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Manny Pacquiao yesterday said he will try his
best to avert any ambition of Mexican icon Marco Antonio
Barrera of forcing a rubbermatch of their classic duel.
This was
Pacquiao’s reaction yesterday in an interview with
BusinessMirror before the hard-hitting southpaw started
his training at the Wild Card Gym in Sucat, Parañaque.
“Gagawin
ko ang lahat ng aking makakaya para mapanalo ang
fight. Sabik na din ako na makaharap si Barrera,”
said Pacquiao.
Pacquiao
was reacting to insinuations about him not giving his
all in this return bout with Barrera as a third battle
will mean another mouthwatering multimillion-dollar
clash with the Mexican.
“Concentrate naman ako palagi sa pag-eensayo.
Maraming masu-surprise sa
plano namin,”
said Pacquiao.
MANNY PACQUIAO stresses
training here in the Philippines is part of their
strategy. -- DENNIS
PRINCIPE
Yesterday was Pacquiao’s second day of training after he
unexpectedly came back Monday morning from a short trip
in the United States where he attended the press
conference of his fight with Barrera late last week in
Los Angeles.
Pacquiao
said plans are firming up about holding his training
camp in Cebu, specifically in the refurbished gym of
close ally and international promoter Rex “Wakee” Salud.
“Mas
maganda na dito mag-ensayo kasi mainit ang panahon kaya
mas madaling pawisan dito. Isa pa, hindi natin alam baka
magpadala si Barrera ng tao na kunwari fans
pero inaalam na pala ’yung paghahanda ko,” said
Pacquiao, who was scheduled to fly to Cebu last night.
The
28-year-old Pacquiao is expecting American Freddie Roach
to arrive tomorrow from Los Angeles along with newly crowned World Boxing Organization (WBO) bantamweight
champion Gerry Peñalosa.
“Ok
na kay Freddie dito kami mag-ensayo. Siguro naman
matitigil na din ang isyu na magkagalit daw kami,”
added Pacquiao. “Ang hindi alam ng maraming tao,
strategy talaga namin na dito mag-ensayo sa Pilipinas.”
Pacquiao
revealed that his sparring partners composed of two
Mexican welterweights are scheduled to arrive in the
country within the week.
Pacquiao
will face Barrera on October 6 at the Mandalay Bay in
Las Vegas, Nevada. Pacquiao beat Barrera in their
initial encounter by scoring a brutal 11th round
technical knockout victory in November 2003 at the
Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas.
Although
Barrera will be almost four years older since their
first meeting, Pacquiao still deems the Mexican as a
serious threat.
“Siguro
mas babagal siya ngayon pero hindi naman magbabago ang
lakas niya,” said Pacquiao.
In his
regimen at the Wild Card Gym owned by former business
manager Rod Nazario, Pacquiao did some shadow boxing,
punch mitts and skipping rope with Filipino trainer
Buboy Fernandez.
In the
same interview, Pacquiao felt bad about those attacking
his every move, saying he deserves to get a treatment
fit for a boxing idol.
“Parang
balewala naman ’yung nagawa ko para sa bansa natin.
Sana ‘yung totoo lang isulat tungkol sa akin. Madalas naman talaga
binabalewala ko ang mga ’yun pero minsan sobra na kaya
hindi ko maiwasan na mag-react
na ako,” said Pacquiao.
Meanwhile, Pacquiao praised the performance of his good
buddy Peñalosa, the country’s third reigning world
champion.
Pacquiao
said he just asked Peñalosa to show more aggressiveness
in his fight against Jhonny Gonzalez in their 12-round
world bantamweight battle last weekend.
“Sinabi
ko sa kaniya na ibalato mo na sa akin ’yung panalo.
Isipin mo na lang na kapag natalo ka, tapos na ang
career mo sa boxing,” revealed Pacquiao. “Tiwala
ako sa skills niya kaya sabi ko maging
aggressive lang siya at makukuha niya ang titulo.”
The
35-year-old Peñalosa was about to be dominated by the
rangy and younger Gonzalez as the Filipino was being
peppered with stiff jabs and strong combinations halfway
through their battle.
Peñalosa,
just like what Pacquiao asked him to do, showed
aggressiveness the whole time by stalking Gonzalez that
finally paid off in the seventh round when the Filipino
got the proper distance in unleashing a vicious left
hook to the body.
The blow
was so fierce that Gonzalez went down on his knees in
the neutral corner where he tried to catch his breath
for a few minutes.
Though
Peñalosa is contemplating on retiring, Pacquiao feels
Peñalosa is good for at most three fights.
“Pwede
pa si Gerry kasi wala naman siyang bisyo. Pero
dapat idepensa niya muna ’yung title niya,”
said Pacquiao.
Pacquiao
insists Peñalosa should defend his crown first before
considering the calls for a rematch with world
super-bantamweight champion Daniel Ponce de Leon of
Mexico.
Peñalosa
lost a lopsided but controversial decision to Ponce de
Leon the last time they met last March in
Las Vegas. |
