A former champion and a rising star weighed in on the much-hyped fight between Manny Pacquiao and Ryan Garcia, which has been the talk of the town for the past couple of weeks.
Since Garcia declared on social media that he will face the Filipino boxing champion soon, the boxing world went abuzz as comments and developments progressed.
Erik Morales, Pacquiao's rival in his glory days, believed that the eight-division world champion will finish the American youngster in two rounds.
The former Mexican star said he would rather see the Filipino icon take on four-division world champion Mikey Garcia, adding that the likes of welterweight titleholders Errol Spence Jr. and Terence Crawford are too much for the aging Pacquiao, who turned 42 years old last December.
Read: Pacquiao-Garcia deal very close, but there’s a catch
“Pacquiao with Ryan is a very lopsided fight. Even though is old, he can put Ryan to bed in two rounds,” Morales told ESPN Deportes as quoted by boxingscene.com. “I think is taking advantage of being a popular fighter. That is the reality, he is already a champion, but he has to face the best to solidify it because he is hardly an interim."
But undefeated rising star Brandun Lee has a different take on that.
The 21-year-old Lee, who holds 21 wins with 19 knockouts, said a lucky left hook from Garcia, using his speed and good timing, might just put Pacquiao to sleep.
Read: Exhibition or not, Garcia eyes knockout win over Pacquiao
Lee, however, stressed that Pacquiao shouldn't be underestimated due to his experience on top of his agility and finishing ability.
"Man, that is a crazy fight but s***, anything can happen. This is boxing," added Lee. "Ryan got that nice left hook as we all know and we all know that the left hook works better for southpaws so he might land that punch."
Audie Attar of Paradigm Sports Management, Pacquiao's handler, earlier announced that the boxer-turned-senator and his legal team in Manila are still discussing his upcoming fight but full details are expected to be released in the coming weeks.