Errol Spence receiving hospital warning from Pacquiao’s strength coach Fortune

By Boxing News - 08/09/2021 - Comments

By Max Schramm: Manny Pacquiao’s Strength & conditioning coach Justin Fortune has a warning for Errol Spence Jr that Manny sends his opponents to the hospital after their fights.

Despite what Fortune says, Pacquiao hasn’t shown himself to be a devastating puncher in the twelve years since moving up to the 147-lb division in 2009.

Manny has knocked out only ONE opponent at 147

Pacquiao has only knocked out one of his seventeen opponents since moving up to the welterweight division, and that was a questionable stoppage against Miguel Cotto in 2009.

Some would agree that the referee shouldn’t have stopped the Pacquiao-Cotto fight.

Pacquiao’s record at welterweight: 15-2, 1 knockout. That’s not the type of record that would indicate that Pacquiao will be sending Spence to the hospital.

Pacquiao, 42, is fighting what many believe is the #1 welterweight in the division in unbeaten Spence on August 21st. With that said, it could prove impossible for Manny to win without a miracle.

Spence, 31, is already predicting that he will be sending the Filipino star into permanent retirement on the night, and many believe him.

Coach Fortune states he doesn’t view IBF/WBC welterweight champion Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) as a huge puncher like everyone says he is. With 21 knockouts in 27 fights, Spence must have some power to stop that many fighters.

Fortune: Spence isn’t the same guy after his accident

“We’re at 95%, and he’ll peak on time for the day,” said Justin Fortune. “It’s a Pacquiao fight, and it’s always exciting. This one will be no different than anything else. This fight is for his legacy.

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“If he wins this fight, he picks up three titles and goes down as the greatest fight in history. It doesn’t surprise me because Pacquiao always chooses the best. He doesn’t duck anyone. Look at his record. I don’t think Errol is the same guy after the accident. Do you?

“He came away with a black eye after 12 rounds,” said Fortune on Spence’s last fight against Danny Garcia. “This guy [Pacquiao] sends you to the hospital.

“You don’t go to post-fight press conferences. You’re in the hospital getting checked out. That’s the difference. I don’t think Errol has as much of a punch as everyone says.

“I don’t think [Spence] is the same guy after the accident. You don’t walk away from that f*** accident without lifelong injuries,” said Fortune of Errol.

We’ve only see Spence fight once since his car accident in 2019, and he looked good in defeating Danny Garcia. Fortune and trainer Freddie Roach might be seeing something that’s not there by suggesting Spence isn’t the same guy.

Manny will peak on the night

“I’ve been with Manny for 20 years since 2002, so I know him very well. I know my fighters,” Fortune said of Pacquiao.

Image: Errol Spence receiving hospital warning from Pacquiao's strength coach Fortune

 

“When he came back in when he [Pacquiao] first sparred, yeah, he shook off some rust, but as of last week, his sparring picked up good,” said Fortune about Pacquiao dealing with his two years of inactivity.

“Everything is starting to come back together again, which is to be expected for any fighter with that kind of a layoff. This pandemic has had a lot of fighters laying off for a long time. They’re all in the same boat, really.

“It was a good sparring session, yeah. He’s back up on his toes, punching and moving,” said Fortune on Pacquiao looking good last week during one of his sparring sessions.

“When he does that, you can’t hit him. When he gets up on his toes and is punching and moving, you’ve seen, he’s impossible to bloody hit. It was a good sparring day.

“He will get better. That’s where we started off now. We’ll peak on the night of the fight. More explosion, more plyometrics just to get him back on his toes, moving like that,” Fortune said of Manny.

The best strategy for Pacquiao to win this fight is to use nonstop movement and focus on using an in and out attacking style to get the better of Spence. Pacquiao can win rounds if he jumps into land shots and then moves away quickly.

If Manny uses the same game plan that Shane Mosley employed to win over Antonio Margarito in their fight in 2009, he’s got a chance. Mosley didn’t stay in the pocket to slug with the younger, bigger, and stronger Margarito.

Instead, Mosley would dart forward, land two to three shots, and then quickly get away before Margarito could hit him back. It worked well for Mosley, as he scored a 9th round knockout over the then prime Margarito.

Pacquiao is a freak of nature

“For this sport, he’s been number one world champ for 20 years, so it’s phenomenal,” said Fortune about Pacquiao. “He’s just a freak of nature.

Image: Errol Spence receiving hospital warning from Pacquiao's strength coach Fortune

You’ll never see someone like Pacquiao again. Not in my life; you’ll never see it again. He was a one-off.

“In a perfect world, we stop Errol, and that’s the end of it, but boxing isn’t perfect, and anything can happen,” Fortune said when asked what’s the ideal outcome for the Pacquiao vs. Spence fight.

“So, no predictions. I predict we’ll win, but it all depends on the night and who shows up. I know Pacquiao will show up. We’ll see what happens with Errol,” said Fortune.

Pacquiao is an exceptional fighter with his longevity in the sport, as many fighters are washed up by their early 30s. Even Floyd Mayweather Jr., as great as he is, looks badly faded in his fights.

If Mayweather were to try and fight a guy like Spence or Keith Thurman, it would end badly for him.

Still, Pacquiao is up against it in taking on Spence, and it’s very likely going to end with him losing. Pacquiao would need to fight the perfect fight, land the perfect shots, and hope that he can out-box Spence to win a decision.

The reality is, Manny is NOT going to knockout Spence, and it’ll be a mistake for him to try. With only one knockout in his 17 fights at welterweight, Pacquiao is too weak for him to be attempting to score a knockout of Spence.

With his 12-year dry spell since his last knockout, Pacquiao is wasting his time hoping to stop Spence.

It would be a better idea for Pacquiao to focus on trying to win a 12 round decision, considering that he has a far better chance of accomplishing that than he does in scoring a knockout.

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