Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero is the frontrunner to be Manny Pacquiao’s next opponent following his comeback last weekend. Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis are also options for the 46-year-old Pacquiao, but less likely.
Fighting WBA welterweight champion Romero (17-2, 13 KOs) would give Pacquiao (62-8-2, 39 KOs) his second consecutive title shot after he came up empty in his 12-round majority draw against WBC 147-lb champion Martio Barrios last Saturday, July 19th.
Romero Leads Pacquiao Options
Fans won’t be pleased with Pacquiao getting a second shot to skip the line for another title shot, but if the World Boxing Association is okay with it, the fight can happen.
Pacquiao looked good for a middle-aged person in his fight against Barrios, but nowhere near the level he was years ago. The fight showed how awful Barrios is, more than saying anything about Pacquiao. Manny looked like he would be no match for most fighters in the top 15, but against Barrios, he was on his level.
“There’s talk of Mayweather, of Gervonta, of a rematch with Barrios, but it seems that today the most likely opponent for Pacquiao could be Rolly Romero,” said Salvador Rodriguez on X.
Pacquiao’s adviser Sean Gibbons wanted a bigger name that could bring in PPV buys for Manny’s next fight. He mentioned Tank Davis and Rolly. It would likely be too costly to convince Tank to agree to a fight against Pacquiao.
Rolly Not a PPV Draw
Romero is no more of a PPV draw than Mario Barrios. There’s no real difference. If they’re going to place Pacquiao vs. Romero on PPV, there won’t be an increase in buys. Even with Rolly trying his best to be entertaining, it won’t result in a lot of buys. It might even be fewer buys because Rolly won’t be comfortable trash-talking the legend.
Given Pacquiao’s advanced age, there are not many fans who want to see an old fighter like him. They can’t identify with a 46-year-old, and they view it as a money-driven comeback driven by greed.