Mexican legend Erik ‘El Terrible’ Morales, who fought Manny Pacquiao thrice, wants the Filipino icon to take heed.
Morales, now retired from the sport, feels that Pacquiao is taking his Nov. 23 fight with Chris Algieri for granted.
“He’s thinking about Floyd Mayweather before thinking about his next opponent,” Morales said in an interview over Mexican radio.
Morales, who beat Pacquiao in 2005 but lost the second meeting and the rubber match in 2006, noted that Pacquiao had the same mentality going into his fourth fight with Juan Manuel Marquez in 2012.
An onrushing Pacquiao got caught with a desperation counter Marquez right and fell face-first with one second to go before the end of the sixth round.
Over the past few months, Pacquiao, who turns 36 on Dec. 17, has talked about the possibility of finally facing Mayweather in a megabuck matchup in 2015 although Pacquiao nsists that he is not looking beyond Algieri.
The 30-year-old Algieri, who has a four-inch height advantage at 5-10 ½, Morales stressed is “a young man, very tall and a lot of people do not know him.”
Pacquiao, a veteran of over 60 fights, has shown tell-tale signs of wear and tear according to Morales “and if you underestimate your opponent, you may get a surprise.”
Pacquiao is resuming his buildup in General Santos City today after a whirlwind trip to Hong Kong during the weekend.
Algieri, meanwhile, is neck-deep in his preparation at The Palazzo in Las Vegas.