Philippine boxing legend Manny Pacquiao plans to end his ring career with a fight on Apr. 9, Top Rank promoter Bob Arum told ESPN. The eight-division world champion, who is currently serving as a congressman in Sarangani, Philippines, plans to run for the senate in the upcoming 2016 Philippine elections.
Arum said he and Pacquiao had dinner last week in New York and discussed his plans for a final fight.
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"I'm telling you what he told me last week at dinner in New York," Arum said. "We talked very seriously, and he said, 'Bob, hopefully, by the middle of May I will have been elected senator in the Philippines, and at that point I cannot engage in boxing because I need to focus on the senate and I have to be in attendance."
"There are hundreds of congressmen, but if he wins the senate seat he has to be there to do the work," Arum said. "They do the real work in the senate in the Philippines, not just make a lot of bulls -- speeches like they do in the congress. It's a real job, and if Manny is serious about wanting to be president, these six years in the senate would be like an audition and for him to show his people that he really is a serious politician."
"Manny told me this would be his last fight, and I'm not sad about it, because he's going on to a political career which will require a lot of mental acuity, so you don't want him to stay in boxing too long," Arum said. "If he stays in boxing a little too long his mental faculties might be somewhat impaired."
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Arum is sad to see Pacquiao go and said the fight will be billed as a commemorative sendoff regardless of who he fights. There is a silver lining for Arum.
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