Who will be Manny Pacquiao’s next opponent? 4 boxers rumored for Pacman’s January fight

As Filipino boxing legend Manny Pacquiao nears the end of his storied boxing career, his next opponent becomes much of the boxing world — and the Philippines’ — interest as it could be the former eight-division world champion’s last.

Since his majority draw against Mario Barrios last July, rumors have swirled about who Pacquiao’s next opponent will be. No official announcement has been made, but these names have been thrown around to be Pacman’s opponent for a planned January bout.

Rolly Romero

The World Boxing Association (WBA) Welterweight World Champion has been on Pacquiao and MP Promotions President Sean Gibbons’ radar since last August. He was considered the most possible (and logical) next opponent for Pacman until the WBA recently ordered Rolly Romero to fight mandatory challenger Shakhram Giyasov.

Romero must adhere to the WBA’s demands, or else he will be forced to relinquish his title. This means that if the American were to fight Pacquiao, it would have to be without a title on the line. This is a huge factor for Pacquiao, who is seeking to capture a championship before retirement.

Unless Pacquiao and Romero’s camps could negotiate something with the WBA, a fight between one of today’s premier power hitters and the legendary southpaw would remain a fantasy.

Manny Pacquiao offered alternative world title fight as bout with ‘front runner’ in limbo https://t.co/vsziZIGq4x

— talkSPORT (@talkSPORT) October 16, 2025

Vasiliy Lomachenko

Another opponent talked about is Vasiliy Lomachenko. Last month, Gibbons revealed that a fight between Pacquiao and the Ukrainian was in the works – but not slated for the January fight.

Lomachenko was in talks for an exhibition bout with Pacman ahead of January. Although no news has been made since then on whether the bout would go through, one could argue that the chances of the exhibition becoming a professional fight have increased after WBA’s order to Romero.

The thing is, Lomachenko has never fought at Welterweight, and has not fought since May of last year. A catchweight bout would have to be negotiated, but with Pacquiao’s career nearing its end, chances are the Filipino icon would opt for a Welterweight clash instead.

Terrence Crawford

A fight between Pacquiao and undisputed middleweight king Terrence Crawford has been rumoured in recent years. The rumors have been valid as the undefeated American has revealed that there were talks in the past of a fight between the two that never came to fruition. Not to mention that “Bud” was a former sparring partner for Pacman years ago.

But with Crawford’s recent victory against Canelo Alvarez for the undisputed Middleweight crowns, the chances of him fighting Pacquiao have decreased exponentially. If it does happen, both fighters will certainly ask for more than 4 months to train for each other.

Lewis Crocker

Lewis Crocker is the least-recognized name to be thrown around for Pacquiao’s next fight, but the International Boxing Federation (IBF) champion is more than capable of giving the Filipino a fight.

Crocker’s manager, Jamie Conlan, has expressed interest in bringing the Filipino to Ireland for the first time. And with the WBA preventing a fight with Romero, Pacquiao might instead opt to challenge the IBF champion.

No discussions have yet to happen, but the intentions from both parties are clear. Pacquiao wants a world-title fight, and Crocker wants to carve his name in world boxing. If both boxers’ camps could reach an agreement, we might see Pacquiao fighting for the first time in Ireland against a gritty champion in Crocker.

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