Pacquiao ends 12th in convincing fashion

MANILA, Philippines–An accidental headbutt from Manny Pacquiao hit Chris Algieri but the two brushed it off at the start of the final round.

Algieri had to score a knockout but Pacquiao was still in charge as he continued his offensive onslaught, pinning the American to the ropes once more.

Pacquiao, with no sign of fatigue in him, still rode his momentum which started at the opening bell landing several combinations to the face of Algieri.

Last 10 seconds of Algieri’s misery and he acknowledged Pacquiao’s mastery of him.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Algieri backpedals as the 11th round ends

MANILA, Philippines–Chris Algieri tapped his reserve winds and threw a combination to Manny Pacquiao at the start of the 11th round.

Another episode of Algieri’s backpedals but Pacquiao wanted a fight as the champion closed in on the American and landed another left straight.

Pacquiao acknowledged Algieri’s efforts as chants of “Manny! Manny!” from the thousands of fans in Cotai Arena showered the Filipino.

And it’s a clinic for Pacquiao as the fight went to the 12th and final round.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Algieri tastes the mat again in the 10th

MANILA, Philippines–Chris Algieri fought back early in the 10th round but Manny Pacquiao looked as clean as a whistle.

Pacquiao then stepped up his offense once again pinning Algieri to the ropes.

Algieri kept the distance with jabs but Pacquiao closed in and landed a massive punch to the face of the New Yorker.

A massive uppercut came from Algieri but only the air between the boxers felt the pain from the throw.

Algieri wobbled but continued his impressive head movement; Pacquiao though would not be fooled.

A knockdown again as Algieri tumbled to the floor to Dionisia Pacquiao’s amusement.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Algieri falls flat on his back in round 9

MANILA, Philippines–The last single-digit round commenced with both fighters immediately going to the offensive at the sound of the bell.

Mosquito punch for Manny Pacquiao and the American Chris Algieri also threw a light punch as well.

Algieri landed three punches to the head of Pacquiao but the champion looked as fresh as ever.

Pacquiao landed a left straight and Algieri fell flat on his back but continued the fight and received three punches to the face and another knockdown.

An offensive onslaught from Pacquiao with multiple combos to the face of Algieri followed as the American reeled in pain.

source: sports.inquirer.net

A slow round 8 but Algieri still on the defensive

MANILA, Philippines–Manny Pacquiao acknowledged that Chris Algieri can still manage to go toe-to-toe with him but the Filipino immediately followed it up with a two-punch combo.

A slower pace from Pacquiao compared to the previous two rounds but Algieri still backpedaled with the American landing a right straight to the face of the champion.

Algieri told the referee that a low blow hit him but the man in charge of the ring would not give him that as Pacquiao’s glove only hit the American’s leg.

Pacquiao then gave Algieri a high-five for the mistake.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Algieri looking tired as seventh round ends

MANILA, Philippines–Manny Pacquiao looked to play with Chris Algieri as he encouraged the undefeated New Yorker to throw some punches.

Algieri responded with a hard right to the body of Pacquiao but the champion brushed it off and blocked the American’s jabs.

Pacquiao then landed a straight to the face of Algieri who looked more tired and helpless as the fight continued.

Jabs are aplenty for Pacquiao as Algieri’s arms went lower, a sure sign of fatigue.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Pinoys weigh in, expect Pacquiao victory

MANILA, Philippines—As eight-division World champion Manny Pacquiao steps onto the squared circle on Sunday in Macau, his compatriots expect that the Fighter of the Decade would once again raise his arms in victory.

“I think Pacquiao would get this one again, he’s one of us” jeepney driver Carlito Ilagan said of the home-grown hero. “I think he’s ready.”

Pacquiao will defend his WBO Welterweight Title against undefeated American Chris Algieri on Sunday in Cotai Arena in Macau.

Rolando Nazare, a traffic enforcer, said he expects Pacquiao to deliver a knockout but should be wary of the younger Algieri.

A peaceful man by vocation, Pastor Samuel Patagnan Jr. of the Apostolic Church of Jesus Christ also expects a knockout.

“I think it would still be Pacquiao, he’s an expert and a veteran,” Patagnan said. “Knockout? Probably, because he’s also fought other younger and taller fighters before.”

Kevin Patrick Hogan, an American tourist, said Pacquiao should take the fight early and a knockout would be possible.

“I think he can, but I think he’s gonna do it in the first couple of rounds, first, second, third or fourth,” Hogan said. “If it goes past the fourth round, it might be tough.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

Algieri won’t retreat, will go after Pacquiao

MACAU—Confident he can take the power of Manny Pacquiao’s punches, Chris Algieri vows to go toe-to-toe with the ring icon when they square off for the WBO welterweight crown Sunday at The Venetian Macao’s Cotai Arena here.

“I’m not a back-pedaler,” Algieri said Wednesday night. “At times, I’ll go toe-to-toe with him. I’ll be throwing combinations.”

Algieri’s confidence stems from having survived Ruslan Provodnikov’s heavy blows to win the WBO light welterweight crown in June. The undefeated American even promised an action-packed first round, noting that they’re both in great shape.

“We’re going to go after each other,” said Algieri, who added he won’t bulk up too much for the bout, set at 144 pounds, so he can stay in step with Pacquiao.

Pacquiao trainer Freddie Roach, meanwhile, said he still believes the fight will not go the distance, saying that his ward can finish off Algieri in six rounds at most.

Roach shut down Pacquiao’s training Thursday, but not after receiving heavy blows from the eight-division champion.

“I’m done. I quit,” Roach told Pacquiao after getting hit by a controlled but stinging three-punch combination to the head and body.

Top Rank chief Bob Arum expects Sunday’s fight to generate about 900,000 pay-per-view (PPV) buys based on brisk ticket sales so far.

Arum said 95 percent of the tickets have been sold as of Wednesday. The 82-year-old promoter believes the rest of the tickets for Cotai Arena, which can seat 13,500, will be wiped out before Thursday ends.

Arum is certain Pacquiao-Algieri will eclipse the sales generated when Pacquiao first fought and beat Brandon Rios by unanimous decision in this former Portuguese colony last year.

Pacquiao-Rios drew 13,101 fans and generated 450,000 PPV buys.

Holes in Pacquiao style

Algieri (20-0 with 8 knockouts) also noted that his trainers have thoroughly studied Pacquiao and found “holes in his style.”

On top of the list is Pacquiao’s vulnerability to an overhand right, something Mexican rival Juan Manuel Marquez loved to exploit. Marquez dealt Pacquiao his biggest loss thus far, a sixth-round knockout in 2012, when the Filipino icon walked into a right straight by the Mexican with a second to go.

Coincidentally, that was the last time Pacquiao hit over a million PPV buys.

NOTES: According to Bob Arum, a group of pastors will sing the Philippine national anthem for the Pacquiao-Algieri showdown. Two lovely women were reportedly barred by chief trainer Freddie Roach from the training facility Thursday. Roach saw them recording the whole training session Wednesday and he suspected them of leaking it to the Algieri camp.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Pacquiao ‘not predicting’ KO vs Algieri

MANILA, Philippines — Manny Pacquiao hasn’t stopped an opponent in five years.

And rumblings about his diminished knockout power have resurfaced as his title fight with the undefeated Chris Algieri nears.

But despite that, the former pound-for-pound king doesn’t seem pressured at all to go for it and make a point that he still packs a punch by knocking an opponent out.

“I’m not predicting a knockout,” Pacquiao said in an interview before adding, “but I’m looking for a good fight and looking to prove I can still fight.”

The 35-year-old Pacquiao isn’t getting any younger and he’s closer to his retirement than to his boxing debut. The last time he won via stoppage was on November 14, 2009 when he defeated Miguel Cotto in the 12th round.

Since then, seven of his last eight bouts have gone the distance, one of which was the highly-controversial loss to Timothy Bradley in 2012, and the only fight that didn’t last the full 12 rounds was his brutal knockout loss to Mexican rival Juan Manuel Marquez.
That stunning defeat to Marquez ironically was the closest Pacquiao got to scoring at least a stoppage when seconds before he lunged towards that devastating counter punch in the sixth round, he was all over Marquez during that round. It was also revealed after the fight that Marquez’s nose was already broken at that point.

Pacquiao may not have been able to score a knockout as of late but he has proven that he can still dominate a fight in his victories over Brandon Rios last year and Bradley in their rematch last April.

And another dominating performance against Algieri on Nov. 23 at The Venetian in Macau could pave the way for the much-awaited megafight with Floyd Mayweather.

Talks about a Pacquiao-Mayweather bout, which could go down as the richest fight in boxing history, have come up anew and the sport’s only eight-division champion Pacquiao hinted at the possibility of it.

“As long as I’m still in boxing and Mayweather is still in boxing, then there’s always a chance for that (fight),” said Pacquiao in a separate interview.

“I’m willing to fight anybody. I’m not ducking anyone.”

source: sports.inquirer.net

Pacquiao has Algieri next, but Floyd is out there

NEW YORK—Even as Manny Pacquiao prepares for undefeated junior welterweight champion Chris Algieri, the name Floyd Mayweather is never far away.

Pacquiao will defend his WBO welterweight crown on No. 22 in Macau, the 64th bout of a career that includes titles in eight divisions. None of those has been against the undefeated Mayweather.

Pacquiao told The Associated Press on Friday that a matchup with Mayweather “is the fight fans want in their hearts” and that he is always ready to step into the ring with Mayweather. The Filipino star and congressman could be closer to such a fight because promoter Bob Arum says the two cable TV networks involved, HBO and Showtime, have reached an agreement to make it happen.

Now it’s up to Mayweather to agree, Arum says.

“If that fight happens, fine,” the 35-year-old Pacquiao said. “If not, fine — what I have done in my boxing career already has satisfied me. What I will be disappointed if that does not happen is because that is what the fans want. My concern is the concern of the fans, and the fans want that fight.”

While Arum said positive steps have been taken in the direction of a Pacquiao-Mayweather bout, he is leery about Mayweather giving approval. After all, the fight hasn’t happened over a span of about a decade.

“Floyd is scared to lose the zero,” Arum said of Mayweather’s 46-0 record. “Believe me, if he lost the zero, he’d be on the plane (the next day) to make the fight, no question.”

Pacquiao isn’t and won’t think about that potentially huge payday, particularly with an opponent such as Algieri ahead of him. Algieri, from Huntington, New York, is hardly the stereotypical pugilist. He holds a master’s degree in clinical nutrition, and aspires to attend medical school. He’s also a terrific boxer with a 20-0 record and eight knockouts.

That is not in the realm of Pacquiao’s 56 wins, 38 by knockouts, and standing as one of the great fighters of his era. But it’s strong enough to impress Pacman.

“He is undefeated and a world champion,” Pacquiao said, adding with a sly smile, “I love to fight undefeated guys. I want them to experience that first (defeat).”

Algieri won his belt in June by beating powerful Ruslan Provodnikov. That was almost a home bout, held in Brooklyn, about one hour’s drive from Algieri’s Long Island hometown.

This one is in Macau, and he can’t wait to show his stuff there, especially against Pacquiao.

“I grew up looking up to other fighters,” the 30-year-old Algieri said, mentioning specifically Oscar De La Hoya — who was stopped by Pacquiao in eight rounds in 2008. ” Manny is a classy champion, a gentleman and a warrior. I kind of walk in those shoes. Professionals who show class as has Manny are a testament to the sport.”

A victory would catapult Algieri to the elite level of the sport. A win for Pacquiao would further distance him from losses to Timothy Bradley and Juan Marquez in 2012.

Pacquiao won a decision over Brandon Rios in Macau in 2013, then avenged the loss to Bradley with a unanimous decision last April.

What keeps Pacquiao going in the ring? Considering all of his other ventures, from politics to entrepreneurship to dabbling in basketball — the Philippines’ most popular sport, he said — why note walk away with his health?

“I continue because boxing is my passion,” he said. “You can see it in my face every time I fight. You see I am smiling when I walk into the ring. It’s that excitement.”

source: sports.inquirer.net