Mario Barrios has shared an honest assessment of the punching power of Filipino icon Manny Pacquiao ahead of his potential clash with Rolly Romero.
Barrios locked horns with Pacquiao at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas back in July, fighting to a majority decision draw against ‘PacMan’ in what was the second defence of his WBC welterweight title.
Pacquiao put on an impressive display against his younger opponent, although he ultimately fell short in his attempt at breaking the record for the oldest world welterweight champion in boxing history, a record that he actually set himself back in 2019 when he defeated Keith Thurman for the WBA title.
It is now being speculated that Pacquiao is set to challenge current WBA welterweight champion Romero during the early stages of 2026, with an official announcement expected to be made in the coming weeks.
Speaking in the post-fight press conference just moments after his showdown with ‘PacMan’, Barrios shared his thoughts on the Filipino’s infamous power, saying he still ‘has a lot of crack’.
“He still has a lot of crack.”
Pacquiao appears to have now turned his attention to that potential showdown with Romero, as he sets his sights on etching his name into the boxing history books once again.
Romero was elevated to full WBA world champion back in August after former title holder Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis vacated the belt. ‘Rolly’ made his most recent ring appearance back in May, defeating countryman Ryan Garcia at Times Square in New York.
