Algieri, 30, hadn’t even met the Filipino despite the fact that their 147lb title clash was agreed some time ago, but the American is unfazed after coming face-to-face and plans on causing a huge upset in Macau, China.
“It is a real honor to fight a future Hall of Famer like Manny Pacquiao and I am looking forward to being introduced to a whole new market and fan base in the Far East,” said Algieri.
“My last fight against Ruslan Provodnikov got the world’s attention, now I am going to show what I can really do. I have the utmost respect for Manny and his great team, but make no mistake — I am here to win and I have nothing on my mind but beating a legend.”
The New Yorker is yet to taste defeat in his 20 bouts to date, although Provodnikov apart, Algieri can only boast a win over Adrien Broner’s upcoming foe Emanuel Taylor to write home about.
A specialist in nutrition, Algieri will need every ounce of his out of the ring knowledge to help him in his quest to dethrone Pacquiao of his WBO belt and may well end the eight-weight title holder’s career if he can pull it off.
Follow on Twitter @PhilDJay for tweets of upcoming news on WBN
