The Manny Pacquiao – Mike Tyson Comparison: A Lesson to be Learned -- Ringside Report

By Geno McGahee, Ringside Report

The year is 1990 and the undefeated, undisputed Heavyweight Champion of the world, Iron Mike Tyson heads to Tokyo to defend his title against the 42-1 underdog, James “Buster” Douglas, a fighter seen as a no-hoper and so bad that they could not find a home for the fight in the states. Tokyo elected to buy it and bring over the monster that was walking over his competition with ease.

Tyson was on a rampage, destroying former long time champion Larry Holmes (KO-4), undefeated light heavyweight turned heavyweight champion, Michael Spinks (KO-1), British top contender Frank Bruno (TKO-5), and Carl Williams (KO-1) along the way. He was a destroyer with power in both hands, aggressive and dangerous and sat atop the boxing world as the most popular pugilist in the game. The little known Douglas would not be a problem.

Douglas was known as a mediocrity that ran out of steam due in large part to his lack of conditioning and focus on the game. He was stopped by lesser opposition like Tony Tucker and Mike White, and didn’t appear to present much of a threat, but on fight night, he came in ready and focused, weighing in at 231 pounds.

Going into the fight there was talk that Tyson was not mentally prepared for a tough fight. In sparring, Greg Page floored him with a right hand. Tyson wasn’t sharp and had to lose a great deal of weight to look presentable for the fight. He weighed in at 220 pounds.

February 11th, 1990, the biggest upset in boxing occurred in front of a quiet audience in Japan, as Buster Douglas pounded his left jab into the face of the aggressive Tyson and followed up with right hands that landed with regularity. In the tenth round an uppercut hurt Tyson and a follow up combination sent him down for the count. The boxing world was shocked to see Iron Mike down and out of the fight, a historic upset, but the writing was on the wall.

Manny “PacMan” Pacquiao is heading into his November 13th showdown with underdog Antonio Margarito and you can’t help but to draw the similarities between this and the Tyson-Douglas fight.

As first reported by RSR, Pacquiao was stopped in sparring by Amir Khan. The event was later verified by Freddie Roach. Much like Greg Page did to Tyson, Khan did to Pacquiao and when you add that to the lack of focus on this showdown, all the elements are there for an upset.

Like Tyson, Manny is facing a taller opponent with a lot of motivation. Margarito has claimed innocence regarding his loaded gloves, a claim that has been widely dismissed by anyone with any boxing knowledge and that isn’t tied to the Margarito camp. He is shunned by most of boxing, but Bob Arum has stepped up and used his influence to convince Texas to let him fight and now the reward of getting beaten up by Pacquiao and making a payday may actually turn into much more.

Manny has been slowly turning into a monster outside of the ring. Like any other star athlete, especially a national hero like Manny is, there is the inclination to buy your own press and his ego has been growing. As documented in 24/7, HBO’s hit series leading up to many of the perceived major fights, Roach’s control of his fighter has been reduced and there is now a struggle to maintain the camp he wants. His frustration comes out regularly to the press because Pacquiao is not listening and he’s paying a price for it.

Like Tyson, Manny now has this indestructible label, and Margarito isn’t seen as much of a challenge. Going into this fight, Manny has made easy work of Oscar De La Hoya (TKO-8), Ricky Hatton (KO-2), Miguel Cotto (KO-12), and Joshua Clottey (UD-12). The question isn’t who is going to beat Manny, it’s how long can they survive the punishment?

Margarito’s last notable fight was against Shane Mosley. His world crumbled that night and so did he, losing by TKO in dominant fashion to the old warrior. Later on, his hand wraps would be examined and they were proven to have plaster of Paris within and so the suspension began and we all hoped it would be a lifetime away from the sport, but this is boxing and anything apparently goes.

Mosley was exposed as a spent force by Floyd Mayweather, JR., and it may shed light on Margarito’s skills when he’s not packing bricks inside of his gloves. If an old and shot Mosley can destroy Margarito when he’s on the level, what will Pacquiao do?

A prepared Pacquiao destroys him and does it early and perhaps he can do it when he’s not totally focused. I’m not sure that Margarito can win under any circumstances unless he loads his gloves, but this is boxing and if Manny is not focused, we could have another monumental upset, just as we did in 1990 with Mike Tyson falling at the hands of James Douglas.

The Tyson-Douglas fight has set the standard for an elite fighter coming into a fight unfocused and ill prepared against a lesser opponent, only to lose because they were not ready to fight. Is Pacquiao’s head so big now that he will not heed the warning? Like the rest of boxing, does he only consider Floyd Mayweather, JR., a real challenge? If so, he could be in for a rude awakening.

November 13th is right around the corner and the writing is on the wall for an upset. When a fighter reaches a certain point, the distractions are many, and the man climbing the mountain is usually more hungry then the one standing atop, and it will be interesting to see if Manny can get his head together and perform well come fight night. I still expect him to win with ease, but the recent reports from his training camp are bothersome. This could very well be his last fight and he could be leaving the sport on his back.

Source: ringsidereport.com

Team Margarito continues preparation, Garcia talks aftermath of Cotto victory -- Examiner

By Chris Robinson, Examiner.com

In less than a week’s time Antonio Margarito and his team will find themselves in Dallas, Texas for their November 13th bout with Manny Pacquiao at Cowboys Stadium. Despite being a heavy underdog and having dealt with the aftermath of his January 2009 hand wrap scandal, Margarito is extremely focused heading into the bout and the overall vibe in his camp has been very care free.

Earlier today Margarito and his trainer Robert Garcia continued their training for the contest at the coach’s personal facility in Oxnard, California. Garcia insists that the core of the hard work has been complete and by the time they arrive in Texas they will be focusing solely on cutting down Margarito’s weight.

“I’ve been maintaining him right at 158, 156,” Garcia said last week during Margarito’s open media workout in Los Angeles. “Sometimes he gets back up to 159, 160 and around there. The last week or so is when we will cut down.”

Those numbers were fairly peculiar, as Garcia advised me well over a month ago that Margarito was hovering around 159 pounds, but the former world champion obviously feels he has a handle on the situation. On this day Margarito could be seen sporting a sweat suit, which typically is associated with a fighter trying to cut serious pounds, but when looking at Margarito’s physique he certainly didn’t appear weight drained during his workout for the press on Thursday.

When thinking of Margarito’s chances in this bout many people are turning to his July 2008 TKO over Miguel Cotto at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada. In that fight Margarito took over the contest with sheer pressure and nonstop activity, dropping the brave Boricua in twice late in the fight before registering an 11th round stoppage. It was an excellent showcase of breaking an opponent’s will but Garcia feels that benchmark performance was also hindering to Margarito’s career.

“After the Cotto fight he was on top of the world,” Garcia said. “Everywhere he traveled he just had a good time. He was just loving life at that point and he spent too much time out of the gym. When he came back to get ready for the [Mosley] fight, six weeks before the fight he was close to forty pounds overweight. That in itself, to lose forty pounds in six weeks, is not only a bad move but dangerous. He had to lose all that weight and going into that fight he had nothing.”

Source: examiner.com

Why no one's raising a stink about Manny Pacquiao now -- Examiner

By Michael Marley, Examiner.com

Maybe this is what they refer to as the sweet (sweat?) smell of success.

Not to make a stink about but, while I’m so happy for Manny Pacquiao now that he is peddling his own brand of cologne, I do have some burning questions about this.

For starters, why is it called MP 7—as revealed by TV host Jimmy Kimmel in a shameless commercial plug Monday night on the Kimmel gabfest on ABC?

This spilled out, so to speak, before Pacman and comic actor Will Ferrell did a good-humored duet on the John Lennon peacenik anthem, “Imagine.”

I mean, I can understand the unwashed masses wanting to eliminate their Hobo Stank by splashing themselves with Eau de Pacman, sure.

But, if Manny does the expected and beats Antonio Margarito in his 57th pro bout Nov. 13 at Cowboys Stadium, does someone run around and change all the labels to MP 8, denoting the Pinoy Idol’s eighth world title in eight weight divisions?

Somehow, then, MP 7 won’t smell as sweet. In fact, it might take on the odor stale socks left in a corner of the Wild Card Gym on a hot and funky day.

Second query is why others essential to the Pacquiao success story are not similarly honored?

As helpful as ever, I’ve come up with a few ideas and possible names for such, as follows:

Yesterday I Had An Overpowering Stench, Today I Smell Like A Rose Garden: Bob Arum.

Joy Of Jinkee: For Manny’s businesswoman-wife, Jinkee.

Buboy In A Bottle: Essence of trainer Buboy Fernandez.

That Todd-ling Town: TR president, Arum stepson Todd du Boef.

Feeling Totally Freddie: Coach Roach’s cologne which obviously cannot be called Irish Spring or Roach Motel.

Hermie With No Germies: Journalist, man about the archipelago, political operative Hermenegildo “Hermie” Rivera.

Ramos Gin Fizz: Pacquaio’s henchman and Warren Buffett disciple, Joe Ramos.

Pulverizing Peters: Odor of security maven Rob Peters as he makes throngs of pacfans part like the red Sea when they get too close to MP.

Pepper Spray: Jail-tested cologne which also makes you laugh for Coach Freddie’s colorful brother and ex-fighter, Pepper Roach.

Yukon Yak: Unmistakabe odor of the Canadian tundra in mid-January, for Pacman agent Mike Koncz.

Smells Like Plaster In Paris: You’ve got to hand it to Antonio Margarito.

(mlcmarley@aol.com)

Source: examiner.com

Freddie Roach Says “The World Knows That Floyd [Mayweather] Is Ducking Manny Pacquiao At This Point” -- Eastside Boxing

By James Slater, Eastside Boxing

While fight fans still hope for a Manny Pacquiao-Floyd Mayweather Junior clash, Pac-Man’s trainer Freddie Roach says he has all but given up on the idea of the fight ever happening.

HBO’s Ross Greenburg is still optimistic the fight will go ahead, at the third time of asking, next spring, but Roach, in a recent interview with Yahoo Sports, said he feels the super-fight is one destined to go on the “it never happened list..”

“I don’t think it will ever happen,” Roach said quietly. “It will be one of those fights we’re never going to see. I would’ve happened by now. $40 million guarantee for both sides, plus pay-per-view. How can you turn that down? Boxing’s a sport but it’s a business also.

“The world knows that Floyd is ducking Manny Pacquiao at this point. I think Floyd’s content beating mediocre-type opponents with styles he can beat and he’ll stay away from southpaws like Manny Pacquiao.”

Usually, such words from a member of the opposite side from his opinion would result in a response from “Money.” But as we all know, Mayweather Junior has been incredibly and uncharacteristically silent as of late; due to the amount of trouble he got himself into the last time he launched into an anti-Pacquiao tirade. Then there’s Floyd’s well publicised legal troubles (he is due in court later this month, for allegedly hitting the mother of two of his children).

But with all that’s going on around him, it must be tough for the self-proclaimed greatest fighter in history to keep so quiet. With Pac-Man currently the undisputed number-one star in all of boxing, Mayweather must surely be feeling a little jealous. Will this jealousy, along with a desire to prove he is the best in the sport P-4-P, not Pacquaio, finally force Mayweather to sign for the fight?

Assuming he beats the rap on November 9th and remains free, will the soon-to-be 34-year-old agree to terms and get it on with Pac-Man next spring as Greenburg feels could be the case? We can certainly hope so, even if Freddie Roach has seemingly lost all hope for the fight ever happening.

But is Mayweather afraid of the lethal southpaw who is a hero to millions, as Roach claims? Until we see him step into the ring with Pacquiao, many people will think so. In terms of public opinion at least, Pacquiao is not the man who turned the fight down, Mayweather is.

Source: eastsideboxing.com

The King Of Sing: Pacquiao Duets With Will Ferrell On Kimmel -- The Sweet Science

By Michael Woods, The Sweet Science

The world's best fighter, a Congressman..AND blessed with vocal chords of gold.

Can Manny Pacquiao be any more blessed?

Viewers tuning in to "The Jimmy Kimmel Show" were treated to the dulcet tones of the seven division world champion Pacquiao showing his vocal chops, as he belted out John Lennon's "Imagine" on Monday night.

First, Pacquiao chatted with Kimmel, who drew guffaws when he showed a pic of Manny yawning enthusiastically during his first Congressional session. Manny giggled.

The fighter said he wasn't in session, because Congress is on break. He told viewers that he a fellow public servant introduced a bill to give Freddie Roach citizenship. Kimmel lobbied for the same, and Manny said "maybe."

Kimmel said Margarito would "hammer" Margarito, and labeled him a "cheater." Roach will watch the wrapping to make sure Margarito won't be pulling any funny business, Manny told Jimmy.

Manny showed his cologne, which Kimmel said "smells like a fist," and is called "MP 7." The manufacturer is working on number 8. (ASIDE TO THE MISSUS: This would make a fab stocking stuffer. I've always wanted to smell like Pacman.)

Manny said he feels strong and confident about the fight.

He then did what we all tuned in for, belt. Pacquiao sat next to funnyman Will Ferrell, and handled the second verse after Ferrell kicked it off. "Imagine there's no country/It isn't hard to do/Nothing to kill or die for/No religion too," sang the God fearing hitter. "Imagine all the people/Living life in peace...Ohhhohhhh," he sang, hitting the high note with precision.

They stared into each others' eyes, a la John and Yoko, and one could feel the love Lennon imagined. I do believe Manny has found himself a new signature song. Sorry, Dan Hill..

Source: thesweetscience.com

Distractions in Pacquiao camp persists -- PhilBoxing

By Eddie Alinea, PhilBoxing.com

LOS ANGELES, CA – Even the vast body of water that divides his country and the United States failed to cut down the distractions that have been affecting Manny Pacquiao’s preparations for his coming World Boxing Council super-welterweight title fight with Mexican Antonio Margarito.

This, chief trainer Freddie Roach must have found this out a week after transferring Pacquiao’s training camp from Baguio City to his famous Wild Card here.

Days after arriving here, the Congressman from Sarangani province in Mindanao travelled to San Diego to coach his team in a game there.

The 31-year-old seven-division champ was scheduled to appear in the Jimmy Kimmel’s show Monday night (Tuesday morning in Manila), such appearance in the popular program where he belted out a song each in his first guesting.

Another television appearance is scheduled this Sunday at the “60 Minutes” where he has been a familiar figure each time he has a fight coming.

Count the hordes of US.-based Filipino fans that troop to the Wild Card gym at the heart of Hollywood each day in the final two weeks of his preparations that remain Roach nightmare.

And to think that Roach himself had breathed a sigh of relief on the day Team Pacquiao left Manila thinking that, at long last, the “Pacman”, who is facing probably his toughest foe in the “Tijuana Tornado, had freed from the many disturbances that hounded the first four-week of his training.

There was the foot injury caused by playing basketball that cancelled his first sparring day and a mild case of flu that cut off the entire day of training session.

Then his frequent visit to Manila in the course of his duties as representative of his province in the Lower House. All those, Roach taught, would have been water under the bridge by now.

These led the 50-year-old former miler-turned trainer to describe his current preparations as the “worst” since establishing his partnership with the world’s pound-for-pound king 10 years ago.

Distractions or no distractions, Roach still believes though that the remaining two weeks of preparations can still produce the results he wants – make Pacquiao in tip top form so that comes Nov. 13 (Nov. 14 in Manila) at the huge Dallas Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, he will emerged the winner as when he did in his last 13 fights.

“Distractions always marked our preparations in the past and we managed to overcome them. We still can in the last weeks before the fight,” Roach said in a telephone interview last night from his residence.

“As in the past, I don’t think Manny will let distractions affect his performance,” he said obviously by way of allaying fears expressed by many of Pacquiao’s seeming overconfident. He knows Margarito is bigger and heftier than he is.”

“He knows what to do. He knows our plan and strategy. Our job right now is to recover his fighting condition. To make him bigger and stronger without losing his speed. And I think we’re still on track,” he said.

“The key is how the boxer trains. The key is in diet and discipline, in determination and drive, Roach said.

Source: philboxing.com

24/7 Review II: Should Manny-aics Be Worried About "Worst Camp?" -- The Sweet Science

By Michael Woods, The Sweet Science

We are less than two weeks away from seeing if Manny Pacquiao can climb another mountain, this one a (sort of) junior middleweight named Margarito.

Should Margarito prevail, the Mexican born hitter, who lives with dark cloud of suspicion hanging over his head, after being busted trying to wear hardened hand wraps into the ring to fight Shane Mosley in 2009, will achieve redemption. For all intents and purposes, we will by and large forgive, if not totally forget that Margarito, or, his trainer, acting as the lone gunman, tried to gain an illegal edge against Mosley. And, many of us surmise, he'd likely done it before. But if Margarito, at 32 1/2, with much rust to shed after being put on hiatus against his will, by the California commission, which yanked his license for a year, can take out Pacquiao, we will tip our cap to him. We will acknowledge that he is a warrior, a true battler who doesn't need a foreign object or two to get it done.

On the second installment of HBO's exemplary 24/7, viewers see Margarito in camp, listening to trainer Robert Garcia, and working to get ready against the speediest hitter he's ever met.

"When I beat Manny Pacquiao, there will be lots of fighters who want to work with you," Margarito says of Garcia. HBO introduced us properly to Garcia, telling us that his parents toiled in the strawberry fields of Oxnard, for about 30 years. His dad, Eduardo, was the head trainer at Oxnard's La Colonia Gym, and brought his son Robert to prominence, to a 130 pound crown. The son said he has taken to training more than fighting ("I was too nice").

Back to Team Pacquiao--Pacman put together a party for Michael Koncz, his advisor, who got married in Baguiao. The Congressman worked the room, at the mike, and we saw that he doesn't just do sappy ballads, he can rock.

He worked with sparring partner Amir Khan, Roach's second most prominent client, and in my estimation, a fighter who will jump up into the pound for pound top ten after his next fight, against Marcos Maidana (Dec. 11, in Vegas).

Roach said the five week camp in the Philippines has been up and down, with more bad days than usual. He's looking forward to getting Manny to California, away from the hassle of the acolytes and political aides.

Margarito is already in Cali, and we see him get some R n R with his crew. Tomorrow, he says to wife Michelle, it will be back to the grind, up until camp breaks on November 6. That night, Garcia, Michelle and Tony watch the Pacman-Clottey scrap. Garcia says he thinks Tony will have the strength edge as he watches the Congressman get angles, as good as anyone in the biz, on the Ghanian. Yes, Pacman has speed, but what else, he says. "Don't get impatient. Stay calm the whole time," the trainer counsels. Tony compares Clottey to a heavy bag, and says he won't be the same static target. Garcia says the more he studies Pacman in action, the more holes he sees.

Manny, meanwhile, skips a training session to meet his nation's President, Benigno Aquino III. Then, in sparring, Manny is flat. A change of scenario will be welcomed by Roach.

They head to the airport, and Roach tells us that Manny doesn't get the wand treatment, or the nude xray treatment, that he can waltz on to the plane without a security check. The crew gets to LAX after 13 hours in the air. They are welcomed by a gaggle of Manny-iacs, and then they drive to his condo.

At Garcia's gym, we see the crew get a giggle when a jokester brings a chunk of concrete and hands it to Garcia as he wraps Tony's hands. The whole gym explodes into laughter. To me, this is an interesting interlude..would a truly guilty conscience, and a crew who know the "truth," engage in such joviality?

Brandon Rios, another Garcia client, busts on Pacman, calling him an a-hole as they all leaf through an issue of Ring. He admits that he though Margarito would be a "dick" but he's been impressed. "He's a cool ass dude," he says of the fighter who he thought would be a Cartel type. Rios, age 24, has been soaking up the training methods of Margarito. "Tony's a hard worker, he's a beast, he kills himself in the gym, this guy's the hardest working man in the business. He ain't gonna play around, he's just going to eff up this dude," Rios says. The young fight is beefing up Margarito's confidence, saying he thinks Manny and Roach are scared, and theorizing that maybe Manny will pull out of the fight.

At the Wild Card, Roach says this camp was "probably our worst camp ever." But now, he says, Manny will be properly focused. But he and fitness coach Alex Ariza are miffed that promoter Bob Arum asked Manny to come to Vegas that Friday. There's two weeks left in camp, Ariza says, disapprovingly.

On Friday, we see Manny in Vegas, plugging Senator Harry Reid's campaign. Ariza shakes his head, and seems legitimately worried. Margarito, we see, doesn't have any such pulls on his time.

TSS-EM says this is all much ado about not much. Speed, and the ability to whale away at the rusty Mexican because of his superior footwork, will bring Pacman a decision win, by a wide margin.

Source: thesweetscience.com

Manny Pacquiao, Will Ferrell Sing 'Imagine' On Jimmy Kimmel Live -- FanHouse

By Lem Satterfield, FanHouse

During his third appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Monday night, seven-division champion and WBO welterweight (147 pounds) king Manny Pacquiao unveiled the fact that one of his first acts as a newly-elected Filipino congressman was to introduce a bill that would grant citizenship in the Philippines to his trainer, Freddie Roach.

The 31-year-old Pacquiao (51-3-2, 38 knockouts) also introduced a cologne, MP-7, named in honor of his seven belts in as many divisions, and promised to come up with MP-8 if he earns an eighth crown on Nov. 13, when he pursues the vacant WBC junior middleweight (154 pounds) crown opposite ex-titlist Antonio Margarito (38-6, 27 KOs) in their HBO pay-per-view televised, Top Rank Promotions battle slated for the Dallas Cowboys' Stadium.

Pacquiao, who takes a 12-fight winning streak that includes eight KOs into his bout with Margarito, closed out his effort with a duet of John Lennon'ss classic, "Imagine," alongside comic actor Will Ferrell.

Appearances on Jimmy Kimmel Live have been a good omen for Pacquiao.

For nearly a year ago to the day on Nov. 3, Pacquiao made his first appeareance on the Jimmy Kimmel Live Show, that one being two weeks prior to his 12th-round knockout that dethroned Miguel Cotto as WBO king.

Pacquiao was on Jimmy Kimmel Live, yet again, on March 3, preceding his 12-round unanimous decision over Joshua Clottey on March 13 in the first-ever fight at Cowboys Stadium.

Pacquiao has been named Fighter Of The Year in 2008, 2009, and, for 2010, as well as Fighter Of The Decade.

Source: boxing.fanhouse.com

The killing fields: under the skin of Manny Pacquiao from rags to riches -- Telegraph

By Gareth A Davies, Telegraph.co.uk

Last week, I intimated in this weblog that there was a stasis smothering the training venue used in Hollywood, Los Angeles, by Manny Pacquiao. The Filipino seven-weight world champion continues to mystify with his ring skills, but arguably draw even more fans to his ‘work’ through his investiture into the murky world of politics in The Philippines.

The build-up to his latest contest – in a ring in Dallas on Nov 13 – is now laced intriguingly. Has Pacquiao crossed over mentally into the political sphere ? Is he revelling too greatly in US media stardom ? Is his physical prowess waning ?

In LA last week, it was intriguing to witness how an industry, rather an entourage, follows Pacquiao’s every step. Were I to be following a British sportsperson living through a similar vein, of such stature, no doubt I’d be tripping over a papparazzo lurking in every hallway. Instead, it is a steady stream of writers and journalists – and some would say hangers-on – following and annotating the 31-year-old’s remarkable life.

As boxing correspondent for TMG, I’m could be accused of bias, yet Pacquiao’s story is one which in my view is under-sold, under-told in western media circles. For example, it seems incredible that last year, or even in previous years, that the Laureus World Sports Academy, made up of three decades of sporting stars, failed to recognise Pacquiao’s acheivements.

This is a man who rose from the shanty towns to global fame as a pugilist, who now wishes to use his role as a Congressman to change poverty amongst the people he grew up around. The best sports story on earth.

My vote, as a member of the several-hundred strong journalists’ panel worldwide, was for the Filipino fighting whirlwind. But the awards appear to go to tennis players, golfers, footballers and Olympians. You can keep Tiger Woods, Andrew Murray, Lewis Hamilton and the like. They pale in comparison to Pacquiao.

No disrespect intended towards their acheivements. But what will they do when the shoulder or knee, or their brilliance in hand-eye condition have gone, or even withered slightly ? They won’t be changing lives in Scotland, Stevenage or across the US…

A nice cushy commentary role, and a few PR appearances for major companies. Conversely, Pacquiao wants to put his life at risk for change. He has added Congressman (the only one) for Sarangani Province to his burgeoning boxing portfolio. In eleven days’ time, he meets Antonio Margarito, at light-middleweight, having come up eight weight divisions from flyweight. Thick neck, big head, powerful shoulders have helped the climb up those divisions. Deep belief, and the burden of a people continue to carry him.

Bob Arum, erstwhile promoter to Muhammad Ali, has the increasing sense that Pacquiao will go on and capture the hearts and minds of his people. Arum is convinced Pacquiao will become President, though that is some years from now. For one must have reached 37 to be elected President of that country.

Last week, I spent a fine evening in the company of Gary Andrew Poole, a US journalist who has ghosted around Manny Pacquiao for his last few mega-fights. We shared a fine meal at Animal, in West Hollywood, and he told me his fascination for the little big man. It is, indeed, a mutual fascination. The result is a fine biography ‘Pacman’, published this week by Da Capo Press.

Poole, based in LA, has visited Pacquiao’s humble beginnings and charts his rise from poverty to politics. He found Pacquiao’s relationship with his compatriots compelling. “I went to see him in parliament, I went to speak to people who have known him from the beginning. It was staggering wherever we went [Poole joined the election campaign earlier in the year]. Thousands of people followed his every move, kids were hanging from trees in every town square. Politicians can be incredibly boring. He certainly isn’t. I don’t speak his language, but when he got up there, it was like a rally every time he spoke. I had a translator. He told the people - ‘I’m one of you, I grew up like you, and I want to make a change…’ – Everyone there was transfixed like he was a rock and roll star, and a Martin Luther King figure. They really do look up to him. They even want to touch him, just touch his shirt, like it is touching God, and he is incredibly compelling. He doesn’t quite translate in the English language in the same way, yet he does come up with profound things. I have sat with him numerous times in the Wild Card Gym, and he is a master of not saying too much.”

Poole added: “But he definitely has something about him, this charisma, a high destiny perhaps, a higher belief … people respect him, they connect with him. Puerto Ricans love him, he might be called The Mexicutioner, but people in the hispanic communities also connect with him. They love him, because there’s something about him which speaks to everyone living in poverty.”

“He’s a genuine guy. I think the sports world is…well everyone is full of sh**, but this guy isn’t full of sh**. Part of his appeal, his global celebrity, is that he’s a real guy, and he doesn’t take advantage of his fame. It will be interesting to see if it gives him long-term appeal.”

Poole has written a cover story for American Airlines this month, November, on Pacquiao, adapted from his book, Pacman. It tells the rags to riches story of this remarkable boxer who has begun a journey which will see him transcend the sport.

Last week, while there, I also ventured into the explosive world of MMA Fanhouse’s Elie Seckbach, the liveliest of videographers for AOL. We had a little fun in Nat’s Thai Food Restaurant, in the quad at the Wild Card Gym, on Vine St (Chino Trinidad, the best sports presenter/interviewer on tv in The Philippines, picked up the tab after interviewing all of us there, including Pacquiao’s ubiquitous writing ghost, Mike Marley).

As you may hear in the interview, I have genuine reservations about this contest for Manny Pacquiao against Antonio Margarito. I believe Pacquiao has the style to defeat the fighter banned for illegal hand wraps, but the noises coming out of the Filipino’s camp suggest that his mind has been on his new role as a Congressman. Margarito represents Pacquiao’s greatest challenge since his profile grew t0 being assessed in many critics’ books as boxing’s pound for pound No 1. What he needs to do now is focus his mind. Fail to do that, and he could face a loss against Margarito, who has much to prove. More analysis on the contest from Amir Khan, Freddie Roach and Alex Ariza in the next week.

Source: blogs.telegraph.co.uk

Roach sees decline in Pacquiao's performance in training -- Eastside Boxing

By Vitali Shaposhnikov, Eastside Boxing

Recently the master trainer of Manny Pacquiao, Freddie Roach, stated that thus far this has been the worst training camp ever. Freddie talked about the fact that Manny’s head is elsewhere: political business, show business, and of course everything in-between. Roach showed his disappointment that Manny skipped a day of training for his November 13th showdown with Margarito, to meet with the president of Philippines. Such statements could be purposely falsified, or simply true. While this may seem simple on paper, its aftereffects are dire.

Despite what Freddie said about Manny, my imagination doesn’t allow for any belief that Pacquiao is anything but 100% ready to face Antonio in two weeks. When Roach arrived to the Philippines a few weeks ago, he stated that Manny looked tremendous. I remember Freddie talking about Manny’s unparallel stamina and general physical state. He couldn’t stop talking about the fact that Pacquiao got right into it on the pads, and showed no rust or evidence of any time off.

Now, either Freddie changed his opinion or noticed a decline in Manny’s time investment and determination, or Freddie simply expects too much from the congressman. If it is in fact Freddie’s overwhelming demands from Pacman, this is not anything we should worry about. In this case Pacquiao will come prepared as always, and will dominate his opposition just as we are used to seeing. With the fanatical amount of effort that Manny used to put in (and maybe still does), it seems possible that Freddie Roach was spoiled by it and lost the feel for Manny’s time and energy investment.

It is just as probable, that Manny’s political career got the better of him, and all of a sudden there became much less time for boxing. Politics is not a stagnant practice: it absolutely requires meetings, speeches, and dictates scheduled appearances based on someone else’s timetable. With all that and the entertainment responsibilities (Jimmy Kimmel, Halloween at Manny’s place in Hollywood, etc) a big piece of the Manny “Pacman’ Pacquiao could be lost to anything and everything but boxing.

Personally I believe that Manny is a very determined and focused individual, and that his preparations for any and every fight never fall short of anything. I think he will come ready and set to win his bout on November 13th in Dallas. And if Roach is right in seeing some minor shortcomings popping up in Pacquiao’s boxing and his time being taken away by different nuances, than maybe Manny should ponder hanging up his gloves sooner rather than later. I’m only hoping that Pacman can close his career (win or lose) with a Mayweather Jr. fight, or trilogy!

Thanks for reading.

Source: eastsideboxing.com