By Edward Chaykovsky
Veteran trainer Glenn Rushton believes an upset is on the cards when his fighter, 2012 Australian Olympian Jeff Horn (16-0-1, 11 KOs) will challenger eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao for the WBO welterweight crown.
The fight takes place on July 1 [July 2 in Australia] at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. About 55,000 Australian fans are expected at the venue to cheer Horn on.
Originally Pacquiao was looking to face former sparring partner Amir Khan on an April date in UAE, but the deal fell through when investors were unable to provide proof of the required funds to stage the contest.
Rushton expects Horn to take the fight to Pacquiao from round one. He feels that their fighting styles are very similar, but Horn has several advantages over his older and far more experienced opponent.
“Jeff is always coming at you,’’ Rushton told Courier Mail. “But you don’t know what he’ll throw next. He could hit you with a right hand lead. He could turn southpaw (left-handed) and come at you from a whole different angle. Jeff and Manny have similar styles but Jeff is bigger, younger and stronger. And very, very tough.’’
But Pacquiao is usually smaller, and not necessarily stronger, than his opponents. It's Pacquiao's speed and rapid movements that overwhelms most of his competition. Horn has never faced any A-level opponents in his short career and many experts are tabbing the contest as a mismatch.
Horn, a former school teacher, is a nice guy inside of the ring, but vows to go for the kill when he gets in there with Pacquiao.
“I’m pretty softly spoken and mild most of the time,’’ Horn said, “but I love the competition of boxing. When I get in the ring I’m a different person. You have to be ruthless and get rid of your opponent as quickly as possible.’’