Brandon Rios enters the toughest challenge of his career Saturday when the all-action fighter challenges Manny Pacquiao at Cotai Arena in Macau.
Manny Pacquiao-Brandon Rios Where: Venetian Macao’s CotaiArena, Macau When: Saturday, 9 p.m. ET TV: HBO PPV
Rios (31-1-1, 23 KOs), who enters the bout following the first defeat of his career, a decision to Mike Alvarado in their March rematch, has a prime opportunity to make the leap among the sport’s elite. The Mexican-American fighter will be facing a true icon of the sport in Pacquiao (54-5-2, 38 KOs), who is coming off of two consecutive defeats for the first time in his career.
In order to win and achieve this goal in his first headlining role in a pay-per-view, here are five keys for Rios against Pacquiao:
Precise and powerful 0Rios has the power. Set to make his debut at 147 pounds, he has been working on his punching power and physical strength, but there’s no question he lacks his opponent’s speed. In order to defeat him, Rios will have to elude Pacquiao’s hand speed and footwork while punishing him with precise and strong punches. Hitting only when he is sure to land will be his priority, because failing against an opponent like Pacquiao is asking for a heavy counterpunch. Marquez style 1The blueprint for this fight seems very clear. Rios will march forward, attempting to hit his opponent at any cost while Pacquiao moves laterally, punching from angles. But what happens if Rios chooses to wait, take a step back and surprise him with a counterpunch? One punch was all it took for Juan Manuel Marquez to take advantage of that same scheme. Rios can do it, too. Why not? Confidence and enthusiasm 0Pacquiao enters the fight as the favorite. Rios, fresh from a loss in his last outing, will be fighting in enemy territory and at an atypical time of day (in Macau, it will be Sunday morning). Going into the ring without any of these things weighing on his shoulders will be an added value for his chances. Rios has to fight with confidence and enthusiasm in an effort to ruin the Filipino’s return to Asia, send him into retirement and enter history with a good check in his bank account. The mental battle 0Pacquiao’s mental state, as well as his concentration, is unknown. In his first fight since a devastating knockout against Marquez, he is also dealing with the toll of the recent typhoon that destroyed part of his home country. Both situations have the potential to affect his performance in the early going. If that’s the case, and PacMan comes in looking unfocused or unmotivated, Rios will need to be alert and ready to take advantage. Listen to Robert 1Rios’ trainer, Robert Garcia, has an important job in a very difficult fight. His fighter is not the favorite and is facing an opponent with better speed and knockout power in both hands. In addition, how well Rios adapts to the environment and time zone in Macau is a mystery. This unstable reality mandates that Garcia should have more than one fight plan and that he is very intelligent in his instructions during the fight.
