A press conference was held in Manila yesterday ahead of the exhibition boxing match between Manny Pacquiao and DK Yoo. While the Korean YouTuber is relatively unknown outside of his country the boxer and senator is a global star whose every month is the subject of immense scrutiny.
The two men will face off an an exhibition boxing match in Seoul on December 11th. There will be no weigh ins or weight classes and the six rounds will last for two minutes each.
Manny Pacquiao, DK Yoo pose ahead of their December 11 exhibition boxing match in Seoul. pic.twitter.com/shHGHniuoR
— Mark Giongco (@MarkGiongcoINQ) July 20, 2022
Charitable cause
Pacquiao stated that some of the event’s proceeds would go to charity. Speaking in Tagalog he said he wanted to raise funds for more Pacman Villages,
“To help those in need, let’s continue to give our countrymen their own homes. Actually, I have many ‘Pacman Villages’ that have been started but not finished yet. There is still a lot of vacant land.”
It was also stated that some of the money raised would go towards victims of the war in Ukraine although there is no specific information on how the money would be allocated. The Pacman Villages are for poor Filipinos who would not otherwise be able to afford housing.
The question on everyone’s lips was whether this could be the precursor to the 42 year old making an actual comeback. But Pacquiao made it clear that he had no immediate plans to come out of retirement for an actual fight,
“I’ve announced my retirement, that’s what’s in my heart and in my mind unless I change my mind or my heart and decide that I want to fight again but I am not thinking like that at the moment.”
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Possible comeback
DK Yoo, who appeared to be enjoying the attention, admitted that there was basically no prospect of him beating Pacquiao. But he stated that he was planning to ‘surprise’ the eight division world champion.
Pacquiao was asked about a possible rematch with Floyd Mayweather and replied that they were both retired. But his trainer and childhood friend Buboy Fernandez sounded more upbeat about the possibility of a comeback.
“We can’t really say but it’s possible. It depends on him if he returns to the ring,” he told the Philippines Daily Inquirer.
The Philippines doesn’t currently have a world champion in boxing. Six months ago there were five but every single one of them has lost their titles.
There is some speculation in the Philippines that Pacquiao could come out of retirement to win another world title and restore his nation’s pride. But for the time being all he has booked is a six round exhibition against a Korean YouTuber, which the senator promises he will be taking very seriously.
