BOXING great Manny Pacquiao will arrive in Brisbane with an entourage of 200 people on a chartered jet on Saturday night ready to make $10 million at Suncorp Stadium ? more than 20 times the purse for Brisbane?s Fighting Schoolteacher.
Pacquiao has made more than $660 million from boxing over the past 20 years, including $165 million from his defeat against Floyd Mayweather in 2015.
But Jeff Horn says he is not overawed by Pacquiao?s reputation or the prospect of fighting one of the greatest fighters of all time before more than 50,000 people at the ground and a global audience of close to a billion.
He is not even upset about the difference in pay.
The fresh-faced, undefeated slugger from Acacia Ridge went through a blistering 16 rounds with fitness coach Dundee Kim at West End yesterday and said he was more than ready to take Pacquiao?s world title.
?He?s arriving on Saturday and my message to him is relax and enjoy your stay in Brisbane because on July 2 I?m taking your world title,?? Horn said.
?But I have to first say thank you to him for giving me the chance. I never thought I would ever get the opportunity to fight for his world title and certainly not before a packed crowd at Suncorp.
?This is a huge event because of the star power of Manny Pacquiao.
?He?s one of the greatest boxers in history and people in Australia have supported the fight because of his name and the chance to see an Aussie against him. But I believe this is the start of a new era in boxing and a changing of the guard.??
Horn is hoping the crowd for the World Boxing Organisation welterweight title fight will top Queensland?s biggest ever sporting audience ? the 58,912 who saw the Broncos win the 1997 Super League grand final at QEII Stadium.
On their media tour in April, Pacquiao sat in business-class on their Virgin Airlines flights and Horn in economy, and Pacquiao?s team say their fighter is in a different class in the ring as well.
Pacquiao?s American trainer Freddie Roach told The Courier-Mail that Pacquiao can knock out Horn at any time he chooses. Horn and his trainer Glenn Rushton say they hope the great Filipino champ is still thinking that when the first bell sounds at 1.30pm on Sunday week.
?We want Manny overconfident and dismissive of Jeff?s chances,?? Rushton said.
?Jeff?s a heavy puncher but the legs are the key to this fight. His legs are 29, Manny?s are 38. Jeff will be giving Manny all kinds of angles and controlling the distance between them.
?Manny?s legs aren?t as fast as they were 10 years ago. If he?s cut corners in his preparation Jeff will make him pay hard for every one of those 38 years.??
