Chris Algieri admitted his size and height advantage over Manny Pacquiao is apparently bigger than he expected, but he stressed his boxing skills and not his physique will be the defining factor in his victory against the former pound-for-pound champion.
Algieri, the reigning WBO Jr. Welterweight champion, is oozing with confidence ahead of his showdown with Pacquiao on November 22 at Venetian Macao in Macau, China.
Despite having an unblemished record of 20 wins and 8 knockouts, Algieri is considered not much of a threat against the heavy favorite Pacquiao. However, Algieri downplayed all the criticisms about him, saying he will beat the Filipino slugger fair and square in the ring.
As for the catch-weight issue, Algieri revealed that it was Pacquiao's idea to stage the fight at 144-pound catch-weight instead of the 147 pound limit.
"No [I did not request the catch-weight]. I'm the bigger man any way you slice it. It doesn't matter what weight we fight at - I'm just a bigger guy than Manny, and that's painfully evident during the whole press tour. I'm a boxing purist, I wanted the fight to be at 147. It's a welterweight fight and welterweight limit is 147. Lets make it there," Algieri told BoxingScene.com writer Rick Reno.
According to Algieri, Pacquiao really pushed the fight to take place three pound below the welterweight limit as he wants to offset his huge size and height advantage.
Standing at 5-foot-10, Algieri admitted he noticed he's way bigger than Pacquiao during their promotional tour, adding the Filipino shorter and smaller than he expected.
"He was shorter and smaller than I expected," Algieri told BoxingScene.com.
Then again, he believed his victory over the Pacman will not be measured by his height and size advantage but by his talent inside the ring.
"They chose to have it at 144. But like I said, it doesn't matter where we fight - at the end of the day its not going to be my size that's going to be the difference in this fight," said Algieri, who will reportedly earn the richest paycheck of his career at $1.5 million.
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