Pacquiao vs. Algieri: Fight Time, PPV Info and Fight Card Schedule
Saturday night's card in Macau, China should be called the Stepping Stone. Every one of the big names on the card seems to be looking toward his next bout.
Manny Pacquiao seems more desperate than ever to finally face Floyd Mayweather Jr. However, before he can participate in the biggest fight the sport has ever seen, he must defeat a slick, American underdog named Chris Algieri.
Pacquiao has been dropping Mayweather's name with regularity of late, and Pac-Man's promoter Bob Arum says he believes the bout will take place in Cowboys Stadium in 2015.
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Pacquiao even starred in this recent Foot Locker commercial where he is clearly referring to Mayweather, though he never mentions him by name.
While the world is cautiously optimistic about the bout taking place, the 35-year-old Pacquiao would be wise not to overlook Algieri.
Coming off one of the year's biggest upset victories over Ruslan Provodnikov, Algieri has the size and speed combination to give Pacquiao some problems. At 5'10", he is 3.5 inches taller than Pacquiao, and he also has a five-inch reach advantage.
If he can keep Pacquiao on the outside, he could pull off another major upset.
This is the main event for Saturday night's card, but three other notable fights will be a part of the HBO pay-per-view broadcast. Here's a look at the full schedule and a closer look at the undercard.
| Sat. Nov. 22 at 9 p.m. ET | Macau, China | HBO PPV |
| (c) Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo | Featherweight | WBO |
| (c) Jessie Vargas vs. Antonio DeMarco | Light Welterweight | WBA |
| Zou Shiming vs. Kwanpichit Onesongchaigym | Flyweight |
Shiming One Step Away from Title Shot
Zou Shiming is apparently just one win away from getting his first shot at a world title, per Daniel Hicks of Yahoo Sports.
Shiming will take on Thailand's Kwanpichit Onesongchaigym in the first televised preliminary bout. Shiming has had just five professional bouts, but after an amateur career that saw the 33-year-old win two Olympic gold medals and three amateur world boxing championships, he has been placed on the fast track.
He's hoping to take down the veteran Thai fighter en route to championship glory.
Jessie Wants Manny
WBA world lightweight champion Jessie Vargas has a formidable opponent in front of him on Saturday in Antonio DeMarco. Yet he too is eyeing his next potential opponent.
Who does Vargas have in his sights? None other than the event's headliner, Manny Pacquiao. Per Lem Satterfield of The Ring Magazine, Vargas said he has scheduled fights with three straight southpaws (DeMarco included) to prepare himself to face "the biggest left-hander that there is."
The obvious reference to Pacquiao is an example of aiming high, but the 25-year-old Vargas—who recently enlisted the training help of future Hall of Famer Roy Jones Jr.—has every right to challenge the best.
He's 25-0 with nine KOs, and it's time he looks for a signature fight.
The only issue is that DeMarco is not exactly going to sign off on simply being a steppingstone. He's a tough and talented former champion in his own right. This could be a good one.
Speaking of Fast Tracks
Many people hate the fact that Vasyl Lomachenko got not one but two title shots in his first professional fights. On the strength of a stellar amateur career that Arum calls the greatest in the sport's history, Lomachenko has catapulted to the head of the featherweight ranks.
After losing his first attempt to win a world title against Orlando Salido in March, Lomachenko made good on his second effort. He won a majority decision over fellow hot prospect Gary Russell Jr. to capture the WBO featherweight title.
Per ESPN.com's Dan Rafael, Lomachenko could be facing newly crowned WBA featherweight champion Nicholas Walters in 2015. Like Shiming, Pacquiao and Vargas, he must first handle business on Saturday night.
His assignment is probably the easiest of all.
Lomachenko faces veteran Thai fighter Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo in a bout that probably won't last longer than five rounds. Lomachenko would appear to have the speed, skill and size advantage in what should be a lopsided bout.
Follow Brian Mazique on Twitter. I dig boxing and MMA.
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