Pacquiao slight favorite over Garcia

MANILA, Philippines — Reigning WBA welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao opened as a slight favorite against young gun Ryan Garcia a few days after reports came out that they have agreed to fight this year.

SportsBettingDime.com, a betting resource website, pegged the Filipino icon as a -140 favorite over the 22-year-old Garcia, the WBC interim lightweight champion.

This means that to win $100, a bettor has to put it $140 on Pacquiao (62-7-2 with 38 knockouts). Meanwhile, a $100 wager on Garcia will net $110.

Various reports from the US claimed that the camps of Pacquiao and Garcia have already been in touch to explore a fight sometime in April.

The reports came shortly after Conor McGregor – previously a strong contender to meet Pacquiao in the boxing ring – lost via technical knockout to Dustin Poirier at UFC 257 last Sunday.

The undefeated, heavy-handed Garcia (21-0, with 18 KOs) had respectfully called Pacquiao out for a showdown, believing a fight between him and the boxing superstar would be a “passing of the torch.”

SportsBettingDime.com’s Dylan Bowker argued each fighter’s advantages.

“(Pacquiao) will have an edge in size and power, while (Garcia) has the youth and speed advantage,” Bowker wrote in his article for the website, which provides odds comparison and analysis.

Pacquiao’s biggest disadvantage though is his inactivity. The fighting senator hasn’t seen action since defeating Keith Thurman in July 20, 2019 to crown himself the WBA “super” welterweight champion.

Garcia, in contrast, had been busier, registering knockout victories each since Pacquiao’s fight with Thurman. He stopped Filipino Romero Duno in 2019, Francisco Fonseca in 2020 and, just recently, Luke Campbell last Jan. 2.