By Ronnie Nathanielsz
Filipino boxing icon Manny Pacquiao who was recently cited by Thailand’s top leaders as “The Hero of Asia” has, at the last minute, decided to call off his scheduled trip to the US to receive his second “Fighter of the Year” award from the Boxing Writers Association of America.
Pacquiao adviser Michael Koncz said he was going to Pacquiao’s home in Brentville to try and talk him into making the trip and to put him on the phone with Top Rank promoter Bob Arum who was obviously disappointed with Pacquiao’s decision to call off the trip.
Besides receiving the award alongside Freddie Roach who was to receive his third “Trainer of the Year” accolade, Pacquiao was to appear on the CBS television Early Morning Show on Friday and be at ringside for the welterweight title fight between Miguel Cotto and Joshua Clottey at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.
In an overseas telephone conversation with BoxingScene.com, insidesports.ph, Standard Today and Viva Sports, Arum said “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.”
Pacquiao’s adviser Michael Koncz after a conversation with Arum told us he was going to see Pacquiao at his home in Brentville and to try and convince him to go to go to New York and also to put Arum on the phone so he could talk to Pacquiao.
Should he stick by his decision Pacquiao, according to Koncz, would also miss his own $30,000 darts tournament with some of the finest players in the world scheduled for next week in Los Angeles.
However, Koncz told us he had for almost one year told Pacquiao he needs to spend some time with his family and said “how can you I now argue against it if he wants to spend time with wife Jinkee and his kids?” Koncz said Pacquiao, Jinkee, his two sons and eldest daughter were scheduled to fly to Bohol at 6:30 p.m. Wednseday for a quiet vacation, if that is at all possible for the most popular personality in the country.
