Pacquiao busy with more than just training -- ESPN

By Dan Rafael, ESPN.com

Manny Pacquiao is a busy man in the lead-up to his junior middleweight title bout with Antonio Margarito on Nov. 13 (HBO PPV) at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

That busy schedule seems to have trainer Freddie Roach a bit concerned about Pacquiao's focus. However, immediately following his training session on Friday at Roach's Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, Calif., Pacquiao -- a freshman congressman in the Philippines -- will fly on a private plane with promoter Bob Arum to Las Vegas, home to a large Filipino population, and formally endorse U.S. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who is locked in a tough re-election bid, at a rally at a high school. "Senator Reid has been a great leader in the Senate. He works hard and has a good heart," Pacquiao said. "I think it's important that Nevadans re-elect him."

• Since most of us don't fly on private planes, if you find yourself on American Airlines in the coming weeks, the November issue of American Way, the official in-flight magazine for the air carrier, features Pacquiao on the cover with a story written by Gary Andrew Poole, whose book on Pacquiao, "PacMan," was just released. According to Top Rank, the magazine boasts a readership of 3.9 million, the highest readership of any in-flight magazine. "American Way is very selective and finicky about the celebrities we choose to highlight on our cover," editor Adam Pitluk said. "Because of our international reach, we're very careful to only pick those celebrities who are at the very top of their profession in the fields of cinema, television, music and sports. Manny Pacquiao has demonstrated, both in the ring and out, that he's not only one of the best boxers in the world, but his charity and love of country have propelled him to the very heights of humanity. We are honored to feature the PacMan on the November 1, 2010, cover of American Way."

• Pacquiao will also make his third prefight appearance on ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live" on Nov. 1, along with movie star Will Ferrell. Pacquiao was on the Los Angeles-based show before his fight against Miguel Cotto and before he faced Joshua Clottey. Pacquiao, who enjoys singing, sang a love song on both past episodes. Expect to see him sing again.

• On Nov. 7, Pacquiao will be profiled on CBS' long-running "60 Minutes" newsmagazine show. Correspondent Bob Simon traveled around the world with Pacquiao and his team to tell his story (including interviewing Pacquiao again this week).

• Margarito doesn't have nearly as much hoopla surrounding him going into the fight, but he does have one interesting endorsement deal. Affliction, the Los Angeles-based clothing company, has an "all or nothing" sponsorship deal with Margarito for the fight.

Although Affliction and Margarito have had a long-standing association, there was some trepidation on Affliction's behalf given the controversy that surrounds Margarito because of the hand-wrap scandal he was embroiled in last year. So Margarito suggested an "all or nothing" sponsorship deal based on the outcome of the fight. If he beats Pacquiao, Affliction will pay him the amount of money they agreed on for wearing its products during the lead-up to the fight. If he loses, he will forfeit his fee. "I have full confidence that I am going to beat Manny Pacquiao, and this deal I have made with Affliction reinforces that confidence," Margarito said. "The look of the Affliction clothing is perfect for my boxing style and I appreciate that they are willing to continue to support me for this fight. I will be taking their money home, too." Said Affliction's Tom Atencio, "Affliction believes in giving people second chances, and Margarito deserves that opportunity with this fight and our support of his efforts. For his part, Margarito, who was once one of the most feared boxers in the welterweight class, has a lot at stake in the upcoming match. He fights not only for the WBC title, but also for his reputation and the respect of fans. Although he is under a lot of scrutiny, his decision to not play things safely shows heart, and there's something to be said for that kind of determination."

Source: espn.go.com