Boxing Legend Says He Would've Schooled Manny Pacquaio In His Prime

Former multi-division champ Thomas Hearns weighed in on how would Manny Pacquiao match-up against him in his prime.

With eight division titles under his belt, Pacquiao is indeed one of the greatest boxers to ever step inside the ring. But like “Pac-Man,” Hearns was also once in his shoes.

In a recent exclusive interview with Lem Satterfield for Ring Magazine via WBN, “Hitman” boasted that he would have schooled the Filipino legend had they shared the same era.

“Manny Pacquiao, I think that he’s a pretty good fighter,” he said. “I think that he would do well. He would do okay [against me]. I think that he would do pretty good."

“He would definitely have to come to me,” he continued. “I would probably box him and keep boxing him and look for the shot. Yeah, definitely, I would box him and look for the opening. I would give him a good boxing lesson.”

With his lean physique and naturally long arms, Hearns could have really given Pacquiao a hardtime. Mexican boxing legend Erik Morales serves as a living proof as he was the last pugilist to give Pacquiao a hard time using height and reach.

Aside from Pacquiao, Hearns also predicted how Floyd Mayweather Jr. would fare against him. Despite acknowledging that the undefeated champ would “do pretty good,” the 62-year-old insisted that he could put him down.

“I think that Floyd Mayweather would do pretty good (against me),” he stated. “He’s got good head movement, and I can’t put him down. I have to give him his props. He could last.”

After all, Hearns concluded that both Pacquiao and Mayweather are “good fighters.” However, “The Motor City Cobra” is confident that anybody who steps inside the squared-circle with him back in the day would surely face “hell.”

“Listen, they’re good fighters,” Hearns said of Pacquiao and Mayweather. “I can’t take anything away from those guys. But you know anybody who was in my weight division, you know, I would give them hell.”

“They would have to be really fighting hard and be ready to absorb a lot of punches to beat me. Because, you know, I ain’t going to let anybody just come in and beat me.”

Throughout his stellar career, Hearns fought some of the best fighters of all time including, “Sugar” Ray Leonard and Marvin Hagler. He also competed and won titles in five different weight classes.