MANILA – Filipino ring icon Manny Pacquiao is not taking Adrien Broner lightly ahead of his WBA welterweight championship defense on Sunday at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The eight-division world boxing champion said that he does not look down on Broner, who is a four-division world champion, as he believes that the latter has the talent to pull off an upset against him.
“On a scale of 1 to 10, my rating to (Broner) is 7 to 8,” Pacquiao said. “Broner is fast, a good fighter, a former champion. So I cannot underestimate him, just like what I do with my previous opponents.”
However, the fighting senator believe that he has done enough preparation against Broner to make sure that he will go home to the country still with the world welterweight title.
“I’m getting very excited for Saturday night, and I’m ready for Broner. Forty is just a number to me. My sparring partners are in their mid-20s,” Pacquiao said. “Every day in training camp I have been strong, fresh and fast. I am not ready to retire.”
He added: “The fact that I worked so hard in training is an example for my passion for boxing. I am always looking for ways to improve. Now that I’m older I listen to my body. If I’m sore I will take an extra day to recover if I have to.”
Pacquiao is set to parade his 60-7-2 win-loss-draw ring record, including 39 stoppage wins, while the 29-year-old Broner has 33-3-1 win-loss-draw slate, with 24 stoppage wins./PN
