Bob Arum was among those who marveled at the way 40-year-old Manny Pacquiao handled his business against Keith Thurman last month in Las Vegas.
“He performed very well,” admitted Arum on Monday from Belfast in Ireland where Top Rank Inc. promoted put on a show headlined by local pride Michael Conlan.
Arum’s Las Vegas-based outfit promoted Pacquiao for over ten years featuring the famed southpaw’s landmark wins against Oscar De La Hoya, Miguel Cotto, Ricky Hatton, Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez, Antonio Margarito and Shane Mosley.
The Hall of Fame promoter watched Pacquiao’s rousing 12-round split decision and while the Filipino eight-division champion was mesmerizing against an unbeaten foe ten years his junior, Arum cautions him of the danger that lurks.
“He should watch himself because I have had experiences with other, older fighters,” said the 87-year-old New York-born and Harvard-educated lawyer.
Arum believes at his age, Pacquiao should consider calling it a night “unless he gets to fight Floyd Mayweather in a rematch.”
“But it’s his call,” added Arum.
Pacquiao called out Mayweather after his smashing showing against Thurman at the MGM Grand and the two figured in a verbal war on social media.
Mayweather, 42, hasn’t fought in a legitimate boxing bout since beating Andre Berto in September 2015, months after posting a unanimous decision victory over Pacquiao.
Mayweather fought two more times post-2017 but these were against non-boxers: MMA star Conor McGregor in August 2017 in Las Vegas and Japanese kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa in December 2018 in Tokyo.
Pacquiao looks content in sitting out the rest of 2019 to focus on his Senate job, a move that sits well with his training team following the slugfest with Thurman. (NICK GIONGCO)