Tag: Boxing

Hooker on Ramirez fight: ‘I think I will come out of there with the late KO’

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Maurice Hooker believes he will claim a late round stoppage win over Jose Ramirez when they clash for the WBO and WBC World Super-Lightweight titles on Saturday night at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas, live on DAZN in the US and on Sky Sports in the UK.

Hooker (26-0-3 17 KOs) puts his WBO crown on the line for the third time in his first fight in his hometown as a World ruler after trips to Oklahoma and New York, and ‘Mighty Mo’ couldn’t have picked a bigger and more anticipated match-up to return to the spotlight in the Lone Star state.

Ramirez (24-0 16 KOs) puts his green and gold belt up for grabs for the third time since landing the vacant strap in March 2018 in New York, and in a reversal of Hooker’s route to this colossal clash, is back on the road after two home defenses in Fresno, California.

The respectful build-up continued at today’s press conference in downtown Dallas but both men were confident of walking out of the ring with a belt over each shoulder, and Hooker thinks their styles will lead to a late stoppage win.

“People are saying it’s going to be a tough fight and I hope it is,” said Hooker. “He’s going to come at me aggressive in the opening rounds with those big left hooks, but I’ll stay calm and relaxed because to me, in a championship fight, the fight really begins in the fourth or fifth round.

“I’ll use my jab in the opening rounds and compose myself and let him punch himself out and expose himself. As the fight goes on I will take it to him, push him back and I think I will come out of there with the late KO as he’s not a fighter that fights on the back foot, everyone he’s fought he’s come to them or they have been a smaller guy. I’m tall, rangy and I have power, so I will make him adjust to me and I will hurt him.

“He’s got a good left hand, to the head and the body, and I know that he’s coming to fight with pressure and he’ll be in my face the whole night, or at least try to be, and I’ve got to try to keep him off. But I’m ready, I’ll make him adjust to me and I’ll have fun in the later rounds.”

Hooker and Ramirez clash on a bumper night of action in Arlington, as Tevin Farmer defends his IBF World Super-Featherweight title against mandatory challenger Guillaume Frenois. Tramaine Williams takes on Yenifel Vicente for the vacant USBA Super-Bantamweight title and a trio of unbeaten talents look to continue their 100 per cent KO records in Nikita Ababiy, Artur Biyarslanov and Houston’s Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams.

Heavyweight Joey Dawejko meets Rodney Hernandez over ten rounds and there’s action for two Dallas fighters in Javier Martinez and debutant Darius Bagley.

Photo: Ed Mulholland/Matchroom Boxing USA

Evan Holyfield, son of Evander Holyfield, signs with Main Events

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On Wednesday, in front of a packed crowd of family, friends and fans, at the Fighter Nation Boxing Gym in Houston, Texas, hot boxing prospect Evan Holyfield announced his new promotional deal with Main Events. After talks with several promoters the 21-year old son of Hall-of-Famer Evander Holyfield decided to sign with the company that launched his father’s historic career.

 The middle child of the Holyfield children, Evan, amassed over 80 amateur fights including the Semi-Finals for the US Team. The 6’1.5″ junior middleweight is a boxer-puncher with lightning fast speed and hard-hitting power.

“This is really a dream come true,” said Evan. “I have been doing this for more than 10 years and it’s not really a job if you really enjoy it. Life is always better when you have a dream you can strive for and work towards every day. I am eager to get started and excited to begin this next chapter.”

 Evan Holyfield has teamed up with Maurice “Termite” Watkins as his trainer/manager. After a 61-5-2, 42 KOs professional boxing career Termite headed to Iraq to work as an exterminator for the military camps. While serving in Baghdad he formed an Iraqi Olympic boxing team. Watkins now runs Fighter Nation Boxing Gym in Houston and works with more than 200 young fighters.

“Evan is very coachable and hungry to create his own name,” explained Watkins. “We have assembled a great team to help him achieve that goal. 1. We have Main Events. They are the ones who took Evander to the top. 2. He’s got me. I’ve had over 65 pro fights. 3. He’s in one of the best training climates in the world. That’s why athletes come here, because it is hot, humid and they can lose weight. 4. We’ve got Tim Hallmark. In my opinion, he is the best of the best of the strength and conditioning coaches and he is the one that took worked with Evander throughout his career. He is heading up our strength and conditioning team.” He continued, “Evan is the whole package: he can box, he can punch, he is very elusive in the ring and he has incredible timing. This makes for a winning combination and we plan on going all the way. We are ready to fight!”

Holyfield’s team also includes Tim Hallmark the strength and conditioning coach with over 35 years of experience who is best-known for working with Evander Holyfield throughout his professional career. In addition to extensive roster of high-profile clients Tim has also designed the SymmetriCore® and CenterForce® training equipment that have been used by some of the world’s top professional and Olympic athletes.

 “This is my 40th year as a sports performance trainer,” said Hallmark. “My philosophy has always been to first get an athlete healthy, then get him fit and then make him more athletic. Evan and I have been together for about 14 months. He has a fitter physique but, most-importantly, his recovery time has improved tremendously.” Hallmark added, “It is all about making him strong mentally. If he is healthier then he going to be able to deal with stress better. Then, it is all about attitude. If he feels better, he will have a good attitude and with the right attitude he can push himself further than he ever thought possible. That is what makes a winner!”

Photo Credit: Hosanna Rull/Main Events 

Gervonta Davis: ‘I never thought a fight in Baltimore would be this big’

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Two-time super featherweight world champion Gervonta “Tank” Davis will make history on Saturday, July 27 when he becomes the first Baltimore native to make a homecoming defense in nearly 80 years.

Davis will defend his WBA Super Featherweight World Championship against mandatory challenger Ricardo “Científico” Núñez live on SHOWTIME from Royal Farms Arena in an event presented by Premier Boxing Champions.

The last Baltimore-native to make a title defense in his hometown was Harry Jeffra, a featherweight world champion who defeated Spider Armstrong in July 1940 at Carlin’s Park to retain his belt

At 24-years-old Davis is America’s youngest reigning world champion and has proven he has the star power to put Baltimore on the map as a significant fight city. The first world champion from Baltimore was Joe Gans, who was also the first African-American world champion in boxing history when he won the lightweight title in 1902.

“I believe it’s time for me to fight in front of my hometown and thank them for supporting me,” Davis said. “I never thought a fight in Baltimore would be this big. It gives me chills, but I’m ready for it. It’s a big test. I’ve been gone for so long and coming home feels amazing.”

This will be just the second time that the power-punching southpaw has fought in his hometown since turning professional in 2013.  

Davis vs. Núñez is the first world championship in Baltimore in nearly 50 years. Light heavyweight champion Bob Foster defeated Mark Tessman by knockout at the Baltimore Civic Center in June of 1970 and the city hasn’t hosted another world title fight since. The historic night will also be the first SHOWTIME boxing event held in Baltimore in the network’s 33-year history

 Formerly called the Baltimore Arena and Baltimore Civic Center, Royal Farms Arena has hosted dozens of boxing events since it opened in 1962.  One of boxing’s all-time greats, Hall of Famer Sugar Ray Leonard made his professional debut at the Baltimore Civic Center in 1977 and fought there six times during his illustrious career.

 A number of notable world titlist have called Baltimore home but never fought in the Charm City, including Hall of Famer Dwight Qawi, former heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman and former super welterweight champ Vincent Pettway. 

 “These guys from the past really motivate me, and I give much respect to the guys before me and the ones after me,” Davis said. “But right now I’m laying the foundation to make history. It’s the people that I see every day in Baltimore that motivate me. I can’t think about anybody that was in the past or the future. We are all worried about what’s in front of us right now.”

Photo: Mayweather Promotions

Leonard Ellerbe on Mayweather fighting Pacquiao: ‘Floyd ain’t thinking about none of this sh**'(VIDEO)

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On Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Manny Pacquiao showed once again why he was one of the greatest fighters in this era when he defeated Keith Thurman by split-decision.  Pacquiao, 40, looked very fast and was impressive throughout the fight, which included a knockdown of Thurman in the first round.

Since losing to Floyd Mayweather Jr. in 2015, Pacquiao is 5-1 in his last six fights. The Filipino legend only defeat was a controversial decision loss to Jeff Horn, a fight that many thought Pacquiao won.

So,  what’s next for Pacquiao? Is it the winner of Spence-Porter? Could it be Danny Garcia, or could it be Mayweather?

Well, Pacquiao and Mayweather sparred on social media on Tuesday.

Here is what transpired:

Mayweather started with a right hand:

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I find it real ironic how every time Pacquiao's name is brought up in the media, my name is always attached to it. This man's entire legacy and career has been built off its association with my name and it's about time you all stop using my brand for clout chasing and clickbait and let that man's name hold weight of its own. For years, all you heard was that " Floyd is afraid of Manny Pacquiao". But what's funny is, when we finally fought, I won so easily that everyone had to eat their words! All of the so called boxing experts, critics and jealous American "fan base" either went mute and ran for cover or made every excuse in the world as to why I should give Manny Pacquiao a rematch. My take on all this bullshit is that y’all are just upset that I broke Rocky Marciano's record and hate the fact that a Black, high school dropout outsmarted you all by beating all odds and retiring undefeated while maintaining all my faculties simply by making smart choices and even smarter investments. Ultimately, I will always have the last laugh!

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Pacquiao responded with an overhand left:

Finally, Mayweather finished the conversation with a jab:

Who knows what is going through Mayweather’s mind, but if he wants to earn another massive payday, fighting Pacquiao would make a lot of sense. Mayweather last fought in 2017 against Conor McGregor, so he has not been very active, which could be an advantage for Pacquiao. However, I would never doubt Mayweather, even at age 42.

Pacquiao is expected to fight again in 2020, and Mayweather continues to insist that he is retired, so maybe this fight won’t happen after all. However, if Mayweather changes his mind, there is a large pot of gold waiting for him.

After Pacquiao’s thrilling victory over Thurman, we talked to Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe, and according to Ellerbe, Mayweather is not worried about fighting again.

“Floyd ain’t thinking about none of this sh**,” Ellerbe told Paul Gant.

Listen below as Ellerbe talks Pacquiao-Thurman, Gervonta Davis, Mayweather, and more:

The boxing world reacts to the death of Maxim Dadashev

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Boxer Maxim Dadashev died on Tuesday from brain injuries that he suffered during his fight against Subriel Matias on Friday night at the MGM National Harbor in Oxon Hill, MD. He was 28.

Dadashev took a lot of punishment in this fight, and his trainer Buddy McGirt stopped the fight following the 11th round.

After the fight, Dadashev needed assistance back to his dressing room. According to ESPN, he collapsed before making it to the dressing room and began vomiting. He was taken from the arena on a stretcher and then was transported by ambulance to the hospital, where he underwent emergency brain surgery for two hours for a subdural hematoma — bleeding on the brain. Doctors hoped to relieve pressure on the right side of his brain, where most of the damage was, with the surgery and placed him in a medically induced coma, to allow time for brain swelling to subside.

Here is a statement from Top Rank and Bob Arum:

“Top Rank is devastated to report that Maxim Dadashev passed away earlier this morning due to injuries sustained during last Friday’s bout. Maxim was a talented fighter inside the ring and a loving husband and father outside the ropes. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.

Said Top Rank Chairman Bob Arum: “Maxim was a terrific young man. We are all saddened and affected by his untimely death.”

After Dadashev’s death was announced, the boxing world reacted on Twitter:

Photo: Mikey Wiliams/Top Rank

Thurman: Maybe another fight in-between Lopez, Pacquiao would have helped(VIDEO)

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Former world champion Keith Thurman fought his second fight in 2019 on Saturday night against Manny Pacquiao, but before his fight with Josesito Lopez back in January, Thurman was out of the ring for 22 months due to injuries, maybe that inactivity impacted his performance against Pacquiao.

Thurman(29-1, 22 KOs) was dropped in the first round and was hurt badly in the tenth as he lost by split-decision to the 40-year-old Pacquiao(62-7-2, 39 KOs) in front of a sold-out crowd at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. With the victory, Pacquiao becomes the WBA super champion at 147, and Thurman suffers his first loss as a pro.

While the 30-year-old Thurman out-landed Pacquiao(210-195, according to Compubox), the Filipino legend threw more punches(686-571), which Thurman believes may have cost him the fight.

“We have seen champions and inactivity not favor them, from time to time, but I just thought that I would be able to counter him, utilize my jab from the outside, and really pressure him in the way that I did,” Thurman said after the fight. “Some of things that I wanted to do, I was able to do, but ultimately, I just really feel like, in retrospect, that I fell short on the numbers game.. Yeah, obviously, 22 months out of the game, Josesito Lopez and then Manny Pacquiao. I tried to stay active, but maybe another fight in-between would have helped.”

Maybe another tune-up fight would have helped Thurman against Pacquiao. However, he wanted a big money fight against Pacquiao, and he took his chance. There is still a lot of great matches for Thurman at 147, and we probably won’t see him again in 2019. But if he is smart, he gets back in the ring early 2020, so he can be as active as possible.

Photo/courtesy: Ryan Hafey/Premier Boxing Champions

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Maurice Hooker on fight with Ramirez: ‘This is the fight that makes me a big name’

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Everything is bigger in Texas – and that’s just what Maurice Hooker plans to be as he prepares for his Super-Lightweight unification clash with Jose Ramirez on Saturday night at the College Park Center in Arlington, Texas, live on DAZN in the US and on Sky Sports in the UK.

Hooker (26-0-3 17 KOs) puts his WBO title on the line for the third time as he fights at home for the first time as a World ruler. The 29 year old last laced them up in the Lone Star state back in August 2017, where he claimed the WBO NABO title in downtown Dallas.

Hooker hit the road ten months later to rip the WBO World title from Terry Flanagan in the Manchester man’s home arena, and in November ‘Mighty Mo’ pulled off a stunning win in Oklahoma, climbing off the canvas in the second round to put unbeaten local favorite Alex Saucedo away in the seventh.

Hooker’s second defense took him to upstate New York where Brooklyn’s Mikkel Les Pierre was seen off in a comfortable points win – setting up the chance to come home in style and take home court advantage in the biggest fight of his career against WBC king Ramirez (24-0 16 KOs).

“I will be a champion in boxing and in Dallas as everyone will know my name after this fight. This fight means everything to me and the same for him, I just have to go harder than him and I will come out on top. This is part of my legacy – it’s just the beginning.

“This is the fight that makes me a big name. I am getting better with every fight and now I have the platform in the fight on DAZN to show my boxing skills, my power, my smarts, everything – everyone will know who Maurice Hooker is after this.

“I so excited to have this fight in Dallas, I’m ready to come with everything I have. The crazy thing about it is that I don’t feel any pressure coming into the fight, it’s just another big fight, all my fights over the last three have been really big, so I don’t feel any pressure from fighting at home. I’m just ready to do what i do and handle my business.

“I won my WBO NABO belt in Dallas but this fight is on a whole new level, I have the chance to unify at home. The first World title fight was in England and the others have been on the road too, but now I have the biggest fight of my life at home, so there’s a little pressure but not too much and I just have to focus on doing my job and getting the victory.

“It’s been crazy at home since the fight was announced. Everybody has been telling me that they are coming and telling me to put on a show. I’m confident I’ll get the win as is Jose, I’ve been watching him and it’s going to be tough in the opening rounds, but I will take over and make him adjust to me. Dallas seeing me fight as a World champion is so big for me and for the city, all the kids I’ve spoken to in the schools, the people that look up to me, can now watch me live.”

Hooker and Ramirez clash on a bumper night of action in Arlington, as Tevin Farmer defends his IBF World Super-Featherweight title against mandatory challenger Guillaume Frenois. Tramaine Williams takes on Yenifel Vicente for the vacant USBA Super-Bantamweight title and two unbeaten talents look to continue their 100 per cent KO records in Artur Biyarslanov and Houston’s Austin ‘Ammo’ Williams.

Gamboa: ‘If Gervonta happens to be the next fight, let’s throw hands and see what happens’

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Former world champion Yuriorkis Gamboa will look to put himself squarely back into world title contention when he faces fellow former champion Roman “Rocky” Martinez on Saturday, July 27 live on SHOWTIME from Royal Farms Arena in Baltimore.

 Gamboa last fought in November 2018, when he dropped Miguel Beltran Jr. on his way to earning a unanimous decision in their 10-round fight. He took the momentum from that fight directly into camp for his matchup against Martinez. 

“I feel great and I’m in the ideal condition for this fight,” said Gamboa. “It helped immensely that I fought in November 2018 and went back to the gym in late January 2019. I started training camp for this fight in early May 2019 to get me in the best shape possible for Martinez.

“I have to be the best that I can be, and I know that I will be. The rest will take care of itself. I am not coming off a long layoff like I was in previous years, and I’m thankful to my team that put me in this position to get right back in the ring.”

In Martinez, Gamboa faces another former champion who will be looking to get himself back into the world title picture. Neither fighter can afford a loss at this point in their careers, which serves as the ingredients for a high-stakes and exciting battle.

“I expect this fight to be a very cerebral fight at first,” said Gamboa. “You have two former world champions with huge amounts of experience between Martinez and I. It will build into a very entertaining bout for everyone watching. The fans are going to witness boxing at its highest level.”  

Amongst his wealth of experience in the ring, Gamboa has faced a litany of champions and contenders throughout his career. Heading into the fight against Martinez, Gamboa sees similarities to his past triumphs over former champions Orlando Salido and Daniel Ponce De Leon.

“I see similarities in Martinez to my previous fights against Salido and Ponce De Leon,” said Gamboa. “Both were tough and rugged and kept coming forward. We all know that Martinez fits the bill as a tough fighter who will never back down. Having faced these two opponents in the past will help me a great deal in this fight.”

Gamboa will be fighting as the co-main event to that evening’s headlining bout featuring WBA Super Featherweight World Champion Gervonta Davis, who defends his title in his hometown against mandatory challenger Ricardo Núñez. If Davis and Gamboa are both victorious on July 27, Gamboa would welcome a future showdown between the two.

 “After I win this fight, I am ready for anyone at 130 or 135 pounds,” said Gamboa. “Gervonta Davis is a very good fighter and has done a fantastic job in his campaign as a 130-pound champion. If Gervonta happens to be the next fight, let’s throw hands and see what happens.

“Unlike my fight with Terrence Crawford at 135 pounds, I feel like I would be the bigger man in the ring against Gervonta. A win versus Martinez is a wonderful opportunity and I will not let it go to waste as it will catapult me to much bigger fights, which my fans deserve.”

Pacquiao defeats Thurman by split-decision

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Boxing’s only eight-division world champion, Senator Manny “PacMan” Pacquiao dropped Keith “One Time” Thurman in round one and won a close split decision to earn a welterweight world title in the main event of a Premier Boxing Champions on FOX Sports Pay-Per-View event Saturday night from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

“It was fun,” said Pacquiao. “My opponent is a good fighter and boxer. He was strong. I’m not that kind of boxer who talks a lot; we were just promoting the fight. I think he did his best, and I did my best. I think we made the fans happy tonight because it was a good fight.”

The sell-out crowd of 14,356 got treated to great action from the start, as an exciting first round was capped off by Pacquiao dropping Thurman for the first time in his career with a straight right hand late in the round.

“I knew it was too close,” said Thurman. “He got the knockdown so he had momentum in round one.”

Thurman made it into the second round but continued to have trouble with Pacquiao’s right hand, as the future Hall of Famer threw it successfully as a jab and a power punch throughout the fight. Thurman adjusted in the middle rounds and began to try to smother Pacquiao and walk him down, having success when he was able to get his combinations off before his opponent.

Despite blood pouring from his nose from round four on, Thurman was able to land powerful combinations on Pacquiao for much of the second half of the fight, but was never able to hurt Pacquiao or score a knockdown of his own.

“I wish I had a little bit more output to go toe to toe,” said Thurman. “I felt like he was getting a little bit tired, but he did have experience in the ring. My conditioning and my output was just behind Manny Pacquiao’s. I would love the rematch.”

In round 10, Pacquiao’s landed a strong left hook to the body that clearly hurt Thurman and forced him to spend much of the remainder of the round backpedaling. The CompuBox scores were indicative of the close nature of the fight, with Thurman out landing Pacquiao 210 to 195, while Pacquiao was busier throwing 686 punches to 571 from Thurman.

“I really love the fans,” said Pacquiao. “Thank you so much for coming here and witnessing the fight. I’m sure they were happy tonight because they saw a good fight. Even though Thurman lost, he did his best. He’s not an easy opponent. He’s a good boxer and he’s strong. I was just blessed tonight.

Watch the round 10 highlight HERE

Pacquiao had a large advantage in jabs landed, connecting on 82 to Thurman’s 18. The 192 power punches landed by Thurman was the most in 43 Pacquiao fights that CompuBox has tracked. Round-by-round, the two fighters were only separated by more than five landed punches in rounds two, seven and nine.

After 12 rounds, the judges reached a split decision, with one judge scoring the fight 114-113 for Thurman, overruled by two judges scoring it 115-112 for Pacquiao, who captured the WBA Welterweight World Championship at 40-years-old.

“You get blessings and lessons,” said Thurman. “Tonight was a blessing and a lesson. Thank you everybody, and thank you Manny Pacquiao.”

“I think (I will fight) next year,” said Pacquiao. “I will go back to the Philippines and work and then make a decision. I do hope to be at the (Errol) Spence vs. (Shawn) Porter fight on September 28.”

Photo: Ryan Hafney/PBC

Morales, Barrera, Wright, Porter give their thoughts on Pacquiao-Thurman

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All-time boxing greats Erik Morales, Marco Antonio Barrera and Winky Wright, plus WBC Welterweight World Champion Shawn Porter, previewed the Manny Pacquiao vs. Keith Thurman showdown for media on Thursday ahead the PBC on FOX Sports Pay-Per-View event taking place this Saturday night at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Two of the most popular Mexican fighters of their generation, Morales and Barrera both offered special insight into what it takes to match up against Pacquiao. A former four-division world champion, Morales faced Pacquiao three times, winning once, while Barrera, a three-division champion, battled Pacquiao twice, losing both contests.

A long-reigning 154-pound world champion during his career, Wright is from the same Tampa-area that Thurman hails from and has known Thurman since childhood. He was also trained by Thurman’s head coach Dan Birmingham. Porter and Thurman engaged in one of 2016’s most exciting fights, as Porter lost a narrow decision to Thurman before Porter went on to become a two-time welterweight champion last September. 

Here is what the legends had to say Thursday from MGM Grand:

ERIK MORALES

 “To win that fight I was very technical against Manny Pacquiao and that’s what Thurman needs to do and be prepared for, which I was on that night.

“You definitely have to have a good strategy against Manny Pacquiao, and you have to have your timing right against him because he will slip out. So you have to work on that, and if he gets out, you have to start again and pressure him. 

“I’m definitely surprised that Pacquiao is still fighting at this age, due to the fact that he’s been through so many wars. So it’s definitely interesting that he’s still fighting at this high of a level. Then again, I’m not surprised because mentally and physically he’s still training and still maintaining a great training regiment, which he has always maintained all throughout his career.”

 MARCO ANTONIO BARRERA

 “When you’re facing Manny Pacquiao, you know that he’s a strong, explosive, fast fighter. It’s very impactful when you see him there in front of you, but we have Morales here who was one of few men to beat him, so it is possible.

 “It’s very difficult to face Pacquiao. He’s a lefty and sometimes he jumps a meter away from you and then he’s right back in front of you. I’m a fighter that’s very technical so that made it even harder to hit Manny Pacquiao.

 “Pacquiao puts in a lot of pressure and is always on top of you. Psychologically it’s a tough fight to fight Manny Pacquiao at any time because you think that he is going to go back but then he switches it up. He maintains a constant pressure on you mentally. 

 “Pacquiao hits to the body a lot. When he hits that left right into the stomach, it’s devastating. That’s how he hit me in that first fight that we had. Now he’s fighting a younger guy, 10 years younger than him, he is really going to work the body on Saturday.

 “At the end of the day we all get nervous when we go into the ring especially with such a big event. But once you get into the ring and start fighting, you start adapting to it and then the plan of attack that you have been training for comes into play.”

 WINKY WRIGHT

 “When I first met Keith Thurman it was clear the incredible power this young kid had as well as his will to win. I think Manny Pacquiao is a great fighter and he will come out throwing a lot of punches, but I think Keith Thurman’s jabs and movements are harder than Manny thinks.

“Every fighter bets on himself or believes in himself. When I fought I bet on myself because I believed I was going to win no matter what. Keith is a fighter that believes in his ability. He believes that he’s going to go out there and knock Manny Pacquiao out. How he does it is a different thing.

“Manny is a fighter that’s in and out. He has great movement and can throw quick punches. He’s tough but father time is undefeated. Father time will get everyone. We were all great at one point but as you get older you lose that step and that one tenth of a second that took us from being great to being normal.

 “That fight against Josesito Lopez allowed Keith to get his timing back and get back into the ring and remember what it feels like to get hit. Shawn put a lot of pressure on fighters. and most can’t see how much pressure he puts on. By seeing the fight with Shawn and seeing the fight with Lopez, Keith is showing you his diverse boxing game. A lot of people don’t understand that.

 “Manny can hurt you, he throws a lot of good body shots, a lot of good strong shots and he can hurt you. But, I just think Keith is on his game right now. If he dictates Manny’s ability to jump in and out, then he can win this fight.

 “Manny Pacquiao looks good hitting the mitts and the bags but the bags don’t hit back. Fighters will tell you that all the time. The mitts don’t hit back, but Keith Thurman hits back. Manny Pacquiao hits back. Whichever fighter can impose their will on the other fighter, that’s the fighter that’s going to win.”

 SHAWN PORTER

 “We all know what Manny has done. He’s a living legend and you cannot take that away from him. I think when the fight was announced everyone saw the young lion coming out and taking over, but I think that as people are started to look at this fight as a whole, they are starting to see that Manny Pacquiao is Manny Pacquiao. I think he’s the favorite to win this fight for a reason.

 “Keith is not out of character at all this promotion. One thing about Keith is he does not say anything that he does not mean. He believes in everything he says. The confidence that you see coming from him now is very real. The number one thing about Keith is that he has the will to win. With 29 wins and 0 losses, he figures out a way to do it and I think going into this fight he says the way he is going to beat Manny is by destroying him and making him retire. He believes that he can do that within three rounds. I’m not mad at him. I’m a firm believer that he’s going to go out there and try to put the gas to the pedal really quick and try to get Manny out of there. 

 “Traditionally these kind of generation vs. generation matchups happen. It hasn’t happened in a very long time in boxing, but this is a part of the tradition. There’s always a guy that comes and takes over by taking out the guy who’s considered to be the legend. Since Mayweather has made his exit, everyone is putting Manny Pacquiao in that position again.

 “The fact that this fight is happening is the best part about it. There’s so many different variables that add up in this fight. I think that that’s the best part about this matchup. It’s really interesting and exciting. I can pick Manny or he can pick Keith but at the end of the day, we all have to watch on Saturday night. I think it’s going to be a big explosion.”

Photo: Ryan Hafey/Premier Boxing Champions