Barrios possesses galore traits that troubled Pacquiao against Ugas, specified arsenic dependable footwork, acute timing, an fantabulous jab and the vigor that comes with youth. Don't fto the video clips connected societal media fool you. Those Pacquiao shadowboxing sessions successful parking lots, the blazing manus velocity connected the mitts oregon the thousands of crunches helium grinds retired look great. But looking large successful the gym oregon against aerial doesn't equate to being fight-ready nether unrecorded occurrence aft lengthy inactivity.

Remember however crisp Tyson looked connected the pads earlier his accumulation with Paul? It's 1 happening to look tremendous erstwhile nary one's hitting back. It's an wholly antithetic conflict erstwhile your assemblage begs for recovery, and it nary longer comes arsenic quickly. Reaction clip slows and betterment stretches longer arsenic we age. I know. Endurance, resilience and reflexes travel people for the young. Yes, Pacquiao inactive has the bosom of a warrior and volition springiness immoderate helium has near successful the tank, but Father Time is undefeated. Even his warrior tone mightiness not beryllium capable to flooded this cherry-picked champion successful the welterweight division.

Who wins?

This won't beryllium an casual combat for either Pacquiao oregon Barrios. Pacquiao volition person his moments, possibly adjacent stone Barrios with combinations, and his velocity volition triumph rounds. However, arsenic the 12 rounds deterioration connected and Pacquiao slows down, Barrios' reach, crisp counters and grit volition amusement that Pacquiao is beatable astatine this signifier of his career. Ultimately, Barrios wins a hard-fought unanimous decision, not by domination but by being what helium needs to beryllium connected this night. He volition bushed a legend, but 1 acold retired of his prime.