ERIK MORALES says he is “faster” and “stronger” than Manny Pacquiao and he is looking forward to seeing whether the Filipino has learned his lesson from the heartbreaking loss that the Mexican dealt last March at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“We will see what he (Pacquiao) does. Let’s see what experience he gained from our previous fight. Let’s see if he modifies his gameplan. Let’s see if he tries to box this time knowing that it might complicate things for me,” Morales told the leading boxing wesbite fightnews.com yesterday.
Morales and Pacquiao have been penciled to duke it out anew on Jan. 21, 2006, this time at the Thomas and Mack Center, also in Las Vegas in what could be a blockbuster in terms of gate receipts and pay-per-view sales.
“That’s what I will work on, but I assure you that he likes to exchange power punches. I know that I am faster than him and stronger, too. I know I have the advantage there and I hope it will show in the fight.”
Informed about Morales’ latest remarks, Pacquiao, during a break while attending to his gamecock farm in General Santos City yesterday afternoon, vowed to surprise his tormentor come fight night.
“Really,” asked Pacquiao, who is leaving on Nov. 11 to go on a promotional tour in Mexico and the US. He said he will immediately begin training in Cebu as soon as he gets back with trainer Freddie Roach in tow.
Pacquiao said he is drooling over the prospects of exchanging blows with Morales and he will train extra-hard so he could perform just like in Nov. 2003 in Texas when he stopped Marco Antonio Barrera in 11 rounds
“I will try hard to get back that kind of speed,” said Pacquiao, sounding irked that Morales claimed he (Pacquiao) was slower than him.
“He’ll see the next time we meet,” said Pacquiao, who is coming off a scintillating sixth-round stoppage of the durable Hector Velazquez of Mexico.
