Is the Conor McGregor vs Manny Pacquiao fight postponed or off the table altogether?
The chances of a potential clash between Conor McGregor and Manny Pacquiao decreased significantly after the Irishman's shocking loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 257.
Conor McGregor and Manny Pacquiao had previously expressed interest in fighting each other. However, it seems as though the legendary Filipino boxer has changed his mind regarding the super-fight.
Although Pacquiao has brushed aside the idea of fighting McGregor, the two men could still lock horns at some point in the future. Currently, the 42-year-old boxer seems to have moved on from the prospect of challenging McGregor in the boxing ring, but the fight is not completely off the table.
If Conor McGregor returns to the winning column in the UFC and scores a pair of big victories over formidable opponents, Pacquiao may well consider fighting him once again.
One of the reasons why 'PacMan' shut his eyes on a possible clash against Conor McGregor was that the fight wouldn't have received the kind of hype he was expecting. Since the Irishman was coming off a loss to Poirier, the build-up to his fight against Pacquiao could have been affected for the worse, which forced the Filipino boxer to close the door on a McGregor fight.
If not Conor McGregor, who is likely to fight Manny Pacquaio?
According to The Sun, Manny Pacquiao is interested in fighting the WBO welterweight champion, Terrence Crawford.
Crawford, who is one of the biggest stars in the sport, holds a professional record of 37-0-0, with 28 of his wins coming via knockout. He last fought Britain's Kell Brook in November 2020 to successfully defend the WBO welterweight for the fourth time.
Manny Pacquiao recently stated that he wants to fight someone who has a title.
"I’d like to fight somebody who has a title. We told Bob (Arum) I get $40 million and Crawford gets $10 million. I will fight anybody. You know me, I don’t back away from any challenge. Bring ’em on," Pacquiao told Daily Tribune.
Apart from Spencer, there was also some speculation regarding Pacquiao's fight against up-and-coming boxer Ryan Garcia.
The 22-year-old had taken to his Instagram account to announce that he may soon be fighting Pacquiao. However, his management team later revealed that Garcia will not challenge the boxing veteran.