During a conversation with trainer Derrick James leading into the big welterweight showdown between Manny Pacquiao and Errol Spence, James discusses his preparation for the bout with Spence and why he’s expecting a tough fight for both men in the ring. James says he thinks Pacquiao still has all the immeasurables that make him an all-time great and is sure the Filipino icon will be coming to win on fight night. Check out some excerpts from the interview below.
James on the perception that Pacquiao will struggle facing another southpaw in Spence
“I don’t necessarily know. I think that all the experience that he has, all the experience that Freddie Roach has, I think that’s what you lean on — is the training, your ability to remember how to fight these other guys, and he’s always fought bigger guys. So I think that we’ll see how well he does...It’s going to be a very difficult fight for the both of ‘em. I think it all depends on who figures it out better. And the thing about Manny is no so much about the left handedness but you’re fighting a guy that throws 100 punches a round for 12 rounds.
On what he’s seen from the leaked Pacquiao training footage
“He’s still got it. He still has the angles, he’s still got those intangibles that make you great. That’s what it is, that’s who he is, and that’s one of those things as a fighter how he says ‘I can beat that guy.’..Manny ain’t going in there to lose the fight, he’s going in there saying ‘I can beat that guy, I’m gonna show you I can beat that guy.’”