As every boxer knows after losing a big fight you deserve a break. Manny Pacquiao recently came up short in his bid to become president of the Philippines and is taking a well earned holiday with his family.
The former boxing world champion is currently in Japan. He shared some family holiday snaps on Instagram:
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Up and coming
The good news for Pacquiao is that, in political terms at least, he is still an up and coming young contender. This was his first bid for the presidency but it is unlikely to be his last.
He has been linked with a return to boxing but the 43 year old’s best days as a fighter are clearly behind him. He would still be a big draw if he decided to make a comeback but Pacquiao announced his retirement in the buildup to the election campaign.
Pacquiao was a boxer, he is now a politician but he will always be a family man. He posed for a photo with his wife, Jinkee, and his youngest son, Israel Pacquiao.
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Old rival
Pacquiao’s old rival Floyd Mayweather participated in an exhibition boxing match yesterday. It was moved from Abu Dhabi to Dubai at the last minute and the American cruised past former sparring partner Don Moore.
The win was so comfortable that Mayweather decided to do the ring girl’s job for her during the break between rounds. Former UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva also registered a decision win over UAE Warriors lightweight champion Bruno Machado on this card.
Floyd 'Money' Mayweather out here doing what he does best in the UAE. 🇦🇪
He takes the W in his exhibition fight with Don Moore. pic.twitter.com/Ivx1YhLcQQ
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) May 22, 2022
Retired fighters
With so many fighters coming out of retirement for lucrative exhibition bouts there would definitely be a market for Pacquiao if he wanted to make a comeback. But the former boxer received 3.6 million votes in the presidential election which shows just how successful he has been as a politician.
The problem for Pacquiao is that the eventual winner, Bong Bong Marcos, received 31mn votes. That is a big gap and in politics there is no equivalent to the sort of late knockout that can render the scorecards irrelevant in boxing.
Pacquiao accepted the results in a dignified fashion, he remains a senator and has become much more outspoken since standing for president. He criticized former ally Rodrigo Duterte and went as far as to call Marcos a ‘plunderer’ due to his family’s well documented criminal history.
We are starting to see Pacquiao bring the sort of aggression he was known for during his boxing career to the political stage. It will be interesting to see what the 43 year old does next but one thing is for sure: after a bruising presidential campaign he has earned a holiday!
