‘Time for Floyd to lose,’ says ‘underdog’ Pacquiao
Manny Pacquiao doesn’t talk a lot of smack, but this time he did, and he just laid it down.
In an interview for HBO’s “At Last” which BoxingScene.com posted, Pacquiao described himself as the “underdog” for his welterweight unification megafight against Floyd Mayweather Jr. on May 2 at MGM Grand Garden Arena.
Article continues after this advertisement“It is time for Floyd to lose,” Pacquiao said. “When I enter the ring on May 2, it will be no different than when David faced Goliath.”
BACKSTORY: Pacquiao sure of beating Mayweather
“I was an underdog in the negotiations for this fight. I have been the underdog in the wagering on this fight. I am the underdog to win the fight by the media who are covering it,” Pacquiao said. “The odds that this fight would happen, five years after our first negotiation, was considered a long shot. And I love it. I love it all.”
Pacquiao and Mayweather will attempt to unify the WBO, WBA, and WBC Welterweight titles in a fight that took six years to make.
Both fighters are argued as the best of their era with Mayweather going undefeated in his professional career and Pacquiao the only boxer to hold world titles in eight weight divisions.
“I love being the underdog because every time I have been the underdog in a fight I have won,” Pacquiao said.
BACKSTORY: Mayweather Sr. expects Pacquiao to bend the knee
Oscar Dela Hoya, Marco Antonio Barrera, and Lehlohonolo Ledwaba were all, as Pacquiao said, favored to “destroy” him.
He obliterated all three.
“Being the underdog inspired me in training. Winning those fights gave hope and inspiration to those who needed it. It gave proof that someone like me, born in poverty, who came from the dirt, can achieve success against all odds with hard work and prayer. Being an underdog has always spurred me on to greater heights,” he said.
RELATED STORIES
INQ ‘knockout’ coverage of megafight to be ‘all heart’
Boxing experts predict Pacquiao-Mayweather