Manny Pacquiao is in talks to make a comeback to the sport at the age of 45.

None of the potential box office return match-ups ‘PacMan’ has been mentioned alongside – Conor Benn, Conor McGregor, Floyd Mayweather 2 – have come to fruition, but it seems that a shot at the WBC Welterweight title against newly elevated champion Mario Barrios could be the one to tempt him back to boxing.

Although his accomplishments stand alone, many have criticised the idea given his age and that his last outing was a 2021 loss to Yordenis Ugas.

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Speaking on Pro Box TV, Paulie Malignaggi includes himself in that camp. The former world champion said any organisation considering walking Pacquiao into a title shot in his circumstances was ‘shameless.’

“Even if the governing bodies, as shameless as they can sometimes be, I can’t see this guy just walking right back into a title fight after three and a half years off. Not just three and a half years off, he’s 45-years-old. There’s gotta be a health hazard here. You gotta check him out against a mid-range contender first, or maybe they’re watching him in those exhibitions he’s doing, having the eyeball test to see if he’s capable of reacting and punching.”

He won’t be pleased to hear then that WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman has given the fight his blessing, saying as long as he passed medical examinations the ‘former champion and timeless legend’ has the possibility of fighting for the belt.

Malignaggi then questioned the motive behind the Filipino fighter’s return, not accepting that it was a love for the sport.

“45-years-old is 45-years-old. Let me put it this way, guys who start doing this at 45, you’re starting to get to that risk factor age, especially when you haven’t been active. You gotta start to wonder if this guy’s broke. 45-years-old and he’s still chasing these kind of fights, this kind of money. I don’t want to hear he’s a competitor and what not, that’s extreme man … It can be dangerous … He’s been in a lot of tough fights, Manny’s not exactly a guy whose defence was shining.

The fighter-turner-analyst then said the return looked ‘desperate.’

“Even from the legendary standpoint that he’s at, this starts to look a little desperate. You would hope that he’s better than this.”

The latest report on the fight was that talks between team Pacquiao and Barrios were moving ahead.