Manny Pacquiao will return to the ring on November 13 against disgraced boxer Antonio Maragrito. The pair will go head to head at Cowboys Stadium in Texas for the WBC light middleweight title and while all concerned expect Pacquiao to emerge with the strap, Scottish boxer Craig McEwan has warned of Maragrito’s knockout ability.

McEwan is one man who knows both of these boxers well having been a regular stable mate of Pacquiao’s at the Wildcard Gym in Hollywood, California under the tutelage of renowned coach Freddy Roach. The Edinburgh boxer also served as a sparring partner for Margarito for six weeks and has first hand experience of what Pacquiao can expect to face as he prepares to take on the tough Mexican.

“I think if Manny sticks to his game plan and listens to Freddy he’ll be coming home with [the title]. I can’t see a knockout unless Margarito knocks Manny out, that’s the only way I see it, but funnier things have happened,” said the 28-year-old.

McEwan was thrown in at the deep-end when he sparred with Margarito and found out just how tough the now 32-year-old is.

“Margarito, he is just relentless. In the first two weeks sparring with him, (I did six weeks), he punched me around the ring like I was not even there. He punched me with things I had never been hit with,” explained McEwan, who has won all of his 19 fights as a professional.

“I thought, this is just too tough for me. I thought in America I could make it but this is too tough. I was actually going home bust up and bruised, but I dug in just started to move my feet a bit more and cutting him off at angles and making him miss and I earned his respect. But he is a different animal, in the way he trains as well.”

Margarito, who has recently returned from a year-long ban for attempting to load his gloves before a fight, is the underdog in the clash against seven-weight world champion and Filipino congressman Pacquiao.

“With Manny what you see is what you get. He does exactly what it says on the tin,” said McEwan of the 31-year-old who is looking to make it eight titles in as many weight divisions.

“He is a different animal as well. They both train hard. I think with the speed of Manny and the way he moves around the ring at different angles Margarito will find it hard to tag him but if he does then it’s a different fight. But if Manny sticks to his boxing and catches him, just look at what Mosley did to Margarito nobody expected that, so it could happen for Manny.”

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