When Manny Pacquiao (54-5-2) steps into the ring against Brandon Rios (31-1-1) on Saturday night at the Venetian Macao in Macau, China, boxing fans will expect the veteran to win this fight via a decisive finish.
Pacquiao may be the more experienced fighter, but Rios will not go down easily.
Rios is one of the most aggressive fighters in the sport today and will bring his own form of offense to Pac-Man. Unfortunately for the younger of the two fighters, Pacquiao will have him scouted and make him absorb some serious abuse.
With so much action on tap, here is the vital viewing information to catch all of Saturday’s pay-per-view main event action.
Where: The Venetian Macao in Macau, China
When: Saturday, Nov. 23 at 9 p.m. ET
Watch: HBO PPV
Stream: Replay on HBO GO
Pacquiao’s Keys to Victory
After two heart-breaking losses in a row, Pacquiao will be looking for redemption in the form of a decisive victory over Rios Saturday night.
Pac-Man has lacked the elite power that made him one of the most dominant fighters in the sport for the better part of a decade, and he must find that striking strength again if he wants to send Rios home with a knockout loss.
There is no discounting how fast Pacquiao is even as he gets older, but the quality of his punches Saturday is even more important that the quantity. Using his aggressive approach and his re-harnessed power, he must bring the battle to Rios and leave him reeling.
If Pac-Man regains his elite power, Rios is heading toward an early TKO finish.
Rios’ Keys to Victory
While Pacquiao’s game plan won’t change much from the way he has fought over the last 10 years, Rios must completely reinvent himself in this battle if he wants to stand a chance against his challenger.
Rios has to attack early in each round and get Pac-Man feeling his power. Pacquiao will eventually thwart Rios’ offensive assault, and that must force Rios to revert to a more defensive style in the latter stages of each round.
Juan Manuel Marquez may have knocked out Pac-Man, but that was an anomaly that Rios will not be able to repeat. As seen from Timothy Bradley’s win over Pacquiao, though, fighters can beat him on the judges’ scorecards.
Rios must do his damage early in each round and start fighting defensively in order to limit the shots Pac-Man lands. Rios has the talent to frustrate Pac-Man, but there are questions about whether he will stick to the game plan when he starts getting rattled.
Predicted Winner: Pacquiao via 8th-Round TKO
Rios is a tough fighter that deserves immense credit for his success thus far in his career, but he has never squared off against someone with as much raw talent as Pacquiao.
As much as Rios has the attitude and ability to stand toe-to-toe with his challenger, he absorbs too much punishment to last the whole fight with a motivated Pac-Man. Instead of Rios controlling the pace of this fight, it will be Pacquiao picking his shots and depicting how this bout unfolds.
The power advantage is enough to give Pac-Man the definitive edge Saturday, but the addition of elite speed and experience will result in Rios being thoroughly outworked all fight.
With all of the heavy shots taking their toll, look for Pac-Man to collect the TKO win in the eighth round.
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