Giovanni Cabrera explained how he came to spar with Manny Pacquiao.
Pacquiao is one of the sport’s legends who won a string of titles across different weight classes, and he is still talking of a professional comeback at the age of 45.
For now, Cabrera is the only one with a professional bout on the horizon, and he will face William Zepeda on July 6, live on DAZN .
Cabrera told BoxingScene that during the coronavirus pandemic, he was suffering from inactivity, and decided to look for an apartment in South Chicago, where he managed to secure a meeting with Pacquiao’s coach, Freddie Roach, by chance.
“I moved to the South Side of Chicago, and the property manager said he knew Freddie Roach and said, ‘Kid, I'm going to help you set up a meeting,’” he said.
“So I drove to Las Vegas to meet with his uncle, Chuck Cameron, one of Freddie's longtime friends, who had given him a job in the ‘80s while Freddie was boxing.
“I packed up all my stuff into my car, drove to Las Vegas, hoping to impress this guy so he would set up a meeting with Freddie.”
He continued: “I showed up to the gym the next day – I think it was July 18, the day before my birthday.
“Manny Pacquiao had just arrived for his last fight, against Errol Spence [who was replaced by Yordenis Ugas], as I was pulling up to the gym. He was leaving. I was like, ‘Oh, that was pretty cool, you know?’”
He then explained how he was able to step into the ring with the FIlipino sar.
“‘Hey, Gio, Manny Pacquiao wants to meet you,’” Cabrera continued. “‘Maybe if he likes you, you could spar him on Saturday.’ Five minutes before Manny Pacquiao arrived, he said, ‘Hey, Pacquiao just fired both of his sparring partners. He wants to go six rounds with you right now,’ which was exciting and equally terrifying.
“I had been inactive for a year, then the pandemic, and here I am facing an icon.
“One of the reasons I got into boxing was Manny Pacquiao,. “It was like a frickin' movie scene. It was unreal. I was scared as hell, my reflexes were running at 100 percent, and I gave him good work.
“He hired me to become a sparring partner for the rest of the camp,” Cabrera said. “That really gave me my start. When I got down from the ring that day, Freddie said, ‘Well, I knew two things were going to happen: either you were good, like you said you were, or you were probably going to get knocked out.’”
Live on DAZN : Check your region for PFL and PFL Europe on DAZN . Click here for details.