In an accidental interview at the main lobby of the MGM Grand here, the fighter who once ruled the world said it will be very hard for Morales to beat Pacquiao simply because the Filipino "throws too many punches."
Asked if he was here to watch the fight, he said yes.
And who’s he rooting for?
"Well, I like Morales to win," he said.
But does he think the fight would last the distance? He answered: "Oh no. Pacquiao might stop him. He throws too many punches and Morales don’t throw too many punches. It will be hard for Morales to keep the guy off. It will be hard for Morales to stop him."
Tyson said he’d seen Pacquiao fight before — in fact in June of 2002 when the hard-hitting Filipino southpaw was part of the undercard of the Tyson-Lennox Lewis fight at the Pyramid Arena in Memphis.
Tyson lost that bout, being knocked out in the eighth round.
"He (Pacquiao) is powerful," said Tyson, as fearsome as ever, of Pacquiao.
One last question thrown at Tyson as he turned away from a growing mob was this: "How do you think Morales will win?"
"Constant jabs. Combinations. Constant jabs," he said.
Tyson stepped into the giant hotel-casino at around two in the morning when Nick Giongco, a grizzled boxing writer from Manila, noticed his presence. He was wearing a black shirt, a tight one, and black pants, with a young, vivacious lady in tow.
In the middle of the interview, Tyson even asked, "Where are you from?"
"The Philippines," was the reply.
"Yeah," said Tyson.