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THE
fighter with the bigger heart and better mental focus
will win this weekend’s ring extravaganza, according to
Manny Pacquiao’s American adviser, Michael Koncz.
Koncz
told the BusinessMirror he expects both Pacquiao and
world champion David Diaz to be in their best possible
shape come fight night as both gladiators seemed to have
prepared without any major hassle.
“Training is fine and Manny is only doing some little
things to get everything right. Diet is the last thing
to worry about as he is having a steady, regular diet,”
Koncz said in an overseas call Wednesday.
Koncz
said the 29-year-old southpaw Pacquiao is just a pound
over the 135 limit and expects to see the three-division
champion worry-free during the official weigh-in of the
fight scheduled Saturday (Sunday morning).
Koncz
said he’s been gauging Pacquiao’s focus the past few
days and has been giving him updates on the details of
the world-lightweight battle scheduled Saturday night
(Sunday morning in Manila) at the Mandalay Bay Events
Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“Manny
is not taking Diaz lightly and he is not listening to
talks about Diaz being an easy foe. He knows Diaz is a
live opponent and Manny is very focused for this fight,”
said Koncz.
“Both
will not quit no matter how beaten up they are because
these two fighters are known for their big hearts,” he
added.
Based on
the latest online-betting odds, Koncz said Pacquiao is a
5-1 favorite.
Third
man on the ring will be veteran referee Vic Drakulich,
who also worked the third Pacquiao-Erik Morales fight
time. Judges are CJ Ross, Paul Smith and Gary Merrit.
Diaz,
32, will defend his World Boxing Council (WBC)
lightweight crown against Pacquiao, the current
super-featherweight champion, who is eyeing his fourth
world crown after winning belts in the flyweight and
super-bantamweight divisions.
Diaz,
who owns a 12-round decision over Morales in August,
talked in his blog about his full concentration for his
upcoming title defense.
“I train
hard and expect to be at my best on Saturday night.
That’s been my sole focus for the fight. Fans and media
will say what they want but when the bell rings, it’s
just Manny and I fighting. And you guys watching,” said
Diaz in his blog at the Chicago Sun-Times.
In a
separate Philippine radio interview recently, Diaz’s
trainer Jim Strickland said they never implemented any
major changes in their training as they are confident
that Diaz’s innate talent would be enough to beat
Pacquiao.
“There
will be little changes. We just emphasize on what we do
best and they are being aggressive, being in top
condition, to punch every minute, because we feel we can
outpunch Pacquiao as busy as he is,” said Strickland
“The
very nature of these two fighters means there’s going to
be a lot of beating. I just see us winning the way we
won over Morales. A close, maybe to many, a debatable
decision,” he added.
Reigning
world bantamweight champion Gerry Peñalosa said a
southpaw fighter like Pacquiao will always have a hard
time fighting a fellow lefty like Diaz.
“I am a
southpaw and, to be honest, I prefer fighting southpaws
more than an orthodox. Fighting a fellow left-hander
lessens the possibility of head butts and awkward
collisions,” said Peñalosa in a radio interview.
The
35-year-old Peñalosa, who is still in negotiations for a
fight this year, is set to fly to Las Vegas and root for
Pacquiao, his bosom buddy and regular running partner
when both were training at the Wild Card Gym. |
