CEBU, Philippines — Former four-division world champion Mikey Garcia has called out Manny Pacquiao, declaring that he is willing to slug it out with the Filipino sports hero even in Manila.
The 32-year-old Garcia has long been considered as one of the potential opponents once Pacquiao returns to the ring.
And Garcia can’t wait to battle the eight-division world champion even if it means fighting behind enemy lines.
“It’ll be an honor to fight Manny anywhere he wants,” Garcia told veteran sports journalist Joaquin Henson of The Philippine STAR. “He’s earned the right to choose where he’ll fight. The man’s a legend but I’m a fighter and I won’t back down from the opportunity to fight and beat a legend anywhere in the world.”
The Moreno Valley, California-native Garcia added that if the 41-year-old Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39KOs) wants to fight in Manila, he’s open to it.
Garcia, who once held court in WBO featherweight, WBO super featherweight, WBC/IBF lightweight and IBF superlight weight divisions, parades a 40-1 record spiked with 30KOs.
Garcia suffered his first and only defeat by unanimous decision at the hands of the unbeaten IBF welterweight titleholder Errol Spence Jr. (26-0, 21KOs) on March 16, 2019 at the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
In his previous bout last February 29 or two weeks before the sports lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, Garcia beat Jessie Vargas by unanimous verdict to win the vacant WBC Diamond welterweight belt.