Chris Algieri will be a heavy underdog in his upcoming fight against Manny Pacquiao, but Sylvester Stallone is quite convinced that there could be an upset on Nov. 22 in Macau, China.
Stallone, who was enshrined into the Boxing Hall of Fame for playing the role of famous fictional boxing character "Rocky," was present during a news conference for the Pacquiao-Algieri showdown.
During the press conference, Stallone compared Algieri to "Rocky" for the way he managed to score a win against Ruslan Provodnikov in June despite getting knocked down twice in the first round of the match.
"In my business, life imitates art, but in Chris' case, I think it's the other way around," Stallone said via Yahoo Sports. "Watching Chris rebound from those two first-round knockdowns against Ruslan Provodnikov and outbox him the next 11 rounds to win the title was more than an upset. It was Rocky-esque."
Based on what he saw from Algieri's victory against Provodnikov, Stallone believes that the Huntington, New York native will pull off an upset win against Pacquiao later this month.
"As for his fight against Manny Pacquiao on Nov. 22, all I can say to you, Chris, is great movies deserve great sequels, and I won't be the least bit surprised to see you give us one in Macau," Stallone added.
Algieri was obviously pumped up by Stallone's take on his upcoming showdown against Pacquiao, and the 30-year-old challenger vowed to silence his critics on fight night.
"To have Sly here and be in his presence is incredible, he will stop by the dressing room and be at the fight in Macau," Algieri said of Stallone's words of encouragement via Fightnews. "The goal is to be a master boxer. I am focused on the task at hand. You will see something we have never seen before. I am a different fighter every fight."
Algieri, who holds an unblemished 20-0 record with eight knockout victories, will look to win Pacquiao's World Boxing Organization welterweight title. He knows that it won't be easy, but Algieri is confident that they have the perfect fight plan to pull off a shocking victory.
"Manny is a fast and explosive guy with power, tremendous experience," Algieri said. "I have to go out there and be the young lion, set the pace, be in his face, work hard and be smart."
