After 26 years in the sport, is it time for Manny Pacquiao to bid farewell to boxing? Will Caleb Plant be the man to overcome superstar Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez? Plus Conor McGregor wants to link up with a renowned trainer and the young son of a boxing legend showcases his skills.

Is this the end for Pac Man?

Put simply, Manny Pacquiao is up there with the greatest boxers of all time.

On Saturday night, the Filipino suffered his eighth career defeat as he lost by unanimous decision to Cuban Yordenis Ugas in their WBA super-welterweight clash.

While taking nothing away from deserved winner Ugas, it’s fair to say Pacquiao was far from his best.

Has Father Time caught up with the 42-year-old boxing icon?

Pacquiao says he is “thinking about retirement” and is “60-40” in favour of quitting to focus on his political career.

If this does mark the end, what a career it has been.

After making his debut as a light-flyweight on 22 January 1995, Pacquiao dominated the sport, winning an astonishing 62 of his 72 professional bouts.

An eight-division (yes, eight-division) champion and the only fighter to hold a world title in four separate decades, his achievements are extraordinary.

Many young fighters can only dare to dream of having a career as illustrious as his.

Among the notable defeated foes are legends Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Oscar de la Hoya, Miguel Cotto and even Britain’s Ricky Hatton.

The blemishes on Pacquiao’s record – which include losses to Floyd Mayweather Jr and Juan Manuel Marquez – demonstrate his willingness to take on the very best.

After his upset by Ugas, the boxing world paid their respect to Pacquiao, with some hinting they’d like to see him bow out and others suggesting he could fight on…

Whether we see Pacquiao in the ring again remains to be seen. He wants time to relax before making a decision, which he has the earned the right to do.

Ugas’ boxing journey is also a remarkable tale.

Having lost three of his first 19 fights, the 35-year-old was dropped by his promoters and forced to rebuild his career.

After coming in as a late replacement for the injured Errol Spence Jr, not many expected Ugas – who now has a record of 27 wins and four defeats – to beat Pacquiao.

But his performance impressed those in the fight game…

‘It’s going down’ – Plant in confident mood

Elsewhere, pound-for-pound star Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez’s next opponent has been confirmed.

All the super-middleweight titles will be on the line as the biggest draw in boxing takes on American Caleb Plant on 6 November in Las Vegas.

Alvarez – who most recently beat Briton Billy Joe Saunders in May – will go in as a heavy favourite for the undisputed clash – as the 31-year-old does in pretty much all of his fights.

But 29-year-old Plant – who has won all 21 of his contests – is so confident of defying the odds he is even referring to himself in the third person.

“November 6, it’s going down. The first undisputed super-middleweight of all time, you’re looking at him, his name is Caleb Plant,” he told ESPN.

But fans can’t look past another Alvarez victory…

McGregor eyes link-up with Alvarez’s trainer

Canelo – who has a record of 56 wins, two draws and one defeat – may also have a new training buddy soon.

Ireland’s UFC star Conor McGregor – who made the crossover to boxing in a loss to Floyd Mayweather Jr in 2017 – says he’d welcome the chance to work with Alvarez’s trainer Eddy Reynoso…

The Gatti name lives on

Italian-Canadian Arturo Gatti is a true boxing icon.

The former world champion – who shared 30 rounds with American Micky ‘Irish’ Ward in boxing’s most unforgettable trilogy – died in 2009.

But the Gatti name may well live on in the form of his son, Arturo Gatti Jr.

The 11-year-old hopeful shared a clip of working the heavy bag, under the tutelage of ex-heavyweight champion Mike Tyson…