Pacquiao Taking No Chances with Jorge Solis

By Rey Danseco
 
POUND-FOR-POUND idol Manny Pacquiao is not taking any chances of being upset in his next fight against unbeaten Jorge Solis of Mexico - not even with the mouth guard.

Filipino-American Dentist Ed dela Vega visited Pacquiao at his new pad, the penthouse of the Palazzo apartments in Los Angeles and took impressions of the boxer’s teeth over the weekend.

Pacquiao’s new custom-made, professional-grade mouth guards will be available for his scheduled fight against the untested Solis on April 14 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.

Dela Vega said that Pacquiao wanted his mouth guard to be yellow and blue – the colors of the Philippine flag.                           

Dela Vega, who is the past President of the Los Angeles Dental Society and the Southern California Filipino Dental Society, made Pacquiao’s new mouthguards, free of charge, in his previous fights in the United States.

Pacquiao’s opponent is considered a jaw-breaker and may harm his opponent when he sees an opening. Solis, a Mexican featherweight king until two years ago, is in his prime at 27-years old.

The Mexican orthodox has a record of 32 wins, no losses, 2 draws with 23 wins by knockouts.

Pacquiao, 43-3-2 with 34 knockouts, aims to use the bout as tune up for his desired title shot against World Boxing Council super featherweight champion Juan Manuel Marquez in September.

Pacquiao floored Marquez three times in the first round, but the toughMexican was able to pull out a draw after one of the judges, Burt Clements, made a mistake in scoring the first round of the bout that was held in May 2004 for the Marquez’s WBA and IBF featherweight titles.

The 28-year-old Filipino fighter is currently training for a week now under Justin Fortune at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, California.