Manny Pacquiao favours Conor McGregor fight over Errol Spence Jr and Terence Crawford bouts

Former UFC champion previously boxed Floyd Mayweather, losing in the 10th round

Alex Pattle
Tuesday 12 January 2021 05:08 EST
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Manny Pacquaio has reiterated his desire to take on UFC star Conor McGregor next, despite the chance to fight the likes of Errol Spence Jr and Terence Crawford.

Pacquaio has not boxed since July 2019, when he outpointed Keith Thurman in Las Vegas, but there has long been talk of the 42-year-old facing former dual-weight MMA champion McGregor in a boxing match.

McGregor is set for his first UFC contest in 12 months when he rematches Dustin Poirier in the main event of UFC 257 on 23 January in Abu Dhabi.

READ MORE: When is McGregor vs Poirier 2 and how can I watch it?

The Irishman, who knocked out Donald Cerrone in 40 seconds last January in his last bout, stopped Poirier in the first round of their featherweight meeting in 2014, with the pair competing at lightweight this time around.

And capitalising on McGregor’s star power is seemingly a bigger motivator for Pacquaio to step back in the ring than potential match-ups against champions Spence Jr and Crawford.

“[Spence and Crawford] are my options, but right now I want to experience fighting an MMA fighter,” the welterweight is reported by the Daily Mirror as having said.

“I will also donate a big portion of my income to Filipino Covid-19 victims.”

McGregor’s only professional boxing bout came in August 2017, when ‘Notorious’ lost to Floyd Mayweather via TKO in the 10th round of the pair’s fight in Vegas.

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