Spence warns Pacquiao ahead of title clash

FILE – Errol Spence Jr. after a unanimous decision against Danny Garcia during their WBC & IBF World Welterweight Championship fight at AT&T Stadium on December 05, 2020 in Arlington, Texas. Ronald Martinez/Getty Images/AFP

MANILA, Philippines — Errol Spence Jr. sent out a stern warning toward Manny Pacquiao ahead of their August 21 showdown for the American’s IBF and WBC welterweight titles.

In an episode of Barbershop Conversations, Spence said he’s better than ever and his victory over Danny Garcia in December 2020 was just a fraction of what he can do against Pacquiao in Las Vegas.

“I’ll be stronger and physically better than my (recent) fights. If he’s looking at that, he should be looking at the Chris Algieri, Lamont (Peterson), and Kell Brook fights to find something. If he’s looking at the last fight thinking he’s found a weakness, he’s going to be in trouble,” said Spence.

The Garcia bout was Spence’s lone fight in 2020 as he spent much of the year recovering from a horrific car crash in October 2019 in Texas.

Before that crash, though, Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) was on a tear as he stopped Algieri in five rounds in their April 2016 fight before dispatching Leonard Bundu, Brook, Peterson, and Ocampo.

His match against Ocampo lasted just three minutes.

Spence, though, knows that Pacquiao (62-7-2) will come in hungry as customary of the eight-division World champion.

“I expect the same Manny Pacquiao we get every time. He’ll come to fight, and I’m definitely going to come to fight,” said Spence. “Pacquiao doesn’t care who he fights. Pacquiao’s a warrior, he’s a guy who will fight anybody.”

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