By Ronnie Nathanielsz

Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao decided late Wednesday night after advice from concerned friends including adviser Michael Koncz and close friends Rex “Wakee” Salud and others to attend the Boxing Writers Association of America dinner on June 12 in New York .

Pacquiao had earlier decided to skip the BWAA affair where he was to receive his second “Fighter of the Year” award along with trainer Freddie Roach who was being cited as “Trainer of the Year” for the third time.

The news upset Top Rank promoter Bob Arum who told us in an overseas telephone conversation that  “he better go, he better go. Let me tell you the media will never let him live it down. In the whole history of the awards there has never been a fighter that hasn’t shown up. He can still go. He can come on Thursday and be in New York on Thursday night and there’s plenty of time.”

He said Pacquiao must understand that the American media “has been very good to him. Absolutely.”

Koncz had earlier tried to convince Pacquiao to go to New York instead of a planned vacation with wife Jinkee and three of their four kids in the picturesque island of Bohol but Pacquiao went ahead, took a flight to Cebu before a planned ferry ride to Bohol.

However, it seems both Koncz and Salud kept at it and our report about Arum being upset and a possible media backlash that was published on insidesports.ph and boxingscene.com apparently had a hand in getting Pacquiao to change his mind.

Koncz informed us shortly after midnight Wednesday that Pacquiao and wife Jinkee accompanied by Koncz will leave for New York at 8:00 on Friday and expect to be in New York by 3:00 p.m. which would enable him to attend the BWAA awards dinner and receive the honors bestowed on him.

Present plans call for Pacquiao to return to Manila on Monday which would give him an opportunity to watch the welterweight title fight between Miguel Cotto and Joshua Clottey at New York’s Madison Square Garden where Filipino Rodel Mayol fights champion Ivan Calderon for the WBO light flyweight title.

BWAA president Jack Hirsh told us when informed about Pacquiao’s decision not to attend the awards night that he didn’t wish to make “any negative comment” adding “I have to believe in my heart that Pacquiao will ultimately do the right thing.”