LAS VEGAS — If Manny Pacquiao beats WBC welterweight champion Mario Barrios on July 19, competition will line up for the chance to face the newly crowned 46-year-old titleholder.

Pacquiao has worked with PBC in his last four fights dating to 2019, and if business is going to continue to boom under Al Haymon’s umbrella, one of the most lucrative fights that can be made in house is between Pacquiao and Gervonta Davis.

Davis is next supposed to face Lamont Roach Jr. following their hotly contested and controversial majority draw in March, but the former was arrested Friday for domestic violence charges that could throw the timing of their Aug. 16 sequel in doubt.

“I like the Davis fight, but let's finish Barrios first,” Pacquiao told The Ring before the arrest. “It's nothing personal. I am just doing my job. One at a time. We'll talk about it after the fight.”

A tilt with Tank has been floated ever since Pacquiao started teasing his comeback in 2023 after retiring two years earlier following a unanimous decision defeat to Yordenis Ugas. At the time, Pacquiao even suggested a 145-pound catchweight to lure in the WBA lightweight champion Davis.

Pacquiao (62-8-2, 39 KOs) and Davis (30-0-1, 28 KOs) are both 5 foot 5 ½ speedy southpaws with identical reach at 67 inches. Pacquiao, an eight-division champion, has fought exclusively as a welterweight since 2009, while Davis has fought only once above the lightweight limit in recent years, a June 2021 stoppage win against Barrios.

Sean Gibbons, the chief operating officer of Manny Pacquiao Promotions and his right hand man since 2018, told The Ring before Davis’ arrest that matchup was the move to make.

“As for what’s next if Pacquiao beats Barrios, if you look at who's the biggest draw in American boxing, and who puts the most butts in the most seats, it's Gervonta Davis,” said Gibbons.

“Gervonta pushes the buttons and is a household name in many ways. Pacquiao and Davis match up very well. For the first time in a long time, Manny would actually be a taller and bigger fighter than his opponent. That's the dream. We were close at one time to fighting Davis. We were talking but we couldn't come to an agreement on a couple things and the timing didn't work out.

“If Pacquiao beats Barrios and Davis beats Roach, I think that's the fight. The people would be really intrigued. You couldn't sell it as much before Pacquiao fought Barrios because everyone was saying Gervonta is a beast, but Gervonta got exposed a little bit and had a bad night against Roach, and the shine is off a little bit. If Manny shows brilliance against Barrios, they are going to buy into a Tank fight in a heartbeat.

“Once Manny gets the WBC 147-pound title, it would be a great 47th birthday present to make the fight in December. But everything begins on July 19 against Mario Barrios.”

Pacquiao said even he’s not sure what to expect from himself when he squares off against Barrios (29-2-1, 18 KOs) at MGM Grand in Las Vegas to headline a PBC on Prime Video PPV.

“It’s hard to be judged before the fight, so we will see in the fight,” he said. “You know me, and how I train — I always punish myself to the limit. I always bring surprises to my opponents.”