Boxing champion set to contest for presidency in country's next election

Boxing champion set to contest for presidency in country's next election

Philippines boxing legend Manny Pacquiao will reportedly run for the country's presidency in 2022.

Pacquiao is already a household name in the country having entered active politics in 2007 before he was elected member of the House of Representatives two years later.

He later in 2016 joined the Philippine Senate after he garnered more than 16 million votes.

And now, with his current term coming to an end in 2022, the 41-year-old has set his sights on the presidency.

According to his former promoter, Mauricio Sulaiman, Pacquiao has already confirmed to him his intent to succeed current head of state Rodrigo Duterte.

Pacquiao first entered politics when he ran for a House of Representatives seat back in 2007 but lost the polls. Photo: Getty Images.
Source: Getty Images

"The first president I think we'll get as a fighter is little Manny Pacquiao, who told me, once again," SunSport quoted Sulaiman saying.

"I did a Zoom telephone call with him, 'Bob, I'm gonna run in 2022 and, when I win, I want you there at my inauguration," he added.

Despite his otherwise demanding career as a politician, Pacquiao is yet to retire from the ring and has often been filmed engaging in gruelling training sessions.

His impressive 25-year boxing stint has seen him win 62 of his 71 bouts, with his recent victory coming against Keith Thurman in July 2019 to win the WBA welterweight world title.

Comments

Keep up to date with our latest articles and uploads...