Manny Pacquiao Should Move to Junior Welterweight After Loss to Floyd Mayweather

The buildup to Manny Pacquiao's showdown last weekend with Floyd Mayweather Jr. was so long and tortuous—and the ultimate result so disappointing for the Filipino superstar—that in some ways it's hard to imagine a boxing career for him moving forward. At 36, Pacquiao has been through years of grueling fights. In recent years, he has become a statesman in his native country.  

So it would make a certain amount of sense if he decided to walk away from the sport at this point. His legacy is secure, and he's now taken his shot at the one opponent out there who still really mattered in terms of improving his all-time status.

But there are still some compelling fights waiting for Pacquiao if he wants them. He could easily become a major player at junior welterweight, one of boxing's hottest divisions.

His trainer, Freddie Roach, talked to MaxBoxing over a year ago (h/t The Philippine Star) about getting Pacquiao to move down to 140 pounds. It makes complete sense too. Pacquiao, who began his career at flyweight, is a tiny welterweight.

Pac-Man's diminutive statute was definitely a factor against Mayweather, who is himself not a large welterweight. Pacquiao was giving up five inches of reach to a fighter who was quicker and had better footwork.

On the few occasions when Pacquiao did manage to trap Money in a corner or on the ropes, he lacked the physical power to keep him there through bullying, as Marcos Maidana did in his first fight with Mayweather.

Pacquiao was the lineal champion at 140 pounds and recorded perhaps the most sensational knockout of his career there against Ricky Hatton. A homecoming in the division would be the ideal way for him to end his career if he wants to keep fighting.

I was in press row for Lucas Matthysse's majority decision over Ruslan Provodnikov last month. After the fight, Golden Boy Promotions founder Oscar De La Hoya made it clear to us that he wants a big star "like a Pacquiao" for Matthysse's next fight.

Matthysse will never be an easy fight for anybody. But it's a fight that Pacquiao could win and win in a way that would remind fans exactly why he became such a superstar in the first place.

The light welterweight division is full of hungry young lions who would probably line up to face a champion of Pacquiao's stature in a pass-the-torch fight. Even clearly past his prime, Pacquiao would take Danny Garcia or Adrien Broner to school.

I don't think Pacquiao would beat WBO 140-pound champion Terence Crawford. But it would still be a compelling fight between a rising star and an all-time great. And since Top Rank also promotes Crawford, that should be a fight it can make.

Ultimately, of course, no one should criticize Pacquiao if he hangs up the gloves. Boxing is a brutal sport, and nobody should pursue it if his enthusiasm for it has waned—especially if he is financially set for life and already has another potential career.

But as a boxing fan, I'd be happy to see him come back. There's no doubt he's got another great fight or two left in him if he wants to go after them.