Conor McGregor, Floyd Mayweather Jnr, Terence Crawford ... who will Manny Pacquiao fight in 2020?

‘Pac Man’ linked to rematch with Mayweather Jnr as he enters his 25th year of professional boxing

Boxing fans cringe as the eight-weight division champion seems most keen on Irish MMA star Conor McGregor

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Manny Pacquiao celebrates after defeating Keith Thurman by split decision in a welterweight title fight in 2019. Photo: AP

Published: 5:00pm, 22 Jan 2020Updated: 5:45pm, 22 Jan 2020

Flyweight, super-bantamweight, featherweight, super-featherweight, lightweight, super-lightweight, welterweight, super welterweight. Filipino boxing legend and senator Manny Pacquiao welcomes his 25th year in professional boxing this year having already won 12 world titles across a record eight weight divisions. He has nothing to prove – and likely lots to govern back home – but the 41-year-old is showing no signs of stopping and enters 2020 with a tasty list of potential match-ups.

Pacquiao (professional boxing record 62-7-1) has undergone an impressive career resurgence since his shock loss to Australian Jeff Horn in 2017. After a successful tune-up fight against Lucas Matthysse in 2018, he humbled former champion Adrien Broner and defeated then-undefeated Keith Thurman to win another WBA title in 2019. Pacquiao now finds himself near the top of the divisional and pay-per-view rankings with the likes of mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Conor McGregor circling.

Whether or not this is Pacquiao’s last year in boxing – this will be his fourth decade as a champion – manager Sean Gibbons told The Athletic that the southpaw is scheduling a return for April and would “welcome Floyd Mayweather [Jnr] or Conor McGregor as his next opponent.”

These are the top seven fights that Manny Pacquiao should consider taking in 2020. Before boxing fans roll their eyes at the inclusion of a potential boxing-MMA crossover – or novelty – bout, just remember that Pacquiao has already built an unparalleled legacy in his sport and deserves to do what he likes. Real example: sparring with former Alibaba CEO Jack Ma while movie star Jet Li watches via FaceTime.

1. Conor McGregor (0-1, professional MMA record 22-4)

The UFC’s Irish superstar McGregor is fresh off a career-comeback win against Donald Cerrone last week and has been throwing names of potential opponents throughout the new year. Although many initially scoffed at the idea of McGregor vs Pacquiao, it appears the pair’s teams have been in talks. Pacquiao even fired out a tweet simply captioned, “The Notorious!!!” after the 31-year-old starched Cerrone.

McGregor had said before his fight that talks with Pacquiao are “ongoing” and “is there whenever I want it”, suggesting it was more than just a hypothetical match-up. This was further fuelled by Mayweather Jnr’s Instagram post of a fake fight poster for “Mayweather vs McGregor 2 in 2020”, to which McGregor joked: “He forgot [to include] McGregor Sports and Entertainment on the poster. That right there cuts him out, so it’s me and Manny.”