Manny Pacquiao ready to come out of retirement, opponent considered despite positive drug test

Manny Pacquiao is ready to end his retirement, and the former champion has an opponent in mind.

'PacMan' has been out of the ring since his clash with Yordenis Ugas in August 2021. While the former champion was originally hoping to face Errol Spence Jr., 'The Truth' was forced to withdraw due to injury.

As a result, the Cuban was elevated to the main event on short notice, and he showed out. While Pacquiao had a lot of early success, he wound up showing his age as Ugas dominated the second half of the contest. The legend wound up losing by a unanimous decision.

Following the defeat, Manny Pacquiao decided to retire. However, many felt that his retirement could be short-lived, as he decided to run for President of the Philippines. Despite a successful stint as a senator for the country, he lost in a landslide in the general election.

It seems that observers were correct, as the former champion has ended his retirement. As first reported by Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports, Manny Pacquiao's rep, Sean Gibbons, has revealed the legend is hoping to return at the age of 44.

Gibbons also named Conor Benn as a likely return opponent for the former champion. 'Destroyer' is currently embroiled in an anti-doping scandal, but was recently cleared by the WBC.

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Could Conor Benn fight Manny Pacquiao?

Conor Benn is currently able to fight Manny Pacquiao, but they will have to fight outside the U.K.

'Destroyer' has been out of action since a knockout win over Chris van Heerden last April. Following that victory, Benn was slated to fight Chris Eubank Jr. in October, but the bout didn't come to fruition.

The reason the clash didn't happen was because the welterweight contender tested positive for clomifene. While the drug is normally used as an anti-fertility drug in women, it can be used to halt estrogen production in men who have had steroid cycles. It's also the same drug UFC star Jon Jones tested positive for in 2016.

For those that followed 'Bones' case closely, he wound up avoiding a massive USADA suspension due to tainted supplements being the cause for the test. The WBC recently cleared Benn, but not due to supplements. Instead, they stated that he had a high consumption of eggs.

While Conor Benn was cleared by the WBC, that does little but allow him to return to the rankings. He is currently still under suspension in the U.K., but the welterweight has stated his plans to never fight in the country again.