Manny Pacquiao picks a different favorite fighter instead of Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois
Manny Pacquiao is one of the most respected names in boxing, known for his incredible skills and achievements. Over his amazing career, he won 12 world titles across eight different weight classes, competing for more than 40 years and finishing with a record of 62 wins and 8 losses. This makes him one of the greatest boxing legends ever.
Although Pacquiao has spent the past 15 years mostly in politics and only fought twice this decade, at 47 years old, he still knows the sport inside out. When asked by Vibe who his favorite current fighters are, he didn’t mention big names like WBO heavyweight champ Daniel Dubois or Oleksandr Usyk, who recently gave up some of his titles but hasn’t retired.
Instead, Pacquiao shared that he really enjoys watching Naoya Inoue. “I love to watch Inoue. Yeah, Inoue, the Japanese guy,” Pacquiao said, as reported by Boxing News. “He’s fast and has great footwork. I even gave him some advice before he became a champion, telling him to focus on footwork because it helps control your opponent and land punches without losing balance.”
Naoya Inoue, 33, is a top fighter with multiple world titles in different weight classes, just like Pacquiao. He’s undefeated with 33 wins, 27 of which were knockouts. He currently holds the undisputed super bantamweight title, a rare achievement. After moving up a weight class in early 2023, Inoue knocked out Marlon Tapales, a fellow Filipino, to unify the super bantamweight belts.
Inoue has defended his titles seven times over the past two years, most recently beating Junto Nakatani by unanimous decision in Tokyo this May. His younger brother, Takuma Inoue, is the current WBC bantamweight champion.
Inoue’s career reminds many of Pacquiao’s, who also moved through divisions while staying on top. Pacquiao started strong with 11 straight wins in the mid-1990s and captured the WBC flyweight title in 1998. He also had a long run as super bantamweight champion around the 2000s.
Pacquiao won title fights even in his 40s, though his last win was back in the summer of 2019. In 2021, he lost the WBA welterweight belt to Yordenis Ugas after being inactive for a while. His most recent fight was a draw against WBC welterweight champ Mario Barrios in Las Vegas in July 2025, where Pacquiao, at 46, faced an opponent 15 years younger.