Errol Spence Jr. will not be putting his WBC and IBF Welterweight gold on the line against Manny Pacquiao on Aug. 21.
Spence and Pacquiao were set to collide inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. That plan has gone awry. In a press release sent out by PBC, it was announced that Spence has suffered a retinal tear.
Here’s what Spence said in the press release.
“I’m very disappointed that I won’t be able to fight Manny Pacquiao on August 21. I was excited about the fight and the event. Unfortunately, the doctors found a tear in my left eye and said I needed to get surgery on it ASAP and that there was no way I could fight with my eye in that condition. I’d like to apologize to everyone. You know I’ll be back as soon back soon. We’ve come back from worse.’’
Pacquiao shared some words of his own, wishing Spence a speedy recovery.
“First and foremost, I ask everyone to join me in praying for a full and complete recovery for Errol Spence Jr. Thank God his physical examination discovered his eye condition before he suffered any further damage. I have agreed to fight Yordenis Ugas on August 21 for the WBA welterweight super championship. The proper way and the only way to win a world title is inside the ring.”
It’s a bit of a tough break for Pacquiao. He just got done winning a legal battle against Paradigm Sports Management, who tried to prevent the Spence bout from happening. Ultimately, a judge denied Paradigm’s injunction request.
As Pacquiao mentioned, WBA Welterweight Champion Yordenis Ugas will step in to replace Spence. His title will be on the line against Pacquiao. Ugas had been promoted to the “Super” championship due to inactivity on Pacquiao’s end. “PacMan” will get a chance to reclaim the gold.
Pacquiao is 42 years but he has been defying the odds for years. Back in July 2019, he handed Keith Thurman his first pro boxing loss to capture the WBA gold. If he can shut down Ugas, he’ll be right back to preparing for Spence.
Do you think Yordenis Ugas has a shot at upsetting Manny Pacquiao?
