Boxing legend Manny “Pac-Man” Pacquiao who currently holds a political position as a Senator in the Philippines, is optimistic that the Coronavirus better known as Covid-19 should be gone by the summertime and would not hinder his planned ring return.
Pacquiao, 41, who currently holds the WBA welterweight title, told Manila Times that he will fight in July because he believes the Covid virus will be gone by then.
The virus has spread across the globe with many nations setting restrictions on businesses and large gatherings. In some cases businesses and schools were told to shut down for weeks hoping to discover a vaccine for the Covid-19 virus in the coming weeks.
The majority of upcoming sporting events have been canceled, and boxing events for Premier Boxing Champions and Top Rank have been canceled or postponed due to the pandemic.
Health organizations and scientists are hoping for the best but even they won’t say the virus would be gone by July or summer.
Pacquiao could likely face four-division champion Mikey Garcia or undefeated IBF/WBC welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. in a unification bout in July if the virus has subsided by then.
If the virus subsides, the likely destination for Pacquiao’s next fight would be in Las Vegas, Nevada. It would be a year since Pacquiao last stepped into the ring. He won the WBA title last July when he beat 30-year-old undefeated American champion Keith Thurman by split decision, making him at the age of 40 the oldest fighter in history to hold a welterweight title.
The Filipino eight-division champion is thinking positively and has advised the Filipino people to remain calm and to pray in such trying times.
He also filed a Senate Bill No. 1406 also called the Anti-Spitting act of 2020 which penalizes people who spit and release bodily fluids in public spaces, to prevent the transmission of diseases such as Covid-19.
