That’s right. Pacquiao is unbeatable if he is in the mood to fight, says Montreal-based Congolese fighter Ghislain Maduma, one of Pacquiao’s sparring mates at the Wild Card Gym.
“Manny was in a fighting mood this afternoon and what I learned from him is when he’s in fighting mood, he’s unbeatable,” Maduma assessed.
Maduma has just confirmed what Pacquiao said six years ago when he was preparing for his eighth-weight title fight against Antonio Margarito in 2010.
Pacquiao says he feels differently whenever he steps into the ring. He recalls when he watches his brother Bobby Pacquiao fight, he feels nervous and uneasy. But once he steps into the squared ring, he feels unusually different.
“Once I am up in the ring, my fears are transformed into excitement and joy because this is really the sport where I started my career and eventually built my fortune”, Pacquiao said.
“Every time he steps into the ring, a complete transformation of him takes under control. A once respectable and benevolent individual becomes an absolute unstoppable beast whose only craving for blood and carnage can satisfy his sheer hunger,” Bleacher Report Correspondent Huwebes Fernandez wrote in 2009.
It has been a while since Pacquiao exhibited this rare transformation as he steps into the ring. For six years, Pacquiao has not scored a knockout win. His long KO holiday could have something to do with his shoulder injury which has already been addressed.
It could also have something to do with aging after turning 37 last December 17. Or it could be due to his new-found Christian faith, which leans on peace more than violence.
But now, Pacquiao’s sparring partners are saying that the 37-year-old fighter is on the verge of being transformed anew as they experienced Pacquiao’s ferocity in their sparring sessions.
“He was the one pushing me instead of I pushing him. He’s very strong,” Lydell Rhodes, another spar mate said. “I have been sparring with Manny since two years ago and I never saw him stronger than now.”
Pacquiao has admitted that he has experienced transforming like ferocious fighting beast in many of his fights and it appears that fans will see a fully restored fighting machine in Pacquiao on April 9.
