Manny Pacquiao has opened training camp for his fight against Errol Spence Jr. with a bang.
Manny Pacquiao evidently hit the ground running in his first day of training for his fight against Errol Spence July 20 in Las Vegas.
The welterweight titleholder arrived today at his gym-away-from-home Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood, Calif., a day after leaving his home in the Philippines. And, according to longtime trainer Freddie Roach, he arrived in shape.
He began the day with a five-mile run and 1,000 sit-ups before an afternoon session at the iconic gym, according to a news release. He then worked out for nearly three hours, with nine rounds on the mitts.
Roach was impressed.
“If this is how Manny hits with jet lag, I may need to get new gloves with thicker padding for our next sessions,” Roach said. “He was incredible sharp for his first day. He hit hard with good power. After all these years, I’m still amazed at the great condition he’s in when he comes to training camp. After traveling around the world yesterday, he put in a full day here – mitts, speed bag, shadow boxing – the works.
“The best part was at the end when he lifted his shirt to show me his six pack and said, ‘Freddie, I’m still here.’”
Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) knows the challenges he faces against Spence (27-0, 21 KOs).
Spence, ranked No. 4 on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list, is 31 years old and his prime. No. 15 Pacquiao is coming off a sensational victory over Keith Thurman but that fight took place more than two years ago and he’s 42.
Spence is about a 2½-1 favorite in the fight.
“Errol Spence is a very difficult fight for me, perhaps the most difficult of my career,” Pacquiao said. “But I have been an underdog my whole life. I am used to that. It is why I work so hard. But the love and the prayers of my fellow Philippine citizens and Filipinos around the world sustain and inspire me.
“I fight for the glory of my nation and for underdogs everywhere.”
Manny Pacquiao has opened training camp for his fight against Errol Spence Jr. with a bang.
Manny Pacquiao evidently hit the ground running in his first day of training for his fight against Errol Spence July 20 in Las Vegas.
The welterweight titleholder arrived today at his gym-away-from-home Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood, Calif., a day after leaving his home in the Philippines. And, according to longtime trainer Freddie Roach, he arrived in shape.
He began the day with a five-mile run and 1,000 sit-ups before an afternoon session at the iconic gym, according to a news release. He then worked out for nearly three hours, with nine rounds on the mitts.
Roach was impressed.
“If this is how Manny hits with jet lag, I may need to get new gloves with thicker padding for our next sessions,” Roach said. “He was incredible sharp for his first day. He hit hard with good power. After all these years, I’m still amazed at the great condition he’s in when he comes to training camp. After traveling around the world yesterday, he put in a full day here – mitts, speed bag, shadow boxing – the works.
“The best part was at the end when he lifted his shirt to show me his six pack and said, ‘Freddie, I’m still here.’”
Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) knows the challenges he faces against Spence (27-0, 21 KOs).
Spence, ranked No. 4 on Boxing Junkie’s pound-for-pound list, is 31 years old and his prime. No. 15 Pacquiao is coming off a sensational victory over Keith Thurman but that fight took place more than two years ago and he’s 42.
Spence is about a 2½-1 favorite in the fight.
“Errol Spence is a very difficult fight for me, perhaps the most difficult of my career,” Pacquiao said. “But I have been an underdog my whole life. I am used to that. It is why I work so hard. But the love and the prayers of my fellow Philippine citizens and Filipinos around the world sustain and inspire me.
“I fight for the glory of my nation and for underdogs everywhere.”
Errol Spence Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao: Chris Algieri, who fought both men, smells a potential upset.
Can Manny Pacquiao beat Errol Spence Jr. in their 147-pound title-unification bout on Aug. 21? One man who faced both fighters believes so.
Chris Algieri lost a near shutout decision against Pacquiao in 2014 and was stopped in five rounds by Spence two years later. Algieri went down nine times in those fights, six times against Pacquiao.
He believes the Filipino icon shouldn’t be underestimated even though he’s now 42 years old and will have been out of the ring for more than two years.
Pacquiao stunned many observers when he defeated Keith Thurman by a split decision to win the WBA welterweight title in July 2019. He’s about a 3-1 underdog going into the fight with Spence.
“I never count out Manny,” he said on the DAZN Boxing Show. “He’s one of those guys. He has the one-punch power, he has that speed and he’s awkward. He sets traps, his off-beat rhythm. His ability to change throughout a fight. The best make adjustments.
“The guys who can adjust are the guys who separate from themselves. Manny does that as good as anyone even at that advanced age.”
Algieri, a former 140-pound champ, believes Pacquiao also is capable of hurting Spence. Pacquiao has one knockout in the past 11-plus years.
“He’s got a punch, he’s got power,” Algieri said. “If he can walk Spence into these shots we could get an upset.”
Errol Spence Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao: Chris Algieri, who fought both men, smells a potential upset.
Can Manny Pacquiao beat Errol Spence Jr. in their 147-pound title-unification bout on Aug. 21? One man who faced both fighters believes so.
Chris Algieri lost a near shutout decision against Pacquiao in 2014 and was stopped in five rounds by Spence two years later. Algieri went down nine times in those fights, six times against Pacquiao.
He believes the Filipino icon shouldn’t be underestimated even though he’s now 42 years old and will have been out of the ring for more than two years.
Pacquiao stunned many observers when he defeated Keith Thurman by a split decision to win the WBA welterweight title in July 2019. He’s about a 3-1 underdog going into the fight with Spence.
“I never count out Manny,” he said on the DAZN Boxing Show. “He’s one of those guys. He has the one-punch power, he has that speed and he’s awkward. He sets traps, his off-beat rhythm. His ability to change throughout a fight. The best make adjustments.
“The guys who can adjust are the guys who separate from themselves. Manny does that as good as anyone even at that advanced age.”
Algieri, a former 140-pound champ, believes Pacquiao also is capable of hurting Spence. Pacquiao has one knockout in the past 11-plus years.
“He’s got a punch, he’s got power,” Algieri said. “If he can walk Spence into these shots we could get an upset.”
Manny Pacquiao deserves our undying admiration by choosing to fight Errol Spence Jr.
I didn’t think I could admire Manny Pacquiao any more than I already did.
The Filipino icon is a former eight-division titleholder who has fought virtually all of his best-possible opponents, several of them multiple times. In his most-recent bout, at 40 years old, he upset Keith Thurman to win a welterweight title.
If anyone has earned the right to cruise into retirement by facing a minimal threat or a pushover like Conor McGregor, it’s Pacquiao. He could make a lot of money with minimal risk.
So what does he do? He decides to tangle with one of the most-feared fighters on the planet at 42 after having been out of the ring for two years. He will take on welterweight king Errol Spence Jr. on Aug. 21 in Las Vegas, the fighters announced Friday.
Manny Pacquiao (right) proved against Keith Thurman that he can still fight into his 40s. John Gurzinski / AFP via Getty Images
I don’t know what’s in Pacquiao’s head. I can’t say with authority that he sought out the most-difficult challenge in his division because of some sort of warrior mentality.
This is what I do know: He’s well aware of the danger he faces against a beast like Spence, who is naturally bigger than he is and considered one of the best fighters in the world pound for pound. Yet that’s the choice he made.
It was as if he was saying, “What’s the point of doing this if you’re not going to do it at the highest level?”
I hope the other top fighters are paying close attention. Too many of them spend as much time and energy avoiding genuine challenges as they do exchanging punches in the ring, which has had a detrimental impact on the sport.
And here we have a fighter well past his prime who could make good money elsewhere choosing to face the best in the business.
This is how it should be done, folks.
Of course, it’s possible that this won’t end well. I fear for Pacquiao. I was in attendance the night in 2008 that he gave faded superstar Oscar De La Hoya a horrific beating at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, embarrassing him in the process. De La Hoya never fought again.
The last thing I want to see is Pacquiao going out the same way against Spence or anyone else. The thought makes me shudder.
Pacquiao has been in some tough fights – including his unforgettable one-punch knockout loss to rival Juan Manuel Marquez in 2012 – but he’s never taken sustained punishment from anyone. And the longer he faces elite opponents, the more likely that scenario could become reality.
I hope and pray that we don’t say late on the night of Aug. 21, “Man, that fight should never have taken place?”
I thought Pacquiao had almost no chance of beating Thurman, one of the better 147-pounders of the past decade. The underdog was still capable, as he had demonstrated in a victory over Adrien Broner six months earlier, but he was no longer the dynamo he had been.
Still, in retrospect, I shouldn’t have been surprised that Pacquiao had his hand raised. Thurman had battled injuries and was relatively inactive. He was ripe for an upset.
Spence? He’s something altogether different. He demonstrated against Danny Garcia in December that he is fully recovered from injuries suffered in an October 2019 car accident, outpointing an excellent, experienced fighter by a wide margin.
The 31-year-old Texan has now defeated in succession Mikey Garcia, Shawn Porter and Danny Garcia, which confirmed what many of us believed about him: He’s a special fighter capable of accomplishing great things.
Can Pacquiao do it again? Can he find a way to defeat a future Hall of Famer who is in his prime? I doubt it. On paper, I think it’s a one-sided matchup.
That’s why I can’t applaud Pacquiao enough. The danger is what makes his decision so admirable.
If he wins, more people than ever will suggest that he might be the greatest fighter of his generation and possibly of all time. It would be akin to Sugar Ray Leonard’s upset of Marvin Hagler. If he loses, they’ll say he demonstrated his greatness simply by running full speed toward a profoundly difficult challenge, which is rare these days.
Either way, Pacquiao is more of a legend than ever.
Manny Pacquiao deserves our undying admiration by choosing to fight Errol Spence Jr.
I didn’t think I could admire Manny Pacquiao any more than I already did.
The Filipino icon is a former eight-division titleholder who has fought virtually all of his best-possible opponents, several of them multiple times. In his most-recent bout, at 40 years old, he upset Keith Thurman to win a welterweight title.
If anyone has earned the right to cruise into retirement by facing a minimal threat or a pushover like Conor McGregor, it’s Pacquiao. He could make a lot of money with minimal risk.
So what does he do? He decides to tangle with one of the most-feared fighters on the planet at 42 after having been out of the ring for two years. He will take on welterweight king Errol Spence Jr. on Aug. 21 in Las Vegas, the fighters announced Friday.
Manny Pacquiao (right) proved against Keith Thurman that he can still fight into his 40s. John Gurzinski / AFP via Getty Images
I don’t know what’s in Pacquiao’s head. I can’t say with authority that he sought out the most-difficult challenge in his division because of some sort of warrior mentality.
This is what I do know: He’s well aware of the danger he faces against a beast like Spence, who is naturally bigger than he is and considered one of the best fighters in the world pound for pound. Yet that’s the choice he made.
It was as if he was saying, “What’s the point of doing this if you’re not going to do it at the highest level?”
I hope the other top fighters are paying close attention. Too many of them spend as much time and energy avoiding genuine challenges as they do exchanging punches in the ring, which has had a detrimental impact on the sport.
And here we have a fighter well past his prime who could make good money elsewhere choosing to face the best in the business.
This is how it should be done, folks.
Of course, it’s possible that this won’t end well. I fear for Pacquiao. I was in attendance the night in 2008 that he gave faded superstar Oscar De La Hoya a horrific beating at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, embarrassing him in the process. De La Hoya never fought again.
The last thing I want to see is Pacquiao going out the same way against Spence or anyone else. The thought makes me shudder.
Pacquiao has been in some tough fights – including his unforgettable one-punch knockout loss to rival Juan Manuel Marquez in 2012 – but he’s never taken sustained punishment from anyone. And the longer he faces elite opponents, the more likely that scenario could become reality.
I hope and pray that we don’t say late on the night of Aug. 21, “Man, that fight should never have taken place?”
I thought Pacquiao had almost no chance of beating Thurman, one of the better 147-pounders of the past decade. The underdog was still capable, as he had demonstrated in a victory over Adrien Broner six months earlier, but he was no longer the dynamo he had been.
Still, in retrospect, I shouldn’t have been surprised that Pacquiao had his hand raised. Thurman had battled injuries and was relatively inactive. He was ripe for an upset.
Spence? He’s something altogether different. He demonstrated against Danny Garcia in December that he is fully recovered from injuries suffered in an October 2019 car accident, outpointing an excellent, experienced fighter by a wide margin.
The 31-year-old Texan has now defeated in succession Mikey Garcia, Shawn Porter and Danny Garcia, which confirmed what many of us believed about him: He’s a special fighter capable of accomplishing great things.
Can Pacquiao do it again? Can he find a way to defeat a future Hall of Famer who is in his prime? I doubt it. On paper, I think it’s a one-sided matchup.
That’s why I can’t applaud Pacquiao enough. The danger is what makes his decision so admirable.
If he wins, more people than ever will suggest that he might be the greatest fighter of his generation and possibly of all time. It would be akin to Sugar Ray Leonard’s upset of Marvin Hagler. If he loses, they’ll say he demonstrated his greatness simply by running full speed toward a profoundly difficult challenge, which is rare these days.
Either way, Pacquiao is more of a legend than ever.
Manny Pacquiao and Errol Spence Jr. will fight on Aug. 21 in Las Vegas, the fighters anounced on social media.
One cannot say that Manny Pacquiao is afraid of a challenge.
The Filipino icon announced on social media that he will face 147-pound champion Errol Spence Jr. in a pay-per-view bout on Aug. 21 in Las Vegas.
Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) surprised many by outpointing Keith Thurman to win the WBA welterweight title in July 2019. However, that will have been more than two years ago and he’s now 42.
Plus, Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) is naturally bigger than Pacquiao and one of the three or four best fighters in the world pound for pound.
Pacquiao was elevated to “champion in recess” because of his inactivity and was replaced as the sanctioning body’s main titleholder by Yordenis Ugas.
“Done deal, I’ll see y’all in Vegas for the biggest fight of the year,” Spence wrote on Instagram.
Pacquiao simply posted an image that included the wording, “Pacquiao vs. Spence, August 21, 2021, Las Vegas, Nevada.”
A specific site has not been announced.
Pacquiao is an eight-division titleholder. Spence is coming off a wide decision over Danny Garcia in December, his fifth successful title defense. He holds the IBF and WBC belts.
