There’s no shortage of confidence ahead of Saturday’s fight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather. At a rally in Las Vegas on Tuesday night, Pacquiao all but assured victory over the undefeated champ, saying, “I know I’m going to win the fight in the ring. So, relax.”
Damn!
Pacquiao’s recent losses have come at the hands of fighters who possess massive punching power, most notably Juan Manuel Márquez, who knocked him out cold in 2012.
But Manny doesn’t seem bothered by Mayweather’s defensive style. In fact, it might play into his hands.
“If he wants to fight me, good for me,” Pacquiao said. “If he’s running and moving around the ring we’re prepared for that, too.”
The secret to Pacquiao’s success might be his trainer Freddie Roach. It was Roach who watched Oscar De La Hoya lose to Mayweather in 2007.
“I really did learn from the Oscar fight. It was a good lesson to me,” Roach said. “Floyd is tricky but not very complicated. But if you get behind him and start following him around the ring he will set a trap. I have trained Manny not to let that happen. When he sets a trap, Manny will walk away.”
Saturday can’t get here soon enough.
[AP]
