Pacquiao versus Algieri

I watched clips of Manny Pacquiao train like I read a heavyweight

book- carefully reading in between the lines, attempting to string

facts altogether to finally see the bigger picture. While most have

been blinded by the Filipino's whirling hand speed the first thing I

focused on for quite a while, again and again, was his legs 'cause

that's what's needed to win this fight against a ring general like the

unbeaten American, Chris Algieri.

The more I think of it, the more I am convinced that Chris Algieri

cannot fight any other way even if he had wanted to. I asked a friend

of mine, Luis Collazo, a former WBA Welterweight champion boxer who

lost to Amir Khan last May, who roots for Algieri to win, and he

confirmed my suspicions. Both boxers are from New York and have

trained together. Christopher Mark Algieri aka "The King of New York"

lacks punching power. He uses his height and reach advantage, moves

and sets things up nicely and lures opponents to come in. His Master's

Degree may not help in a fight, as coach Freddie Roach says, but being

smart does.

I closed my eyes to focus on sound. No matter what people say or what

you might have read elsewhere you can tell it for yourself. From

Pacquiao's cardiovascular system that transports through his veins

this mythical fuel that finally erupts in compact throbs as his gloves

hit the bag; the heavy rapidity and power with only subtle breaks, the

angles of the sounds and bass for a tactical span. Without sight you

can tell Manny Pacquiao still loves his main sport in a heartbeat.

That has always been my main concern to watch him train.

Manny Pacquiao needs this deep source of energy to propel his legs and

catch up with a constantly moving target. First, he needs to deal with

the long jabs, which he usually does with head movement and slips.

Most of the time he likes to go under it, as with Dela Hoya, which

would be a smart thing to do for a short visit to the mid section

before rising up for hook. None of these things are possible without

powerful legwork. Algieri has a habit of halting when defending

against body shots and Pacquiao is most likely to capitalize on this.

Algieri is not as slippery as he thinks he is and is considerably

easier to trap in a corner with feints, despite the constant movement.

I reckon Pacquiao will eventually knock him out late in the fight.

In such a brutal and inherently violent sport, what makes Chris

Algieri dangerous is beyond physicality. He understands his weaknesses

and must have learned invaluable lessons after his victory over

Provodnikov. He knows that if he fights Pacquiao toe-to-toe he is

going to be obliterated. He understands his weaknesses and most

importantly he accepts and addresses it, and I won't bet on him doing

anything foolish in the ring. One has to be very consistent and

aggressive in breaking a man who knows his place. "I always root for

underdogs." Says Collazo. "But he's true to his craft and it is rare

if he changes his fighting plan. Just got to let Pacman come in and

pick his shots."

Mark F. Villanueva

Special thanks to Luis Collazo for his valuable inputs on #PacAlgieri

Follow Mark through http://twitter.com/markfvillanueva