Chris Algieri’s display of tenacity throughout his boxing career, has allowed him to land the opportunity of a lifetime to face the Filipino icon, Manny Pacquiao. This upcoming bout draws many similarities to his previous bout against Ruslan Provodkinov.
For instance, Algieri is yet again considered an underdog, against a popular fighter who is under Freddie Roach’s tutelage.
The general public viewed Algieri as a bit of a mystery, as to how he managed to be in the same ring as Provodkinov. There were other opponents who were in higher demand for the “Siberian Rocky” to encounter, such as Brandon Rios and Juan Manuel Marquez. When the fight was officially announced, Algieri was generally viewed as a tune-up opponent for Provodkinov.
The same scenario is taking place with Pacquiao-Algieri. There were other opponents on higher demand to face Pacquiao such as, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Danny Garcia. Yet once again, the general fight fans are begging the question: Is Algieri just a tune-up fight for the eight-division world champion?
The biggest difference of these two bouts, other than the skill set of each of these fighters, is the locality of the matches. Provodkinov-Algieri took place in Algieri’s home state of New York. The Pacquiao-Algieri bout is taking place in Macau, China, a location much closer to the Philippines than America.
Despite the differences in location of the two bouts, the resemblances are undeniable.
The similarities in these scenarios have not caused Freddie Roach much concern, because he knows the underlying denominators are the actual fighters in the ring. Roach does not buy into the notion; Algieri will manage to upset one of his fighter’s this time around, just because he found himself in a similar position.
Roach differentiated his two fighters by stating, “Ruslan was getting caught with a one punch KO [mentality] instead of letting his hands go, and throwing combinations. [But] I still thought it was a very competitive close fight. I think Manny Pacquiao [on the other hand], is more experienced and a better fighter than Ruslan at this point [of time].”
Whether Pacquiao will win remains uncertain, but his assessment seems rather accurate. Pacquiao is a much more dynamic combination puncher than Provodkinov, and the experience between the two fighters is indeed monumental. Pacquiao’s style of fighting should provide Algieri, an entirely new puzzle to try to solve on November 22 in Macau, China.
