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In our exclusive interview, the former world champion discusses Manny Pacquiao’s future and the chances of Tyson Fury fighting Anthony Joshua in 2026.
Former world champion Amir Khan has reacted to the news that Manny Pacquiao is set to miss out on facing Rolly Romero next.
In our exclusive interview, Khan, a former stablemate of Pacquiao, says the Filipino icon has two options remaining – face Conor Benn in 2026 or retire.
With the news that Tyson Fury will come out of retirement next year, Khan also previewed a possible showdown between Fury and Anthony Joshua, claiming that Joshua would be the slight favourite in the boxing betting should the all-British clash happen.
Manny Pacquiao may miss out on fighting Rolly Romero next, and he won’t fight Mario Barrios in a rematch, so what is next for him?
It’s a hard call. He doesn’t want the Barrios rematch — that bout wasn’t great to watch. Styles make fights. Barrios is a great guy, a solid fighter. I like Barrios.
But in my opinion, he is one of the weaker world champions at welterweight that Manny could’ve taken a risk on and tried to win a title from. No disrespect is intended. Barrios is a great fighter, I used to spar with him and train with him back in the days with Virgil Hunter, but Manny Pacquaio is someone we don’t want to see get hurt.
If it were my money, I’d be cautious. I saw that when I was fighting, my reactions were slowing down, my reflexes were slipping. I was getting hit by shots I shouldn’t have been. I could see them, but the shots were still landing on me.
The hunger, sometimes it fades when you’ve got enough. Financially, I was strong, so I was thinking, why do I need to stay in boxing, be greedy, and continue fighting for the money?
This is why I think Manny is fighting. We are all prize fighters. If he really misses boxing, then fight for free; it is all about the money. Just look after your family and retire.
When money is driving you, you could end up getting hurt for no purpose. So, I think maybe call it a day, relax, enjoy life. Don’t take punch-for-punch battles and punishment from fighters he shouldn’t be taking it from unless they’re meaningful. It is sad to see.
If he continues to fight, who should he face?
I think a fight with Conor Benn would be interesting. If Conor goes into the rematch against Chris Eubank Jr and wins or loses, the fight would be a fantastic fight for him against Manny Pacquiao.
That’d be huge in the UK — people would be buzzing to see Pacquiao vs Benn. A lot of people in the UK want to see Manny fight there. He’s such a big name around the world, so we would love to see him fight here.
Conor Benn is building right now to become the next big thing in boxing, and hopefully he wins the fight against Eubank Jr in the rematch, and then it has to happen with Manny Pacquiao. If he doesn’t win, I still think it is a good fight for him to do. That fight could bring massive attention.
They are both powerful, strong, and I want to see it. Manny is older now, and he is not like his old self and won’t be as sharp or as hard as he once was. These young up-and-coming fighters should up their game a little bit more and take the risk, take the big names and try to win against the biggest names out there.
Tyson Fury is returning in 2026, Anthony Joshua is also returning. Will we finally see this fight happen?
That would be a fantastic fight. Two British heavyweights, even though they don’t have a title, I think it is a fight that the fans want to see. It would be the dream. Styles make fights. A boxer vs a puncher — the contrast draws attention, and it would be a fantastic fight.
Anthony Joshua has the six-pack, the big arms, and everything, whereas you look at Tyson Fury and you would think it is a mismatch for Joshua, but that would be an incredible fight and a 50/50 fight.
Tyson Fury’s a beast, he is unpredictable, and you never underestimate him. One thing about Tyson Fury is that he can pull it out of the bag. When he needs to perform and put on a good show, he always does it. That is why people love to watch him, and that is why he puts bums on seats.
That’s why he has been paid so well from the Riyadh Season by Turki Alalshikh and Saudi Arabia because he takes risky fights and has done so well. Tyson thrives under pressure, puts on a show. That’s why people watch him.
