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LOS ANGELES – Although it’s quite obvious that there is no love lost between two-time world champion Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines and three-time world champion Erik Morales of Tijuana, Mexico, Mexican boxing experts and fans reveal that though they may not exactly love the Philippine boxing champ, they definitely have a lot of respect for him.
Manny Pacquiao shows his wares during the open media workout at the Wild Card Gym last week (Photo from boxnews.com)
“He’s relentless, he can take a punch and he will stay in the end. Speed, power, heart - - - that’s what makes Manny a very dangerous fighter. And he fights with pride as a Filipino,” said Bernardo Osuna, host of the show “Solo Boxeo” that airs on Telefutura, a Latino network in Mexico.
Telefutura was just one of the foreign media outfits who were present when Team Pacquiao held an open media workout at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood last week. The objective of the event, according to Pacquiao’s publicist, Fred Sternberg, was to show the public what kind of “Pacquiao” they could expect this Saturday when he faces Morales in “The Battle” – their much-awaited rematch at the Thomas and Mack Center.
“Everybody wants to see how he looks before he goes to Las Vegas next week,” Sternberg said.
But according to some members of the foreign press, even before the media trooped to Hollywood to catch a glimpse of the ultra-fit and 100%-ready Pacquaio, they already knew what to expect from one of the greatest fighters in the world today.
“And after a great battle with Erik Morales the first time around, I think people understand what kind of a fighter Pacquiao is. He’s a warrior. And that’s what fight fans love; whether he’s a Filipino or he’s Mexican, the respect for a guy who goes in there and gives it his all. And that’s what Manny has done to every Mexican fighter he’s faced,” Osuna said.
According to Osuna, the Mexicans still have not gotten over the beating that their boxing hero Marco Antonio Barrera took from Pacquiao last November 15, 2003 in San Antonio, Texas. The Filipino fighter TKO’d the former three-time WBO Jr. Featherweight World Champion. The fight was at 126 pounds and Barrera, considered by many observers to be the world’s best featherweight, was a 4-1 favorite to win. But Pacquiao did well. He was knocked down in the first round but replays showed that he was tripped when the punch was thrown. And from then on, he dominated the fight, scoring knockdowns in the third and eleventh rounds before Barrera’s corner stopped the fight at 2:56 after 10 rounds.
“We like Morales because he’s Mexican. But we respect Pacquiao a lot because he beat Barrera and he beat him bad,” said Joel Bengoa, a sports reporter for Telemundo, one of the biggest Spanish networks in the US.
“When a guy comes in to the ring and beats Marco Antonio Barrera in the way that he did, it deserves respect. When he does what he did to Juan Manuel Marquez in a very exciting, very emotional fight, he earns your respect,” Osuna said.
Last May 8, 2004, for the WBA Featherweight World Title Challenge in Las Vegas, Pacquiao punched to a 12-round draw against defending champion Marquez. He scored three knockdowns in the first round alone but Marquez gradually recovered. Marquez swept rounds three-through six on two judges’ scoreboards. He rocked Pacquiao and cut him over the eye in the fifth and staggered him in the sixth. The second half of the fight was exciting. The momentum went back and forth as Pacquiao landed the harder punches; but Marquez kept a busier pace.
Pacquiao hasn’t backed down on any Mexican fighter and even as Morales beat him in their first encounter on March 19, 2005, the pride of Philippine boxing is still as determined to show the world who’s king of the ring. And this determination is one quality that endears him, even to the mainstream audience here in America.
Steve Springer, sportswriter for LA Times for 23-years, commented: “Manny is definitely one of the more interesting fighters we have today. I think Manny has the skills to out-box Morales, to stay away from Erik.”
Osuna agreed, “Even though I want Erik to come out on top, I think Manny will win this time and we’re going have a third fight.”
And even a sports columnist from the widely popular Latino daily “LA Opinion,” said he thought Pacquiao would win the fight, pointing out that the first time the two fighters met, Pacquiao was plagued by problems.
“I can see the fight will be very, very tough for Erik. I believe Manny is now a complete fighter. He doesn’t have mental problems anymore. I believe, Manny can win by decision,” Ramiro Gonzalez said. “Manny has a different mentality. Boxing is 90% mentality and only 10% physical.”
The first encounter between Morales and Pacquiao was one of the most highly anticipated fights of the year. The event drew a crowd of 14,423 to the MGM Grand and repeatedly brought fans to their feet. Pacquiao started fast and won the first and third rounds on all three scorecards. But Morales stood his ground and rallied in the middle and late rounds, winning the fourth, fifth and sixth rounds on two scorecards, then eighth, tenth and eleventh on all three. Pacquiao was cut over the right eye in the fifth round and after the fight he said that the cut impaired his vision and affected his performance very badly.
“I couldn’t see with just one eye. If I’m not cut on one eye, I think I can knock him out. But I did my best and gave everyone a good fight,” he said in an interview right after the match.
Manny Pacquiao shows his wares during the open media workout at the Wild Card Gym last week (Photo from boxnews.com)
“He’s relentless, he can take a punch and he will stay in the end. Speed, power, heart - - - that’s what makes Manny a very dangerous fighter. And he fights with pride as a Filipino,” said Bernardo Osuna, host of the show “Solo Boxeo” that airs on Telefutura, a Latino network in Mexico.
Telefutura was just one of the foreign media outfits who were present when Team Pacquiao held an open media workout at the Wild Card Gym in Hollywood last week. The objective of the event, according to Pacquiao’s publicist, Fred Sternberg, was to show the public what kind of “Pacquiao” they could expect this Saturday when he faces Morales in “The Battle” – their much-awaited rematch at the Thomas and Mack Center.
“Everybody wants to see how he looks before he goes to Las Vegas next week,” Sternberg said.
But according to some members of the foreign press, even before the media trooped to Hollywood to catch a glimpse of the ultra-fit and 100%-ready Pacquaio, they already knew what to expect from one of the greatest fighters in the world today.
“And after a great battle with Erik Morales the first time around, I think people understand what kind of a fighter Pacquiao is. He’s a warrior. And that’s what fight fans love; whether he’s a Filipino or he’s Mexican, the respect for a guy who goes in there and gives it his all. And that’s what Manny has done to every Mexican fighter he’s faced,” Osuna said.
According to Osuna, the Mexicans still have not gotten over the beating that their boxing hero Marco Antonio Barrera took from Pacquiao last November 15, 2003 in San Antonio, Texas. The Filipino fighter TKO’d the former three-time WBO Jr. Featherweight World Champion. The fight was at 126 pounds and Barrera, considered by many observers to be the world’s best featherweight, was a 4-1 favorite to win. But Pacquiao did well. He was knocked down in the first round but replays showed that he was tripped when the punch was thrown. And from then on, he dominated the fight, scoring knockdowns in the third and eleventh rounds before Barrera’s corner stopped the fight at 2:56 after 10 rounds.
“We like Morales because he’s Mexican. But we respect Pacquiao a lot because he beat Barrera and he beat him bad,” said Joel Bengoa, a sports reporter for Telemundo, one of the biggest Spanish networks in the US.
“When a guy comes in to the ring and beats Marco Antonio Barrera in the way that he did, it deserves respect. When he does what he did to Juan Manuel Marquez in a very exciting, very emotional fight, he earns your respect,” Osuna said.
Last May 8, 2004, for the WBA Featherweight World Title Challenge in Las Vegas, Pacquiao punched to a 12-round draw against defending champion Marquez. He scored three knockdowns in the first round alone but Marquez gradually recovered. Marquez swept rounds three-through six on two judges’ scoreboards. He rocked Pacquiao and cut him over the eye in the fifth and staggered him in the sixth. The second half of the fight was exciting. The momentum went back and forth as Pacquiao landed the harder punches; but Marquez kept a busier pace.
Pacquiao hasn’t backed down on any Mexican fighter and even as Morales beat him in their first encounter on March 19, 2005, the pride of Philippine boxing is still as determined to show the world who’s king of the ring. And this determination is one quality that endears him, even to the mainstream audience here in America.
Steve Springer, sportswriter for LA Times for 23-years, commented: “Manny is definitely one of the more interesting fighters we have today. I think Manny has the skills to out-box Morales, to stay away from Erik.”
Osuna agreed, “Even though I want Erik to come out on top, I think Manny will win this time and we’re going have a third fight.”
And even a sports columnist from the widely popular Latino daily “LA Opinion,” said he thought Pacquiao would win the fight, pointing out that the first time the two fighters met, Pacquiao was plagued by problems.
“I can see the fight will be very, very tough for Erik. I believe Manny is now a complete fighter. He doesn’t have mental problems anymore. I believe, Manny can win by decision,” Ramiro Gonzalez said. “Manny has a different mentality. Boxing is 90% mentality and only 10% physical.”
The first encounter between Morales and Pacquiao was one of the most highly anticipated fights of the year. The event drew a crowd of 14,423 to the MGM Grand and repeatedly brought fans to their feet. Pacquiao started fast and won the first and third rounds on all three scorecards. But Morales stood his ground and rallied in the middle and late rounds, winning the fourth, fifth and sixth rounds on two scorecards, then eighth, tenth and eleventh on all three. Pacquiao was cut over the right eye in the fifth round and after the fight he said that the cut impaired his vision and affected his performance very badly.
“I couldn’t see with just one eye. If I’m not cut on one eye, I think I can knock him out. But I did my best and gave everyone a good fight,” he said in an interview right after the match.
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