Manny Pacquiao’s Next Fight: Vasyl Lomachenko Fight Still Possible, Rumors Addressed By Manager
There have been recent rumors of Manny Pacquiao’s next fight being against top star Vasyl Lomachenko this coming spring. However, Lomachenko’s manager recently said that’s not to be expected, despite the fact Pacquiao’s camp has helped keep the speculation for a future fight alive. Here are the latest details on what the fighter’s manager had to say about a Pacquiao vs. Lomachenko fight happening in the spring.
A report on Thursday morning from ESPN’s Dan Rafael says that Vasyl Lomachenko’s manager, Egis Klimas, has shot down the notion that there will be a boxing match involving his client and Pacquiao. Klimas vehemently denied the fight possibility for several months from now, indicating that his client and Pacquiao have a weight difference, making the idea of a fight in spring “insane.”
Klimas told ESPN as part of his recent comments, “No, we are not fighting Pacquiao. Manny Pacquiao is calling out Lomachenko, who is three weight classes down the scale from him. Manny Pacquiao is 147 pounds and he’s calling out Lomachenko, who is 130 pounds. That’s insane.”
While Pacquiao has fought in multiple weight classes and has been an eight-division world champion, right now isn’t the time for him to face Lomachenko. Klimas even questioned why Pacquiao isn’t challenging someone like Terence Crawford, who is in Pacquiao’s weight class. Another name that Klimas threw out there is Mikey Garcia. Lomachenko’s manager believes there are better opportunities for his clients to take on more active fighters in the sport to continue his stay at the top of the boxing rankings.
TY but I am still not where I want to be in boxing. You have yet to see the best of me and I want to keep improving.https://t.co/dgxKqwY2tw
— LOMA (@VasylLomachenko) December 15, 2017
Meanwhile, Pacquiao’s camp still believes a fight with Lomachenko is on the horizon, even if it doesn’t happen in the spring. Top Rank boxing promoter Bob Arum said after Lomachenko fights in April, he believes a fight against Pacquiao will be attractive down the road.
Vasyl Lomachenko holds a 10-1 record and has not lost since March of 2014, the only blemish on that record thus far. Lomachenko is currently 29, while Pacquiao is 10 years older. Some analysts believe that would put the boxing great at a major disadvantage against one of the sport’s top stars in the world today.
However, for Manny Pacquiao and, of course, promoter Bob Arum, there would be money in getting the match. The door still seems open for it to take place, although with Pacquiao’s political pursuits his window of opportunity in the boxing ring could be slowly closing.
