โI expect him to come out guns blazingโ
Iโm preparing for anything. If he comes out and tries to blitz us, weโre prepared for that. If he comes out and wants to fight a counter fight, weโre prepared for that. Manny has a couple of different styles he can bring, we understand that. Thatโs any fight. You never know how a guyโs going to come out. Iโm expecting him to come out guns blazing.
This is boxing. The more you throw, the more youโre open. If you donโt let a guy throw combinations, heโs not going to throw combinations. Iโve been in tons of fights with guys who throw combinations at other guys and donโt throw combinations with me. If I stand there and let him throw, sure, heโll throw blistering combinations all night long. Iโm not going to be that guy.
Iโve been fighting in 16 ยฝ foot rings for most of my career. Even when I fought Ruslan [Provodnikov] I think it was a 17 foot ring, which is a tremendously small ring. Being trapped in a ring with a guy like Ruslan Provodnikov and I was able to keep him from cutting off the ring and keep angles on him. Cutting off the ring is not an easy thing to do with me. We have a proper sized ring, a championship sized ring. Mannyโs got great footwork and is a great combination puncher but I canโt really remember the last time I saw him really cut down the ring on someone. Heโs much more a counter fighter in recent years.
Ruslanโs not a single punch guy. In the fights where he looked his best, [Mike] Alvarado, Tim Bradley, he was ripping combinations, both hands, upstairs, downstairs, all over the place. He didnโt do that with me. I blame me. I didnโt allow him to do that. Where was the body work? Well, he hit my elbows enough, he didnโt want to throw body punches anymore. There are aspects of boxing people donโt realise. I guess that itโs not that easy just to throw combinations at me.
โIโve got to fight a perfect fightโ
Itโs not about proving [anything] for me. I love what Iโm doing and Iโm at the highest level. Whatโs better than that? But at the same time I am a competitor and I want to win. All the other stuff, itโs part of it but Iโm here to win. Iโm not here just to be here.
Iโve got to go out there and fight a perfect fight this time.
Iโm going to trade when I want to trade. Iโm going to fight when I want to fight. In the fights where Iโm at my best Iโm dictating when the fight happens, where it happens. So thatโs going to be this fight, like any other fight. Iโm going to fight my fight.
Most people havenโt seen any of my fights besides my last fight. They base my entire style off of the fight against Ruslan, which is ridiculous because I fought 11 ยฝ rounds with one eye. Thatโs not my full style. โHeโs moving a lot, heโs just jabbing, he wasnโt throwing the right hand alot.โ I wasnโt throwing the right hand because it was pinned against my damaged right eye that couldnโt get hit any more. So everyone is basing my style off of a single fight and thatโs just not the case.
Mannyโs going to do what he does. I donโt think heโs going to change anything at this point in his career. I know heโs in shape, I know they trained hard, I know they took this fight seriously (whether they say they have or they havenโt). Weโve been preparing for the best possible Manny Pacquiao the entire time.
This is high level boxing… This is a fight, itโs a real fight. He understands that and I know heโs understood that since the beginning, which is why Iโm sure heโs well prepared.
The beginning of a fight is the wild, wild West. Itโs a fight. Until the control is established… Pacquiao is susceptible to specific punches and weโve practised those moves and those punches. Weโve had success with them. Weโve had good sparring partners.
Itโs not rock โem-sock โem robots. This is a boxing match. Iโve got to go out there and be a master boxer. Control the space, control the pace and fight my fight and go out there and be as close to a master boxer as possible.
โWe all start somewhereโ
I throw a lot of punches, I land a lot of punches. I mix it up, Iโm a body puncher. Iโm not a boring fighter. My fights are fun to watch.
Mannyโs not very busy when fights get really close, especially when itโs not on his terms. I spent a lot of my early career as an inside fighter and my trainers have been getting me to work more from the outside to establish my jab. It was a big shift from my early career. My first five fights I had three knockouts and dropped the other two guys four times each and then we had a shift where we found boxing to be a better style and an easier one to get wins.
Defence is kind of a lost art. Thatโs something that hasnโt been brought up a whole lot in this fight. Again people only think about my last fight. Iโm known for having this great heart and coming back from getting dropped. But for most fights I come out completely unscathed because my boxing and my defence are good. I think thatโs going to be vital in this fight as well.
He has a tremendous amount of experience, a lot more than I do. Heโs been here on these world stages many, many times. This is my first time. But it was his first time once before too. We all start somewhere.
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