PERHAPS, Manny Pacquiao is indeed taking Marco Antonio Barrera lightly as the Filipino boxing sensation—for the nth time—postponed his trip to the United States, where he is expected to start training for his upcoming bout with the Mexican legend.

Pacquiao, 28, notorious for cramming in training, missed his flight for Los Angeles the other night.

Reports reaching BusinessMirror revealed that Pacquiao is seriously considering the possibility of setting up his training camp in the country, specifically in Cebu or Davao.

“That’s absurd. There will always be distractions that Manny eventually won’t be able to handle. He should accede to the firm instruction of Freddie [Roach] to start training in his gym now,” said a source who asked not to be named.

Roach is baffled with Pacquiao’s no-show at his famed Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, California.  Roach has been adamant about the need for Pacquiao to be on his gym’s doorstep by August 1.

“Manny can beat Barrera, but Manny must be in great shape to repeat over Barrera,” Roach told BusinessMirror.

The southpaw Pacquiao is scheduled to meet Barrera on October 6 at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas.

The bout is a rematch of their initial encounter in November 2003 at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, where Pacquiao pulverized and stopped Barrera in the 11th round, a win that made the Filipino fighter what he is today.

Roach said that Barrera will definitely be a different fighter come fight night, making the Mexican a formidable threat to Pacquiao’s stardom.

Since losing to Pacquiao, the 33-year-old Barrera (63-5, 42 knockouts) racked up a 7-1 record, including a decisive win over bitter Mexican rival Erik Morales in a World Boxing Council (WBC) super-featherweight title bout in November 2004 in Las Vegas.

Barrera successfully defended the WBC belt against four topnotch foes, but lost it to another Mexican warrior, Juan Manuel Marquez, in an epic 12-round brawl held in March, also in Las Vegas.

“People around him are so concerned with the way Manny is treating his next fight. Those who’ve been begging Manny to start training are also pissed with those sycophants around him who continue to disregard the need for Manny to seriously prepare for Barrera,” said the same source.

Pacquiao’s failure to travel to the US once again jeopardizes the planned press conference this week to announce the Filipino fighter’s return encounter with Barrera.

The press conference was originally set last week, but is again postponed for tomorrow at the Beverly Hills Hotel on Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, California.

Pacquiao (44-3-2, 35 KO’s) is again reportedly scheduled to leave late last night but there were still no confirmation on the boxer’s plan to finally fly to the US as of press time.

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PERHAPS, Manny Pacquiao is indeed taking Marco Antonio Barrera lightly as the Filipino boxing sensation—for the nth time—postponed his trip to the United States, where he is expected to start training for his upcoming bout with the Mexican legend.

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If there’s one thing the Philippines should look into and take into perspective following a ninth-place finish in the Fiba-Asia Championships, it is the development of tall players who could match up with Asian opponents.