LOS ANGELES — Stepping back in the ring with courage and determination, boxer Manny Pacquiao is not letting his age stop him from his passion.
A winner of 12 major titles in eight different weight divisions, the 42-year-old takes on Yordenis Ugas in Las Vegas on Saturday.
What You Need To Know
- As Manny Pacquiao prepares for his fight against Yordenis Ugas, he says faith and discpline have inspired him to continue taking risks as a boxer
- Perla Bazaldua, a 16-year-old, 10-time U.S. national boxing champion, says she looks up to Pacquiao's determination and fearlessness
- At age 42, Pacquiao says this fight signifies honor for his country and his continued love for the sport of boxing
As he prepared at Wildcard Boxing Club, Pacquiao attributed his faith as the driving force to his discipline and risk-taking.
"To overcome the odds, don’t look to other people," he said. "Just look to God and trust yourself, and just focus, have discipline. And you will dream, and I think you will become successful."
Pacquiao's philosophy is empowering the next generation of boxers. Perla Bazaldua, a 10-time U.S. national champion who trains at Knock Outs Boxing Facility, said she has studied Pacquiao’s technique — both mentally and physically.
"When I go in there and fight, it inspires me like," she said. "He doesn’t have fear, so I shouldn’t have fear."
At just 16 years old, Bazaldua has experienced great victory and success as a young boxer, but she said she wants to keep climbing higher. She see’s Pacquiao’s fearlessness, taking on tough competitors, as a source of inspiration.
“When he fights with the best, that motivates me to fight with the best because to be the best, you got to fight with the best,” she said.
As Bazaldua helps mentor even younger athletes, she says that being a woman in the sport only motivates her more to continue breaking barriers.
"There’s always people going to doubt you, like, 'Oh, you can’t do this, you’re a woman. You don’t have enough strength,'" she said. "But you have to overcome those odds. You have to show the people that you are the best, that you can do anything that a man can do. And Manny Pacquiao proves that, and that motivates me to prove it as a woman to show what I can do in the sport."
Pacquiao has not only overcome the odds as a once-impoverished fighter from the Philippines, he even stepped into new titles as the former senator of the Philippines. He said this next fight is for his country, legacy and pure love of boxing.
"Of course, honor to my country," he said. "I think being 42, it's a good thing doing this fight convincingly, to prove and put another legacy in boxing."