Manny Pacquiao vs. Yordenis Ugas – final press conference quotes

By Boxing News - 08/18/2021 - Comments

By Jeff Aronow: Manny Pacquiao and WBA welterweight champion Yordenis Ugas met on Wednesday at their final press conference before their bout this Saturday night on FOX Sports PPV at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) reiterated during the press conference that this could be the final fight of his career, and he’s not certain if he’ll continue.

A lot of it has to do with how things go during the fight with the talented WBA 147-lb champion Ugas (26-4, 12 KOs), of course.

If Pacquiao wins with flying colors, it’s almost impossible not to see him returning for another fight this year, particularly if Errol Spence Jr. is back from his eye injury.

Ugas seems intent on winning on Saturday, which could hasten the end for Pacquiao if he accomplishes his goal. This is a lot harder fight than Pacquiao and his loyal boxing fans realize.

Ugas brings a dangerous mix of ingredients to this fight that the 42-year-old Pacquiao hasn’t seen for a long time, and he might not be ready for this type of opponent at his age.

This is what Pacquiao and Ugas had to say:

Manny Pacquiao: “It’s a good thing we can settle it down about the WBA belt,” said Pacquiao at the final press conference on Wednesday. “It’ll be a good thing that we can settle it down on Saturday. It’s going to be a good fight.”

Yordenis Ugas: “I want to send well wishes to Errol Spence. I want to wish him all the best and a speedy recovery,” said Ugas. “This has been a long road for me. Obviously, it’s short notice fight. I’m thankful and very honored for this opportunity, and I’m ready.”

Pacquiao: “It’s not good for them [WBA] to strip my belt without fighting me, without challenging me. So let’s see if he will get the belt on Saturday,” said Pacquiao. “Both of us are a champion,” Manny said when asked if he views Ugas as the WBA champion.

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Ugas: “Look, we’ve made adjustments, we’ve had two weeks. This is a fight that I didn’t ask for, and we went ahead and made the proper adjustments, and we’re ready to go for Saturday night,” said Ugas.

“There are no excuses. I’ve been in this position before, but never in a position like this against a legend like Manny Pacquiao. But I’m certainly ready for Manny Pacquiao, and I know that he’s ready,” Yordenis said.

Pacquiao: “When I heard that I got the fight with Ugas, two days I easily adjust because I’d been fighting right-handed guys. It’s not hard to adjust unless you’re going the other way around and you’re fighting a right hand, and then it’s switched to southpaw.

“That’s going to be hard because you’re not used to fighting a southpaw. This time around, it’s going to be good for me because I’m used to fighting right-handed most of my career.

“Nothing to worry about. It happened in training. Sometimes it happens in training,” Pacquiao said about him knocking out one of his sparring partners.

Freddie Roach: “I think [Pacquiao] putting one of his sparring partners on the canvas was a real motivator for all of us, and we want to continue that type of fight,” said Freddie Roach, the coach of Pacquiao.

Ugas: “I am 100% certain he cannot knock me out,” said Yordenis. “I’ve done all the work and all the preparation. Over the past six years, I’ve really been hitting my stride, and I don’t think Manny Pacquiao can knock me out,” said Ugas.

Ismael Salas: “Yordenis Ugas is coming from the Olympics with more than 500 amateur bouts,” said Ugas’ trainer Ismael Salas. “When he came to us, he was with three losses, but after that, we’ve been doing 12 fights in a row.

Image: Manny Pacquiao vs. Yordenis Ugas - final press conference quotes

“The only loss was with Shawn Porter. Everyone saw that Shawn Porter is a real fighter, but Porter was in the wrong that night.

“Yordenis is a very competitive fighter, and he’s always eager to fight. Fighting with Manny Pacquiao is an honor. To me, he’s a legend. To me, he’s an inspiration for the new generation of fighters.

“So much respect, but one thing for sure, look bad, he’s talking about a KO, but he long time not get KO to anyone. He’d been dropping people but never KO for a long time.

“If you look bad, yes, Manny Pacquiao is coming from different angles. It’s very nice but Ugas as well.

“Ugas is the master to fight a southpaw. Let’s see who can see who. The worst punch in boxing is the one that you can’t see,” said Salas.

Pacquiao: “Because I feel young,” said Pacquiao when asked why he brought back his old style of training that he hasn’t done for many years.

“Sorry, I’m 24,” Pacquiao said in reacting to being reminded that he’s 42. “I’m just happy doing this. Boxing is my passion.

“I’m enjoying doing training camp and sacrificing, undergoing sacrifice and discipline, especially to prepare for a fight like this. I’m always happy.

“I think for the Thurman fight, my everybody training, I did 25 rounds to 28 rounds a day, but this time, I did 30 rounds, 32 rounds, sometimes 31 rounds.

“Sometimes, the coaching staff tries to stop me because I want to do more. They told me I might get overtrained. That’s what they say to me every day,” said Pacquiao.

Ugas: “Look, I’m come to prepare for 12 hard rounds. If this is the final fight that the legend Manny Pacquiao has, that he fought against a guy who brought his best and is a world-class fighter,” said Ugas.

“I want to thank PBC, I want to thank Manny Pacquiao, and more than anything, I represent my country,” said Ugas.

Pacquiao: “I want to invite all the fans to watch this fight. It might be my last fight, or there’s more.

“One at a time, that is my answer to those who ask if it’s my last fight,” said Pacquiao in his closing statement.

“You never know. You have to watch this fight; it’s going to be good action in the ring. You will be happy. I will do my best because I love to do that, to make the fans happy,” said Pacquiao.