By Luke Furman
WBO junior welterweight champion Ruslan Provodnikov (23-2, 16KOs) sees nothing wrong with stepping in the ring to knock out his friend, Manny Pacquiao (55-5-2, 38KOs). The Filipino star is going to return on April 12th at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The opponent has yet to be finalized.
At first Provodnikov was against the match, because their share the same trainer in Freddie Roach and they often sparred in the past. Later he changed his mind, and said he would immediately hunt for a new trainer if a Pacquiao fight got made.
"First, there is nothing wrong with this [fight], it's business. Boxing history has shown us many examples where best friends go out and fight with each other. Although we can't really call ourselves [best friends] with Manny - we were friends, we knew each other and we were always talking when we met. In that fight [with Brandon Rios], Manny showed that I have a good chance [to win]," Providnikov said to Russia Beyond The News.
Luke Furman covers boxing for bokser.org
