Perfect-form Pacquiao a must

Manny Pacquiao did not have to be told that he can’t afford to be less than 100 percent for his projected fight against hard-punching Lucas Matthysse of Argentina.

The fight for the WBA version of the world welterweight championship is expected to be staged in Kuala Lumpur on June 24.

Team Pacquiao, after an announcement of the place and date of the championship, said the fighting Filipino senator was busy tying loose ends for the title bout, while totally disregarding Top Rank CEO Bob Arum, who continued to claim Pacquiao has remained under contract with his outfit.

From the original March 22 launch in Kuala Lumpur, Pacquiao’s camp has reset the event takeoff to April 5 in Manila.

The same announcement said Oscar De La Hoya, whose Golden Boy Promotions was supposed to be co-promoting the KL championship with MP Promotions, could be expected in Manila first week of April.

Pacquiao has been quoted as saying he could still perform on a high level.

He performed below par in his last fight against Jeff Horn, who scored a controversial upset in Brisbane July 2 last year to capture the WBO welterweight crown.

As things stand, it’s likely Pacquiao would be trying to hit peak form without the help and supervision of long-time trainer Freddie Roach. The Hall-of-Fame trainer, who charted Pacquiao’s path to superstardom, claimed Pacquiao has refused to return his calls.

The famous tandem were last seen together in the Brisbane dugout on July 2, where they also failed to communicate.

Did Roach miss out on anything in preparing Pacquiao against Horn?

Nothing clear on the issue, but take it from Horn chief handler Glenn Rushton, who said he readily observed Pacquiao’s poor form in the first round of the July 2 title encounter.

Rushton said he observed Pacquiao stunned and ducking right off after rugged Horn started big and strong.

Meanwhile, Los Angeles matchmaker Sean Gibbons stated in a brief visit here that Pacquiao should make sure to be in peak form against Matthysse.

Gibbons told veteran sports columnist Joaquin Henson that Matthysse may not be as big and rugged as Horn, but the Argentine, with inferior footwork, packs a killer punch that could stun and upset Pacquiao in one luckless snap.

The 35-year-old Matthysse has a record of 39 wins and four losses, with 36 of his victories all coming by knockout.