With just a few days left before Keith Thurman defends his WBA title against Manny Pacquiao, Thurman makes his grand arrival in Las Vegas and chats with reporters on his thoughts on the fight. Check out some of what Thurman had to say…
Thurman on his matchup with Pacquiao:
?You know, I remember growing up and doing some strength work and they used to say if you have short arms and you?re lifting weights, there?s an advantage against ? you know, if you?re lifting 250 comparison with someone like yourself, with these long arms trying to lift the same 250, right, short arms can just keep pumping out a little quicker, a little easier. It?s as if they?re built for heavy lifting, okay.
?I also believe that short arms accumulates in speed as well, right? If you?ve got long arms like Muhammad Ali and, you know, Muhammad Ali was fast, Roy Jones Jr. was fast ? they had tremendous speed. But can you compare that speed to a lightweight fighter? And we all know that Manny Pacquiao is a lightweight fighter. So lightweight fighters, not only do they have higher punch outputs on average, but they come into the ring with tremendous hand speed.
?The advantage is, he does have short arms. So if he wants to hit me he has to be in a zone that I can hit him. And to make up for those short arms he?s utilized a tactic throughout his career that?s also very fast, and that?s his in-and-out movement, his feet. So not only does Manny Pacquiao have fast hand work, he has fast footwork. Ultimately it can be a problem. He might slip a few good punches in. He might catch me off guard. Like I said in the face-to-face, it?s just another fight. It?s just another black eye. Ain?t nothing that we ain?t never felt before. If he gets be down he better have me out because I?m coming. I wanna trade with Pacquiao, ?cause like Ben Getty used to tell me ever since I was 13, 14 years old: ?I don?t care who it is, boy, you hit him with 8oz gloves, they gonna do a pretty lil? dance.? Manny Pacquiao?s no different.?
