Pacquiao vs. Algieri: PPV Start Time, Undercard Odds and Picks
Chris Algieri hasn't appeared in a fight outside his native New York but has traveled halfway across the world to try to dethrone living legend Manny Pacquiao in Saturday night's welterweight title bout in Macau, China.
Pacquiao's camp hand-picked Algieri after his upset victory over Ruslan Provodnikov to win the light welterweight title. Although that belt won't be on the line Saturday, Pacquiao's will—as will Algieri's undefeated 20-0 record and the chance to step into the spotlight for good.
If Pac-Man truly wants the mirage that is a potential fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr., he'll need to secure a convincing victory. Meanwhile, Algieri just might have what it takes to effectively end the career of one of the best boxers in this generation.
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Let's take a look at the pay-per-view start time, along with odds and predictions for the card.
When: Saturday, November 22
Where: Cotai Arena, The Venetian Macao, Macau, China
Start Time (ET): 9 p.m.
TV: HBO pay-per-view
| Manny Pacquiao (predicted winner) | -635 |
| Chris Algieri | +525 |
| Vasyl Lomachenko (predicted winner) | -7000 |
| Chonalatarn Piriyapinyo | +3000 |
| Jessie Vargas (predicted winner) | +215 |
| Antonio DeMarco | -255 |
| Zou Shiming (predicted winner) | -2150 |
| Kwanpichit Onesongchaigym | +1050 |
Note: Odds courtesy of Odds Shark, last updated Nov. 22 at noon ET
Top Undercard Bouts
Vasyl Lomachenko vs. Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo
Vasyl Lomachenko will put his 2-1 all-time record and his featherweight title on the line Saturday in his battle with 52-1 challenger Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo, but it's not the one with more than 50 appearances who will be chased.
Instead, it's Lomachenko—who didn't even make his professional boxing debut until October 2013. But with an impressive Olympic resume to boast, the 26-year-old has made no doubt about his world-class ability.
Even the likes of promoter Bob Arum, who also represents Pacquiao, referred to him as legendary despite his short boxing career, per Yahoo Sports' Kevin Iole:
Piriyapinyo has been around the block plenty of times with 33 career knockouts, but you'd be hard-pressed to find another boxer of Lomachenko's caliber on his resume. Lomachenko has gone up against the best of the best ever since he started.
Lomachenko is other-worldly fast, and it simply will be too much for Piriyapinyo to keep up.
Prediction: Lomachenko via fifth-round TKO
Jessie Vargas vs. Antonio DeMarco
Not satisfied with Pacquiao vs. Algieri and Lomachenko vs. Piriyapinyo as the only two title fights Saturday in Macau? Well, you're in for a treat.
In the second of three undercard bouts before Pacquiao's big moment, Jessie Vargas goes up against Antonio DeMarco for the WBA light welterweight title.
This one easily has the best chance of going either way. DeMarco is no slouch of a challenger, with a 31-3-1 career record that is fresh off three straight victories. However, those have been somewhat of lower-tier matchups (for his caliber) after his 2012 loss to Adrien Broner set him back.
Meanwhile, Vargas boasts a perfect 25-0 record and has staked his claim as one of the best fighters in the class. That has generated some talk about him possibly facing Pacquiao down the road, but first things first—per GMA 7's Mav Gonzales:
DeMarco will be motivated and ready, but he just doesn't have what it takes to hang with Vargas—a superior tactician with more speed and elusiveness—for 12 rounds.
Prediction: Vargas via eighth-round TKO
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