Paddy Donovan in Manny Pacquiao talks as Mayweather rematch stalls
Irish welterweight Paddy Donovan says his team are in talks with Manny Pacquiao's camp, after Eddie Hearn claimed Joe Cordina had agreed terms to face the 47-year-old, who appears set for the Fury vs Joshua card in Cardiff.
Paddy Donovan says his team have opened talks to face Manny Pacquiao, putting the Irish welterweight forward as a possible opponent for the Filipino great's next fight.
Pacquiao appears set to return on the Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua card at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on 11 December. Donovan is not the only fighter from these islands chasing the bout: Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn has said that former super-featherweight world champion Joe Cordina has agreed terms for it.
Donovan told Total Boxing With Tris Dixon that his manager had contacted Pacquiao's team after seeing that Pacquiao was looking for an active opponent, and that the two sides had been in talks. He said: “Look, it’s a long shot, it’d be great. Manny Pacquiao is a phenomenal fighter, is a legend of the sport, and it’d be a dream come true to fight Manny. And I think, yeah, what a great fight it would be.”
Post by @TrisDixon on X
Donovan, 27, last fought in September, stopping Tyrone McKenna in the fourth round. Four months earlier he beat Karen Chukhadzhian on points to become mandatory challenger for the IBF welterweight title. He had challenged for that belt when it was vacant in September 2025, losing a split decision to Lewis Crocker in a rematch after a controversial disqualification defeat to Crocker earlier that year.
Pacquiao, two decades older than Donovan at 47, has not fought since July 2025, when his WBC welterweight title fight with Mario Barrios ended in a majority draw. He has spent most of 2026 linked to a rematch with Floyd Mayweather, a decade on from their 2015 meeting, but that fight has not materialised.
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