Pacquiao's Next Steps

At 47, Manny Pacquiao may be closer to a world title shot than most people assumed.

The first runs through the WBO. Keyshawn Davis's decision to decline his mandatory purse bid share this week created a vacancy in the challenger queue that the sanctioning body now has to fill by working down its rankings. The number one challenger removed himself. Number two, Brian Norman, has already lost to Haney. Number three, Teofimo Lopez, is fighting Rolando Romero instead. That leaves the WBO's fourth-ranked welterweight as the next eligible challenger.

The second pathway is promotional rather than mandatory. George Rose, the No Limit Boxing promoter who represents IBF welterweight champion Liam Paro, has confirmed his organization has "eyes on Manny Pacquiao" as a potential opponent for his fighter.

"I'd love to bring Pacquiao back to Australia. I know they believed they won the fight against Horn. A lot of Australians will disagree. But he can have his opportunity to avenge that loss against a current world champion,” Rose

Pacquiao fought in Australia in 2015, losing a disputed decision to Jeff Horn in a result that his camp contested at the time and has not forgotten since. Rose is pitching the Paro fight as a form of redemption tour — unfinished business in a country where Pacquiao's legacy remains complicated.

A world title win at 47 would do more than set a record. It would reopen the Mayweather conversation with renewed significance. Netflix announced a Mayweather-Pacquiao rematch at The Sphere in Las Vegas on September 19 before the event was postponed. That fight's commercial appeal is considerable with or without a belt, but Pacquiao entering it as a current champion would change its weight entirely.

Whether Pacquiao actually pursues either the WBO mandatory or the Paro fight depends on decisions his team has not publicly finalized.