Text and Photos by Ponciano "John" Melo Jr.
LAS VEGAS, Nevada — The fight is on and one of the biggest fight nights of the year is only a day away.
At their official weigh-in, Friday morning (5 AM, Saturday Manila time) both Manny Pacquiao and Keith Thurman Jr. made weight below the 147 pound-limit for their WBA welterweight championship clash in a little over 24 hours time.
The fighters registered identical weights at 146.5 lbs. that signifies no further hiccup for the much-awaited bout that sees Thurman risking his unblemished record against boxing’s only eight-division world champion.
Met with some jeers from the crowd, Thurman was first to hit the scales, while his opponent Pacquiao had applause greet him when his time came to step on the podium.
Thurman, still taunting the Filipino Senator and boxing icon, vowed it was his time to shine come fight night.
“It’s my time, and I’ll still be champ by tomorrow night,” he said after the weigh-in.
While Pacquiao, not much for engaging in a word war, thanked the sizeable crowd for supporting the fight.
“Thank you for coming to witness a good fight, I want to prove something for this fight. I’m so prepared for this and this is one of my best training camps. We’re all set tomorrow,” he said.
