By Ronnie Nathanielsz
Filipino ring idol Manny Pacquiao has been warned by several boxing people including his own nanager Shelly Finkel not to take former super bantamweight champion Oscar Larios lightly because if he does, he could be in trouble.
Finkel in an earlier email to Viva Sports/Manila Standard Today said the fight against Larios should not be described as a “tune-up fight” for Pacquiao because Larios is a dangerous foe.
Even Pacquiao’s longtime friend and Filipino trainer Restituto “Buboy” Fernandez said Pacquiao has to take this fight “very seriously” and that he, for one, would recommend that Pacquiao train in the US and not in the Philippines.
Fernandez who was in Mandaue City for the OPBF title fight between Z “The Dream” Gorres and former champion Waengpetch Chuwatana on Saturday said “there are too many distractions” when Pacquiao trains in the country, no matter where he trains and even though trainer Freddie Roach will be around, it was almost impossible to keep friends and hangers-on away from Pacquiao.
Fernandez who has blossomed into a fine trainer while learning the ropes from Roach said he would prefer that Pacquiao train at Roach’s Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles and return to Manila four or five days before the fight tentatively scheduled for July 2 at the Araneta Coliseum, the “Mecca” of Philippine sports and entertainment.
Golden Boy Promotions vice president and matcmaker Eric Gomez said “Manny should not take Larios lightly. He is tall, is fast, throws a lot of punches and most of all he wants Manny.”
Larios who stands 5’8” has a record of 56-4-1 with 36 knockouts and has beaten a number of excellent fighters including Wayne McCullough, Nedal Hussein who gave Pacquiao a rough time some years ago, Ivan Alvarez and Israel Vasquez although he suffered a third round TKO at the hands of Vasquez last December in a suoer bantamweight title fight.
