LAS VEGAS- Manny Pacquiao has a potent crew of believers on his side when he collides with Keith Thur?man Saturday night (Sunday noon Manila time) at the MGM Grand.
Mexican legends Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera and his former sparmate Shawn Porter and ex-world lightweight champion Ray ?Boom Boom? Mancini are all back?ing Pacquiao.
?He puts in a lot of pressure and he?s always in front of you. Psycho?logically, it is hard to fight Manny Pacquiao,? said Barrera, who suffered an 11th-round TKO in 2003 and a 12-round decision in 2007.
During Thursday?s roundtable, Bar?rera feels Pacquiao will win on points. ?He maintains pressure on you,? added the 45-year-old Barrera, who retired in 2011 with a 67-7 record.
Morales, who figured in a storied three-fight rivalry with Pacquiao, says Thurman?s ?style suits Pacquiao.?
?This is going to be a complicated fight. But knowing Pacquiao, starting the second he will begin to charge. He will win by late-round TKO or decision,? said Morales, nicknamed El Terrible, who retired in 2014.
Mancini, who reigned in the 1980s, is obviously a diehard Pacquiao fan based on his analysis, stressing that ?Manny?s great in inches and angles.?
But Mancini, now 55, best remem?bered for his fatal knockout of Duk Koo Kim in 1982, thinks there are two ways the fight will end.
?First scenario is Manny grows old one fight, because every fight grows old one night. But I don?t see it happen?ing but it could. If that?s the case, this (Thurman) aint the guy you want to be against,? said Mancini, who also fought and lost to Alexis Arguello, dropped heartbreakers to Livingston Bramble twice but victimized Bobby Chacon, Art Frias and Orlando Romero.
?Because of his (Pacquiao) experi?ence in big fights, I think he punches straight down the middle and Keith is kind of wide open,? said Mancini.
Thurman?s inactivity is also a fac?tor why Mancini is going for Pacquiao, noting that this is going to be just Thur?man?s fourth fight in four years.
?Manny Pacquiao is one guy you don?t want to be against if you are a bit inactive,? added Mancini.
Porter, the reigning World Boxing Association champion, swears it?s a tough fight for both and it has all the trappings of becoming a chess match.
