Manny Pacquiao yesterday declared himself 80 to 90 percent ready for his Dec. 6 showdown with Oscar dela Hoya at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao told the PSA Forum through phone patch that his training is going smoothly, and with just a month left before the fight he just feels right on track.
?We?re just working on my stamina but actually I?m 80 to 90 percent ready. We just have to maintain it so I would reach hundred percent,? Pacquiao said from Los Angeles.
The 29-year-old Pacquiao had just come from training when contacted for the phone patch.
?One month to go. I?m doing everything in training which starts at 7 in the morning,? said Pacquiao during the open forum held weekly at Shakey?s UN Avenue.
Pacquiao can?t give the exact number of rounds of sparring he?s had so far but he?s in his fourth week going up against boxers as tall as six feet and as heavy as 160 pounds.
The southpaw from Gen. Santos City said after this fight he?s planning one or two more fights before he calls it a day. It may include fights with Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Juan Manuel Marquez.
?There?s no problem with me if it?s Mayweather. You know me. I?m ready to fight. I?m not avoiding Marquez, too. If I can fight Oscar then I can fight him a third time ? if the price is right,? he said.
He also said during the conference call made through the facilities of DZSR Sports Radio 918 that he doesn?t mind if Dela Hoya has tapped a brand-new team composed of trainers Nacho Beristain and Angelo Dundee to help the latter prepare for this fight.
?Maybe they couldn?t agree on certain things that?s why there are changes in their team,? he said.
Pacquiao is currently at 150 to 152 pounds but said by the middle of November he should be around two or three pounds away from the weight limit of 147 pounds.
?I?m just trying to maintain my weight so I wouldn?t be too light with still one month left,? said Pacquiao, adding that with the addition of plyometrics, it has been the most difficult training so far in his career.
Plyometrics is a special form of exercise that helps an athlete add up in power and size without really losing his speed. He does these exercises behind closed doors.
Pacquiao refused to make any predictions for the fight where Dela Hoya, at 5-foot-10 at least four inches taller than the Filipino, is tipped as the heavy favorite.
?You know me. I don?t make any predictions. What I do is train hard and hope to surprise everybody. Can I knock him out? It will come if you?re a hundred percent fit,? he said.
