WBA champion Rolando Romero wants Manny Pacquiao to beat Mario Barrios for one selfish reason

World Boxing Association (WBA) welterweight champion Rolando Romero has established himself as one of the best boxers of his generation and in his weight division since making his professional debut in 2016.

Romero has been linked to several names for his next fight, including Ryan Garcia, whom he unanimously defeated in their welterweight title clash in Times Square, New York, on May 2, 2025.

While many believe a rematch with Garcia is in the works, the 29-year-old revealed in an interview with Boxing News that he has his sights set on a different, more iconic opponent.

“There’s a much bigger fight on the horizon. If Manny Pacquiao wins that belt, you think I’m not going to go for it—to get another belt against a Hall of Fame legend? Think about it like that. Let’s see if he is victorious. A long layoff, Barrios is tough, but regardless, there are a lot of good fights out there for me in that welterweight division,” Romero said.

Age is just a number. I didn’t come here for respect, I came to earn it the hard way on JULY 19! 👊🏽

🥊 #PacquiaoBarrios
📅 July 19
▶️ PBC PPV on @PrimeVideo
📍 MGM Grand Garden Arena pic.twitter.com/S7Yrq0h7WP

— Manny Pacquiao (@MannyPacquiao) July 3, 2025

Notably, Manny Pacquiao is set to make his much-anticipated comeback after a four-year hiatus, coming out of retirement to face World Boxing Council (WBC) welterweight champion Mario Barrios for the title in Las Vegas on July 19.

While Pacquiao is a huge name, several other candidates remain in the running for a future Romero bout—including current WBA lightweight champion and boxing superstar Gervonta ‘Tank’ Davis.

“Me and Ryan, me and Pacquiao, me and Barrios, me and ‘Tank.’ I want to get my fight back against Davis and see if ‘Tank’ wants to be a four-division world champion. There’s Teo Lopez. There are a lot of interesting fights,” he added.

Romero holds a 17-2 win-loss record, including 13 knockouts, and has won his last 14 fights, making him one of the most in-demand fighters in boxing—especially in the welterweight division.

His hopes of facing Pacquiao could become a reality, as Sean Gibbons, the president of Manny Pacquiao MP Promotions, has previously revealed that Pacquiao is eager to continue fighting and aims to face more world champions in the future.

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