Rocky Balboa, the undisputed master of comebacks, has given Manny Pacquiao a vote of confidence on his road to recovery.

In preparation for his first fight after declaring retirement in April—a WBO welterweight title match against Jessie Vargas on November 5—Sylvester Stallone personally paid the Filipino fighter a visit.

 

While Pacquiao was sparring at the Wildcard Gym in Hollywood, the Oscar winner—who also authored and acted in the 1979 film Rocky and its sequels—paid him a visit.

Stallone is no stranger to comebacks; in 2006’s Rocky Balboa, the Italian Stallion, having been out of the ring for sixteen years, dons his gloves once more to take on teenage pretender Mason Dixon.

He also starred in the Rocky spin-off Creed from the previous year, in which Michael B. Jordan plays Apollo Creed’s son, who receives training from Rocky while dealing with personal issues outside of the ring.

After defeating Timothy Bradley Jr. on points in April, Pacquiao announced his retirement to concentrate on his political career in the Philippines.

With 38 knockouts, the 37-year-old has won 58 of his 66 professional bouts, dropped six, and drawn two.

The fighter retired in April but is making his comeback next week against Jessie Vargas ( Image: REUTERS)

 

Regarding his opponent, Vargas, he was the March 2016 WBO welterweight champion and has also been the WBA and IBO super lightweight champion.

With 10 knockouts, his professional record stands at 27 victories, 1 defeat, and 28 bouts fought.

The Pacquiao-Vargas bout, billed as “The Legend vs. The Champ,” takes place on November 5 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas.