Rios says he'll be ready for war of attrition

Which Brandon Rios will show up to battle Manny Pacquiao at the Venetian Resort & Casino in Macao on Nov 24?

Will it be the relentless, hammer-fisted Rios who took the WBA world lightweight title by stopping champion Miguel Acosta in 2011?

Or will it be the rusty, pudgy Rios who dropped a 12-round decision to Mike Alvardo for the WBO's interim light welterweight crown in his last fight, six months ago?

"There's no excuses; I wasn't in the best of shape ... but it was still a very close fight," Rios said of losing to Alvardo - a guy he'd knocked out four months earlier.

"Obviously, Pacquiao is a big step up. Our fight is more than three months away, but I'm already excited about getting back to camp and preparing to go to war.

"All the attention is on Pacquiao, and that's fine. But what people don't know is that I'm the right guy and this is the right time to beat him. Maybe nobody knows me now, but the whole world will know me the day after I knock out Manny.

"This is my moment. All the pressure is on him, because he's a legend. But legends don't last forever."

Bravado aside, it was obvious by looking at the two fighters at their Beijing media conference this week that Rios is the one who has his work cut out in terms of conditioning.

While the 27-year-old from Oxnard, California, admitted he's had weight problems in the past, he doesn't anticipate any difficulty in making the 147-pound limit for Pacquiao.

"I'll be right where I need to be, no problem," said Rios, who failed to make weight in two of his three WBA lightweight title defenses.

"I've got the best trainer in the world in Roberto Garcia and together we know what has to be done.

"This is the biggest fight of my career and China is the biggest stage in the world, so you know I'm going to make the most of that opportunity."

Garcia, who held the IBF world super featherweight crown in 1999, predicted the Nov 24 fight will come down to a war of attrition.

"There is no question Manny is one of the all-time greats and so is his trainer, Freddie Roach," said Garcia.

"But reputations don't win fights. Manny is still very fast, but in his last fight (KO'd by Juan Manuel Marquez) he showed signs of slowing down.

"My job is to get Brandon to take advantage of that. To do it, he'll have to stand in the pocket and just trade punches, maybe take two or three to a land a big one of his own. We're traing for a slugfest.

"Everybody in boxing knows Brandon never takes a step backwards, never retreats. So against Pacquiao, it will come down to who can take the punches and still fire back with some of their own."

Rios, whose nickname is 'Bam-Bam,' closed the interview with his trademark assertion that he actually enjoys being hit.

"That's when you know it's real," he said with a smile.

"But I can guarantee that Manny won't like getting hit by me on Nov 24. I'm going to send him into retirement."

murraygreig@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 08/02/2013 page24)