Chris Rock Picks Floyd Mayweather Jr. To Win Super Fight But Admits There’s A Reason Why American Avoided Manny Pacquiao In The Past

Actor Chris Rock has an opinion or two about the Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao fight this coming Saturday. One of which is that the undefeated American has been avoiding the Filipino pugilist for years and that Mayweather Jr.’s overconfidence may cause him to lose the fight against Pacquiao.

In an interview with HBO Boxing uploaded on YouTube, Rock, despite his criticisms on Mayweather Jr., said that he’s still picking his compatriot although admitted that it would not surprise him if Pacquiao comes out victorious.

“I’m [going to] pick Floyd [Mayweather Jr.]. Floyd has never been out of shape. I’ve probably seen Floyd lose one round in the last 15 years,” the 50-year-old comedian shared. “On the other hand, there’s a reason why he’s been avoiding this fight. He did just not fight him because he’s mad at Bob Arum. There’s a reason he did not fight this guy. The same reason Mike Tyson never fought Riddick Bowe—they are from the same neighbourhood, you know what I mean?”

Heavyweight boxers Tyson (50-6-0, 44 knockouts) and Bowe (43-1-0, 33 knockouts) never met on top of the squared ring with both fighters having a colourful boxing career in the 90s.

Rock, who is a known sports fan who frequents NBA games, also mentioned Mayweather’s “level of confidence” as a possible factor in the Mayweather-Pacquiao super fight. “And I will also say this; even though I am picking Floyd, I have never seen an athlete with that level of confidence not have them bite them in the ass at some point. You know, usually that level of confidence bucks you up at some point. It happened to Ray Leonard in Montreal. At some point, an athlete is generally humbled,”

Rock, who has won four Primetime Emmy awards, added in the interview. In the end, Rock picked Mayweather Jr. to win against Pacquiao but admitted that the Filipino has a legit chance to pull off the upset victory.

“I pick Floyd but I wouldn’t be shocked if Pacquiao won.”

The Mayweather-Pacquiao fight is scheduled to happen this Saturday, May 2, at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

To contact author of this article, email j.quizon@IBTimes.com.au.