Pacquiao foe Algieri dreams of becoming a doctor after boxing career

MACAU — Manny Pacquiao won't be up against an ordinary foe when he climbs the ring this Sunday to defend his World Boxing Organization (WBO) welterweight crown at Cotai Arena inside The Venetian here.

 

He's going to face a possible future medical doctor.

 

Chris Algieri, the brash and confident former kickboxer from New York, earned a bachelor's degree in healthcare science from Stony Brook University and a master's degree from New York Institute of Technology before plunging into boxing. 

 

He said he wants to pursue further studies in medicine should a career in professional boxing fizzle out. 

 

"I always have a fallback where I can lean on in case this entire thing doesn't materialize," said the 30-year old Algieri, the 20-0 junior welterweight champion whose claim to fame was when he stormed back to outbox Russian slugger Ruslan Provodnikov last June to earn this megabuck fight against Pacquiao.

 

Alside from a solid educational background, Algieiri also came from a tight-knit family. In fact, he still lives in his father's house in Greenlawn, New York and still drives the same 2001 Honda Accord which he had when he was still studying.

 

“We don’t want him to ever leave,” said his father, Dominick, who also credits his wife, Adriana, for his devotion to raise a good family.

 

“I’m sure he will, but he can stay for as long as he wants."

 

Top Rank CEO Bob Arum said Algieri provides a feel-good story for the sport of boxing.

 

The promoter said an Algieri victory will not only earn him a good payday of over $1 million, but will also bring boxing back on its feet.

 

"He's a college educated and very good kid," Arum said. "If this Chris Algieri kid wins, he's going to revitalize the sport of boxing in the United States. We haven't seen somebody like him for the past 50 years or so, because just like in the movies, professional boxers in the US came from the minority."

 

Algieri's trainer, Tim Lane, strongly agrees. 

 

"He is a superhero," he said. "He is a golden child."

 

But then again, intelligence alone doesn't win a fight. 

 

He still has to come up with a better performance on top of the ring to claim the crown. — STR/JST, GMA News