By Ronnie Nathanielsz
Filipino ring idol Manny Pacquiao expects legendary Mexican Erik "El Terrible" Morales to be "in the best shape of his life" for their Grand Finale rubber match at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on November 18 because this is a "must win fight for him."
In answer to questions sent by Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today through his public relations officer and Team Pacquiao member Winchell Campos, Pacquiao said that a knockout will be "my gift to all my countrymen. A bonus."
Pacquiao made the comment in relation to predictions by WBC founding secretary general Rudy Salud and former WBC super flyweight champion Gerry Penalosa that Morales would be strong for the first three or four rounds but after that Pacquiao’s speed and power would get to Morales and Pacquiao will win by knockout in six or seven rounds.
Pacquiao said he knows that Morales had seen tapes of his fights and knows his (Pacquiao's) gameplan. The southpaw with devastating power in either hand indicated " I always go for a win or knockout in every second of every round."
At the same time Pacquiao said he believes the issue of Morales’ weight is being "blown up to make me feel over confident." He said he expects Morales ro make the 130 pound limit and not come in overweight. However, Pacquiao said that if by some chance Morales weighs over 132 pounds he will take the $1 million penalty and refuse to fight him.
Pacquiao said training camp was going well and "despite some distractions, we are on the right track." He said celebrated trainer Freddie Roach and he were still "working on the right hook to perfection." Pacquiao revealed they were working on some new things in training but added, "they are all top secret now." He said he expects Morales "to come up with new moves too."
When asked about a possible rematch with Marco Antonio Barrera next March, Pacquiao said he was not looking past Morales. He said "right now I am only focused on Morales and I will decide after the fight if Barrera is next. Of course all the fans would want me to face Barrera. That would be a great rematch and I would love to face him anytime, anywhere."
