Home Boxing News Manny Pacquiao says he is ready to fight Keith Thurman “now!”

Manny Pacquiao says he is ready to fight Keith Thurman “now!”

Former eight-division world champion Manny Pacquiao 61-7-2 (39) is ready to take on WBA welterweight champion Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman 29-0 (22) three weeks ahead of their scheduled bout at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“Now!” the soon-to-be 41-year-old Filipino senator replied when asked by the Manila Times when he would reach his peak in this training camp. “They can bring the enemy today or anytime from now and face him off.

“I have been preparing for this fight for more than a month, dividing my time as a lawmaker and a fighter and I believe I’ve done enough to prepare myself, for the fight.

“Thanks to my trainers, who like me have been sacrificing their time and efforts to prepare me for this, one of the most important fights of my career as a fighter, ditto to our families, who, likewise had to endure leaving without their heads.”

The evergreen Pacquiao praised God for allowing him to continue in the sport at world class level into his 40s.

“But most of all I thank God for giving me, at my age, all the strength and resolve to continue serving Him in the best way I can,” he said.

Pacquiao’s chief trainer Buboy Fernandez, strength and conditioning coach Justin Fortune and consultant Freddie Roach all agreed that their prized pupil was in top fighting shape, although Fortune and Roach disagreed on when Pacquiao would peak.

Fortune believes Pacquiao would hit peak form in seven days, while former head coach Roach thought it would be slightly longer at 10 days.

“Manny’s been really very aggressive in this training camp and I’m not surprised if he, indeed, feels he can fight already this early,” said Fortune.

“That makes everything easy for us from hereon. That certainly reduced our problems to seeing to it that Manny doesn’t get sick or overtrained.”