"I know that Floyd wants this fight with Manny very, very, very badly. He wants this fight more than ever right now. I haven't known him that long, but I don't think I've ever heard him talk about wanting to fight anybody this much. He usually doesn't care who he fights. It could be this guy or that guy, but he really wants to fight Manny," stated world-class Strength & Conditioning coach Alex Ariza, who shared his thoughts on a potential clash between undefeated pound-for-pound king Floyd Mayweather and his former client, 8-division world champion Manny Pacquiao.
Ariza recently relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada, where he'll likely begin working with Mayweather in some capacity as he prepares for his next opponent. At this point, however, it's still unclear if that next opponent will be Pacquiao, who is reportedly deep into negotiations with Mayweather to make the fight a reality. Despite reports that there's been progress in those talks, Ariza, who was a member of Team Pacquiao for the majority of the years that the fight has been discussed, isn't quite as optimistic about the chances of it coming to fruition.
"Look, of course I know and I'm privy to how one side [Team Pacquiao] works. And now I know a little about the other side [Team Mayweather] and how badly they want the fight. But I'm just going off of what I've known over the last four years. No, I'm not optimistic [about Mayweather vs. Pacquiao happening]. I know Bob [Arum] and I know that he's the one standing in the way of this, and that's why, for me, this fight isn't going to happen. Now is no different than the last five years; the determining factor on whether or not this fight is going to happen lies with Bob," Ariza explained. "I just don't get all worked up over any of that shit anymore. They agreed to the venue? Big deal! Where else are they going to have that fight? They agreed to drug testing? Duh! They've got no choice. I just don't think those reports are a big deal at all."
BE SURE TO CHECK BACK SOON FOR THE FULL INTERVIEW WITH ALEX ARIZA
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