Daily Tribune
Manny Pacquiao (R) of the Philippines fights against Yordenis Ugas of Cuba during the WBA Welterweight Championship boxing match at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on August 21, 2021. - Cuba's Yordenis Ugas upset Manny Pacquiao to retain his WBA welterweight crown on Saturday, winning by unanimous decision after a bruising 12-round battle at the T-Mobile Arena. (Photo by Patrick T. FALLON / AFP)
Manny Pacquiao showed up for training the last two days and the guy who worked the mitts swore he felt the impact of the hard blows all over his body.
"The power is still there," former world title challenger Jonathan Peñalosa told Daily Tribune in Filipino yesterday after the workout in General Santos City.
Peñalosa, brother of ex-world champions Dodie Boy and Gerry, did the padwork and bared Pacquiao, who retired from boxing over a year ago, still held his punches.
You still have to be in some sort of good shape even for an exhibition (bout).
Pacquiao is doing light training for an 11 December exhibition bout with Korean YouTube influencer DK You in Seoul.
In fact, Pacquiao will get a short from training when he attends promotional commitment next week in the Korean capital.
Peñalosa said Pacquiao, who turns 44 in December, will be in Seoul for about three days for a presser and other activities relative to the DK Yoo encounter.
While Yoo, who claims to be a mix-martial arts expert is not expected to push the Filipino southpaw to the limit, Pacquiao and his team are not taking any chances.
"You still have to be in some sort of good shape even for an exhibition (bout)," Peñalosa said.
In fact, Pacquiao has already recalled longtime trainer Buboy Fernandez to start the grind.
Last time he was in the ring, Pacquiao dropped a unanimous decision to Yordenis Ugas of Cuba in August last year in Las Vegas.
The DK Yoo exhibition is actually a fundraising event, the first among a few Pacquiao is said to be lining up as he enjoys retirement after a Hall of Fame career that lasted from 1995 until 2021.
Recently in Tokyo, Pacquiao attended Floyd Mayweather's exhibition with a Japanese mixed martial arts practitioner, fueling speculations that a rematch is in the works.
But during a brief business visit in Manila last week, Mayweather quelled reports that such is in the pipeline, saying he will engage only in exhibitions and not in official boxing bouts.
Mayweather easily beat Pacquiao in their megabuck matchup in May 2015.
