Keith ‘One Time’ Thurman is warning Manny Pacquiao not to make any “misleading” assumptions about Errol Spence after his less than impressive get back performance in beating Danny Garcia on December 5th in Dallas, Texas.
Thurman says Spence (27-0, 21 KOs) wasn’t at his best because of the long layoff. He hadn’t fought in 15 months when he battled the hard-hitting former two-division world champion Danny ‘Swift” last December at AT&T Stadium.
Thurman (29-1, 22 KOs) isn’t certain whether the Spence vs. Pacquiao fight will get made, but he expects Errol to be better if it does.
There’s been a lot of talk about Pacquiao facing UFC star Conor McGregor next. That’s a fight that probably will happen.
The 42-year-old Pacquiao (62-7-2, 39 KOs) hasn’t fought since his win over Thurman in July 2019, and this will give him a decent tune-up fighting McGregor. Conor will have a big size advantage over Pacquiao, but that’s about it.
Spence better than he showed
“‘Spence and Pacquiao, who wins?’ I learned a lot about Pacquiao being in there. I think Spence didn’t have his best performance after the layoff,” said Thurman on social media.
“I know what it’s like not to have your best performance after a layoff.
“As long as he’s [Spence] is staying busy, he’s only going to get sharper from here. As long as he stays focused, he can only get sharper.
“It’s okay not to have your best day in the ring, that’s okay. That’s okay, but if Pacquiao thinks that’s the Spence he’s going to fight?
“He might be a little misleading with that. I don’t know if they’re going to put that fight together,” said Thurman on the Pacquiao vs. Spence fight.
You could see that Spence intentionally slugged with Danny Garcia, and that made the fight more competitive than it should have been.
Spence fights down to the opposition level sometimes, trying to prove that he can beat them using their fighting style.
If Spence gets the fight with Pacquiao, he’ll likely continue to slug rather than box because he knows that’s the best way of making it competitive.
It also helps Spence’s popularity, as boxing fans like to see action. The fighters that strictly box put the fans asleep, and they don’t want to watch them as much.
If Spence chooses to box Pacquiao for 12 rounds, he’ll beat him as easily as Floyd Mayweather Jr did in 2015.
The fans will feel ripped off if Spence fights Pacquiao like that, as that’s how they felt after watching Mayweather play it safe against the Filipino star.
People paid $100 per household to watch ‘The Fight of the Century’ between Pacquiao and Mayweather, and the match was about as interesting as watching paint dry in the afternoon sun.
Thurman will be ready by March
“When do you expect to see me back in the ring again? I’m already in my camp,” said Thurman on social media.
“I’ll be ready for anything by March. They can put anything together by March for your boy ‘One Time.’
“All that hate just motivates,” said Thurman about the criticism he receives.
“‘How do I feel about Vergil Ortiz?’ I haven’t seen enough of him, but I heard he has pop, though.
“When do I see myself retiring? Whenever I feel it in the sport, man,” said Thurman. “I got three, six, eight more years, man. We don’t know.
“We’re going to rock it out until the great fights stop happening until they make Thurman look like he could never fight. But that’s impossible, boy. My hands are solid. My feet are righteous.
“We move swift with it. Everybody’s nickname, I’m all that. Danny Swift Garcia, Thurman Swift. Errol Spence ‘The Truth.’ I been ‘The Truth.’ ‘Showtime’ Shawn Porter.
“There ain’t no show without Keith Thurman. Come on, man. There ain’t no show without Keith Thurman. Stop it. Stop lying to yourself, just top it. This is 2021, are we done with the lies? Are we done with all the manipulation? Come on, man,” said Thurman.
It’s not a good sign that Thurman has no word about who his next opponent will be. He’s already tried and struck out in attempting to get title shots against Spence and Terence Crawford.
Thurman may need to downsize his ambitions and go after someone like Josesito Lopez, Shawn Porter, or Danny Garcia.
One Time couldn’t pass up Pacquiao opportunity
“‘Why did you rush the fight with Pac?’ He could have fought somebody else,” said Thurman. “I could have fought somebody else, I could have had hand surgery, and then who knows if he was going to be around?
“I didn’t know he was going to be around. I wanted to fight Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather when I was 25-years-old. I rushed it because I’m living a dream.
“I’ve got to make my dreams come true. I didn’t get the decision I wanted, but outside of that, it still was a dream come true.
“It was a once in a lifetime opportunity, a once in a lifetime experience, and I feel great about it, even to this day. I was the one that told the world.
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“I told all you, ‘I got an O and I’m not afraid to let it go. If you can beat me, beat me.’ Hit me in my s***. Just do it, alright? Why? Because I’m going to be right there in front of you, baby.
“I’m going to be right there grinding it out with you, toe-for-toe, blow for blow,” said Thurman.
You can’t fault Thurman for taking the fight against Pacquiao in 2019. that’s a fight that he was lucky to get, so it makes sense that he didn’t pass it out.
It’s too bad Thurman lost to Pacquiao, but it’s not surprising because that was only his second fight since 2017. Thurman has been completely inactive.
Spence vs. Danny Garcia didn’t impress Thurman
What do I think of Devin Haney? Talented. I haven’t seen enough of him,” Thurman said. “He’s still young, but he’s got a lot of talent. I like the boy.
“I’m still welterweight at 147. We don’t have to move up yet. We can still make weight. We ain’t got no weight issues. I’m done with my honeymoon, ready to make my dreams and legacy.
“How can you hate when I’m your entertainment, baby,” said Thurman. “I bring some of the best fights to the welterweight division.
“You really think that show you saw with Errol Spence and Danny Garcia got more action than if Thurman was in the ring? Don’t lie to yourself. It’s a New Year, stop lying, Let’s be honest. I’ll just fight.
“I was never about that honeymoon stuff. It was about injuries, man. Y’all don’t understand the ups and downs of being a world-class athlete.
“Some people when they get out there in the real world, and they’re in the middle of the ocean. Some people make it from point A to point B and it’s smooth sailing.
“Some people got rocky roads, but we still made it, man. We still make it happen each and every year. We make it happen,” said Thurman.
There wasn’t much drama in the Spence vs. Garcia fight, and yeah, Errol looked slow. He still dominated Danny and beat him at his own game by brawling.