Pacquiao says Golovkin too heavy for him
HIS former mer mentor Fre Freddie Roach has recommended that he fights Gennedy “GGG” Golovkin for a middleweight world championship crown, but boxing great Manny Pacquio is not convinced he should.
Pacquiao, the reigning World Boxing Association welterweight titleholder, said the 38-year-old Golovkin, the defending International Boxing Federation and International Boxing Organization middleweight title holder, is too heavy for him.
“Basta 147 [pounds], okeylang ako.Perokung above that, masyadong (As long as it is 147 lbs, I am okay with that. But if it’s above that, it’s too big for me),” Pacquiao told TheManilaTimes last Sunday in a phone interview.
The crowd- pleasing Kazakh weighed in at 159.2 lbs in his last match in October 2019 for the IBF title against Sergiy Derevyanchenko.
Pacquio weighed in at 146.5 lbs in his split-decision victory against the previously undefeated Keith Thurman in July 2019.
Speaking from his hometown General Santos City for the first time about the likelihood of a fight against Golovkin, the eight-time world boxing champion recalled that the last time he fought in a heavier division, he found him too big.
And that was almost a decade ago, on November 10, against Mexican Antonio Margarito, whom he defeated one-sidedly via unanimous decision for the World Boxing Council (WBC) super welterweight or junior middleweight belt in Texas.
“Hindi na.Okey na ako ‘yung kay Margarito. Hindi naman [ nahirapan noon] pero malaki masyado (No more. I am okay with Margarito. I did not really have a hard time then, but he was too big),” Pacquiao, who at 41 and like Golovkin, is no longer a spring chicken.
But Pacquiao (62-7-2 win-loss draw record with 39 knockouts) said he might consider fighting the Triple G at 154 lbs.
“154? Hmmm. Depende siguro pero wala pana man pag-uusap (154? Hmmm. It depends I guess, but there’s no negotiation [between us and the Golovkin camp].”
The idea of a dream fight against Golovkin (40-1-1 record with 35 knockouts) was brought by Pacquiao’s former ex-head trainer and now consultant Roach to DAZN’s Boxing with Chris Mannix last June.
Top Rank chief Bob Arum, Pacquiao’s former promoter, and present strength and conditioning coach Justin Fortune told The Manila Times before that they were against the Pacquiao- Golovkin fight, saying the size and weight class are very far apart.
No fight is being discussed for Pacquiao for now by the Premier Boxing Champions of Al Haymon during the time of the coronavirus pandemic.