Manny Pacquiao To Retire After Timothy Bradley Fight; Plans To Focus More On Politics

Manny Pacquiao has had a long and storied career over a number of years and a lot of people were wondering when he would finally announce his retirement. Well, it looks like the time has come, as "The Fighting Congressman" has announced that he will retire after his next fight with American Timothy Bradley.

According to multiple news outlets, the eight-division world champion is planning to leave behind the world of boxing in order to concentrate more on his political career. Pacquiao "has flirted with the idea of running for president, said he was confident of winning a senate seat in the May elections," as said in a report by The Economic Times.

"I am retiring from boxing to concentrate on my political career. My fight with Timothy Bradley will be my last."  Pacquiao said in a recent interview. He added that he did not say anything about a rematch with Floyd "Money" Mayweather being his last match. "I will retire after my April 9 fight," he said.

Pacquiao is currently ranked 7^th in the race for 12 seats in the Philippine Senate. The boxing champion has become popular after diversifying into multiple fields aside from boxing, including politics, and even music and action movies. He is also a popular product endorser in his home country, often being seen in print ads and billboards. He is also a pastor in a born-again Christian group.

Pacquiao has been previously been criticized for putting his boxing ahead of his duties as a congressman of Sarangani province. He attended just four of the 70 scheduled legislative sessions in 2015.

He rarely took the floor during these sessions, but it one notable instance it arguably helped pushed a bill into becoming a law. In 2011, Pacquiao sided in favor of a bill that provided free birth control to the poor. He argued for this side citing his beliefs as a Christian.