Jessie Vargas throws a punch at Timothy Bradley Jr. in their Interim WBO World Title welterweight fight at StubHub Center on June 27, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo : Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)
Manny Pacquiao is now planning to come out of retirement despite being elected as senator in the Philippines. And based on recent reports, the Filipino boxing icon could end up facing Jessie Vargas later this year,
Pacquiao, who owns a 58-6-2 record with 38 knockout victories, announced his retirement after scoring a unanimous decision win over Timothy Bradley. However, as it appears, his retirement will not last long, ESPN reported.
Top Rank Promotions CEO Bob Arum said that Pacquiao wants to return to action. The former pound-for-pound king said, though, that it will not significantly affect his role as senator in the Philippines.
Arum initially revealed that Pacquiao could fight on Oct. 15 but the former eight-division world champion turned down the proposal because it will interfere with his senate responsibilities. The veteran promoter said that Pacquiao might make his return either on Oct. 29 or Nov. 5 at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.
As for Pacquiao's next fight opponent, Vargas is in the mix, BoxingScene revealed. The reigning World Boxing Organization welterweight champion was reportedly eyeing a fight with Kell Brook but the latter opted to face middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin.
Arum neither confirmed nor denied the Pacquiao-Vargas rumors but said he will make announcement once everything is finalized. "I'm not going to comment till everything is done, whatever we're doing," he said.
Pacquiao was also previously linked to a showdown with Adrien Broner, who expressed willingness to slug it out with the future Hall of Famer. However, Arum said that Broner is now out of the picture. The famed promoter said he reached out to Al Haymon but Broner remained firm on his stance on fight purse.
"I worked very, very hard with Al to make the Broner fight but Al was never able to bring Broner around to a realistic number," Arum said. "He wanted what we haven't paid anybody in a long time."
Arum revealed that Broner was asking for a "crazy number" to face Pacquiao. The 84-year-old promoter hinted that Broner wanted a 50-50 split. Haymon did his best to convince Broner to take a lesser guaranteed purse, but the Ohio native declined to change his asking price.
Watch highlights of Vargas' recent win over Sadam Ali below.
