It’s Manny Pacquiao, right?

It’s Manny Pacquiao, right? By MAV C. GONZALES GMA News 07/27/2011 http://www.gmanews.tv/story/226985/sports/its-manny-pacquiao-right It was the pre-party before Manny Pacquiao’s fight against Antonio Margarito in Dallas, Texas. The club was packed when suddenly a guy walks in. The DJ announces on the mic, “Manny Pacquiao is in the building!" The crowd goes wild, except for Team Pacquiao who were waiting in the VIP lounge. They knew Manny wasn’t arriving yet. So who was this guy? “They sent for me in the VIP room and saw how much I looked like Manny Pacquiao. They said, ‘Wow, carbon copy di ba?’" retells Pacquiao deadringer Allan Rivera Manuel. The 26-year-old has always been a Pacman fan. But unlike other fans, he gets mistaken as the Pambansang Kamao himself. Why not? The similarity is uncanny – they have the same height, weight, skin tone and hairstyle. Allan can even imitate Pacquiao’s voice. http://64.19.142.12/images.gmanews.tv/downloads/Allan-5.jpg Allan has an uncanny resemblance to Manny Pacquiao - they have the same height, weight, built and even hairstyle. Including the same boxing glove tattoo on Manny's chest. “When I look in the mirror, I fool myself sometimes when I see how similar we look," he says. “I don’t even know Allan Rivera Manuel anymore," he adds on his rising popularity as an impersonator. Dream come true Like any fanatic, Allan’s dream was to meet his idol. It finally happened before the Mosley bout. Pacquiao was holding a private training in Hollywood when the two first met. “We had eye contact and I was just speechless," he remembers wide-eyed. “He was shadow boxing and when he saw me there, he had this big smile," he continues. If he wasn’t lucky enough that way, he was even allowed to stay to watch Manny train. “Am I in trouble?" http://64.19.142.11/images.gmanews.tv/downloads/Allan-3.jpg The Pacman deadringer has even attended an event on Manny's behalf. Allan had already been going around impersonating Manny when he received a call from the latter’s lawyer. “I was like, ‘Am I in trouble for impersonating Manny?’" he says. “But his lawyer said, ‘No, you’re not in trouble. Manny has previous appointments and we want you to come in for him for the release party of his cologne.’" So Allan got dressed, went to the release party on Pacquiao’s behalf and took photos with the fans. From a fan himself, he instantly became the world’s greatest pound-for-pound fighter’s body double. Since then, he’s been making heads turn whenever Pacquiao has a fight, most recently in Las Vegas. He interacts with Manny’s fans and even has an entourage of his own – he’s living the pseudo-life of Manny Pacquiao. Want to follow Pacman’s footsteps Since he started impersonating Manny, Allan has also started training in boxing. More than the attention, what Allan really wants to do is follow the footsteps of Pacman. He has started training in boxing (he notes that he also falls under the same weight class as Manny). In fact, he had a meeting with Top Rank regarding a boxing career. “They want to look for a Mayweather look-alike and maybe put up a fight. They said the possibilities are endless," he says. A boxing match between two professional impersonators? The possibilities are indeed endless. Allan adds that he also wants to do charity work like his idol and maybe dabble into show business too but only on a short-term basis. No Jinkee Manuel Pacquiao" kids that FTW host Mav Gonzales be his Jinkee for the day. Allan and Manny are the same in so many aspects. He even got the same boxing glove tattoo on his chest. However, he says that they differ in one thing – he doesn’t have a Jinkee in his life. “I wanna do a reality show. It’ll be called ‘Where’s my Jinkee?’ and it’ll be like ‘The Bachelor,’" he says. Since the reality show dream is still far out, what he really wants to do is continue impersonating Manny. He travelled from Texas to Manila to meet Pacquiao and ask for his blessing. “I want to ask him if I can do all these things on his behalf in the US. People in the States miss out on what he’s about because he spends most of his time in the Philippines as a familyman and as a congressman," he explains. “I want to attend US charity events for him and raise awareness on certain issues I know he would like to address too like poverty and cancer," he adds. To make the most out of his visit to the Philippines, he is also going around doing appearances. In fact, he guested on GMA’s sports webshow “For The Win" where we got to meet and interview him. (See the video below.) http://64.19.142.11/images.gmanews.tv/downloads/Allan-6.jpg Manuel Pacquiao" kids that FTW host Mav Gonzales be his Jinkee for the day. If you look at Allan closely, he really does ooze Manny Pacquiao both physically and mentally. Heck, they even have the same tattoo. Now, he only needs four things to actually follow his idol – world titles in eight divisions, a political career, an album, and a Jinkee to come home to. -- OMG, GMA News