MANILA, 2 July 2006 — On a stage he has fought hard to occupy, in front of a multitude which has adored him like a demigod, Manny Pacquiao will unite a nation — at least for a fleeting moment — unless Mexico’s Oscar Larios will have his way.
Mano-A-Mano, a fight card which has gotten mixed reviews, finally gets off the ground after a long wait, with Pacquiao performing in front of his countrymen — most of them crippled by poverty and almost all divided politically — who will be chanting one name.
At least for today.
“He’s going to perform for his people,” said esteemed American trainer Freddie Roach, after Pacquiao elected not to talk too much to the media following the official weigh-in yesterday, apparently trying to stay focused for the fight. “Manny is ready to go, and we expect to see an early end to this fight,” Roach added.
The fight, which will be for the less-prestigious international super featherweight title of the WBC that the Filipino icon currently holds, is nothing but a tune-up for a bigger fight ahead for Pacquiao, but one which his countrymen have prayed hard to see.
“This is for my countrymen who have always prayed and supported me,” Pacquiao said Thursday, during the official presscon of the fight. Stories of how tickets sales have fared and how Pacquiao has lavishly spent to accommodate friends and family close to him, have hit the papers in the past few days.
There was even one story that claimed Pacquiao spending no less than P5 million on tickets he gave away, taking a big chunk off the $1 million purse he stands to earn just to slug it out with Larios in order to arrange an even bigger deal fighting Erik Morales in the future.
“Manny’s going to end it quickly,” Roach said. “That’s how he will deal with (Larios) — jump on him right away because he’s a slow starter.”
Roach will be handling Pacquiao for the 10th time in the Filipino’s career and Roach admitted that the Larios camp knows what Pacquiao is planning to do. “But there’s nothing he (Larios) can do about it.”
Pacquiao, who will take a 41-3-2 record to the fight, was a picture of focus yesterday, tipping the scales at 129-1/2 pounds, half-a-pound heavier than the 29-year-old Larios, the former WBC super bantam champ.
Pacquiao did not come up with the witty one-liners and there were no jokes cracked during the weigh-in.
What everyone saw was a poker-faced fighter who offered a wry smile for the photographers before retreating to a tightly-guarded room. And Roach, who has handled a total of 18 world champions, liked it. “He was a little cranky (after the weigh-in),” said a smiling Roach. “And that’s a good sign before a fight.”
This will obviously be the biggest fight in Larios’ career, one which he aims to win just to be able to get to the stature where Pacquiao is right now and command the same price tag like that of two of his more illustrious countrymen — Morales and Juan Manuel Marquez.
But Rafael Mendoza, Larios’ manager, bluntly told the local press here that Larios is a far better fighter compared to the two Mexican legends, who both felt the wrath of the hammer-fisted Pacquiao after being floored for the first time in their careers by the Filipino. Larios, 56-4-1 with 38 knockouts, still tried to exude that confidence, flexing his well-defined biceps as if to say that Pacquiao’s camp made a mistake in signing him up as a stepping stone. “In front of his (Pacquiao’s) public, he (Larios) will win by a knockout,” said Mendoza.
