Though he was said to be taking a step back from boxing following his highly-publicized bout with retired champ Floyd Mayweather, Conor McGregor might be getting back into the ring to face a foe who is familiar to many fans of the sport: Manny Pacquiao.
The Filipino boxing icon hinted at a possible fight between him and McGregor in the caption of an Instagram post that he directed at the Irishman, telling him to "stay fit." One of the hashtags used teased the possibility that the two would come together for a bout in 2018, though no more details were given by either man. Check out the full Instagram post below.
While some fans preferred to take the cynical approach in the comments section and imply that Pacquiao was only pulling this kind of stunt in order to chase another big pay day, the prospect of him squaring off against McGregor would certainly have some interesting angles to it. Both fighters have had storied careers in their own rights, but have also lost to the same opponent, which would add a certain layer of competitiveness between them. McGregor is the younger of the two but, as we saw during his fight with Mayweather, youthful energy and enthusiasm doesn't always trump veteran knowledge and expertise.
Manny has previously said that he'd be interested in taking on McGregor too, just not in the Octagon. After cashing out with a cool $4 million for his last fight against Jessie Vargas, there's no doubt that a Pacquiao vs. McGregor event would be a huge money maker for not only the two men at the center of that fight, but also for Las Vegas in general, assuming that the match would be held there.
Perhaps such a fight would get Floyd "Money" Mayweather to tune in. The man who's reportedly still waiting to cash those checks he got after last fighting Pacquiao would certainly be able to give some insight into the strengths and weaknesses of both challengers. TV commentary job anyone? Only time will tell.