Pacquiao vs Thurman headed to MGM Grand in Las Vegas

Manny Pacquiao will return to the MGM Grand in Las Vegas for his July 20 FOX pay-per-view main event against Keith Thurman, which is no surprise but is now official, so now you know.

Pacquiao (61-7-2, 39 KO) will look to ... “unify” his WBA “world” welterweight title with Thurman’s WBA “super world” welterweight title. If you’re new to boxing and think I made a typo and didn’t mean to put “WBA” twice, I didn’t make a typo. If you’re new to boxing and think this sounds stupid, it is. Thurman’s belt is the one we recognize, for what it’s worth.

The 40-year-old Pacquiao fought at the MGM Grand in January, outpointing a lethargic Adrien Broner over 12 rounds in a Showtime pay-per-view main event. It was his first fight at that venue since his 2016 win over Timothy Bradley Jr in their third fight, and his first fight in Las Vegas since later in 2016, when he beat Jessie Vargas at the Thomas & Mack Center.

For his career, Pacquiao is 10-4-1 (4 KO) at the MGM Grand, and 16-4-1 (7 KO) in Las Vegas.

Thurman (29-0, 22 KO) doesn’t have quite that same Vegas experience. His last three fights in 2016, 2017, and 2019 have all come in main events at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center, and he hasn’t fought in Las Vegas since 2015, when he beat Robert Guerrero at the MGM Grand.

For his career, Thurman is 4-0 (2 KO) in Las Vegas, all of those fights coming at the MGM Grand.

Right now, the PPV undercard looks like it will have another pair of welterweight fights — Sergey Lipinets vs John Molina Jr and Yordenis Ugas vs Omar Figueroa Jr — plus another bout, and the FOX broadcast before the PPV goes live will feature Caleb Plant defending his IBF 168-pound title against Notre Dame Subway.