Representative Manny Pacquiao AFP FILE PHOTO
GENERAL SANTOS CITY, Philippines — World eight-division boxing champion and Sarangani Representative Manny Pacquiao has been training for a 12-round non-stop offensive against undefeated American boxer Chris Algieri.
Pacquiao will be defending his World Boxing Organization (WBO) Welterweight crown against a 5’11 Algieri on November 23 at Venetian Hotel in Macau, China.
“We are training him for more head movements, more punching combinations and a non-stop assault. We expect a bigger and taller Algieri to run around the ring. We should be ready for that. But, just in case, Algieri decides to mix it up then much better. The fight would end earlier,” assistant trainer and coach Robert “Buboy” Fernandez said in an interview.
Fernandez added that they have been devising a game plan to limit the movement of Algieri inside the ring.
“We will employ non-stop pressure. Our fighting congressman will chase him wherever he goes. Then try to throw three to five punching combinations to the head and body,” Fernandez bared.
Fernandez has been enduring pain on both wrists brought about by the strong punches unleashed by Pacquiao during mitt’s session.
“There was no fracture but the doctor advised me to take a rest for two weeks. I can’t do that at this stage when we’re in the thick of training for the Algieri fight. No matter what would happen, the training should continue,” Fernandez said.
When asked to rate the current conditioning of Pacquiao, Fernandez said: “The way I see it, he’s 88 percent ready at this stage. It’s still a long way to go. My job is to prepare him for a more heavy training when Coach Freddie Roach arrives.”
Roach is slated to arrive here Wednesday (October 8). Pacquiao’s first sparring session was scheduled on Friday.
Canadian match-maker and financial adviser Michael Koncz said Roach would be bringing along with him two sparring mates for Pacquiao.
“We are not taking Algieri lightly. The guy is not a one-dimensional fighter. He has the ability to adjust to an opponent’s fighting style,” Koncz said in an interview.
Koncz, however, praised Pacquiao for keeping himself in shape even without a fight.
“Manny Pacquiao is different from other fighters. He stays in shape even if there’s no fight and his level of enthusiasm remains high even at this stage of his boxing career,” Koncz said.
According to him, the Filipino boxing legend is already in tremendous condition several weeks before the scheduled fight.
“His focus is great and even much better than what I had observed two years ago,” he said.
Pacquiao has been suffering from a stiff shoulder since last week after his conditioning coach Justin Fortune included plyometrics in his training.
“That is a normal effect of plyometrics. After two to three days, muscle stiffness would be gone,” Fortune said.
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