LAS VEGAS – Longtime Manny Pacquiao sparmate AB Lopez sees a late stoppage for the Filipino great in his title encounter against Yordenis Ugas of Cuba this weekend at the T-Mobile Arena.
The 5-foot-9 American said Pacquiao’s timing, persistence, and speed will be too much for the reigning WBA welterweight champion to overcome.
“I see it playing out in later rounds with Manny stoppage, later,” said Lopez.
“I just feel Ugas will be a little more on the defensive side. He’s not one to come in because he knows Manny’s speed. So I do feel he’s gonna be more technical in the very beginning and then later on, that’s when they’re going to start throwing more punches.”
The Los Angeles, California native knows where he’s coming from.
He also served as sparring partner of the Filipino ring icon during his last fight against Keith Thurman, who Pacquiao defeated via split decision in 2019 to win the WBA title belt, which Ugas now owns.
And having long known the boxing legend's tendencies in the ring, Lopez said it’s really an honor for him to help prepare Pacquiao for his last two important fights.
“I’ve learned a lot of things with Manny, but one thing I’ve known is that you can never be too comfortable, you always have to be on your feet, you always got to be paying attention to what he’s doing because he’s either in or out, or he’s looking for some way to come at you early,” said Lopez, who has a pro record of 10-3-1, with 3 KOs.
WATCH:
Lopez was the only one left of the three sparmates the team of Pacquiao tapped for the Errol Spence fight along with Maurice Lee and Alexis Rocha.
But when Spence backed out due to an eye injury and replaced by Ugas, Pacquiao chose to retain the services of Lopez.
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