“I’m hungry to win because this fight is the grand finale between us. This is a very important fight for me.”
FightFan.com attended a day of training in Manny Pacquiao’s camp for his upcoming rubber match with Eric Morales. In this exclusive interview Manny speaks about his training, sparring, and hunger to win on Nov. 18th. Only on fightFan.com!
FF: Manny, thanks for taking the time to talk with the FightFans at FightFan.com. How is training going for your third fight with Eric Morales?
MP: Good. I am ready.
FF: How is your weight right now?
MP: No problems. I am 134 lbs right now.
FF: You feel your conditioning is very good as of right now?
MP: Yes.
FF: How is sparring going right now? Freddie tells us they’re switching the partners up on you…
MP: Right now I have four sparring partners and they’re good. They’re 147 lbs.
FF: You’re not hurting them too much are you?
MP: (Laughs) Sometimes I hurt them.
FF: Manny, how hungry are you to win this third fight with Morales?
MP: I’m hungry to win because this fight is the grand finale between us. This is a very important fight for me.
FF: Are you looking to improve on your last performance vs. Morales? Do you think there’s room for you to do better than you did in the rematch?
MP: I just try my best. I do my best and I’m still very hungry.
FF: How is your right hand now? Do you feel it’s getting better and how important will it be in this fight?
MP: Yes, there’s a lot of improvement in my right hand right now. It’s going to be a big help in this fight.
FF: So you’ll be looking to throw it over his jab and counter him?
MP: Yes.
FF: How are you feeling now in terms of your mindset? Are there any distractions at this point or do you feel you’re able to focus?
MP: Right now we’re very focused for the fight, and 100% conditioned.
FF: (Tagalog) Para sa ‘yo ang laban na ‘to…
MP: That’s from my album.
FF: What does that mean?
MP: “Para sa ‘yo ang laban na ‘to”, it means this fight is for you.
FF: What does that song mean? It’s about the Philippines?
MP: Yes, its about and to all of my countrymen.
FF: You’re obviously very famous back home, does the pressure that comes with that fame ever get to you? Or does it motivate you?
MP: Well, you know, there is pressure, but it does motivate me to win in every fight.
FF: How long will you fight on after this year? Do you feel you have a lot of fights left in you?
MP: Oh yeah, I have more years left in me.
FF: Do you feel you’ve improved as a fighter in the last few years? You seem to be boxing a bit more, showing angles, and using very good and improved footwork. Do you feel you’re getting better with each fight?
MP: Well the training we do is aimed to improve. We work on technique, movement and footwork. We really work on technique.
FF: We’re FightFan.com and we also work with PhilBoxing and Pacland. Would you like to give a shout out to all the FightFans out there?
MP: Hello FightFan.com, and hello to all my fans, especially my countrymen and thank you all for your support. I hope you will all watch the fight on Nov. 18th.
FF: Manny thanks for taking the time to chat with us.
MP: Thanks.
