MANNY PACQUIAO admitted he is ‘leaning towards’ fighting Mikey Garcia but confirmed talks with Terence Crawford are ongoing.
The Filipino icon is yet to return since dethroning Keith Thurman of the WBA welterweight title in July 2019.
But due to inactivity amid the coronavirus pandemic, Pacquiao was stripped of the belt.
It led him to target unbeaten WBO champion Terence Crawford, 33, following SunSport’s reveal that the pair had a deal in place last year.
But now, PacMan, 42, has said Garcia, 33, is the frontrunner to face him and ensured fans he has kept in shape since his last fight by playing basketball.
Pacquiao told ABS-CBN: “We’re leaning towards Mikey Garcia, but we’re also talking to Crawford.
“It depends on who I get to face, what’s important is I’m ready. We never really got complacent, we’ve always continuously worked out.
“We keep on playing basketball aside from boxing.
“Actually, right after my fight the last time with Thurman, I didn’t work out boxing, but I kept playing basketball.”
Pacquiao, who has won titles in a record eight divisions, was in line to fight UFC superstar Conor McGregor, 32, this year.
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But McGregor – who lost his boxing debut to Floyd Mayweather in 2017 – was dramatically beaten by Dustin Poirier on his UFC return in January.
The Irishman, who initially knocked out Poirier, 32, in 2014, is now set for a summer trilogy bout, with his mega-money boxing return shelved.
Pacquiao had planned to donate some of the proceedings to help fight the affects of the Covid-19 crisis.
But the boxing legend – set to run in the 2022 Philippines presidential election – has vowed to continue aiding his compatriots.
Pacquiao said: “We will keep on giving, we will continue to help as much as we can, even if it’s just in small ways.
“I would love to be able to help everyone out, but our resources are limited, so we’ll do the best that we can, no problem.
“The only thing that I can assure the people of, is that as long as I can help, I will help, to the best of my abilities.”
