Manny Pacquiao celebrates his win against Adrien Broner in the WBA welterweight title boxing match Saturday, Jan. 19, 2019, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
MANILA, Philippines—The names of Manny Pacquiao’s next opponent on July 13 are down to two in Keith Thurman and Danny Garcia.
International matchmaker Sean Gibbons, who is also Pacquiao’s official representative in the US, said Thurman and Garcia are the two frontrunners to land a showdown with the Filipino ring icon.
Pacquiao breezed through his last two fights, stopping Lucas Matthysse in the seventh round last July in Malaysia before outclassing Adrien Broner two months ago in his return to Las Vegas.
The 40-year-old Pacquiao, however, could be in for a tough fight against either Thurman or Garcia.
Thurman, 30, the current WBA (Super) welterweight champion, is undefeated at 29-0 with 22 knockouts while the 31-year-old Garcia (34-2, 20 KOs) is a former WBC welterweight titleholder.
Garcia will be in action on April 20 against Adrian Granados in Carson, California.