5 Things I Think About Paquiao-Algieri

My initial thoughts on the announcement of Manny Pacquiao (56-5-2, 38 KOs) vs. Chris Algieri (20-0, 8 KOs) on November 22, 2014 in Macau China. 

  

1.   It’s gonna be a tough night for Chris Algieri… and I see him as being a pretty good fighter.  I’m very surprised that Bob Arum is throwing him in the ring with Manny at this point in his career.  Why not build him up a little more? Get him some more experience under his belt before subjecting him to a top 3 fighter in the world. 

2.   One thing is painfully obvious… Manny has run out of opponents.  The Cold War may have thawed.. but with the uncertainty surrounding Golden Boy and its roster, it’s pretty clear that we’re not going to see the fights we WANNA see for some time.

3.   If ever there was a time for Bob Arum to put together a top notch undercard… this is it.  In a year that’s already seen 5 pay-per-view events with Mayweather-Maidana2 coming in September, Pacquiao-Algieri easily falls to the bottom of the list.  Add to the fact that the bout is in China against a little-known fighter, Top Rank will need to do a MASTERFUL job of promotion. 

4.   From a stylistic standpoint, Algieri finds himself in a tough position.  The tough New York native climbed off the canvas and put on a top notch boxing performance against Ruslan Provodnikov.  He stayed on the outside and beat Ruslan to the punch with crisp combinations and was able to use his movement to deter Ruslan’s attack.  Against Manny, combination punching is a great tactic… if you have power.  Algieri doesn’t possess the type of power to halt Manny’s relentless offensive attack.  Couple that with Manny’s elite footwork… and we’re likely to see Pacquiao score his first KO in 5 years.

 

5.   This is a stop-gap fight.  Bob knows it’s not gonna perform anywhere near the level of Manny’s past bouts.  It’s a calculated match that provides Manny with an opponent who doesn’t pose a risk and gives Manny a legit opportunity to score a brutal stoppage.  Algieri’s face will be bludgeoned by the middle rounds and Top Rank will use the brutality to help propel their star’s reputation back to what it once was. 

 

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