Pacquiao, Matthysse face the press in Kuala Lumpur
Kuala LumpuR—No matter what happens in his title duel against Lucas Matthysse here on July 15, Manny Pacquiao isn’t hanging up his gloves yet.
The Filipino ring icon believes he has a couple more fights left in him before closing a sterling 23-year career that has made him one of the sport’s all-time greats.
“Definitely this is not my last fight,” Pacquiao said during a press conference Friday held to drum up interest for his World Boxing Association welterweight crown showdown with the Argentine champion at Axiata Arena.
“I want my last fight to be in the Philippines, but I still have a couple more fights till I retire,” said the 39-year-old Pacquiao, who reigned in an unprecedented eight divisions.
For now, Pacquiao is focused on dethroning Matthysse and regaining his reputation tarnished by a shocking decision loss to Australian Jeff Horn in Brisbane last July.
Aware of Matthysse’s impressive knockout rate, 36 of 39 victories against four losses, Pacquiao dared not predict a stoppage, but vowed to bring the 147-pound crown home.
To do so, Pacquiao, who’ll have to divide his time at the gym with his duties as a senator, intends to train for at least 10 weeks, the early part in Manila under the supervision of bosom buddy Buboy Fernandez. When the Senate takes a break, training shifts to General Santos City.
In his first stint as an international promoter by way of MP Promotions, Pacquiao promised a viewer-pleasing fight with Matthysse in the card to be shown worldwide by ESPN on pay-per-view.
“Matthysse’s style is very aggressive. He’ll want to come inside and fight toe-to-toe. You won’t see running or dancing in the ring,” said Pacquiao, who holds a 59-7-2 (38 knockouts).
Matthysse said he’s willing to do a rematch with Pacquiao, but with Argentina as venue.