WBA welterweight champion Yordenis Ugás 26-4 (12) is more than ready to send Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao 62-7-2 (39) into retirement when they clash at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday night.
The 35-year-old Cuban was scheduled to fight on the undercard of Pacquiao’s fight against WBC and IBF champion Errol ‘The Truth’ Spence Jr 27-0 (21) before the undefeated Texan was forced to withdraw with an eye injury.
“This has been a long road for me,” Ugás said. “Obviously it is short notice that I learned I was fighting Pacquiao, but I’m thankful for the opportunity and I’m ready to take advantage of it.
“We made the adjustments we had to in the last two weeks so that I’m ready for Pacquiao. We’ve done everything we had to and we’re 100% ready to go Saturday night.
“There are no excuses heading into this fight. I’ve been in this position taking a short notice fight before, although obviously never against a fighter the calibre of Pacquiao. I have no concerns though and I believe both of us are going to be prepared for this fight.
“I’m certain that he cannot knock me out. I’ve done all the preparation over these past six years to get in this position, I’ve hit my stride and I just don’t believe I can be stopped by Manny.
“I have prepared for 12 hard rounds. If this is Pacquiao’s final fight, then he’s going to be up against a guy who brought his best and who is a world-class fighter.
“I want to thank my whole team for this great opportunity. More than anything, I am a fighter who represents my country of Cuba. This fight is dedicated to all the people who are fighting for freedom in Cuba, I’m fighting for all of them.”
Ugás’ trainer Ismael Salas added: “The experience that Ugas has from the Olympics and over 500 amateur bouts is going to be the most important thing for him in this fight. We’ve been on a roll for these last 12 fights since Ugas has started working with me. We’re going to keep it going on Saturday.
“To fight Manny Pacquiao is an honour. To me, he’s a legend and a person who is an inspiration for millions of fighters. But when you look back at his recent fights, he hasn’t delivered a knockout in a long time. He’s dropped guys, but it’s been a while since he’s knocked someone out.
“Ugas fights for his pride and for his love of the sport. For a long time he has been struggling here in the United States. We are immigrants and every immigrant has to adjust to the way of living.
“Despite all of the changes he has been through, he has had success. He needs to keep working for what he loves, which is boxing.
“Pacquiao comes from a lot of angles, but so does Ugas. Ugas has mastered fighting southpaws, so we’ll see who is going to be able to see their opponent’s punches coming.”
