The hyped-up return of Manny Pacquiao was nothing more than just that—hype. As I’ve said before, Pacquiao’s power is overrated, and he isn’t a true power puncher. He has no one-punch knockout power; rather, he’s more like an annoying bee, wearing opponents down with rapid combinations.
Mario Barrios proved to be another “cherry pick” gone wrong for Pacquiao. According to reports, Manny’s wife Jinkee watched Barrios’s last fight—where he looked unimpressive against Abel Ramos—and told Manny he could beat him. Manny took the fight, hoping to easily claim the WBC welterweight title against who he believed was the weakest champion. That plan backfired, as Barrios outclassed Pacquiao.
Barrios held his ground, landing cleaner shots, jabbing and displaying better defense and composure. Pacquiao, on the other hand, resembled an unpolished, off-balance street brawler with little boxing IQ. It was difficult to watch a supposed legend like Pacquiao get exposed at age 46 for lacking true boxing skills. His success was always rooted in sheer athletic ability and work rate, and once that faded, it became clear he was not a fundamentally skilled boxer.
Only true boxers with skills can compete effectively past the age of 35—for example, Floyd Mayweather, Canelo Alvarez, and Bernard Hopkins. These fighters rely on intelligence and skill to win. Pacquiao, however, has low ring IQ. Barrios’s body was wide open throughout the fight, yet Pacquiao rarely threw body shots; he simply lunged in and out with his face exposed and his hands down. He has no defensive prowess and was breathing heavy from throwing so many punches that missed or only landed on the gloves of Barrios.
Viewers were misled by the heavily pro-Pacquiao audience. The crowd cheered for every punch he threw, even when they didn’t land. As a result, casual viewers who know little about boxing might have thought Pacquiao was winning, simply because the audience was loudly cheering and chanting his name, “Manny, Manny, Manny,” throughout the fight.
I always say, if you want to teach a young kid how to box, don’t use Manny Pacquiao as a role model. Watch someone like Mayweather, Canelo, or Hopkins—crafty, technically skilled, and defensively sound boxers.
When the scorecards were read, only one judge got it right by scoring the fight for Barrios. The other two scores, which had it 114-114 (a draw), were clearly attempts to give Pacquiao unearned rounds. There’s no way this fight was anywhere near close after reviewing it.
I had the fight 8 rounds to 4 for Barrios. He landed much cleaner shots, more powerful punches, and displayed better defense throughout. Pacquiao kept getting knocked back whenever Barrios landed on his guard.
Where was Pacquiao’s legendary power? It’s odd how that power seemed to disappear after Floyd Mayweather insisted on USADA drug testing. They say power is the last thing to go, but Pacquiao was never truly a NATURAL power puncher. It showed on Saturday night—he couldn’t even mark up Barrios or wobble him. Despite throwing his hardest left hand, he did absolutely nothing.
This was a shining moment for Barrios, but it was taken from him. He should have had a big win over a name like Manny Pacquiao to strengthen his resume, but was deprived of it. At least he still holds onto his title. As for what’s next, I hope Barrios attempts to unify his WBC welterweight title with WBA champ Rolly Romero.
Manny Pacquiao should retire. He can no longer command million-dollar paydays, so his value as a pay-per-view attraction is finished. Even Jake Paul, a YouTuber, is a bigger draw at this point. There was no buzz leading up to this fight—proving Pacquiao’s star power has faded. Major sports channels and news outlets didn’t even bother covering the event or interviewing him.
My final thoughts: This fight exposed Manny Pacquiao’s glaring weaknesses. He lacks true boxing skill and got by on athletic ability alone. I don’t say this to offend, but in reality, he was the ultimate hype job—carefully manufactured and promoted by Top Rank and their matchmakers to appear as a mythical figure. Once his legs slowed down, he was exposed as a mere mortal. At this point, he cannot compete against top-tier or even mediocre young boxers.
Big time boxing fan. Grew up in East Los, and been an avid follower of the sport and the legends like Julio Cesar Chavez, Vicente Saldivar, Salvador Sanchez, Carlos Zarate, Erik Morales, Ricardo Lopez and Juan Manuel Marquez just to name a few.
Current favorite boxers: Canelo Alvarez, Mikey Garcia.