Manny Pacquiao fell just short of history on Sunday, fighting out a contoversial majority draw against Mario Barrios.
Pacquiao looked on track to become the first fighter to win a major world title after being inducted to boxing’s Hall of Fame, having outpointed Barrios as the more active fighter of the two.
But Barrios finished strong to likely take the last three rounds and salvage the result, with two judges scoring it 114-114 while the other gave it to the champion 115-113.
“I thought I won the fight,” Pacquiao said after the fight.
Pacquiao went on to add that he will “of course” look for a rematch against Barrios, who later said he would “love to do it again”.
Pacquiao, the 46-year-old eight-division world champion, was returning to ring for the first time in four years, with his last win coming against Keith Thurman in 2019.
The judges’ decision sparked debate, with many pundits on social media feeling Pacquiao had done enough for a victory that would have made him the second oldest ever boxing world champion behind Bernard Hopkins.
