Saturday July 1, in the United States at the Arenata Coliseum in Manila, Philippines, Mexican Oscar Larios (56-4-1) will have upset in mind, when he takes on Filipino buzzsaw Manny Pacquiao (41-3-2) in a 12-round bout for the WBC international super featherweight title.
The bouts will begin at 9 pm eastern time which will ensure the live broadcast in the United States.
Larios is coming off a disappointing loss to fellow Mexican Israel Vasquez in December. Now, he?s being asked to travel abroad and pull off the monumental task of beating arguably the best featherweight in the world ? on hostile ground. That?s a tall order for any fighter, nonetheless a 29-year-old veteran of over 60 fights.
The one thing Larios has on Pacquiao is experience, but that will not be enough to win the fight in my opinion.
Pacquiao, who is coming off his one-sided annihilation of Mexico?s Erik Morales last November, should have an easy time with Larios if he?s well prepared. Pacquiao is better skilled, but Larios can be dangerous and can quickly take any fighter out of his game plan with his aggressive straight forward attack.
Larios is slightly taller at 5?8?, but the two fighter share the same reach of 67 inches. Larios does a better job using his reach to his advantage, getting full extension on his jabs and right hands. Pacquiao, on the other hand, likes to mix it up in close, but has a very deceptive jab that can land from quite a ways back.
Recipe for victory, for Larios, is to utilize his straight right and not to hesitate throwing it. Larios has a great uppercut that can land from a distance. If he catches Pacquiao with an upper coming in, it could possibly turn the fight in his favor. Larios must work the body early and often. Pacquiao uses a lot of upper body movement, which makes him very deceptive. If Larios works body early, it will slow Pacquiao down slightly, as well as give him something else to think about. A good body attack along with a variety of offensive arsenal will give Larios his best shot at victory.
Pacquiao?s recipe for victory is a little simpler; stay aggressive. Larios has a bad habit of mixing it up when he should be boxing, and against a slugger like Pacquiao, in my opinion, Larios has no shot of going toe-to-toe ? but I could be wrong. Larios? style is made to order for Pacquiao. All Pacquiao has to do is to stay on point, use his jab to set up his straight left hand.
The Pacquiao vs. Larios fight is being dubbed ?Fire in the Ring,? and there should be plenty of fireworks on this pre-4th of July weekend in the Philippines. The card is being promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and will be broadcasted live on Pay-Per-View beginning at 9 pm eastern time in the United States.
There will be a world class undercard that will continue with the Phillipines vs. Mexico theme as former 115-pound world champion Gerry Penalosa (49-5-2, 33 KO?s) takes on tough Mexican Tomas Rojas (22-8, 14 KO?s).
Penalosa will try to recapture some of the glory that made him at the top of the Super Flyweight division for half a decade against Rojas, who is a tough warrior that has faced some of the best in the lower weight divisions.
Rounding out the card will be Michael Domingo (20-12-3, 7 KO?s) taking on Alejandro Felix Montiel (51-7, 30 KO?s) in a Bantamweight affair.
This fantastic night headlined by what maybe the most exciting fighter in the world starts at 9 pm eastern time (same as a normal Pay-Per-View start time for a Saturday night)
