Long Island's Chris Algieri likes his title chances against Manny Pacquiao

Floyd Mayweather Jr. is the unquestioned pound-for-pound king of the current generation of boxers, yet he has balked at climbing into the ring with Manny Pacquiao despite the enormous financial windfall that fight would generate.

But Long Island's Chris Algieri, with a mere 20 pro fights on his resume and a purse approaching only $1.5 million, will run headlong into battle with the WBO welterweight champion next Saturday in Macau, China, while radiating confidence in his ability to pull off one of the great upsets in boxing history.

You could chalk it up to the fact that "Money" Mayweather has more dollars than he can count, while Algieri is hungry for whatever loose pay-per-view change Pacquiao and promoter Bob Arum offer him.

Or you could say Mayweather recognizes something in Pacquiao's unorthodox southpaw style that threatens his perfect 47-0 record, while Algieri (20-0, eight KOs) embraces the opportunity it presents because it's in his comfort zone.

"Most guys avoid southpaws, but I didn't have that option because of the way I came up," Algieri said, meaning he was desperate for opponents when he launched his career six years ago at the age of 24. "I'm definitely not a 'built' champion. I had to fight my whole way up, which is one of the reasons I don't have as many knockouts as a lot of other guys.

"My pro debut was with a lefty; my second pro fight was a lefty. I think we've fought seven already. It's never been an issue."

Algieri's list of opponents at BoxRec.com includes five southpaws, but the stance of six of his opponents was not identified. That's also a function of some of the nondescript opposition he faced early in his career while struggling to get on the big-time boxing map.

But he also faced plenty of southpaws in his previous kickboxing career, including long-time sparring partner Tim Lane, who now serves as one of Algieri's trainers along with Keith Trimble, another former kickboxer.

"The first hard sparring killer he ever had in front of him was me," Lane said. "He had to make adjustments against a lefty. I'm not as fast as Manny, but he's always done better against lefties. He understands leftyism.

"It's like driving in England. If you've never driven on the left side of the road, what are you going to do? But if you're over there a bunch of times, you know how to do it. Chris is very well-versed in fighting lefties."

If Algieri has a calling card, it's a sharp, accurate jab that he can throw effectively all fight long with his 72-inch reach. That's how he recovered from two first-round knockdowns by Ruslan Provodnikov to box his way to a split-decision upset for the WBO light welterweight title in June.

At 5-11, Algieri is more than four inches taller than Pacquiao (56-5-2, 38 KOs), and his reach is five inches longer. But his size advantage and jab alone likely aren't enough to overcome Pacquiao's vast experience, and the Filipino's hand speed and unorthodox ring movements will be unlike anything Algieri ever has encountered.

"Yeah, it's Manny Pacquiao," Trimble said. "Even though he's older, he's still going to have his speed. He's going to be flying around. But Chris isn't going to get rattled. He's going to stick to his game plan, which is using his jab. Once again, his smarts will come into play. Manny will get frustrated and start jumping in, and he's going to get caught."

Pacquiao and his trainer, Freddie Roach, are quick to point out that he stopped 5-10 Oscar De La Hoya in 2008 and won a decision against 5-11 Antonio Margarito in 2010. But Trimble counters, "Margarito is 5-11, and he fights like he's 4-11. He wants to sit right in front of you and bang it out. We're not doing that.

"Oscar De La Hoya was at the end of his career, and that was a prime Pacquiao. We're going to probably see things Chris never has seen, but even though Pacquiao fought all those people, there's going to be things he's never seen. He's going to see the big difference in that reach. Chris can move his feet and use that reach."

Algieri's modest knockout record suggests a lack of power, but there is ample power in his left hand when he throws it to the body or rips an uppercut. Because he broke his right hand a few times while kickboxing and early in his boxing career, Algieri has been reluctant to use it at times. But that might change against Pacquiao.

"All those punches with the left are opening you up for that right hand," Trimble said. "He needs to let that right hand go. He's a big, strong kid. He knows how to use it. He just has to bring it out."

That's what Algieri worked on when he trained on Long Island with Trimble, and that continued when he moved to Las Vegas to train with Lane for the past month.

"His right hand has come along so well," Lane said. "He's going to be a two-armed guy this time."

Two years ago, Pacquiao was knocked out cold by a right hand from Juan Manuel Marquez in their third fight against each other. Marquez historically had given Pacquiao trouble by imposing his counter-punching style.

Robert Mauro, Algieri's long-time kickboxing trainer, said Pacquiao's speed and volume punching from odd angles pose a serious threat. But if Algieri handles it, his right hand might hold the key to victory against a southpaw.

"The right hand can become your jab, especially against Pacquiao, because he's reckless at times," Mauro said. "He goes for it. If you have good timing, which Chris definitely does, you don't have to have a physically strong right hand. If Pacquiao ducks into that right hand like he did against Marquez, you don't have to throw it that hard. There is no doubt Chris can win."

As much as Algieri and everyone in his camp want to make it a boxing match, Pacquiao is bound to force the pace and get inside to land a flurry of punches at times. But he hasn't stopped anyone since Miguel Cotto in the 12th round five years ago.

It's possible that Pacquiao, who turns 36 in December, might get a surprise in a toe-to-toe exchange with Algieri. "Honestly, Chris is a nasty little kid," Trimble said. "He's a nice guy, he likes everybody. But he's a nasty kid in the ring.

"In his earlier fights, Tim and I would say to him, 'You're standing in the middle too long banging it out. You don't need to be.' He likes to get in there. But if you're 5-11, why fight in a phone booth when you could use your real estate?''

No doubt, Algieri will do what he can to avoid a slugfest and impose his style. Call it Algieri's naivete if you like, but he's convinced he can do what Mayweather hasn't dared.

"I truly believe that if I be myself and do what I know I can do, it doesn't matter what Pacquiao does," Algieri said. "We're just going to set the tone and the pace and win the fight that way, just win it outright without having to worry about Pacquiao."

That's a tall order against "Pacman." Impossible? We'll see.

By Greg Logan

Gregory.Logan@newsday.comGregLogan1

Greg Logan has worked for Newsday since 1982 covering a wide array of sports and events, currently including the Brooklyn Nets beat.