Filipino boxing legend Nonito Donaire Jr. supports Manny Pacquiao’s Return, predicts victory over Barrios

Filipino boxing legend Nonito Donaire Jr. is widely recognized as the second-best boxer to come from the Philippines after the iconic Manny Pacquiao, having won multiple world championships in four weight classes during his career.

Donaire made a comeback at the age of 42—and it was a successful one—defeating a much younger opponent, Andre Campos of Chile, on Sunday, June 15, at Casino Buenos Aires in Argentina, to become the interim World Boxing Association (WBA) bantamweight champion.

It’s worth noting that this was Donaire’s first professional fight since 2023. All three judges scored the bout in Donaire’s favor, with the final scorecards reading 88-83, 87-84, and 87-84—a much-needed win for “The Filipino Flash,” who entered the fight on the back of two consecutive losses to Alexandro Santiago and Naoya Inoue.

The Filipino superstar recently shared his thoughts on the comeback of another icon from his country—Manny Pacquiao, a boxer he considers greater than himself. The former eight-division world champion is coming out of retirement to face World Boxing Council (WBC) welterweight champion Mario Barrios for the title in Las Vegas on July 19.

Donaire has backed his fellow countryman to win, claiming Pacquiao has the “ability to do something to win the fight.”

Universal Studios with the kids ✅
Visited @MannyPacquiao at camp in Wild Card 🥊
On the mic for MVP x DAZN for Jake Paul vs Chavez 🎙️🔥
Family, legacy, and fight life — all in one weekend. pic.twitter.com/wV1YPHhyJb

— Nonito Donaire – filipinoflash.eth (@filipinoflash) June 30, 2025

“Barrios is a tall guy and he’s a tough guy, but I’m going to give the benefit of the doubt because Pacquiao is a champion—the holder of the record for eight divisions—and he knows how to fight, knows how to win. So you always have to give him that opportunity to show up. Now, whoever shows up in that ring—whether it’s a desire to win or just to be there—that’s the question we have to see. But I believe Pacquiao has the ability to do something to win the fight against Barrios,” Donaire said in a media interaction.

“I would use your speed, use your feint. You don’t have to do all the crazy punches that you used to. If you can do it, go for it. But there’s a factor—his age—that might be a detriment. Still, if he feints, uses his in-and-out movement, he can make the fight very different and swing it his way. If he shows up like that, 100% for him. But if he doesn’t, then Barrios is going to be the young guy who takes it to the legend. Manny just has to be who he is—use a little feint, be smart, be the guy people are afraid of—and I think he’s going to do well in that fight,” he added.

This will be Pacquiao’s first professional fight since losing by unanimous decision to Yordenis Ugas in August 2021 for the WBA super welterweight title. That title had been stripped from Pacquiao due to inactivity. Since then, he has only participated in exhibition bouts around the world.

The bout was initially scheduled for the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas but was moved to the MGM Grand Garden Arena due to a prior commitment for a Lady Gaga concert.

The fight between Pacquiao and Barrios will reportedly be streamed via PBC on Prime Video pay-per-view.

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