MANILA, Philippines – Chris Algieri’s trainer just made a bold declaration that his ward can knock out Manny Pacquiao.
A confident Tim Lane, Algieri’s chief trainer, told Victor Salazar of Tha Boxing Voice that a knockout victory for the New Yorker isn’t out of the question.
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This is despite Algieri being known more for his boxing skills than his power. Of his 20 wins, only 8 came by way of knockout.
But Lane is upbeat on Algieri’s chances of stopping Pacquiao, saying their fight in Macau next month won’t even go to the scorecards.
“Chris gets warm mid fight and picks up the pace. Chris Algieri will beat Manny Pacquiao November 22nd. He most certainly has a chance of stopping Pacquiao. I don’t expect it to go the distance,” Lane said.
Algieri is the current WBO light welterweight (140 lbs) champion but will meet Pacquiao at a catchweight of 144 pounds at the insistence of the Filipino’s camp. According to Lane, it is something that will work to Algieri’s advantage.
“He’s [Algieri] a huge 140 pounder. His best weight is at 144 so right in between 140 and 147, which is where we’re going to meet, which is Chris’ best weight. I don’t know who chose this weight but they chose it perfectly for Chris. The catch weight played into our hands for sure,” the trainer continued.
Algieri will be entering the fight as a huge underdog, the same state he was in before his breakthrough win over Ruslan Provodnikov in June. Both he and his trainer believes he can duplicate the feat against Pacquiao.
“Welcome to the Chris Algieri Show. He went from 0-100 and he’s ready for Pacquiao,” said Lane.