Countdown to showdown: Pacquiao to put ‘bully’ Mayweather in place
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Manny Pacquiao recently arrived in Las Vegas ahead of his welterweight super bout with Floyd Mayweather on May 2, after a long five-hour trip form his training camp in Los Angeles.
The ferocious Filipino fighter was joined by his faithful entourage on his tour bus which was embroiled with glaring images of himself, including determined trainer and mentor Freddie Roach, who has been continuously talking up his fighter’s chances against undefeated ‘Money’ Mayweather.
On arrival to Sin City, the Hall of Fame trainer declared: “Our long international boxing nightmare will soon be over.
“Boxing has been held hostage by Floyd Mayweather and his antics long enough. Manny is going to stand up to Floyd on May 2 and put a bully in his place.”
‘The Filipino Slugger’ is the outsider to end ‘Pretty Boy’ Floyd’s unwavered fighting record of 47-0, with the 36-year-old an 11/2 chance with Coral to inflict a maiden stoppage defeat on his American counterpart.
“Manny shouldn’t stand a chance. But neither did David against Goliath,” continued Roach.
“Just remember, Manny has always come out on top when he was the underdog and you don’t have to look any further than his victories over [Lehlohonolo] Ledwaba, [Marco Antonio] Barrera and [Oscar] De La Hoya.”
The sporting world will come to a standstill as the global audience cast their eyes on the MGM Grand on May 2, when these two legendary boxers finally come head-to-head after months of build-up and years of heated speculation.
After four rounds of intense sparring, working on the mitts and a quick cool down, eight-division world champion Pacquiao, who holds a record of 57-5-2, completed his final training regime at Roach’s Wild card Boxing Club in Hollywood, before heading for Vegas.
“As Manny said earlier, ‘It is time for Floyd to lose.’ Manny is on a mission. This fight is his crusade,” declared Roach.
“The fans of the world are rooting for Manny to win just like they willed this fight to happen. He is their champion. This will be their victory.”
‘Money’ Mayweather, a 10-time world champion, is 6/1 to win by KO or TKO and odds-on 4/6 to edge Pacquiao out on points, having rallied to 26 stoppage victories in his 47-fight career so far, with ‘Pacman’ available at 7/2 to get the decision.
On May 2, these two men will put countless hours of training to the test and years of anticipation to rest in the richest fight in boxing history, as they unify the welterweight world championship in front of a worldwide audience.
