EXACTLY a month before they clash, American Mario Barrios bared his “bad intentions” as he stakes his World Boxing Council welterweight championship belt against popular Filipino challenger Manny Pacquiao on July 19 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“I am going in there with our game plan. I am going in there with bad intentions. At any point, if I see I have him hurt, it’s kill or be killed in there. (If) I see I have him hurt, I am trying to get him out of there,” Barrios told Sports Illustrated writer Apratim Bannerjee in an interview posted on the American magazine’s website yesterday (Wednesday in the US).
“El Azteca” added that he wouldn’t be pulling any punches against Pacman, who, at 46, will be 16 years older than him, on top of being the smaller fighter at 5-foot-6, giving away a six-inch edge in height.
“If the roles were reversed, he (Pacquiao) wouldn’t take it easy on me. It’s just the reality of the sport, it’s kill or be killed in there,” noted the lean and lanky defending champ, who has a record of 29 wins, 18 by knockout, against two losses and one draw.
Sporting a record of 62 wins (39 KOs), eight defeats and two draws, Pacquiao is coming out of a nearly four-year layoff to scratch his boxing itch since losing the World Boxing Association super welterweight strap to crafty Cuban counterpuncher Yordenis Ugas.
A heavy underdog and last-minute replacement, Ugas made the most of the opportunity, fashioning a stunning unanimous decision victory over the fancied Pinoy icon on Aug. 8, 2021, much to the disappointment of the predominantly pro-Pacquiao gallery at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Given his Mexican ancestry, Barrios was asked if he was seeking revenge for the Mexican and Latin fighters who fell to the hard-hitting Pacquiao, such as Marco Antonio Barrera, Erik Morales, Juan Manuel Marquez, Antonio Margarito, Oscar dela Hoya and Miguel Cotto, among others.
But the Texan-born boxer said he is out to successfully defend his title for his own sake, realizing the magnitude of winning over arguably one of the best pound-for-pound boxers of all time.
In a separate piece on the boxing website secondsout.com, World Boxing Organization super lightweight champ Teofilo Lopez of the US said that the return of Pacquiao was good for global professional boxing.
“I’ll say that it’s great to have Pacquiao back, you know what I mean? And definitely, I think people are gonna tune in because it’s Manny Pacquiao, he’s a legend, he’s paved the way for the sport,” Lopez was quoted as saying.
“He’s (Pacquiao) is still fighting at this time and this age, and you know it’s all about how he looks against Barrios, it’s a great money fight for him but at the same time it’s great for the sport because it keeps us in the (news) loop,” Lopez added
“I think that he’s (Pacquiao) doing his part and God willing, we see him conquer another division or another world title once again.”
