WBO welterweight champion Manny Pacquiao may go for an early knockout win against WBO light welterweight champion Chris Algieri when they face each other in the ring on Nov. 22 at the Venetian Resort & Casino in Macau, China. Pacquiao’s longtime trainer Freddie Roach, who is not impressed with Algieri’s credentials, could devise a plan that will save Pacquiao from the rigors of going for a full-length 12-round showdown to minimize the risk of an upset by Algieri. The Hall of Fame trainer has downplayed Algieri’s skill saying that the ex-kickboxer has nothing more than his good jab. “His style, he’s a bit of a runner. Pacquiao doesn’t particularly like fighting guys who run so much. We’ll figure out a way to beat him. It’s not a problem. … He’s got a good jab. That’s it,” he told badlefthook.com
Roach wanted Algieri to get back to Ruslan Provodnikov for a rematch, believing that his young Russian pupil won the fight on points. “I’d rather like to see him fight a rematch first, and if he won it, and he won the fight clearly, then I think that he might deserve a fight like that,” said Roach. “Yeah. For Pacquiao, there’s not a lot of opponents out there right now.” Read more: But in his seeming eagerness to find a future replacement for Pacquiao in his Top Rank stable of fighters, promoter Bob Arum immediately signed up Algieri as Pacquiao’s next opponent. Pacquiao, who is Top Rank Promotions top earner has expressed his desire to retire after three or four more fights. Algieri, who is unbeaten in 20 pro fights, is expected to be more active than Pacquiao in the later rounds on account of his excellent physical conditioning while Pacquiao may not be as active as he was in previous fights as he approaches the summit of his career. At 35, Pacquiao is getting ready for warning signs that would indicate he has gotten past his prime. At this age, a boxer has to contend with loss of elasticity and resiliency. “The simplest way of characterizing the aging process would have to be loss of elasticity. With the loss of elasticity comes the concomitant loss of resiliency, the ability to bounce back, to recover from injury whether by natural causes, illness or trauma.” Muhammad Ali’s pysiscian Dr. Freddie Pacheco, told New York Times during Ali’s active years in boxing. Pacheco stressed that boxing is a young man’s sport, saying that loss of resiliency affects the brain more than any organ. He equates the number of punches that land on the boxer’s head from the time he starts during his amateur days onto his professional career. “A boxer who fights after 35 is pushing on the gas pedal, accelerating toward an early demise and making his trip there uncomfortable. Pacheco added.Read more: With all these in mind, it would be better for Pacquaio to go for a knockout win in the early rounds and save himself from a relentless attack by his well-conditioned opponent in the later rounds. Algeri, Pacquiao, along with their trainers and their receptive camps are set to meet up with Arum in Macau to kick off their usual media tour in China and in the US starting August 25.
