Manny Pacquiao went through a lot to get where he is at right now. Undoubtedly a future Hall of Famer, it comes to no surprise that his offsprings would want to follow in his footsteps.
Traditionally, parents would be proud to see their children wanting to be like them. But in the case of Pacquiao, he doesn't want his son to get into the ring and slug it out with other fighters, Manila Bulletin Sports said.
It is not hard to understand why Manny and his wife Jinkee Pacquiao do not want to see their son Jimuel venture into the world of boxing. The risks to injuries are real, something that the Pac-Man went through in his rags-to-riches story.
“It pains me that he is boxing because I know how hard it is. I told him, ‘Daddy only went into boxing because of poverty… You, you don’t need to box’,” said Pacquiao.
Videos of what Emmanuel Pacquiao Jr. can do spread over social media with the Filipino boxing icon even getting to watch it through a video call. Jimuel showed moves reminiscent of his father, sending his opponent down to his knees. It remains to be seen if that would be the last time anyone would see Pacquiao's son in the boxing ring.
Jimuel Pacquiao started taking up boxing only in December, a month after his dad defeated Adrien Broner in Las Vegas. The younger Pacquiao is likely to continue training although another amateur fight will depend on how he goes about it.
As for Pacquiao, the search is on for his next opponent. Floyd Mayweather Jr. is out of the picture (until July at the least) and several names have cropped up. Among the names circulating include Keith Thurman, Errol Spence Jr., and Amir Khan.
Of the three, Spence has spoken out and says he is willing to face Pacquiao right on his own turf in another report from Manila Bulletin Sports.
“I’ll fight Manny Pacquiao anywhere, even in the Philippines,” said Spence.
Before taking aim at Pacquiao, Spence would do well to focus on his upcoming fight with Mikey Garcia. Spence makes his title-defense on Mar. 16 in Arlington, Texas.
According to an unnamed source, a fight between Pacquiao and Spence is possible although it remains up for deliberation. Pacquiao plans to sit down with Al Haymon and discuss their options before deciding on which fighter gets the next crack at the Pac-Man.
